A method and system for maintaining granular backups is discussed. Backup windows may be defined, and policies may be associated with those windows. Journal and backup files may be retained or deleted in accordance with those policies.

A storage control apparatus includes a processor. The processor is configured to store, during a normal operation mode, first data as a first logical volume in a storage section of a first virtual storage device. The first data is transmitted and received between a first host device and a physical storage device. The physical storage device stores data in a physical volume. The first virtual storage device is connected to the physical storage device during the normal operation mode. The processor is configured to serve, during a data migration mode, as a pseudo host device connected to a second virtual storage device. The pseudo host device accesses the second virtual storage device to read out second data of a second logical volume stored in the second virtual storage device. The first virtual storage device is connected to the second virtual storage device during the data migration mode.

According to one embodiment, an electronic device includes a receiver and a processing circuit. The receiver is configured to receive first data related to operating statuses of storage from external devices connected through a network. The processing circuit is configured to control the external devices to save data stored in a first area in the storage of a first external device on the storage of each of two or more second external devices based on the first data received by the receiver.

A method by a backup application server for data backup. The method includes profiling a performance capability of a host that is to execute backup of data, profiling a property of the data, and sending the performance capability of the host and the property of the data to a rule engine module to determine a backup configuration parameter. The rule engine module includes pre-defined rules for determining a backup configuration parameter based on host performance capability and data property. The method further includes receiving the determined backup configuration parameter from the rule engine module and instructing the host to execute backup of the data to a backup storage using the determined backup configuration parameter.

Illustrative storage manager and media agent are enhanced to interoperate with deduplication appliances. Advantages are realized when making secondary and tertiary copies and also when restoring from a deduplication appliance. Tiered indexing minimizes how much data is retained and stored at media agents. Tiered indexing enables media agents to efficiently extract needed information from deduplication appliances to make tertiary copies and to restore backed up copies. Interoperability techniques include media agents generating separate data streams to the deduplication appliance. Each data stream carries a different kind of data, e.g., payload data, metadata content, or high-level index information. On initial backup, the media agent instructs the deduplication appliance to deduplicate the payload data stream but not the other data streams, thus intelligently applying resources to data most likely to benefit from deduplication. For tertiary copies (copies of pre-existing copies at the deduplication appliance), the media agent avoids handling payload data altogether.

A distributed agent for backup and restoration of virtual machines collects backup data and meta-data. The distributed agent includes an agent inside a virtual machine and an agent outside the virtual machine. The two kinds of agents communicate with each other to collect data of different types used to backup and restore virtual machines.

An information processing apparatus configured to communicate with a connectable and removable nonvolatile storage device includes a display device, and a display control unit configured to control display processing that a storage device not specified as a backup destination for backing up data in the information processing apparatus is displayed on the display device as a removal instruction target, and a storage device specified as a backup destination is not displayed on the display device as a removal instruction target, wherein the display control unit is implemented by at least one processor.

Data in a database cache in memory of an operating database server is copied to memory of a standby database server, without requiring synchronization between the operating server and the standby server. If the operating server fails, the database is recovered to a consistent state in the standby server using a sequential database log and the copied data in the cache of the standby server. Preferably, recovery is performed by reading the log to determine a set of database actions to recover, verifying blocks of data in the standby server's cache, using verified blocks to recover at least some actions, and reading blocks from storage only when a corresponding verified block is not available in the cache.

According to example implementations, computing devices are configured using a template. The template specifies at least one computing device property and backup control information relating to backing up data from the computing devices to a backup system. The computing devices are reconfigured in response to modification of the template.

A solution for validating a set of data protection solutions is provided. A validation scenario can be defined, which can include data corresponding to a set of attributes for the validation scenario. The attributes can include a time frame for the validation scenario. The validation scenario also can include a set of backup images to be validated, each of which is generated using one of the set of data protection solutions. The set of backup images can be identified using the time frame. A set of resource requirements for implementing the validation scenario can be determined based on the set of backup images and the set of attributes for the validation scenario.