Common Internet Filesystem (CIFS) is useful for backing up file system types (such as Netware servers) that do not have Amanda Enterprise clients, or for when you do not wish to install the Zmanda client software on the system being backed up.
CIFS backup and recovery in Amanda Enterprise are performed using Samba (smbclient)
Like other file system backups, CIFS-based backup lets you specify files to exclude, and whether to enable encryption and compression. CIFS-based backup does not support backing up extended file attributes.
There are two methods that Amanda can use to access a CIFS share for backup (neither of these require a Zmanda client on the machine being backed up):
Neither method will back up NTFS extended file attributes or Windows applications. The Zmanda Windows Client (ZWC) is required to back up Windows applications and extended file attributes. To use the ZWC for backup, choose a Backup Type of Windows on the Backup What page.
Suppose you need to back up a number of Windows machine(s) over the WAN. The Amanda Enterprise backup server and Windows machines are connected through a firewall. You could use the client on the Amanda Enterprise server, adding firewall exceptions for the client machines you wish to back up. Restores are then performed to a directory on the AEE client (which is already shared via Samba).
These instructions assume you have already installed and licensed the Amanda Enterprise server.
/etc/zmanda/zmc_aee/zmc_user_dumptypes
on the Amanda server (make a safe backup copy before doing so). Find the application tool definition for app_amsamba_user and add the following property:property "SMBCLIENT-PATH" "Path_to_smbclient_Binary"
Path_to_smbclient_Binary
The path to the smbclient binary executable file.
Example entry:
property "SMBCLIENT-PATH" "/usr/csw/bin"
On the Backup What page you are prompted to select what type of object you want to back up. Choose CIFS/, and the following options are displayed:
The host name of Amanda client. For better backup performance, Zmanda recommends using the Amanda server itself (specified as localhost) as the Amanda client. smbclient (part of the Samba client package) must be installed on the Amanda client or the Amanda server if Amanda server is used as the host.
If a remote Amanda client is used (in other words, a client other than localhost) you must create the /etc/amanda/backup_set_name/cifs_network_shares file on the Amanda client. You can copy this file from the version that the ZMC creates on the server: /etc/amanda/backup_set_name/cifs_network_shares.client_name
The file must be owned and readable by the Amanda backup user, and it must contain an entry for CIFS share being backed up in form \\Host_IP\backup_set_name root%password. For example: 192.168.15.127 is the CIFS server.
\\192.168.15.127\aee_backup root%boot12
The CIFS share represented in \\CIFSserver\share\sub-directory format (in other words, the Univeral Naming Convention - UNC format). The CIFSserver can be specified by host name or IP address. This is the share backed up by Amanda as a backup object.
Recommended CIFS Backup Configuration
User name used to access the SMB share.
CIFS server domain name. To find it, open a command window on the Amanda client or the Amanda server and enter the following command:
smbclient -L IP_of_Amanda_client -U smb_username
from the Windows client. You will be prompted for the SMB password.
After you have set the options, click the Add button to add the CIFS share to the backup set. Click Apply Plan to Server to commit the changes; you can then configure the backup set just as you would any other by setting the options on Backup Where, Backup How, and Backup When, etc.