SvHCI - Agent Based Veeam Restore Process of Guest VMs

The following article covers restoring two guest virtual machines from Veeam backups to an SvHCI cluster:

• One Windows Server 2022 virtual machine.
• One Ubuntu guest virtual machine.

These examples demonstrate two different approaches that can be used with Veeam and StorMagic SvHCI.

Unlike VMware vSphere or Microsoft Hyper-V, SvHCI 1.3.0 does not yet provide direct integration that allows Veeam to automatically create, power on, or inject data into virtual machines through the hypervisor.

Because of this, restoring workloads to SvHCI currently requires a more manual workflow. This document demonstrates those supported recovery procedures.

The example environment used throughout this guide consists of:

• One Windows Server 2022 system hosting both the Veeam Backup & Replication Console and the backup repository (10.10.129.42).
• Two StorMagic SvHCI nodes running version 1.3.0 (January 2025).
• Two protected guest virtual machines:
  • Windows Server
  • Ubuntu Linux

Both virtual machines have already been protected using Veeam Agent-based backups.

The backup configuration process is covered in the companion article:

• Agent-Based Veeam Backup of Guest VMs on StorMagic SvHCI 

For this walkthrough, both virtual machines have already been backed up. The original VMs will then be deleted and restored using the procedures described below.

Before beginning any restore operation, ensure the following prerequisites have been completed.

This recovery method works for supported Windows and Linux guest operating systems using the appropriate Veeam Recovery Media.

Download recovery media that matches both the operating system and the installed Veeam Agent version. For Linux guests, ensure the recovery media supports the appropriate kernel version.

• Match the installed Veeam Agent version.
• Select recovery media compatible with the guest operating system.
• For Linux, verify kernel compatibility before downloading.

Upload the recovery media ISO into the SvHCI cluster so it is available from both nodes.

Using the saved virtual machine configuration, recreate the guest VM with its original hardware settings.

At this stage the virtual disk is recreated and mirrored but remains empty.

Attach the Veeam Recovery Media as a virtual CD-ROM and boot the virtual machine.

After booting from the recovery media, the Veeam Recovery Console is displayed.

The recovery environment displays the IP address assigned to the system as well as the SSH connection details should remote access be required.

Accept the license agreement to continue.

The recovery environment includes several utilities for configuring networking and restoring complete systems or individual files. Additional details regarding these utilities are available in the Veeam documentation.

Before beginning the restore, verify that the recovery environment has network connectivity to the Veeam Backup Server.

Open the shell and confirm the backup server can be reached by pinging it.

Once connectivity has been verified, stop the ping (Ctrl+C), exit the shell, and return to the recovery menu.

Select Restore Volumes to begin the recovery process.

Select Add VBR Server and enter the connection details for your Veeam Backup & Replication server.

Once connected, the recovery environment displays all backups that are compatible with the Linux recovery media. Windows backups are not displayed because they require the Windows recovery environment.

Select the backup and then choose the desired restore point.

The recovery environment displays the file system layout contained within the selected backup.

Select the destination device and choose Restore from....

Select the destination disk that was recreated earlier within SvHCI.

Press Enter again so both sides of the restore screen are populated and match correctly.

Press S to begin the restore preparation.

Press Enter to confirm and begin restoring the guest operating system to the recreated virtual disk.

When the restore completes successfully, return to the main menu, shut down the virtual machine, remove the recovery media ISO, and boot the restored VM normally.

This recovery method is intended for Windows guest virtual machines. Rather than booting recovery media, the restored operating system is written directly to an SvHCI iSCSI target mounted on the Veeam server. That restored disk is then used as the operating system disk for the recreated virtual machine.

Before beginning, verify the following prerequisites:

• A complete backup of the Windows virtual machine.
• The original virtual machine configuration (CPU, memory, firmware, storage controller, NIC configuration, MAC addresses, etc.).
• Windows virtual machines must use UEFI firmware.

Recreate the Windows virtual machine using the original hardware configuration, including the correct MAC address and virtual hardware settings.

Open the virtual machine storage configuration and select the newly created operating system disk.

Navigate to Initiators.

Add the iSCSI Initiator IQN from the Windows Veeam server to the Access Control List (ACL) for the target.

From the Veeam server, connect to the SvHCI iSCSI target. Depending on your network design, you may need to enable iSCSI connectivity on a dedicated management interface. This example uses a second network adapter that can communicate directly with the SvHCI iSCSI network.

Verify connectivity to both SvHCI storage interfaces.

Connect to both target paths using Multipath I/O (MPIO) as you would any other redundant iSCSI storage device.

The disk should now appear within Windows Disk Management.

Bring the disk online, initialize it if required, and leave it ready for the restore process.

From the Veeam Backup & Replication console, begin an Agent Restore.

Select Disk Restore.

Next, choose Volume Restore.

Select the protected virtual machine and the restore point that will be used.

Choose the Veeam server that has access to the mounted iSCSI target.

Select Customize disk mapping.

Apply the original disk layout to the newly mounted iSCSI disk by selecting Apply Disk Layout and choosing the original system disk.

Continue through the wizard, provide a restore reason if required, and select Finish to begin restoring the Windows operating system onto the mounted SvHCI disk.

Restore progress can be monitored directly from the Veeam Backup & Replication console by selecting the running job and viewing its properties.

The restore session displays detailed progress information and logging throughout the recovery process.

After the restore has completed successfully, disconnect the iSCSI target from the Veeam server.

Disconnect all active iSCSI sessions associated with the temporary restore disk.

Return to the SvHCI management interface and remove the Veeam server's initiator from the target Access Control List (ACL).

The restored operating system disk can now be used by the recreated virtual machine. Start the virtual machine normally.

Windows should boot normally using the restored operating system.

Log in to verify that the operating system and restored data are functioning as expected.

• StorMagic Product Documentation 
• Agent-Based Veeam Backup of Guest VMs on StorMagic SvHCI 
• Veeam Help Center