Azure Backup is a cloud-based backup and recovery solution provided by Microsoft Azure that allows you to protect your data and applications running on-premises and in the cloud. When it comes to protecting IaaS VMs, Azure Backup offers a seamless and reliable backup and recovery solution.
To protect an IaaS VM using Azure Backup, you need to create an Azure Recovery Services vault and configure backup settings for your VM. Once your Recovery Services vault is created, you can select the IaaS VM you want to protect and configure backup settings such as the backup frequency, retention period, and backup policy. In the event of data loss or system failure, you can use Azure Backup to restore your IaaS VM to a previous backup point. You can select the “Restore VM” option in the Recovery Services vault and follow the prompts to restore your VM to a previous backup point.
Overall, Azure Backup provides a reliable and easy-to-use backup and recovery solution for protecting your IaaS VMs, helping to ensure that your data and applications are safe and accessible in the event of data loss or system failure.
Steps to enable Azure IaaS VM Backup
Follow the steps to enable Azure IaaS VM Backup for already provisioned Azure VM. If you don’t have an existing VM you can create one to get started.
Step 1: Log in to Azure Portal at https://portal.azure.com. Sign in with your Microsoft Azure subscription account.
Step 2: Go to Virtual Machines or you can Search for Virtual Machines from Search Bar.
Select your selected Azure VM that you want to enable backup. Here I’m choosing my existing Azure VM -> “VM1”
Step 3: Then from the left Menu Navigate to Operations >> Backup
- Recovery Service Vault -> Create new or You can Choose Existing if you have one.
- Backup vault -> You can provide your own unique name. Here I have given “AzureVM1-Vault”
- Resource Group -> you can choose your existing default resource group or you can create one by Clicking on “Create new”
Step 4: Next Step is to Create an Azure Backup Policy. Just click on “create new”
- Policy name: Define Your Policy Name. Here, I have given “AzureVM1-DailyPolicy”
- Backup Schedule : (Frequency: Daily, Time: 2:00 am (Choosing 2:00 am Non-Business Hours), Timezone: UTC)
- Instant Restore: Retain Instant recovery snapshot(s) for 2 Days.
- Retention Range: Retention of Daily Backup Point -> Daily at 2:00 am for 30 Days.
You Can Choose your Own Backup Frequency like weekly, monthly, yearly if you want. (For non-critical applications)
Click “OK” to continue.
Step 5: Once Configured, verify your Backup Policy details and Click “Enable Backup”
Step 6: You can verify your Azure VM Backup Setup at Recovery Service Vault. For that Navigate to Azure Home Page and Search for Recovery Service Vault and Select the “Recovery Service Vault” Service
Step 7: Select your created Recovery Service Vault. Here I’m selecting “AzureVM1-Vault” which we have created.
Step 8: Click on Overview >> Backup. From here you can verify monitoring and usage charts.
Currently, I have enabled only 1 VM. You can see that under Usage – Backup items is 1.
Step 9: You can also verify under Protected items >> Backup items under Backup Management Type -> Azure Virtual Machine : Backup Item Count = 1.
Step 10: Click on your selected Azure VM. Here I’m selecting “VM1”
Step 11: Click on “Backup now” to Enable Backup right away.
Step 12: You can Retain your Backup till the Date you Select and Click “OK” to Continue.
Step 13: You can perform operations like Restore VM, File Recovery, Resume Backup, Delete Backup Data, Restore to Secondary Region and Stop Backup.
That’s it! It’s Done.
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