Create a Backup Job in vSphere Data Protection

You can create backup jobs to associate the backup of a set of one or more VMs that contain vCenter Server, the vCenter Server Appliance, and Platform Services Controller with a backup schedule and specific retention policies.

Note: This procedure describes the steps by using vSphere Data Protection 6.1.3. The steps might vary if you use a different version of vSphere Data Protection.

Prerequisites

Use the vSphere Web Client to log in to the vCenter Server instance that manages your environment. Log in as the user with administrator privileges that was used during the vSphere Data Protection configuration.

Procedure

1. On the vSphere Web Client Home page, click vSphere Data Protection.
2. From the Backup Job Actions menu, select New to run the Create new backup job wizard.
3. On the Job Type page, select Guest Images and click Next.
4. On the Data Type page, select Full Image and click Next.
   You can see all the objects and virtual machines in the vCenter Server inventory.
5. On the Backup Targets page, select the VM that contains the vCenter Server or Platform Services Controller instance you want to back up, and click Next.
6. On the Schedule page, select the schedule for the backup job and click Next.
7. On the Retention Policy page, select a retention period and click Next.
   Note: When you enter a new maintenance period that follows the expiration of a backup, the vSphere Data Protection Appliance removes its reference to the backup data and you cannot restore the expired backup. The vSphere Data Protection Appliance determines whether the backup data is used by any other restore point, and if the system determines that the data is not used, the data is removed and the disk capacity becomes available.
8. On the Name page, enter a name for the backup job and click Next.
9. On the Ready to Complete page, review the summary information for the backup job and click Finish.
   The newly created backup job is listed on the Backup tab. The backup job starts automatically according to the configured schedule.