Xen users - Nov 2009 - How to Backup and Restore MBR within Logical Volumes?

Hi All,

I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes using LVM2. I did
not use disk images for performance reasons.

Conventionally, if I want to clone my virtual machines, I have to dd the LV
to an image file. But this consumes a lot of time and harddisk space.

So, instead of doing that, I want to use losetup and kpartx with my logical
volumes, which contain operating systems of virtual machines.

I can backup the filesystems of a virtual machine in this way:

# losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64

virtualmachines is the name of my volume group.

windows7-x64 is the logical volume.

# kpartx -av /dev/loop1

Then I would see the partitions of the virtual machine within a logical
volume, like so:

/dev/mapper/loop1p1
/dev/mapper/loop1p2
/dev/mapper/loop1p3

Now that I can access the partitions of the virtual machine within a logical
volume, I can use partimage or fsarchiver to backup the partitions (provided
the filesystem is supported by the archiver).

But the problem is that I can only backup/clone the filesystems of my
virtual machine within a logical volume. I can''t backup the Master Boot
Record (MBR) of the virtual machine within a logical volume. For example,

dd if=/dev/hda of=mbr.hda bs=512 count=1

Because /dev/hda resides in a logical volume. The logical volume is a
virtual harddisk for my virtual machine.

I would like to know how to backup and also restore the MBR of my virtual
machine/guest operating system/domU within a logical volume because the
losetup and kpartx procedure only allows me access to the partitions, not
the MBR. A complete backup of a virtual machine (and also a bare metal
machine) includes the MBR and all filesystems.

If there is a catastrophic failure with my logical volumes containing domUs,
I would like to

1) re-create the physical volume (PV)

2) re-create the volume group

3) assign the PV to the volume group

4) restore the LVM metadata, i.e. the configuration files for all the
logical volumes

5) restore the MBR of my domU

6) restore the filesystems of my domU

Please advise.

Thank you very much.

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Thursday 12 November 2009, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes using LVM2. I
> did not use disk images for performance reasons.
>
> Conventionally, if I want to clone my virtual machines, I have to dd the LV
> to an image file. But this consumes a lot of time and harddisk space.
>
> So, instead of doing that, I want to use losetup and kpartx with my logical
> volumes, which contain operating systems of virtual machines.
>
> I can backup the filesystems of a virtual machine in this way:
>
> # losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64
>
Are you sure you need to call losetup first ?

I remember I used kpartx directly on the lvm containing my vbd.

Also, I think you can treat the lvm based vbd as a real disk.

So
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=mbr.w7-x64 bs=512 count=1

should backup your mbr.

Anyone correct me if I''m wrong please.

Geert

-- 
Kobalt W.I.T.
Web & Information Technology
Brusselsesteenweg 152
1850 Grimbergen

Tel  : +32 479 339 655
Email: info@kobaltwit.be


_______________________________________________
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http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users

> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=mbr.w7-x64 bs=512 count=1
I think if you do this, you are only backing up the first 512 bytes of the
logical volume, not the MBR.

Someone correct me if I am wrong.

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 9:36 AM, Geert Janssens <info@kobaltwit.be> wrote:
> On Thursday 12 November 2009, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) wrote:
> > Hi All,
> >
> > I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes using LVM2.
I
> > did not use disk images for performance reasons.
> >
> > Conventionally, if I want to clone my virtual machines, I have to dd
the
> LV
> > to an image file. But this consumes a lot of time and harddisk space.
> >
> > So, instead of doing that, I want to use losetup and kpartx with my
> logical
> > volumes, which contain operating systems of virtual machines.
> >
> > I can backup the filesystems of a virtual machine in this way:
> >
> > # losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64
> >
> Are you sure you need to call losetup first ?
>
> I remember I used kpartx directly on the lvm containing my vbd.
>
> Also, I think you can treat the lvm based vbd as a real disk.
>
> So
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=mbr.w7-x64 bs=512 count=1
>
> should backup your mbr.
>
> Anyone correct me if I''m wrong please.
>
> Geert
>
> --
> Kobalt W.I.T.
> Web & Information Technology
> Brusselsesteenweg 152
> 1850 Grimbergen
>
> Tel  : +32 479 339 655
> Email: info@kobaltwit.be
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Xen-users mailing list
> Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
> http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
>

Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes using LVM2. 
> I did not use disk images for performance reasons.
>
> # losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64
> windows7-x64 is the logical volume.
> # kpartx -av /dev/loop1
>
> Then I would see the partitions of the virtual machine within a 
> logical volume, like so:
>
> /dev/mapper/loop1p1
> /dev/mapper/loop1p2
> /dev/mapper/loop1p3
>
> Now that I can access the partitions of the virtual machine within a 
> logical volume, I can use partimage or fsarchiver to backup the 
> partitions (provided the filesystem is supported by the archiver).
>
> But the problem is that I can only backup/clone the filesystems of my 
> virtual machine within a logical volume. I can''t backup the Master
> Boot Record (MBR) of the virtual machine within a logical volume. For 
> example,
>
> dd if=/dev/hda of=mbr.hda bs=512 count=1
>
> Because /dev/hda resides in a logical volume. The logical volume is a 
> virtual harddisk for my virtual machine.
You can do dd if=/dev/dev/loop1 of=mbr.dha bs=512 count=1 to make the 
copy of the boot block.
>
> I would like to know how to backup and also restore the MBR of my 
> virtual machine/guest operating system/domU within a logical volume 
> because the losetup and kpartx procedure only allows me access to the 
> partitions, not the MBR. A complete backup of a virtual machine (and 
> also a bare metal machine) includes the MBR and all filesystems.
>
> If there is a catastrophic failure with my logical volumes containing 
> domUs, I would like to
>
> 1) re-create the physical volume (PV)
>
> 2) re-create the volume group
>
> 3) assign the PV to the volume group
>
> 4) restore the LVM metadata, i.e. the configuration files for all the 
> logical volumes
>
> 5) restore the MBR of my domU
>
> 6) restore the filesystems of my domU
>
Of these steps you can recreate 1,2,3 and 4 just by keeping records of 
their parameters and using normal fdisk, pvcreate, vgcreate and lvcreate 
commands.

For the things inside of lvm you can use losetup to make the loopback 
device out of the lv where you want to install the quest operating 
system and then recreate mbr from the file. Problem probably is how to 
recreate the filesystems if your backup software cannot do it. Also with 
windows protected system files can be a problem if backup software 
doesn''t support them.

One thing you could of course do is to make the system restore backup 
inside of the DomU when it''s running. And then boot new DomU when 
starting up and use the system backup to restore. (of course this is 
still more work that pure dd from one place to another.)

Problem is that everything else than using dd can have it fair share of 
problems. If the domU can''t be offline too long, you could allocate
more
space and use the lvm:s instant cloning features (can''t remember the 
name just now. ) and then use dd with gzip or bzip to make the backup 
from this clone to keep the space requirements minimum for the stored 
copies. And have minimum disruption for the DomU.

-vpk

> Maybe I didn''t really understand your setup, but... isn''t
your mbr simply
on /dev/loop1?

Yes, you are right.

root@sysresccd /mnt/hitachi/test % fdisk -l /dev/loop1

Disk /dev/loop1: 53.7 GB, 53687091200 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 6527 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x2b362b35

      Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/loop1p1   *           1        6526    52420063+   7  HPFS/NTFS

I am so used with device nomenclature of harddisks being /dev/hda, /dev/hdb,
/dev/sda, /dev/md0, /dev/xvda, etc that it didn''t occur to me that the
device node of my virtual machine in a logical volume is very simply
/dev/loop1 after I have performed the "losetup /dev/loop1
/dev/volumegroup/logicalvolume" step.

Thank you very much for enlightening me! Now I can proceed with writing the
backup and restore script for my Fedora 11 Dom0 (all partitions using LVM2
logical volumes) and all of my Xen virtual machines (contained in logical
volumes).

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 9:38 AM, Roberto Ragusa
<mail@robertoragusa.it>wrote:
> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) wrote:
>
> > # kpartx -av /dev/loop1
> [...]
> > But the problem is that I can only backup/clone the filesystems of my
> > virtual machine within a logical volume. I can''t backup the
Master Boot
> > Record (MBR) of the virtual machine within a logical volume. For
example,
> >
> > dd if=/dev/hda of=mbr.hda bs=512 count=1
> >
> > Because /dev/hda resides in a logical volume. The logical volume is a
> > virtual harddisk for my virtual machine.
>
> Maybe I didn''t really understand your setup, but... isn''t
your mbr
> simply on /dev/loop1?
>
> --
>   Roberto Ragusa    mail at robertoragusa.it
>
> --
> fedora-list mailing list
> fedora-list@redhat.com
> To unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list
> Guidelines:
> http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Communicate/MailingListGuidelines
>

Thank you for your advice!

Is it called LVM snapshot?

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

2009/11/12 Veli-Pekka Kestilä <fedora@guagua.fi>
> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) wrote:
>
>> Hi All,
>>
>> I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes using LVM2.
I
>> did not use disk images for performance reasons.
>>
>> # losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64
>> windows7-x64 is the logical volume.
>> # kpartx -av /dev/loop1
>>
>> Then I would see the partitions of the virtual machine within a logical
>> volume, like so:
>>
>> /dev/mapper/loop1p1
>> /dev/mapper/loop1p2
>> /dev/mapper/loop1p3
>>
>> Now that I can access the partitions of the virtual machine within a
>> logical volume, I can use partimage or fsarchiver to backup the
partitions
>> (provided the filesystem is supported by the archiver).
>>
>> But the problem is that I can only backup/clone the filesystems of my
>> virtual machine within a logical volume. I can''t backup the
Master Boot
>> Record (MBR) of the virtual machine within a logical volume. For
example,
>>
>> dd if=/dev/hda of=mbr.hda bs=512 count=1
>>
>> Because /dev/hda resides in a logical volume. The logical volume is a
>> virtual harddisk for my virtual machine.
>>
> You can do dd if=/dev/dev/loop1 of=mbr.dha bs=512 count=1 to make the copy
> of the boot block.
>
>
>> I would like to know how to backup and also restore the MBR of my
virtual
>> machine/guest operating system/domU within a logical volume because the
>> losetup and kpartx procedure only allows me access to the partitions,
not
>> the MBR. A complete backup of a virtual machine (and also a bare metal
>> machine) includes the MBR and all filesystems.
>>
>> If there is a catastrophic failure with my logical volumes containing
>> domUs, I would like to
>>
>> 1) re-create the physical volume (PV)
>>
>> 2) re-create the volume group
>>
>> 3) assign the PV to the volume group
>>
>> 4) restore the LVM metadata, i.e. the configuration files for all the
>> logical volumes
>>
>> 5) restore the MBR of my domU
>>
>> 6) restore the filesystems of my domU
>>
>>  Of these steps you can recreate 1,2,3 and 4 just by keeping records of
> their parameters and using normal fdisk, pvcreate, vgcreate and lvcreate
> commands.
>
> For the things inside of lvm you can use losetup to make the loopback
> device out of the lv where you want to install the quest operating system
> and then recreate mbr from the file. Problem probably is how to recreate
the
> filesystems if your backup software cannot do it. Also with windows
> protected system files can be a problem if backup software doesn''t
support
> them.
>
> One thing you could of course do is to make the system restore backup
> inside of the DomU when it''s running. And then boot new DomU when
starting
> up and use the system backup to restore. (of course this is still more work
> that pure dd from one place to another.)
>
> Problem is that everything else than using dd can have it fair share of
> problems. If the domU can''t be offline too long, you could
allocate more
> space and use the lvm:s instant cloning features (can''t remember
the name
> just now. ) and then use dd with gzip or bzip to make the backup from this
> clone to keep the space requirements minimum for the stored copies. And
have
> minimum disruption for the DomU.
>
> -vpk
>
> --
> Fedora-xen mailing list
> Fedora-xen@redhat.com
> https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-xen
>

On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 4:52 PM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
<space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
> Now I can proceed with writing the
> backup and restore script for my Fedora 11 Dom0 (all partitions using LVM2
> logical volumes) and all of my Xen virtual machines (contained in logical
> volumes).
A reminder though: don''t forget to create a "consistent",
unchanging
version of domU storage before doing backup. Either by shutting down
domU, or by creating LVM snapshot first.

Also, if it comes to Windows domUs, I find ntfsclone is better than
fsarchiver. One of the reasons is that fsarchiver can not create
compressed files during restore.

-- 
Fajar

_______________________________________________
Xen-users mailing list
Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users

Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) wrote:
> Thank you for your advice!
>
> Is it called LVM snapshot?
Yes. That''s what it''s called for.

-vpk

PS. And please don''t top post. It breaks the ''flow''
of the post and
makes it hard to read from the archives. Plus is against the list rules 
in some of the lists you are cross posting this (which is also bad). It 
would have been better to ask the question separatedly on different 
lists instead.
>
>
>
>     Problem is that everything else than using dd can have it fair
>     share of problems. If the domU can''t be offline too long, you
>     could allocate more space and use the lvm:s instant cloning
>     features (can''t remember the name just now. ) and then use dd
with
>     gzip or bzip to make the backup from this clone to keep the space
>     requirements minimum for the stored copies. And have minimum
>     disruption for the DomU.
>
>     -vpk
>
>     --
>     Fedora-xen mailing list
>     Fedora-xen@redhat.com <mailto:Fedora-xen@redhat.com>
>     https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-xen
>
>
>
>
>

Hi,

I don''t think I will be using the LVM snapshot method. I will simply
ensure
that my domU is not running, then I proceed to do the losetup and kpartx
procedure. Subsequently I will backup the MBR of my domU by dd-ing
/dev/loopX and clone all the filesystems of the domU using fsarchiver.

I would like to use fsarchiver because it can support LZMA compression. LZMA
can compress better than bzip2 and decompress 3x faster than bzip2.
partimage only supports gzip and bzip2.

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 10:02 AM, Fajar A. Nugraha <fajar@fajar.net>
wrote:
> On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 4:52 PM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
> <space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
> > Now I can proceed with writing the
> > backup and restore script for my Fedora 11 Dom0 (all partitions using
> LVM2
> > logical volumes) and all of my Xen virtual machines (contained in
logical
> > volumes).
>
> A reminder though: don''t forget to create a
"consistent", unchanging
> version of domU storage before doing backup. Either by shutting down
> domU, or by creating LVM snapshot first.
>
> Also, if it comes to Windows domUs, I find ntfsclone is better than
> fsarchiver. One of the reasons is that fsarchiver can not create
> compressed files during restore.
>
> --
> Fajar
>

2009/11/12 Veli-Pekka Kestilä <fedora@guagua.fi>
> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) wrote:
>
>> Thank you for your advice!
>>
>> Is it called LVM snapshot?
>>
> Yes. That''s what it''s called for.
>
> -vpk
>
> PS. And please don''t top post. It breaks the
''flow'' of the post and makes
> it hard to read from the archives. Plus is against the list rules in some
of
> the lists you are cross posting this (which is also bad). It would have
been
> better to ask the question separatedly on different lists instead.
>
>>
>>
>>
>>    Problem is that everything else than using dd can have it fair
>>    share of problems. If the domU can''t be offline too long,
you
>>    could allocate more space and use the lvm:s instant cloning
>>    features (can''t remember the name just now. ) and then use
dd with
>>    gzip or bzip to make the backup from this clone to keep the space
>>    requirements minimum for the stored copies. And have minimum
>>    disruption for the DomU.
>>
>>    -vpk
>>
>>    --
>>    Fedora-xen mailing list
>>    Fedora-xen@redhat.com <mailto:Fedora-xen@redhat.com>
>>
>>    https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-xen
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
> --
> Fedora-xen mailing list
> Fedora-xen@redhat.com
> https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-xen
>

Thank you vpk.

I will keep that in mind when I have a new question to ask.

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 5:10 PM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
<space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I don''t think I will be using the LVM snapshot method. I will
simply ensure
> that my domU is not running,
Ah, so you can live with the down time. It makes things a lot simpler then.
> then I proceed to do the losetup and kpartx
> procedure.
Like others mentioned, you don''t need losetup for LVs. It will only
make things slower.
> Subsequently I will backup the MBR of my domU by dd-ing
> /dev/loopX and clone all the filesystems of the domU using fsarchiver.
>
> I would like to use fsarchiver because it can support LZMA compression.
LZMA
> can compress better than bzip2 and decompress 3x faster than bzip2.
> partimage only supports gzip and bzip2.

If your concern is the size and speed of backup, here''s one final note
from me: you might want to look at zfs. Possible use scenarios :
- use opensolaris as dom0. Probably the most supported option when it
comes to xen + zfs, but you need to be familiar with how opensolaris
works.
- use external storage server running solaris/opensolaris as iscsi
SAN. Think of it as poor-man''s Netapp.
- use zfs-fuse inside Linux dom0, and store domU storage as files
- use zfs-fuse on domU, and do backup from domU instead of dom0.

With zfs, you''d get zfs snapshot (which is like instaneous in-place
backup), incremental block-level send (can greatly reduce backup
storage size if your data doesn''t change often), optional transparent
compression for live data (like what ntfs has).

-- 
Fajar

_______________________________________________
Xen-users mailing list
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http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users

On Thu, 2009-11-12 at 09:23 +0000, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
wrote:
> Hi All,
> 
> I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes using LVM2.
> I did not use disk images for performance reasons.
> 
> Conventionally, if I want to clone my virtual machines, I have to dd
> the LV to an image file. But this consumes a lot of time and harddisk
> space.
> 
> So, instead of doing that, I want to use losetup and kpartx with my
> logical volumes, which contain operating systems of virtual machines.
> 
> I can backup the filesystems of a virtual machine in this way:
> 
> # losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64
What''s the point of adding a loopback device on top of the LV? Running
kpartx on the LV itself will work just fine and this just adds an
unnecessary layer of overhead and complexity unless I am missing
something.
> dd if=/dev/hda of=mbr.hda bs=512 count=1
> 
> Because /dev/hda resides in a logical volume. The logical volume is a
> virtual harddisk for my virtual machine.
Assuming that the LV given above is a whole-disk image containing a DOS
MBR partition table:

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=/tmp.mbr.img bs=512 count=1

You could also do the same with the loopN device that you set up
earlier, although I still don''t see the need for that step.
> 1) re-create the physical volume (PV)
> 
> 2) re-create the volume group
> 
> 3) assign the PV to the volume group
> 
> 4) restore the LVM metadata, i.e. the configuration files for all the
> logical volumes
> 
> 5) restore the MBR of my domU
> 
> 6) restore the filesystems of my domU
Should work fine, just be sure to test each step so that you are
confident and comfortable with it before you find yourself needing to do
this in anger.

Regards,
Bryn.



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On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 10:45 AM, Bryn M. Reeves <bmr@redhat.com> wrote:
> On Thu, 2009-11-12 at 09:23 +0000, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) wrote:
> > Hi All,
> >
> > I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes using LVM2.
> > I did not use disk images for performance reasons.
> >
> > Conventionally, if I want to clone my virtual machines, I have to dd
> > the LV to an image file. But this consumes a lot of time and harddisk
> > space.
> >
> > So, instead of doing that, I want to use losetup and kpartx with my
> > logical volumes, which contain operating systems of virtual machines.
> >
> > I can backup the filesystems of a virtual machine in this way:
> >
> > # losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64
>
> What''s the point of adding a loopback device on top of the LV?
Running
> kpartx on the LV itself will work just fine and this just adds an
> unnecessary layer of overhead and complexity unless I am missing
> something.
>
> > dd if=/dev/hda of=mbr.hda bs=512 count=1
> >
> > Because /dev/hda resides in a logical volume. The logical volume is a
> > virtual harddisk for my virtual machine.
>
> Assuming that the LV given above is a whole-disk image containing a DOS
> MBR partition table:
>
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=/tmp.mbr.img bs=512 count=1
>
> You could also do the same with the loopN device that you set up
> earlier, although I still don''t see the need for that step.
>
> > 1) re-create the physical volume (PV)
> >
> > 2) re-create the volume group
> >
> > 3) assign the PV to the volume group
> >
> > 4) restore the LVM metadata, i.e. the configuration files for all the
> > logical volumes
> >
> > 5) restore the MBR of my domU
> >
> > 6) restore the filesystems of my domU
>
> Should work fine, just be sure to test each step so that you are
> confident and comfortable with it before you find yourself needing to do
> this in anger.
>
> Regards,
> Bryn.
>
>
> --
> fedora-list mailing list
> fedora-list@redhat.com
> To unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list
> Guidelines:
> http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Communicate/MailingListGuidelines
>
Hi Bryn,

I have just tried an experiment without the losetup step. I have verified
that it works using kpartx only.

root@sysresccd /root % kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32
add map virtualmachines-winxphome32p1 (253:22): 0 104840127 linear
/dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 63
root@sysresccd /root % cd /dev/mapper
root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % ls *winxphome32*
virtualmachines-winxphome32  virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % ls -al *winxphome32*
brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253,  0 2009-11-12 15:49 virtualmachines-winxphome32
brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253, 22 2009-11-12 18:47
virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % ls -al *winxphome32*
brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253,  0 2009-11-12 15:49 virtualmachines-winxphome32
brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253, 22 2009-11-12 18:47
virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % fdisk -l virtualmachines-winxphome32

Disk virtualmachines-winxphome32: 53.7 GB, 53687091200 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 6527 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x2b362b35

                       Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id
System
virtualmachines-winxphome32p1   *           1        6526    52420063+   7
HPFS/NTFS

Without the losetup and the corresponding overhead, it will speed up cloning
of my virtual machines within LVs.


-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 10:55 AM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) <
space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
> On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 10:45 AM, Bryn M. Reeves <bmr@redhat.com>
wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 2009-11-12 at 09:23 +0000, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
wrote:
>> > Hi All,
>> >
>> > I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes using
LVM2.
>> > I did not use disk images for performance reasons.
>> >
>> > Conventionally, if I want to clone my virtual machines, I have to
dd
>> > the LV to an image file. But this consumes a lot of time and
harddisk
>> > space.
>> >
>> > So, instead of doing that, I want to use losetup and kpartx with
my
>> > logical volumes, which contain operating systems of virtual
machines.
>> >
>> > I can backup the filesystems of a virtual machine in this way:
>> >
>> > # losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64
>>
>> What''s the point of adding a loopback device on top of the LV?
Running
>> kpartx on the LV itself will work just fine and this just adds an
>> unnecessary layer of overhead and complexity unless I am missing
>> something.
>>
>> > dd if=/dev/hda of=mbr.hda bs=512 count=1
>> >
>> > Because /dev/hda resides in a logical volume. The logical volume
is a
>> > virtual harddisk for my virtual machine.
>>
>> Assuming that the LV given above is a whole-disk image containing a DOS
>> MBR partition table:
>>
>> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=/tmp.mbr.img bs=512 count=1
>>
>> You could also do the same with the loopN device that you set up
>> earlier, although I still don''t see the need for that step.
>>
>> > 1) re-create the physical volume (PV)
>> >
>> > 2) re-create the volume group
>> >
>> > 3) assign the PV to the volume group
>> >
>> > 4) restore the LVM metadata, i.e. the configuration files for all
the
>> > logical volumes
>> >
>> > 5) restore the MBR of my domU
>> >
>> > 6) restore the filesystems of my domU
>>
>> Should work fine, just be sure to test each step so that you are
>> confident and comfortable with it before you find yourself needing to
do
>> this in anger.
>>
>> Regards,
>> Bryn.
>>
>>
>> --
>> fedora-list mailing list
>> fedora-list@redhat.com
>> To unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list
>> Guidelines:
>> http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Communicate/MailingListGuidelines
>>
>
> Hi Bryn,
>
> I have just tried an experiment without the losetup step. I have verified
> that it works using kpartx only.
>
> root@sysresccd /root % kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32
> add map virtualmachines-winxphome32p1 (253:22): 0 104840127 linear
> /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 63
> root@sysresccd /root % cd /dev/mapper
> root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % ls *winxphome32*
> virtualmachines-winxphome32  virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
> root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % ls -al *winxphome32*
> brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253,  0 2009-11-12 15:49 virtualmachines-winxphome32
> brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253, 22 2009-11-12 18:47
> virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
> root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % ls -al *winxphome32*
> brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253,  0 2009-11-12 15:49 virtualmachines-winxphome32
> brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253, 22 2009-11-12 18:47
> virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
> root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % fdisk -l virtualmachines-winxphome32
>
> Disk virtualmachines-winxphome32: 53.7 GB, 53687091200 bytes
> 255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 6527 cylinders
>
> Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
> Disk identifier: 0x2b362b35
>
>
>                        Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id
> System
> virtualmachines-winxphome32p1   *           1        6526    52420063+   7
> HPFS/NTFS
>
> Without the losetup and the corresponding overhead, it will speed up
> cloning of my virtual machines within LVs.
>
>
>
> --
> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
> Engineering)
> Alma Maters:
> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
> (2) National University of Singapore
> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
> Country: Singapore
>
Hi All,

I have performed a backup of my F11 Dom0''s PV (60 GB) of 3 logical
volumes
using fsarchiver with the maximum possible LZMA compression. The operation
took 4 hours with 2 compression threads. The resulting backup archive size
is 8.1 GB for a PV of 60 GB.

My hardware specs:

Intel Pentium Dual Core E6300 2.8 GHz
Intel Desktop Board DQ45CB
6 GB DDR2-800 memory

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 12:32 PM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) <
space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
> On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 10:55 AM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) <
> space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 10:45 AM, Bryn M. Reeves <bmr@redhat.com>
wrote:
>>
>>> On Thu, 2009-11-12 at 09:23 +0000, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
wrote:
>>> > Hi All,
>>> >
>>> > I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes
using LVM2.
>>> > I did not use disk images for performance reasons.
>>> >
>>> > Conventionally, if I want to clone my virtual machines, I have
to dd
>>> > the LV to an image file. But this consumes a lot of time and
harddisk
>>> > space.
>>> >
>>> > So, instead of doing that, I want to use losetup and kpartx
with my
>>> > logical volumes, which contain operating systems of virtual
machines.
>>> >
>>> > I can backup the filesystems of a virtual machine in this way:
>>> >
>>> > # losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64
>>>
>>> What''s the point of adding a loopback device on top of the
LV? Running
>>> kpartx on the LV itself will work just fine and this just adds an
>>> unnecessary layer of overhead and complexity unless I am missing
>>> something.
>>>
>>> > dd if=/dev/hda of=mbr.hda bs=512 count=1
>>> >
>>> > Because /dev/hda resides in a logical volume. The logical
volume is a
>>> > virtual harddisk for my virtual machine.
>>>
>>> Assuming that the LV given above is a whole-disk image containing a
DOS
>>> MBR partition table:
>>>
>>> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=/tmp.mbr.img bs=512
count=1
>>>
>>> You could also do the same with the loopN device that you set up
>>> earlier, although I still don''t see the need for that
step.
>>>
>>> > 1) re-create the physical volume (PV)
>>> >
>>> > 2) re-create the volume group
>>> >
>>> > 3) assign the PV to the volume group
>>> >
>>> > 4) restore the LVM metadata, i.e. the configuration files for
all the
>>> > logical volumes
>>> >
>>> > 5) restore the MBR of my domU
>>> >
>>> > 6) restore the filesystems of my domU
>>>
>>> Should work fine, just be sure to test each step so that you are
>>> confident and comfortable with it before you find yourself needing
to do
>>> this in anger.
>>>
>>> Regards,
>>> Bryn.
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> fedora-list mailing list
>>> fedora-list@redhat.com
>>> To unsubscribe: https://www.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/fedora-list
>>> Guidelines:
>>> http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Communicate/MailingListGuidelines
>>>
>>
>> Hi Bryn,
>>
>> I have just tried an experiment without the losetup step. I have
verified
>> that it works using kpartx only.
>>
>> root@sysresccd /root % kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32
>> add map virtualmachines-winxphome32p1 (253:22): 0 104840127 linear
>> /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 63
>> root@sysresccd /root % cd /dev/mapper
>> root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % ls *winxphome32*
>> virtualmachines-winxphome32  virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
>> root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % ls -al *winxphome32*
>> brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253,  0 2009-11-12 15:49
>> virtualmachines-winxphome32
>> brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253, 22 2009-11-12 18:47
>> virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
>> root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % ls -al *winxphome32*
>> brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253,  0 2009-11-12 15:49
>> virtualmachines-winxphome32
>> brw-rw---- 1 root disk 253, 22 2009-11-12 18:47
>> virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
>> root@sysresccd /dev/mapper % fdisk -l virtualmachines-winxphome32
>>
>> Disk virtualmachines-winxphome32: 53.7 GB, 53687091200 bytes
>> 255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 6527 cylinders
>>
>> Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
>> Disk identifier: 0x2b362b35
>>
>>
>>                        Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks
>> Id  System
>> virtualmachines-winxphome32p1   *           1        6526    52420063+
>> 7  HPFS/NTFS
>>
>> Without the losetup and the corresponding overhead, it will speed up
>> cloning of my virtual machines within LVs.
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
>> Engineering)
>> Alma Maters:
>> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
>> (2) National University of Singapore
>> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
>> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
>> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
>> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
>> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
>> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
>> Country: Singapore
>>
>
> Hi All,
>
> I have performed a backup of my F11 Dom0''s PV (60 GB) of 3 logical
volumes
> using fsarchiver with the maximum possible LZMA compression. The operation
> took 4 hours with 2 compression threads. The resulting backup archive size
> is 8.1 GB for a PV of 60 GB.
>
> My hardware specs:
>
> Intel Pentium Dual Core E6300 2.8 GHz
> Intel Desktop Board DQ45CB
> 6 GB DDR2-800 memory
>
>
> --
> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
> Engineering)
> Alma Maters:
> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
> (2) National University of Singapore
> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
> Country: Singapore
>
The fsarchiver command I have used is:

fsarchiver savefs -v -z 9 -j 2 /mnt/hitachi/test/test.fsa
/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_home /dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_root
/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_var

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 6:18 PM, Geert Janssens <info@kobaltwit.be> wrote:
> On Thursday 12 November 2009, you wrote:
> > > dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=mbr.w7-x64 bs=512
count=1
> >
> > I think if you do this, you are only backing up the first 512 bytes of
> the
> > logical volume, not the MBR.
> >
> > Someone correct me if I am wrong.
>
> I did some tests just to be sure. As far as I can tell, dd interacts with
> lvm
> in exactly the same way as with a physical disk or a loop device.
>
> In the test I copied the first sector directly from the lvm partition or
> via
> the loop device. It results in exactly the same sector being copied.
>
> Also, if you try fdisk -l on the lvm disk or the loop device, it results in
> the same output.
>
> Below is the output from my tests:
>
> [root@aragorn:~]# losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/base/kobaltwit_f11_disk
>
> [root@aragorn:~]# fdisk -l /dev/base/kobaltwit_f11_disk
>
> Disk /dev/base/kobaltwit_f11_disk: 10.7 GB, 10737418240 bytes
> 255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 1305 cylinders
> Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
>
>                        Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id
> System
> /dev/base/kobaltwit_f11_disk1   *           1        1305    10482381   83
> Linux
> [root@aragorn:~]# fdisk -l /dev/base/kobaltwit_f11_disk
>
> Disk /dev/base/kobaltwit_f11_disk: 10.7 GB, 10737418240 bytes
> 255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 1305 cylinders
> Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes
>
>                        Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id
> System
> /dev/base/kobaltwit_f11_disk1   *           1        1305    10482381   83
> Linux
>
> [root@aragorn:~]# dd if=/dev/base/kobaltwit_f11_disk of=mbr.lvm bs=512
> count=1
> 1+0 records in
> 1+0 records out
> 512 bytes (512 B) copied, 7.6e-05 seconds, 6.7 MB/s
>
> [root@aragorn:~]# dd if=/dev/loop1 of=mbr.loop bs=512 count=1
> 1+0 records in
> 1+0 records out
> 512 bytes (512 B) copied, 0.000151 seconds, 3.4 MB/s
>
> [root@aragorn:~]# diff mbr.l*
> [root@aragorn:~]#
>
> These test seem to indicate to me that the lvm layer in completely
> transparent
> to userland tools such as fdisk or dd.
>
> So I still think the losetup step is superfluous and possibly causing
> unnecessary overhead.
>
> Geert
>
> --
> Kobalt W.I.T.
> Web & Information Technology
> Brusselsesteenweg 152
> 1850 Grimbergen
>
> Tel  : +32 479 339 655
> Email: info@kobaltwit.be
>
>
Thank you!

I will omit the losetup step.

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 6:37 PM, Fajar A. Nugraha <fajar@fajar.net> wrote:
> On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 5:10 PM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
> <space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
> > Hi,
> >
> > I don''t think I will be using the LVM snapshot method. I will
simply
> ensure
> > that my domU is not running,
>
> Ah, so you can live with the down time. It makes things a lot simpler then.
>
> > then I proceed to do the losetup and kpartx
> > procedure.
>
> Like others mentioned, you don''t need losetup for LVs. It will
only
> make things slower.
>
> > Subsequently I will backup the MBR of my domU by dd-ing
> > /dev/loopX and clone all the filesystems of the domU using fsarchiver.
> >
> > I would like to use fsarchiver because it can support LZMA
compression.
> LZMA
> > can compress better than bzip2 and decompress 3x faster than bzip2.
> > partimage only supports gzip and bzip2.
>
>
> If your concern is the size and speed of backup, here''s one final
note
> from me: you might want to look at zfs. Possible use scenarios :
> - use opensolaris as dom0. Probably the most supported option when it
> comes to xen + zfs, but you need to be familiar with how opensolaris
> works.
> - use external storage server running solaris/opensolaris as iscsi
> SAN. Think of it as poor-man''s Netapp.
> - use zfs-fuse inside Linux dom0, and store domU storage as files
> - use zfs-fuse on domU, and do backup from domU instead of dom0.
>
> With zfs, you''d get zfs snapshot (which is like instaneous
in-place
> backup), incremental block-level send (can greatly reduce backup
> storage size if your data doesn''t change often), optional
transparent
> compression for live data (like what ntfs has).
>
> --
> Fajar
>
I am not familiar with OpenSolaris but that may change with time.

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 8:53 PM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) <
space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
> On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 6:37 PM, Fajar A. Nugraha <fajar@fajar.net>
wrote:
>
>> On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 5:10 PM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
>> <space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>> > Hi,
>> >
>> > I don''t think I will be using the LVM snapshot method. I
will simply
>> ensure
>> > that my domU is not running,
>>
>> Ah, so you can live with the down time. It makes things a lot simpler
>> then.
>>
>> > then I proceed to do the losetup and kpartx
>> > procedure.
>>
>> Like others mentioned, you don''t need losetup for LVs. It will
only
>> make things slower.
>>
>> > Subsequently I will backup the MBR of my domU by dd-ing
>> > /dev/loopX and clone all the filesystems of the domU using
fsarchiver.
>> >
>> > I would like to use fsarchiver because it can support LZMA
compression.
>> LZMA
>> > can compress better than bzip2 and decompress 3x faster than
bzip2.
>> > partimage only supports gzip and bzip2.
>>
>>
>> If your concern is the size and speed of backup, here''s one
final note
>> from me: you might want to look at zfs. Possible use scenarios :
>> - use opensolaris as dom0. Probably the most supported option when it
>> comes to xen + zfs, but you need to be familiar with how opensolaris
>> works.
>> - use external storage server running solaris/opensolaris as iscsi
>> SAN. Think of it as poor-man''s Netapp.
>> - use zfs-fuse inside Linux dom0, and store domU storage as files
>> - use zfs-fuse on domU, and do backup from domU instead of dom0.
>>
>> With zfs, you''d get zfs snapshot (which is like instaneous
in-place
>> backup), incremental block-level send (can greatly reduce backup
>> storage size if your data doesn''t change often), optional
transparent
>> compression for live data (like what ntfs has).
>>
>> --
>> Fajar
>>
>
> I am not familiar with OpenSolaris but that may change with time.
>
>
> --
> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
> Engineering)
> Alma Maters:
> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
> (2) National University of Singapore
> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
> Country: Singapore
>
>
Hi,

I have just finished writing my backup/cloning script. Could anyone help me
verify whether my backup script will work?

<SCRIPT>

#!/bin/sh

# Script to Backup/Clone Xen Host/Dom0 and all DomUs which are using Logical
Volumes as Virtual Hard Disks

# Written by:

# Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
# Alma Maters:
# (1) Singapore Polytechnic
# (2) National University of Singapore
# Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
# Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
# Youtube Videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
# Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
# MSN: teoenming@hotmail.com
# Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
# Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
# Country: Singapore

# First written: 13 November 2009 Friday 12:38 A.M. Singapore time
# Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 12:38 A.M. Singapore time

# REFERNCE: "Geek Sheet: Bare-metal backup and recovery", May 7th,
2008,
Jason Perlow
# URL: http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=8759

# Usage Instructions:

# Boot up your computer/server with System Rescue CD version 1.3.2 for
i386/amd64.
# Then execute this backup script. You need to adapt this script to work for
your environment.
# Download System Rescue CD from http://www.sysresccd.org/Main_Page

###############################################################################################################
# Declare Variables
###############################################################################################################

HARDDISK=/dev/sda
DEST=/media/hitachi/test

###############################################################################################################
# Cloning Xen Host/Dom0
###############################################################################################################

# Backup MBR

dd if=$HARDDISK of=$DEST/f11-xen-dom0-sda.mbr bs=512 count=1

# Activate all logical volumes in all volume groups

vgchange -ay

# Backup UUIDs of PVs

pvdisplay > $DEST/f11-xen-dom0-pvdisplay.txt

# Backup LVM Metadata

# Backup the configuration of dedicated volume group for dom0

vgcfgbackup -d -v vg_fedora11_host -f $DEST/vg_fedora11_host.vgcfg.backup

# Backup the configuration of dedicated volume group for domUs

vgcfgbackup -d -v virtualmachines -f $DEST/virtualmachines.vgcfg.backup

# Backup /boot partition and all logical volumes of dedicated volume group
for host/dom0

fsarchiver savefs -v -z 9 -j 2 $DEST/f11-xen-dom0-filesystems.fsa /dev/sda1
/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_home \
/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_root /dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_var

###############################################################################################################
# Cloning Xen-based Virtual Machines/DomUs/Guest Operating Systems/VMs
###############################################################################################################

# The following 8 virtual machines have physical volumes, so it is not
possible to image using partimage or
# fsarchiver directly. The only convenient way is to dd the logical volume
for the VM, ie. sector by sector
# copy. Other methods would be very tedious.

# VM 1: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0001 | gzip --fast >
$DEST/f11-pv-hpc-node0001.img

# VM 2: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0002 | gzip --fast >
$DEST/f11-pv-hpc-node0002.img

# VM 3: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0003 | gzip --fast >
$DEST/f11-pv-hpc-node0003.img

# VM 4: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0004 | gzip --fast >
$DEST/f11-pv-hpc-node0004.img

# VM 5: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0005 | gzip --fast >
$DEST/f11-pv-hpc-node0005.img

# VM 6: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0006 | gzip --fast >
$DEST/f11-pv-hpc-node0006.img

# VM 7: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0007 | gzip --fast >
$DEST/f11-pv-hpc-node0007.img

# VM 8: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0008 | gzip --fast >
$DEST/f11-pv-hpc-node0008.img

# VM 9: FreeBSD 8.0 RC2 UNIX amd64 HVM domU

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/freebsd | gzip --fast > $DEST/freebsd.img

# VM 10: OpenSolaris 2009.06 UNIX amd64 PV domU

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/opensolaris | gzip --fast > $DEST/opensolaris.img

# VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU

kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 of=$DEST/rocks0001.mbr bs=512 count=1

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img

kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001

# VM 12: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU

kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 of=$DEST/rocks0002.mbr bs=512 count=1

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5.img

kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002

# VM 13: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU

kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 of=$DEST/rocks0003.mbr bs=512 count=1

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5.img

kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003

# VM 14: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU

kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 of=$DEST/rocks0004.mbr bs=512 count=1

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5.img

kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004

# VM 15: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU

kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 of=$DEST/rocks0005.mbr bs=512 count=1

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5.img

kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005

# VM 16: Slackware64 13.0 amd64 HVM domU

kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/slackware64 of=$DEST/slackware64.mbr bs=512
count=1

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p1
$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p2
$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64p2.img

kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64

# VM 17: Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Linux HVM domU

kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 of=$DEST/ubuntu910.mbr bs=512 count=1

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1
$DEST/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1.img

kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910

# VM 18: Windows XP Home Edition SP3 32-bit HVM domU with VGA passthrough
(requires Intel VT-d)

kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32

dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 of=$DEST/winxphome32.mbr bs=512
count=1

partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
$DEST/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1.img

kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32

# EOF

</SCRIPT>

Thank you!

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 12:57:22AM +0800, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) wrote:
[...]
> # VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
> 
> kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001
> 
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 of=$DEST/rocks0001.mbr bs=512 count=1
> 
> partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img
> 
> partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img
> 
> partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img
Note that this VM (and some other VMs listed in your script) uses
logical partitions.  In this case just saving a copy of MBR will not
be enough to save partition layout - MBR describes only 4 primary
partitions, and restoring just MBR will not restore extended
partitions.

One way to backup the complete partition layout is by saving also
the output of "sfdisk -d $device"; the resulting file can be used as
input to sfdisk to restore all partitions, including logical ones.
Saving MBR is still needed together with sfdisk, because it saves
the boot code (used for HVM) and CHS geometry information (which can
be used during boot in some cases).


_______________________________________________
Xen-users mailing list
Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users

On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 5:40 AM, Sergey Vlasov <vsu@altlinux.ru> wrote:
> On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 12:57:22AM +0800, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
> wrote:
> [...]
> > # VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
> >
> > kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001
> >
> > dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 of=$DEST/rocks0001.mbr bs=512
> count=1
> >
> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1
> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img
> >
> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2
> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img
> >
> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5
> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img
>
> Note that this VM (and some other VMs listed in your script) uses
> logical partitions.  In this case just saving a copy of MBR will not
> be enough to save partition layout - MBR describes only 4 primary
> partitions, and restoring just MBR will not restore extended
> partitions.
>
> One way to backup the complete partition layout is by saving also
> the output of "sfdisk -d $device"; the resulting file can be used
as
> input to sfdisk to restore all partitions, including logical ones.
> Saving MBR is still needed together with sfdisk, because it saves
> the boot code (used for HVM) and CHS geometry information (which can
> be used during boot in some cases).
>
> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
> Version: GnuPG v1.4.10 (GNU/Linux)
>
> iEYEARECAAYFAkr8gM8ACgkQW82GfkQfsqLa+QCaAqpO5NWhYHtKVi3M5ytERw27
> eC0AnjsJuG34MAR1jZRejBiJCVybQvc1
> =RRGH
> -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
>
> _______________________________________________
> Xen-users mailing list
> Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
> http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
>


Thank you for pointing this out. Otherwise I would made incomplete backups.

Would it be best practice to always backup both the MBR and the partition
geometry using sfdisk whenever cloning our harddisks on desktops and
servers?

Besides sfdisk, there are also other partitioning tools like fdisk, cfdisk,
and parted.

Could these other tools also be used for backing up the partition geometry
like sfdisk?

Thank you.

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore

On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 11:17 AM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) <
space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
> On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 5:40 AM, Sergey Vlasov <vsu@altlinux.ru>
wrote:
>
>> On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 12:57:22AM +0800, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang
Enming)
>> wrote:
>> [...]
>> > # VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
>> >
>> > kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001
>> >
>> > dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 of=$DEST/rocks0001.mbr bs=512
>> count=1
>> >
>> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1
>> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img
>> >
>> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2
>> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img
>> >
>> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5
>> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img
>>
>> Note that this VM (and some other VMs listed in your script) uses
>> logical partitions.  In this case just saving a copy of MBR will not
>> be enough to save partition layout - MBR describes only 4 primary
>> partitions, and restoring just MBR will not restore extended
>> partitions.
>>
>> One way to backup the complete partition layout is by saving also
>> the output of "sfdisk -d $device"; the resulting file can be
used as
>> input to sfdisk to restore all partitions, including logical ones.
>> Saving MBR is still needed together with sfdisk, because it saves
>> the boot code (used for HVM) and CHS geometry information (which can
>> be used during boot in some cases).
>>
>> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
>> Version: GnuPG v1.4.10 (GNU/Linux)
>>
>> iEYEARECAAYFAkr8gM8ACgkQW82GfkQfsqLa+QCaAqpO5NWhYHtKVi3M5ytERw27
>> eC0AnjsJuG34MAR1jZRejBiJCVybQvc1
>> =RRGH
>> -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Xen-users mailing list
>> Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
>> http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
>>
>
>
>
> Thank you for pointing this out. Otherwise I would made incomplete backups.
>
> Would it be best practice to always backup both the MBR and the partition
> geometry using sfdisk whenever cloning our harddisks on desktops and
> servers?
>
> Besides sfdisk, there are also other partitioning tools like fdisk, cfdisk,
> and parted.
>
> Could these other tools also be used for backing up the partition geometry
> like sfdisk?
>
> Thank you.
>
>
> --
> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
> Engineering)
> Alma Maters:
> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
> (2) National University of Singapore
> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
> Country: Singapore
>
Hi,

I have made some improvements to the backup/cloning script. Please help me
to vet it through for any mistakes. Thank you very much!

<SCRIPT>
#!/bin/sh

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Script to Backup/Clone Xen Host/Dom0 and all DomUs which are using Logical
Volumes as Virtual Hard Disks
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# Written by:

# Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
# Alma Maters:
# (1) Singapore Polytechnic
# (2) National University of Singapore
# Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
# Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
# Youtube Videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
# Xen Tutorials and Video Demos: http://www.xen.org/support/tutorial.html
# Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
# MSN: teoenming@hotmail.com
# Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
# Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
# Country: Singapore

# First written: 13 November 2009 Friday 12:38 A.M. Singapore time
# Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 12:38 A.M. Singapore time
# Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 1:20 P.M. Singapore time

# REFERNCE: "Geek Sheet: Bare-metal backup and recovery", May 7th,
2008,
Jason Perlow
# URL: http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=8759

# Usage Instructions:

# Boot up your desktop/server with System Rescue CD version 1.3.2 for
i386/amd64.
# Then execute this backup script. You need to adapt this script to work for
your environment.
# Download System Rescue CD from http://www.sysresccd.org/Main_Page

# FAQ
# Q: Why do I want to write this cloning script when there are many open
source cloning software available?
# A: I am previously using Clonezilla. It is a very good cloning software.
However, it could not detect all the
#    virtual machines in my LVM2 logical volumes and had to fall back on
using dd to image all my domUs,
#    which resulted in an enormous 300 GB (!) backup image set and an
extremely lengthy cloning process of
#    7 hours. Clonezilla is very good for LVs which only contain
filesystems, but not for LVs which contain
#    virtual machines with MBR, partition geometries and full fledged
operating systems. It is very diffcult
#    to image nested logical volumes, i.e. logical volumes within logical
volumes. And the PV within a LV is
#    the barrier. So it is not Clonezilla''s fault. Anybody who knows
how to
activate all the logical volumes
#    of all the volume groups within LVM2 physical volumes inside a logical
volume hosting a virtual machine,
#    please share your knowledge with me. Thank you very much.

# No. of QC Checks Performed on this backup script: 0

###############################################################################################################
# Declare Variables
###############################################################################################################

HARDDISK=/dev/sda
DEST=/media/hitachi/test
FSA_COMPLEVEL=9
PROCESSOR_CORES=2
GZIP_COMPLEVEL=fast
PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL=1

###############################################################################################################
# Create Storage Directory for Backup Images
###############################################################################################################

if [ ! -d $DEST ]
then
    mkdir -p $DEST
fi

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Cloning Xen Host/Dom0
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# Backup MBR

dd if=$HARDDISK of=$DEST/f11-xen-dom0-sda.mbr bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d $HARDDISK > $DEST/f11-xen-dom0-partition-geometry-sda.sfdisk

# Activate all logical volumes in all volume groups

vgchange -ay

# Backup UUIDs of PVs

pvdisplay > $DEST/f11-xen-dom0-pvdisplay.txt

# Backup LVM2 Metadata

# Backup the configuration of dedicated volume group for dom0

vgcfgbackup -d -v vg_fedora11_host -f
$DEST/vg_fedora11_host-vgcfg.lvm2.metadata

# Backup the configuration of dedicated volume group for domUs

vgcfgbackup -d -v virtualmachines -f
$DEST/virtualmachines-vgcfg.lvm2.metadata

# Backup /boot partition and all logical volumes of dedicated volume group
for host/dom0

fsarchiver savefs -v -z $FSA_COMPLEVEL -j $PROCESSOR_CORES
$DEST/f11-xen-dom0-filesystems.fsa /dev/sda1 \
/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_home /dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_root
/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_var

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Cloning Xen-based Virtual Machines/DomUs/Guest Operating Systems/VMs
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# The following 8 virtual machines have LVM2 physical volumes, so it is not
possible to image using partimage
# or fsarchiver directly, as both do not support PVs.  The only convenient
way is to image the logical volume
# for the VM using dd, ie. sector by sector copy, and then piping it to gzip
for a smaller backup image.
# Other methods would have been more involved and tedious.

# VM 1: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0001 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0001.img

# VM 2: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0002 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0002.img

# VM 3: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0003 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0003.img

# VM 4: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0004 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0004.img

# VM 5: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0005 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0005.img

# VM 6: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0006 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0006.img

# VM 7: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0007 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0007.img

# VM 8: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0008 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0008.img

# VM 9: FreeBSD 8.0 RC2 UNIX amd64 HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/freebsd | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-freebsd.img

# VM 10: OpenSolaris 2009.06 UNIX amd64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/opensolaris | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-opensolaris.img

# VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001

# VM 12: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002

# VM 13: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003

# VM 14: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004

# VM 15: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005

# VM 16: Slackware64 13.0 amd64 HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/slackware64
of=$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64.mbr bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64p2.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64

# VM 17: Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Linux HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-ubuntu910.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-ubuntu910.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910

# VM 18: Windows XP Home Edition SP3 32-bit HVM domU with VGA passthrough
(requires Intel VT-d)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32
of=$DEST/virtualmachines-winxphome32.mbr bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-winxphome32.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32

###############################################################################################################
# EOF
###############################################################################################################
</SCRIPT>

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore


_______________________________________________
Xen-users mailing list
Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users

On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 1:25 PM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) <
space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
> On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 11:17 AM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) <
> space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 5:40 AM, Sergey Vlasov <vsu@altlinux.ru>
wrote:
>>
>>> On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 12:57:22AM +0800, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang
Enming)
>>> wrote:
>>> [...]
>>> > # VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
>>> >
>>> > kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001
>>> >
>>> > dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 of=$DEST/rocks0001.mbr
bs=512
>>> count=1
>>> >
>>> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1
>>> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img
>>> >
>>> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2
>>> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img
>>> >
>>> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5
>>> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img
>>>
>>> Note that this VM (and some other VMs listed in your script) uses
>>> logical partitions.  In this case just saving a copy of MBR will
not
>>> be enough to save partition layout - MBR describes only 4 primary
>>> partitions, and restoring just MBR will not restore extended
>>> partitions.
>>>
>>> One way to backup the complete partition layout is by saving also
>>> the output of "sfdisk -d $device"; the resulting file can
be used as
>>> input to sfdisk to restore all partitions, including logical ones.
>>> Saving MBR is still needed together with sfdisk, because it saves
>>> the boot code (used for HVM) and CHS geometry information (which
can
>>> be used during boot in some cases).
>>>
>>> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
>>> Version: GnuPG v1.4.10 (GNU/Linux)
>>>
>>> iEYEARECAAYFAkr8gM8ACgkQW82GfkQfsqLa+QCaAqpO5NWhYHtKVi3M5ytERw27
>>> eC0AnjsJuG34MAR1jZRejBiJCVybQvc1
>>> =RRGH
>>> -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Xen-users mailing list
>>> Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
>>> http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
>>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Thank you for pointing this out. Otherwise I would made incomplete
>> backups.
>>
>> Would it be best practice to always backup both the MBR and the
partition
>> geometry using sfdisk whenever cloning our harddisks on desktops and
>> servers?
>>
>> Besides sfdisk, there are also other partitioning tools like fdisk,
>> cfdisk, and parted.
>>
>> Could these other tools also be used for backing up the partition
geometry
>> like sfdisk?
>>
>> Thank you.
>>
>>
>> --
>> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
>> Engineering)
>> Alma Maters:
>> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
>> (2) National University of Singapore
>> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
>> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
>> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
>> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
>> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
>> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
>> Country: Singapore
>>
>
> Hi,
>
> I have made some improvements to the backup/cloning script. Please help me
> to vet it through for any mistakes. Thank you very much!
>
>
> <SCRIPT>
> #!/bin/sh
>
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
>
###############################################################################################################
> # Script to Backup/Clone Xen Host/Dom0 and all DomUs which are using
> Logical Volumes as Virtual Hard Disks
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Written by:
>
> # Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
> Engineering)
> # Alma Maters:
> # (1) Singapore Polytechnic
> # (2) National University of Singapore
> # Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
> # Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
> # Youtube Videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
> # Xen Tutorials and Video Demos: http://www.xen.org/support/tutorial.html
> # Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
> # MSN: teoenming@hotmail.com
>
> # Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
> # Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
> # Country: Singapore
>
> # First written: 13 November 2009 Friday 12:38 A.M. Singapore time
> # Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 12:38 A.M. Singapore time
> # Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 1:20 P.M. Singapore time
>
>
> # REFERNCE: "Geek Sheet: Bare-metal backup and recovery", May
7th, 2008,
> Jason Perlow
> # URL: http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=8759
>
> # Usage Instructions:
>
> # Boot up your desktop/server with System Rescue CD version 1.3.2 for
> i386/amd64.
> # Then execute this backup script. You need to adapt this script to work
> for your environment.
> # Download System Rescue CD from http://www.sysresccd.org/Main_Page
>
> # FAQ
> # Q: Why do I want to write this cloning script when there are many open
> source cloning software available?
> # A: I am previously using Clonezilla. It is a very good cloning software.
> However, it could not detect all the
> #    virtual machines in my LVM2 logical volumes and had to fall back on
> using dd to image all my domUs,
> #    which resulted in an enormous 300 GB (!) backup image set and an
> extremely lengthy cloning process of
> #    7 hours. Clonezilla is very good for LVs which only contain
> filesystems, but not for LVs which contain
> #    virtual machines with MBR, partition geometries and full fledged
> operating systems. It is very diffcult
> #    to image nested logical volumes, i.e. logical volumes within logical
> volumes. And the PV within a LV is
> #    the barrier. So it is not Clonezilla''s fault. Anybody who
knows how to
> activate all the logical volumes
> #    of all the volume groups within LVM2 physical volumes inside a logical
> volume hosting a virtual machine,
> #    please share your knowledge with me. Thank you very much.
>
> # No. of QC Checks Performed on this backup script: 0
>
>
>
>
###############################################################################################################
> # Declare Variables
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> HARDDISK=/dev/sda
> DEST=/media/hitachi/test
> FSA_COMPLEVEL=9
> PROCESSOR_CORES=2
> GZIP_COMPLEVEL=fast
> PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL=1
>
>
>
###############################################################################################################
> # Create Storage Directory for Backup Images
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> if [ ! -d $DEST ]
> then
>     mkdir -p $DEST
> fi
>
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
>
>
###############################################################################################################
> # Cloning Xen Host/Dom0
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Backup MBR
>
> dd if=$HARDDISK of=$DEST/f11-xen-dom0-sda.mbr bs=512 count=1
>
> # Backup Partition Geometry
> sfdisk -d $HARDDISK > $DEST/f11-xen-dom0-partition-geometry-sda.sfdisk
>
>
> # Activate all logical volumes in all volume groups
>
> vgchange -ay
>
> # Backup UUIDs of PVs
>
> pvdisplay > $DEST/f11-xen-dom0-pvdisplay.txt
>
> # Backup LVM2 Metadata
>
>
> # Backup the configuration of dedicated volume group for dom0
>
> vgcfgbackup -d -v vg_fedora11_host -f
> $DEST/vg_fedora11_host-vgcfg.lvm2.metadata
>
>
> # Backup the configuration of dedicated volume group for domUs
>
> vgcfgbackup -d -v virtualmachines -f
> $DEST/virtualmachines-vgcfg.lvm2.metadata
>
>
> # Backup /boot partition and all logical volumes of dedicated volume group
> for host/dom0
>
> fsarchiver savefs -v -z $FSA_COMPLEVEL -j $PROCESSOR_CORES
> $DEST/f11-xen-dom0-filesystems.fsa /dev/sda1 \
>
> /dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_home /dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_root
> /dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_var
>
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
>
###############################################################################################################
> # Cloning Xen-based Virtual Machines/DomUs/Guest Operating Systems/VMs
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # The following 8 virtual machines have LVM2 physical volumes, so it is not
> possible to image using partimage
> # or fsarchiver directly, as both do not support PVs.  The only convenient
> way is to image the logical volume
> # for the VM using dd, ie. sector by sector copy, and then piping it to
> gzip for a smaller backup image.
> # Other methods would have been more involved and tedious.
>
>
> # VM 1: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Sector by sector copy
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0001 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL
> \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0001.img
>
>
> # VM 2: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Sector by sector copy
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0002 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL
> \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0002.img
>
>
> # VM 3: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Sector by sector copy
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0003 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL
> \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0003.img
>
>
> # VM 4: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Sector by sector copy
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0004 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL
> \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0004.img
>
>
> # VM 5: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Sector by sector copy
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0005 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL
> \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0005.img
>
>
> # VM 6: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Sector by sector copy
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0006 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL
> \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0006.img
>
>
> # VM 7: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Sector by sector copy
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0007 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL
> \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0007.img
>
>
> # VM 8: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Sector by sector copy
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0008 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL
> \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0008.img
>
>
> # VM 9: FreeBSD 8.0 RC2 UNIX amd64 HVM domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Sector by sector copy
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/freebsd | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-freebsd.img
>
>
> # VM 10: OpenSolaris 2009.06 UNIX amd64 PV domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Sector by sector copy
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/opensolaris | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-opensolaris.img
>
>
> # VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001
>
> # Backup MBR
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001.mbr
> bs=512 count=1
>
> # Backup Partition Geometry
> sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 >
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001.sfdisk
>
> # Backup Filesystems
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img
>
> # Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001
>
> # VM 12: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002
>
> # Backup MBR
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002.mbr
> bs=512 count=1
>
> # Backup Partition Geometry
> sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 >
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002.sfdisk
>
> # Backup Filesystems
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5.img
>
> # Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002
>
> # VM 13: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003
>
> # Backup MBR
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003.mbr
> bs=512 count=1
>
> # Backup Partition Geometry
> sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 >
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003.sfdisk
>
> # Backup Filesystems
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5.img
>
> # Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003
>
> # VM 14: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004
>
> # Backup MBR
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004.mbr
> bs=512 count=1
>
> # Backup Partition Geometry
> sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 >
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004.sfdisk
>
> # Backup Filesystems
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5.img
>
> # Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004
>
> # VM 15: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005
>
> # Backup MBR
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005.mbr
> bs=512 count=1
>
> # Backup Partition Geometry
> sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 >
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005.sfdisk
>
> # Backup Filesystems
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5.img
>
> # Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005
>
> # VM 16: Slackware64 13.0 amd64 HVM domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64
>
> # Backup MBR
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/slackware64
> of=$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64.mbr bs=512 count=1
>
> # Backup Partition Geometry
> sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64 >
> $DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64.sfdisk
>
> # Backup Filesystems
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p1 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64p1.img
>
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p2 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64p2.img
>
> # Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64
>
> # VM 17: Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Linux HVM domU
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910
>
> # Backup MBR
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-ubuntu910.mbr
> bs=512 count=1
>
> # Backup Partition Geometry
> sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 >
> $DEST/virtualmachines-ubuntu910.sfdisk
>
> # Backup Filesystems
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1.img
>
> # Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910
>
> # VM 18: Windows XP Home Edition SP3 32-bit HVM domU with VGA passthrough
> (requires Intel VT-d)
>
>
###############################################################################################################
>
> # Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32
>
> # Backup MBR
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32
> of=$DEST/virtualmachines-winxphome32.mbr bs=512 count=1
>
> # Backup Partition Geometry
> sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 >
> $DEST/virtualmachines-winxphome32.sfdisk
>
> # Backup Filesystems
> partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
> /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1 \
> $DEST/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1.img
>
> # Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
>
> kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32
>
>
>
###############################################################################################################
> # EOF
>
>
###############################################################################################################
> </SCRIPT>
>
> --
> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
> Engineering)
> Alma Maters:
> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
> (2) National University of Singapore
> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
> Country: Singapore
>
Hi All,

This is the final version of my backup script. I have gone through the
script once to make sure there are no mistakes. If I want to capture any
errors during the execution of the backup/cloning script, which of the
following commands do I run?

# ./backup-script.sh > backup.log

OR

# ./backup-script.sh 2> backup.log

After completing the backup script, I will proceed to write the restore
script.

If there are any errors, please let me know because I do not want to make
any mistakes with the cloning process. Thank you.

<SCRIPT>
#!/bin/sh

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Script to Backup/Clone Xen Host/Dom0 and all DomUs which are using Logical
Volumes as Virtual Hard Disks
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# Written by:

# Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
# Alma Maters:
# (1) Singapore Polytechnic
# (2) National University of Singapore
# Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
# Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
# Youtube Videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
# Xen Tutorials and Video Demos: http://www.xen.org/support/tutorial.html
# Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
# MSN: teoenming@hotmail.com
# Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
# Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
# Country: Singapore

# First written: 13 November 2009 Friday 12:38 A.M. Singapore time
# Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 12:38 A.M. Singapore time
# Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 1:20 P.M. Singapore time
# Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 5:23 P.M. Singapore time

# REFERNCE: "Geek Sheet: Bare-metal backup and recovery", May 7th,
2008,
Jason Perlow
# URL: http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=8759

# Usage Instructions:

# Boot up your desktop/server with System Rescue CD version 1.3.2 for
i386/amd64.
# Then execute this backup script. You need to adapt this script to work for
your environment.
# Download System Rescue CD from http://www.sysresccd.org/Main_Page

# FAQ
# Q: Why do I want to write this cloning script when there are many open
source cloning software available?
# A: I am previously using Clonezilla. It is a very good cloning software.
However, it could not detect all the
#    virtual machines in my LVM2 logical volumes and had to fall back on
using dd to image all my domUs,
#    which resulted in an enormous 300 GB (!) backup image set and an
extremely lengthy cloning process of
#    7 hours. Clonezilla is very good for LVs which only contain
filesystems, but not for LVs which contain
#    virtual machines with MBR, partition geometries and full fledged
operating systems. It is very diffcult
#    to image nested logical volumes, i.e. logical volumes within logical
volumes. And the PV within a LV is
#    the barrier. So it is not Clonezilla''s fault. Anybody who knows
how to
activate all the logical volumes
#    of all the volume groups within LVM2 physical volumes inside a logical
volume hosting a virtual machine,
#    please share your knowledge with me. Thank you very much.

# No. of QC Checks Performed on this backup script: 1

###############################################################################################################
# Declare Variables
###############################################################################################################

HARDDISK=/dev/sda
DEST=/media/hitachi/test
FSA_COMPLEVEL=9
PROCESSOR_CORES=2
GZIP_COMPLEVEL=fast
PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL=1

###############################################################################################################
# Create Storage Directory for Backup Images
###############################################################################################################

if [ ! -d $DEST ]
then
    mkdir -p $DEST
fi

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Cloning Xen Host/Dom0
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# Backup MBR

dd if=$HARDDISK of=$DEST/f11-xen-dom0-sda.mbr bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d $HARDDISK > $DEST/f11-xen-dom0-partition-geometry-sda.sfdisk

# Activate all logical volumes in all volume groups

vgchange -ay

# Backup UUIDs of PVs

pvdisplay > $DEST/f11-xen-dom0-pvdisplay.txt

# Backup LVM2 Metadata for All Volume Groups

# Backup the configuration of dedicated volume group for dom0

vgcfgbackup -d -v vg_fedora11_host -f
$DEST/vg_fedora11_host-vgcfg.lvm2.metadata

# Backup the configuration of dedicated volume group for domUs

vgcfgbackup -d -v virtualmachines -f
$DEST/virtualmachines-vgcfg.lvm2.metadata

# Backup /boot partition and all logical volumes of dedicated volume group
for host/dom0

fsarchiver savefs -v -z $FSA_COMPLEVEL -j $PROCESSOR_CORES
$DEST/f11-xen-dom0-filesystems.fsa /dev/sda1 \
/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_home /dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_root
/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_var

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Cloning Xen-based Virtual Machines/DomUs/Guest Operating Systems/VMs
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# The following 8 virtual machines have LVM2 physical volumes, so it is not
possible to image using partimage
# or fsarchiver directly, as both do not support PVs.  The only convenient
way is to image the logical volume
# for the VM using dd, ie. sector by sector copy, and then piping it to gzip
for a smaller backup image.
# Other methods would have been more involved and tedious.

# VM 1: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0001 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0001.img.gz

# VM 2: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0002 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0002.img.gz

# VM 3: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0003 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0003.img.gz

# VM 4: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0004 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0004.img.gz

# VM 5: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0005 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0005.img.gz

# VM 6: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0006 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0006.img.gz

# VM 7: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0007 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0007.img.gz

# VM 8: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0008 | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0008.img.gz

# VM 9: FreeBSD 8.0 RC2 UNIX amd64 HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/freebsd | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-freebsd.img.gz

# VM 10: OpenSolaris 2009.06 UNIX amd64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

# Sector by sector copy
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/opensolaris | gzip --$GZIP_COMPLEVEL > \
$DEST/virtualmachines-opensolaris.img.gz

# VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001

# VM 12: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002

# VM 13: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003

# VM 14: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004

# VM 15: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005

# VM 16: Slackware64 13.0 amd64 HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/slackware64
of=$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64.mbr bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64p1.img

partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p2 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-slackware64p2.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64

# VM 17: Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Linux HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 of=$DEST/virtualmachines-ubuntu910.mbr
bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-ubuntu910.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910

# VM 18: Windows XP Home Edition SP3 32-bit HVM domU with VGA passthrough
(requires Intel VT-d)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32

# Backup MBR
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32
of=$DEST/virtualmachines-winxphome32.mbr bs=512 count=1

# Backup Partition Geometry
sfdisk -d /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 >
$DEST/virtualmachines-winxphome32.sfdisk

# Backup Filesystems
partimage -d -M -b -z$PARTIMAGE_COMPLEVEL save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1 \
$DEST/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1.img

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32

###############################################################################################################
# EOF
###############################################################################################################
</SCRIPT>

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore



_______________________________________________
Xen-users mailing list
Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users

On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 5:35 PM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) <
space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
> On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 1:25 PM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) <
> space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 11:17 AM, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) <
>> space.time.universe@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 5:40 AM, Sergey Vlasov
<vsu@altlinux.ru> wrote:
>>>
>>>> On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 12:57:22AM +0800, Mr. Teo En Ming
(Zhang Enming)
>>>> wrote:
>>>> [...]
>>>> > # VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU
>>>> >
>>>> > kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001
>>>> >
>>>> > dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001
of=$DEST/rocks0001.mbr bs=512
>>>> count=1
>>>> >
>>>> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1
>>>> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img
>>>> >
>>>> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2
>>>> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img
>>>> >
>>>> > partimage -d -M -b -z1 save
/dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5
>>>> > $DEST/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img
>>>>
>>>> Note that this VM (and some other VMs listed in your script)
uses
>>>> logical partitions.  In this case just saving a copy of MBR
will not
>>>> be enough to save partition layout - MBR describes only 4
primary
>>>> partitions, and restoring just MBR will not restore extended
>>>> partitions.
>>>>
>>>> One way to backup the complete partition layout is by saving
also
>>>> the output of "sfdisk -d $device"; the resulting file
can be used as
>>>> input to sfdisk to restore all partitions, including logical
ones.
>>>> Saving MBR is still needed together with sfdisk, because it
saves
>>>> the boot code (used for HVM) and CHS geometry information
(which can
>>>> be used during boot in some cases).
>>>>
>>>> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
>>>> Version: GnuPG v1.4.10 (GNU/Linux)
>>>>
>>>>
iEYEARECAAYFAkr8gM8ACgkQW82GfkQfsqLa+QCaAqpO5NWhYHtKVi3M5ytERw27
>>>> eC0AnjsJuG34MAR1jZRejBiJCVybQvc1
>>>> =RRGH
>>>> -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> Xen-users mailing list
>>>> Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
>>>> http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Thank you for pointing this out. Otherwise I would made incomplete
>>> backups.
>>>
>>> Would it be best practice to always backup both the MBR and the
partition
>>> geometry using sfdisk whenever cloning our harddisks on desktops
and
>>> servers?
>>>
>>> Besides sfdisk, there are also other partitioning tools like fdisk,
>>> cfdisk, and parted.
>>>
>>> Could these other tools also be used for backing up the partition
>>> geometry like sfdisk?
>>>
>>> Thank you.
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics)
BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
>>> Engineering)
>>> Alma Maters:
>>> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
>>> (2) National University of Singapore
>>> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
>>> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
>>> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
>>> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
>>> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
>>> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
>>> Country: Singapore
>>>
>>
>> Hi,
>>
>> I have made some improvements to the backup/cloning script. Please help
me
>> to vet it through for any mistakes. Thank you very much!
>>
>>
>> <SCRIPT>
>>
>        ***SNIPPED***
> </SCRIPT>
>>
>> --
>> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
>> Engineering)
>> Alma Maters:
>> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
>> (2) National University of Singapore
>> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
>> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
>> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
>> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
>> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
>> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
>> Country: Singapore
>>
>
> Hi All,
>
> This is the final version of my backup script. I have gone through the
> script once to make sure there are no mistakes. If I want to capture any
> errors during the execution of the backup/cloning script, which of the
> following commands do I run?
>
> # ./backup-script.sh > backup.log
>
> OR
>
> # ./backup-script.sh 2> backup.log
>
> After completing the backup script, I will proceed to write the restore
> script.
>
> If there are any errors, please let me know because I do not want to make
> any mistakes with the cloning process. Thank you.
>
> <SCRIPT>
> ***SNIPPED***
> </SCRIPT>
>
> --
> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
> Engineering)
> Alma Maters:
> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
> (2) National University of Singapore
> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
> Country: Singapore
>
Dear All,

This is the *initial* version of my data restore script.

<SCRIPT>
#!/bin/sh

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Script to Restore Xen Host/Dom0 and all DomUs which are using Logical
Volumes as Virtual Hard Disks
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# Written by:

# Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
# Alma Maters:
# (1) Singapore Polytechnic
# (2) National University of Singapore
# Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
# Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
# Youtube Videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
# Xen Tutorials and Video Demos: http://www.xen.org/support/tutorial.html
# Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
# MSN: teoenming@hotmail.com
# Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
# Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
# Country: Singapore

# First written: 13 November 2009 Friday 6:49 P.M. Singapore time
# Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 8:25 P.M. Singapore time

# REFERNCE: "Geek Sheet: Bare-metal backup and recovery", May 7th,
2008,
Jason Perlow
# URL: http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=8759

# Usage Instructions:

# Boot up your desktop/server with System Rescue CD version 1.3.2 for
i386/amd64.
# Then execute this restore script. You need to adapt this script to work
for your environment.
# Download System Rescue CD from http://www.sysresccd.org/Main_Page

# No. of QC Checks Performed on this restore script: 0

###############################################################################################################
# Declare Variables
###############################################################################################################

HARDDISK=/dev/sda
SOURCE=/media/hitachi/test

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Restoring Xen Host/Dom0
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# Restore the Master Boot Record
dd if=$SOURCE/f11-xen-dom0-sda.mbr of=$HARDDISK bs=512 count=1

# Restore the Partition Geometry
sfdisk $HARDDISK < $SOURCE/f11-xen-dom0-partition-geometry-sda.sfdisk

# Re-create the LVM2 PV containing the host operating system/dom0
pvcreate --uuid ??? /dev/sda2

# Re-create the LVM2 PV containing all the virtual machines
pvcreate --uuid ??? /dev/sda3

# Restore the LVM2 metadata for the volume group containing the host
operating system/dom0
vgcfgrestore --file $SOURCE/vg_fedora11_host-vgcfg.lvm2.metadata
vg_fedora11_host

# Restore the LVM2 metadata for the volume group containing all the virtual
machines
vgcfgrestore --file $SOURCE/virtualmachines-vgcfg.lvm2.metadata
virtualmachines

# Activate all the volume groups
vgchange -ay

# Restore all filesystems for the host operating system/dom0
fsarchiver restfs -v $SOURCE/f11-xen-dom0-filesystems.fsa
id=0,dest=/dev/sda1 \
id=1,dest=/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_home \
id=2,dest=/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_root \
id=3,dest=/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_var

# Re-create the swap partition
mkswap /dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_swap

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Restoring Xen-based Virtual Machines/DomUs/Guest Operating Systems/VMs
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

### NOTE: Check for swap partitions in each virtual machine and do a mkswap.

# VM 1: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0001.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0001

# VM 2: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0002.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0002

# VM 3: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0003.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0003

# VM 4: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0004.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0004

# VM 5: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0005.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0005

# VM 6: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0006.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0006

# VM 7: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0007.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0007

# VM 8: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0008.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0008

# VM 9: FreeBSD 8.0 RC2 UNIX amd64 HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-freebsd.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/freebsd

# VM 10: OpenSolaris 2009.06 UNIX amd64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-opensolaris.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/opensolaris

# VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0001.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0001.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img.000

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001

# VM 12: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0002.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0002.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5.img.000

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002

# VM 13: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0003.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0003.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5.img.000

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003

# VM 14: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0004.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0004.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5.img.000

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004

# VM 15: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0005.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0005.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5.img.000

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005

# VM 16: Slackware64 13.0 amd64 HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-slackware64.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/slackware64 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-slackware64.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-slackware64p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-slackware64p2.img.000

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64

# VM 17: Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Linux HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-ubuntu910.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-ubuntu910.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1.img.000

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910

# VM 18: Windows XP Home Edition SP3 32-bit HVM domU with VGA passthrough
(requires Intel VT-d)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-winxphome32.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-winxphome32.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1.img.000

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# Deactivate Logical Volume Manager
vgchange -an

# Sync filesystems
sync

# Reboot the machine
reboot

###############################################################################################################
# EOF
###############################################################################################################
</SCRIPT>

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore


_______________________________________________
Xen-users mailing list
Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users

As you are running Windows, I will assume that you are using HVM,
and therefore that /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 is a hard disk image.
As such, the command you listed will back up the MBR, including the
partition table.  That isn''t to say that Windows 7 doesn''t
have additional
boot information outside of the MBR, but that information would be included
in a file system backup.  Wikipedia has the structure of the MBR in a table
at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_boot_record.  On that note, I often
use bs=446 when I want the MBR without the partition table, but if you are
backing up the partition as opposed to the file structure, then you might as
well keep the partition table (or even just back up the image).
	Dustin

From: fedora-xen-bounces@redhat.com [mailto:fedora-xen-bounces@redhat.com]
On Behalf Of Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
Sent: Thursday, November 12, 2009 04:45
To: Geert Janssens
Cc: Community assistance, encouragement, and advice for using Fedora.;
xen-users@lists.xensource.com; Fedora Xen
Subject: [Fedora-xen] Re: [Xen-users] How to Backup and Restore MBR within
Logical Volumes?
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=mbr.w7-x64 bs=512 count=1
I think if you do this, you are only backing up the first 512 bytes of the
logical volume, not the MBR.

Someone correct me if I am wrong.

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore
On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 9:36 AM, Geert Janssens <info@kobaltwit.be> wrote:
On Thursday 12 November 2009, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes using LVM2. I
> did not use disk images for performance reasons.
>
> Conventionally, if I want to clone my virtual machines, I have to dd the
LV
> to an image file. But this consumes a lot of time and harddisk space.
>
> So, instead of doing that, I want to use losetup and kpartx with my
logical
> volumes, which contain operating systems of virtual machines.
>
> I can backup the filesystems of a virtual machine in this way:
>
> # losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64
>
Are you sure you need to call losetup first ?

I remember I used kpartx directly on the lvm containing my vbd.

Also, I think you can treat the lvm based vbd as a real disk.

So
dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=mbr.w7-x64 bs=512 count=1

should backup your mbr.

Anyone correct me if I''m wrong please.

Geert

--
Kobalt W.I.T.
Web & Information Technology
Brusselsesteenweg 152
1850 Grimbergen

Tel  : +32 479 339 655
Email: info@kobaltwit.be


_______________________________________________
Xen-users mailing list
Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users

On Fri, Nov 13, 2009 at 9:17 PM, Dustin Henning
<Dustin.Henning@prd-inc.com>wrote:
>        As you are running Windows, I will assume that you are using HVM,
> and therefore that /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 is a hard disk image.
> As such, the command you listed will back up the MBR, including the
> partition table.  That isn''t to say that Windows 7
doesn''t have additional
> boot information outside of the MBR, but that information would be included
> in a file system backup.  Wikipedia has the structure of the MBR in a table
> at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_boot_record.  On that note, I often
> use bs=446 when I want the MBR without the partition table, but if you are
> backing up the partition as opposed to the file structure, then you might
> as
> well keep the partition table (or even just back up the image).
>        Dustin
>
> From: fedora-xen-bounces@redhat.com [mailto:fedora-xen-bounces@redhat.com]
> On Behalf Of Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming)
> Sent: Thursday, November 12, 2009 04:45
> To: Geert Janssens
> Cc: Community assistance, encouragement, and advice for using Fedora.;
> xen-users@lists.xensource.com; Fedora Xen
> Subject: [Fedora-xen] Re: [Xen-users] How to Backup and Restore MBR within
> Logical Volumes?
>
> > dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=mbr.w7-x64 bs=512 count=1
>
> I think if you do this, you are only backing up the first 512 bytes of the
> logical volume, not the MBR.
>
> Someone correct me if I am wrong.
>
> --
> Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
> Engineering)
> Alma Maters:
> (1) Singapore Polytechnic
> (2) National University of Singapore
> My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
> My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
> My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
> Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
> Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
> Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
> Country: Singapore
> On Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 9:36 AM, Geert Janssens <info@kobaltwit.be>
wrote:
> On Thursday 12 November 2009, Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) wrote:
> > Hi All,
> >
> > I have several Xen virtual machines within logical volumes using LVM2.
I
> > did not use disk images for performance reasons.
> >
> > Conventionally, if I want to clone my virtual machines, I have to dd
the
> LV
> > to an image file. But this consumes a lot of time and harddisk space.
> >
> > So, instead of doing that, I want to use losetup and kpartx with my
> logical
> > volumes, which contain operating systems of virtual machines.
> >
> > I can backup the filesystems of a virtual machine in this way:
> >
> > # losetup /dev/loop1 /dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64
> >
> Are you sure you need to call losetup first ?
>
> I remember I used kpartx directly on the lvm containing my vbd.
>
> Also, I think you can treat the lvm based vbd as a real disk.
>
> So
> dd if=/dev/virtualmachines/windows7-x64 of=mbr.w7-x64 bs=512 count=1
>
> should backup your mbr.
>
> Anyone correct me if I''m wrong please.
>
> Geert
>
> --
> Kobalt W.I.T.
> Web & Information Technology
> Brusselsesteenweg 152
> 1850 Grimbergen
>
> Tel  : +32 479 339 655
> Email: info@kobaltwit.be
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Xen-users mailing list
> Xen-users@lists.xensource.com
> http://lists.xensource.com/xen-users
>
>
>
>
>
>
Hi Dustin,

The MBR backup guide that I was following is this one:

Article: MBR tricks with LinuxLink:
http://www.tuxation.com/mbr-tricks-with-linux.htmlHere is the final version
of my data restore script. Could you check if there are mistakes in it?

<SCRIPT>
#!/bin/sh

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Script to Restore Xen Host/Dom0 and all DomUs which are using Logical
Volumes as Virtual Hard Disks
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# Written by:

# Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
# Alma Maters:
# (1) Singapore Polytechnic
# (2) National University of Singapore
# Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
# Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
# Youtube Videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
# Xen Tutorials and Video Demos: http://www.xen.org/support/tutorial.html
# Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
# MSN: teoenming@hotmail.com
# Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
# Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
# Country: Singapore

# First written: 13 November 2009 Friday 6:49 P.M. Singapore time
# Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 8:25 P.M. Singapore time
# Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 8:59 P.M. Singapore time
# Last updated: 13 November 2009 Friday 9:40 P.M. Singapore time

# REFERNCE: "Geek Sheet: Bare-metal backup and recovery", May 7th,
2008,
Jason Perlow
# URL: http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=8759

# Usage Instructions:

# Boot up your desktop/server with System Rescue CD version 1.3.2 for
i386/amd64.
# Then execute this restore script. You need to adapt this script to work
for your environment.
# Download System Rescue CD from http://www.sysresccd.org/Main_Page

# No. of QC Checks Performed on this restore script: 1

###############################################################################################################
# Declare Variables
###############################################################################################################

HARDDISK=/dev/sda
SOURCE=/media/hitachi/test

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Restoring Xen Host/Dom0
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# Restore the Master Boot Record
dd if=$SOURCE/f11-xen-dom0-sda.mbr of=$HARDDISK bs=512 count=1

# Restore the Partition Geometry
sfdisk $HARDDISK < $SOURCE/f11-xen-dom0-partition-geometry-sda.sfdisk

# Re-create the LVM2 PV containing the host operating system/dom0
pvcreate --uuid ??? /dev/sda2

# Re-create the LVM2 PV containing all the virtual machines
pvcreate --uuid ??? /dev/sda3

# Restore the LVM2 metadata for the volume group containing the host
operating system/dom0
vgcfgrestore --file $SOURCE/vg_fedora11_host-vgcfg.lvm2.metadata
vg_fedora11_host

# Restore the LVM2 metadata for the volume group containing all the virtual
machines
vgcfgrestore --file $SOURCE/virtualmachines-vgcfg.lvm2.metadata
virtualmachines

# Activate all the volume groups
vgchange -ay

# Restore all filesystems for the host operating system/dom0
fsarchiver restfs -v $SOURCE/f11-xen-dom0-filesystems.fsa
id=0,dest=/dev/sda1 \
id=1,dest=/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_home \
id=2,dest=/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_root \
id=3,dest=/dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_var

# Re-create the swap partition
mkswap /dev/vg_fedora11_host/lv_swap

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################
# Restoring Xen-based Virtual Machines/DomUs/Guest Operating Systems/VMs
###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

### NOTE: Check for swap partitions in each virtual machine and do a mkswap.

# VM 1: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0001.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0001

# VM 2: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0002.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0002

# VM 3: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0003.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0003

# VM 4: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0004.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0004

# VM 5: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0005.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0005

# VM 6: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0006.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0006

# VM 7: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0007.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0007

# VM 8: Fedora 11 x86_64 PV domU (MPICH2 Virtual Supercomputer Center)
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-f11-pv-hpc-node0008.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/f11-pv-hpc-node0008

# VM 9: FreeBSD 8.0 RC2 UNIX amd64 HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-freebsd.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/freebsd

# VM 10: OpenSolaris 2009.06 UNIX amd64 PV domU
###############################################################################################################

zcat $SOURCE/virtualmachines-opensolaris.img.gz | dd
of=/dev/virtualmachines/opensolaris

# VM 11: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0001.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0001.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0001p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0001p2.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0001p5.img.000

# Re-create swap
mkswap /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0001p3

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0001

# VM 12: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0002.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0002.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0002p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0002p2.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0002p5.img.000

# Re-create swap
mkswap /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0002p3

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0002

# VM 13: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0003.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0003.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0003p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0003p2.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0003p5.img.000

# Re-create swap
mkswap /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0003p3

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0003

# VM 14: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0004.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0004.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0004p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0004p2.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0004p5.img.000

# Re-create swap
mkswap /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0004p3

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0004

# VM 15: Rocks 5.1 x86_64 HPC Compute Cluster HVM domU (based on CentOS 5.2)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0005.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0005.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0005p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0005p2.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-rocks0005p5.img.000

# Re-create swap
mkswap /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-rocks0005p3

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/rocks0005

# VM 16: Slackware64 13.0 amd64 HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-slackware64.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/slackware64 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-slackware64.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-slackware64p1.img.000

partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p2
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-slackware64p2.img.000

# Re-create swap
mkswap /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-slackware64p3

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/slackware64

# VM 17: Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Linux HVM domU
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-ubuntu910.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-ubuntu910.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p1.img.000

# Re-create swap
mkswap /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-ubuntu910p5

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/ubuntu910

# VM 18: Windows XP Home Edition SP3 32-bit HVM domU with VGA passthrough
(requires Intel VT-d)
###############################################################################################################

# Add partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -av /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32

# Restore MBR
dd if=$SOURCE/virtualmachines-winxphome32.mbr
of=/dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 bs=512 count=1

# Restore partition geometry
sfdisk /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32 <
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-winxphome32.sfdisk

# Restore all filesystems
partimage -e -b restore /dev/mapper/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1
$SOURCE/virtualmachines-winxphome32p1.img.000

# Delete partition mappings in /dev/mapper
kpartx -dv /dev/virtualmachines/winxphome32

###############################################################################################################
###############################################################################################################

# Deactivate Logical Volume Manager
vgchange -an

# Sync filesystems
sync

# Reboot the machine
reboot

###############################################################################################################
# EOF
###############################################################################################################
</SCRIPT>

-- 
Mr. Teo En Ming (Zhang Enming) Dip(Mechatronics) BEng(Hons)(Mechanical
Engineering)
Alma Maters:
(1) Singapore Polytechnic
(2) National University of Singapore
My Primary Blog: http://teo-en-ming-aka-zhang-enming.blogspot.com
My Secondary Blog: http://enmingteo.wordpress.com
My Youtube videos: http://www.youtube.com/user/enmingteo
Email: space.time.universe@gmail.com
Mobile Phone (Starhub Prepaid): +65-8369-2618
Street: Bedok Reservoir Road
Country: Singapore


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