After some messing about on my test network I was left with a ‘replica’ machine that I needed to get rid of, this was easier said than done, as it was in an orphaned state.
Solution
1. Find out which host in the cluster the replica is on, In my case that’s simple (I only have one). In a live environment click the replica machines summary tab, and it will tell you which host it is on. Connect directly to the host with the VI client software. (Remember the username this time will probably be root!), then right click the replica and select ‘Delete form Disk’.
2. Log back into your Virtual Center Server with the VI client. Right click the host that had the replica on it and select ‘Disconnect’.
Note: We actually need to remove it from the cluster, but to to that it would need to be in maintenance mode (not good if you have live servers running) that’s why we are disconnecting it first (the VM‘s will stay online).
3. Once disconnected, right click the host again, and this time ‘Remove”. Don’t panic the guest machines will stay online.
4. Then simply add the ESX host back into the cluster once again, this time its updated inventory (Minus the deleted replica) will be added back.
Related Articles, References, Credits, or External Links
It’s been a while since I wrote Part 4, so it’s time to wrap this up. Now we have Composer installed on the Virtual Center, we can start to deploy our linked clone desktops.
Solution
VMware View – Prepare your Source Machine
1. I’ve already covered how to prepare your Windows 7 client machine to be a View client here. Once that’s done, release its IP address (ipconfig /release) and shut it down.
2. With your source machine shut down, take a snapshot of the machine.
VMware View – Create an Automated Linked Clone Pool
3. Log into your VMware View Administrator console > Inventory > Pools > Add.
4. Automated > Next.
5. Dedicated > Next (unless you want a floating user assignment, the description of each is on this page).
6. View Composer linked clones > Next (ensure your vCenter is listed, and has “Yes” in the View Composer section).
7. Give the pool an ID, name, and description. (Note: If you use folders for your VM’s, you can also select those here).
8. I tend to stick with the defaults, except I let the users reset their desktops > Next.
9. I’m not redirecting any disposable files or profiles > Next.
10. Expand Security > Logins > Create a new login.
11. For the default Image, browse to your source machine, then select the snapshot. Set the Folder, Host/Cluster, and Resource pool as applicable. Then browse for a datastore.
12. Here I’ve selected to store my disks on different datastores. If you can, put your replica disk on the FASTEST storage, as this gets the most “Read” traffic > OK > Next.
13. The domain should auto populate > Pick an OU to place the new machines into, then select either to use quickprep (the VMware one), or Sysprep (the Microsoft one). > Next.
Note: You can also use a customization specification (yes Americans are worse at spelling than me!), you set these up in the VI client on the home screen under ‘Customization Specifications Manager’.
14. Review the information > Finish.
15. Now you have you pool, you need to allow your users to connect to it, with it selected press ‘Entitlements’.
16. Add in the users and/or groups you want to grant access to > OK.
17. It can take a while for the replica to be created then all the linked clones to become ‘Available’ watch progress under ‘Inventory > Desktops’.
18. When available you should be able to connect to them using the VMware View Client.
19. And finally get your new Windows 7 linked clone desktop.
Related Articles, References, Credits, or External Links
If you have a slow connection, and you are trying to replicate servers from one site to another you may struggle to do the initial replication. I’ve had an ongoing problem with a client who was trying to do this, we set it up, and the link was too slow. The client upgraded his internet connections at both sites, still the replication window would have been longer than 24 hours. In the end we chose to ‘seed’ the replication. Using this process we take a backup on the servers at the source location, then take the backup to the target location. Finally we setup the replication task and tell it to use the backup as a ‘seed’. Using this method is preferable because only the changes then get replicated over the slow link.
In the following scenario Im using Veeam 6.5 but the process is the same for Veeam 7. As a backup target Im going to host a backup repository on a Buffalo NAS Box (via iSCSI), that I can transport to the other site easily. I’ve also got a Veeam server at both locations, if you do not you may need to setup a temporary server at the source location to do the initial backup.
Because I’ve got a Veeam server at both locations I can utilise them BOTH as backup proxies, If you are only going to have a Veeam box at the target location, then I strongly suggest you setup a backup proxy on another server at the source site.
At this point I’ve added the iSCSI box as a backup repository (If you are unsure on how to do this, I do the same thing again to present the iSCSI box at the target site below.
1. Im not going to run through how to setup a simple backup job, Veeam is refreshingly easy to use.
2. So now I have the backup on my iSCSI device, I can turn it off and move the files to the target location.
Present the Backed Up files to the Veeam Server at the Target Location
3. Here I’m pointing my Veeam Server directly at the iSCSI server.
4. Now I can bring the new ‘drive’ online and make sure it gets a drive letter in Windows.
8. This Server > Populate > Select the iSCSI drive letter.
9. Browse to the folder that contains your backup data > Next.
10. I’ve already configured vPower NFS so I’ll just click Next.
11. Tick ‘Import existing backups automatically’, and ‘Import guest file system index’ > Next.
12. Finish.
How Do I Setup a Veeam ‘Seeded’ Replication Job?
13. Launch Veeam > Backup & Replication > Replication Job > Give the job a name > Tick ‘Low connection bandwidth (enable replica seeding). At this point I also want to tick the next two options so that if I need to failover the Virtual machines it will connect them to the correct VMware Port group on the target host. Also the IP addresses of the failed over machines will be changed to match the subnet of the target network > Next.
14. Add > Browse to the VM(s) you want to replicate and select them > Next.
15. Choose the host that you want to replicate the virtual machine to >Set the resource pool if you use them > Select the datastore where you will be hosting the replica files > Next.
16. Add > Locate the ‘Port Groups’ on the source and the target virtual networks. (Note: Here the port groups have the same name, they are NOT the same port group) > Next.
17. Add > Add in the IP address details from the source network and the network you will want to bring up the replicas on in the event of a failover > OK > Next.
18. Add in the source and destination proxies (make sure you have one at both ends!) > Select a local repository (this is just for the metadata not the actual replica) > Here I’m going to store seven restore points (handy because you can restore single files from a replica if you need to). DONT click Next.
19. Advanced > Traffic Tab > Set Optimize for to ‘WAN target’ > OK >Next.
20. Enable seeding and select your new repository > If you have ran the job successfully before you may have an existing replica mapping you can use, I do not > Next.
21. Enable application aware image processing (in case you ever want to restore a single file, or mail attachment, or SQL table for example) > Enter and administrative account and password > Next.
22. Set the schedule for the job > Create.
23. Finish, (if you want to start the job immediately tick the box, and it will run now, and then run again as scheduled).
24. Now when the job runs it scans the ‘seed’ first, creates the replica, and finally replicates the difference.
25. You will notice whenever the replication tasks run in future, it only replicates the differences. For example, here on a subsequent run, it only took twenty six and a half minutes to do the job.
Related Articles, References, Credits, or External Links
Seen on an Exchange 2010 server, this server had previously been upgraded from Exchange 2007, and that was upgraded from Exchange 2003.
Event ID 9335
Log Name: Application
Source: MSExchangeSA
Event ID: 9335
Task Category: (13)
Level: Error
Keywords: Classic
User: N/A
Computer: ServerName
Description:
OABGen encountered error 80004005 while cleaning the offline address list public folders under
/o=org/cn=addrlists/cn=oabs/cn=Default Offline Address Book. Please make sure the public folder
database is mounted and replicas exist of the offline address list folders. No offline address
lists have been generated. Please check the event log for more information.
- Default Offline Address Book
Event ID 9331
Log Name: Application
Source: MSExchangeSA
Date: 29/08/2013 06:10:50
Event ID: 9331
Task Category: (13)
Level: Error
Keywords: Classic
User: N/A
Computer: ServerName
Description:
OABGen encountered error 80004005 (internal ID 50101f1) accessing the public folder database
while generating the offline address list for address list '/'.
- Default Offline Address Book
Solution
Note: If you don’t have any Outlook 2003 clients left in the organisation, this is a moot point. Simply disable distribution of the offline address book via public folder. (Newer Outlook clients use web based distribution.)
1. Before we do anything make sure that the offline address book has been specified, is shown on the correct server, and is set as default.
2. From the Exchange Management Console > Toolbox > Public Folder Management > system Public Folders > OFFLINE ADDRESS BOOK > Then in the center window, right click each one > Properties > Replication > The server that hosts the public folder should be in here > (In my case it was not.) > Add it in.
3. Now you can force the OAB to update with the following command;
I’ve already written at length about migrating from Exchange 2003 to 2010, I was doing a migration this week and migrating the public folders was proving to be a pain.
If you have multiple public folders within public folders then setting up replication can be a nightmare, as the replication settings don’t get passed down to the child object.
Normally you could use PFDAdmin and this would do it for you, or use the Exchange ExFolder tool, or even the powershell scripts included with Exchange 2010 (like AddReplicatoPFRecursive.ps1). But sadly all these failed for me today.
In the end, with the aid of third line support at Microsoft, it was fixed using a feature of Exchange 2003 that I NEVER KNEW was there 🙂
Solution
1. The bad news is you still have to add the new Exchange 2010 server as a replica on the top level folder. (Right click > Properties > Replication Tab > Add > Add in the new server > Set the interval to always run > priority to urgent (unless you have a LOT! then choose Normal) > Apply.
Update: Eagle eyed visitor Brian Morphey, mailed me to point out that in my diagram all the folders are under the Exchange 2010 Administrative group, How did they get there? You need to use Exchange system Manager to create a public folder group in the new administrative group then simply DRAG the public folder group from the old admin group to the new one.
2. Right click the folder again > All Tasks > Manage Settings.
3. Select “Modify lists of replica servers” > Next.
4. Add servers > Next.
5. Add in BOTH the 2003 server AND the 2010 server > Next.
6. Finish.
7. It will now run through all the sub folders and apply the same replication settings on all of them, this can take a while depending on the number of folders.
8. Go to the Exchange 2010 Server and open the Public Folder Management console, right click Public Folder {your server name} > Update Hierarchy.
9. Repeat the above, but this time select “Refresh”.
10. Finally to speed things along, you can right click each folder and select “Update Content”.
11. Now wait! It can take a while till replication is complete.
Removing Public Folder Replicas
Once All the data has replicated across you can remove the 2003 replica by doing the reverse.
1. Right click the public folder > All Tasks > Manage Settings > Next > Modify List of replica servers > Next.
2. Remove servers> Next > Tick the server you want to REMOVE the replica from > Next.
3. Finish > Depending on the amount of data it may take a while.
Migrating Public Folders with Exchange 2010 Scripts
Step 1 Set up Public Folder Replication to Exchange 2010
On the Exchange 2010 Server open the Exchange Management Shell and execute the following three commands;
[box]
CD “C:Program FilesMicrosoftExchange ServerV14Scripts”
.AddReplicaToPFRecursive.ps1 -TopPublicFolder “” -ServerToAdd “EX-2010.petenetlive.com”
