Deploy vSphere Data Protection to back up and restore virtual machines that contain vCenter Server, a vCenter Server Appliance, or a Platform Services Controller.

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

  • Verify that your ESXi version is 5.1 or later.
  • If a firewall is enabled in your environment, verify that port 902 is open for communication between the vSphere Data Protection Appliance and the ESXi host. See the vSphere Data Protection documentation.
  • Use the vSphere Web Client to log in as an administrator to the vCenter Server instance that manages your environment.
  • If your vCenter Server version is earlier than 6.5, verify that the VMware Client Integration Plug‐in is installed for your browser. For more information, see the vSphere documentation for your vCenter Server version.

Procedure

  1. Select vCenter > Datacenters.
  2. On the Objects tab, click Actions and select Deploy OVF Template.
  3. Navigate to the location of the vSphere Data Protection Appliance .ova file and click Open.
  4. Verify the OVF template details and click Next.
  5. Review the template details, click Next, and follow the prompts of the wizard to accept the license agreement.
  6. On the Select name and folder page, enter an FQDN for the vSphere Data Protection Appliance, select the folder or data center where you want to deploy the vSphere Data Protection Appliance, and click Next.
    The vSphere Data Protection configuration uses the name that you enter to find the vSphere Data Protection Appliance in the vCenter Server inventory. Do not change the vSphere Data Protection Appliance name after installation.
  7. Select the host on which to deploy the vSphere Data Protection Appliance and click Next.
  8. Select the virtual disk format and the storage location for the vSphere Data Protection Appliance and click Next.
  9. Select the destination network for the vSphere Data Protection Appliance and click Next.
  10. Enter the network settings such as the default gateway, DNS, network IP address, and netmask and click Next.
    Confirm that the IP addresses are correct and match the entry in the DNS server. If you enter incorrect IP addresses, you must redeploy the vSphere Data Protection Appliance.
    Note: The vSphere Data Protection Appliance does not support DHCP. A static IP address is required.
  11. On the Ready to complete page, confirm that all of the deployment options are correct, select Power on after deployment, and click Finish.

Results

The vSphere Data Protection Appliance deployment process starts and the vSphere Data Protection Appliance boots in install mode.