How to Use Azure Mars for Data Backup and Recovery

Azure Mars is a cloud-based data backup and recovery service that helps you protect your business-critical data from disasters and data loss.

You can use Azure Mars to back up data from on-premises and cloud sources, including Azure Storage, Azure SQL Database, and Azure Blob Storage.

To get started with Azure Mars, you'll need to create a backup vault and register your Azure subscription.

Azure Mars supports various backup frequencies, including daily, weekly, and monthly backups, ensuring that your data is up to date and secure.

For your interest: Cloud Drive Storage Free

If you're considering Azure Backup, you have two main options: Azure Backup Server and the MARS (Microsoft Azure Recovery Services) Agent.

Azure Backup Server supports app-aware backups, which are optimized for specific workloads like SQL Server, Microsoft Exchange, and Microsoft Sharepoint.

The MARS Agent, on the other hand, is a light agent that can be deployed directly on target machines, making it a more lightweight option.

Readers also liked: What's Windows Azure

One key advantage of Azure Backup Server is its ability to support Windows and Linux, whereas the MARS Agent only supports Windows.

Azure Backup Server also offers granular scheduling options, allowing you to schedule backups for specific machines, files, folders, or file system volumes.

You can also take advantage of central management with Azure Backup Server, which enables you to backup multiple machines together in one operation.

Here's a quick comparison of the two options:

Ultimately, the choice between Azure Backup Server and the MARS Agent depends on your specific needs and requirements.

If you're experiencing issues with your Azure MARS agent, don't worry, recovery is just a few clicks away.

The MARS agent supports two primary recovery scenarios: Same Server and Alternate Server.

To recover from a Same Server scenario, you have four options: Files and Folders, Volume Level, System Level, or a combination of these.

Recovering from a Files and Folders scenario involves choosing individual files and folders to restore.

Consider reading: How to Store Files on the Cloud

In a Volume Level scenario, you can restore a volume and recovery point to the same location or an alternate location on the same machine, with the option to create a copy, overwrite, or skip existing files.

System Level recovery allows you to restore the system state and recovery point to the same machine at a specified location.

If you're recovering from an Alternate Server scenario, you can also choose from Files and Folders, Volume Level, and System Level options, but with the added flexibility of restoring to a target machine or creating a System State file to an alternate machine.

Recovery scenarios can be a bit overwhelming, but let's break it down. The MARS agent supports different recovery scenarios, which depend on the server and the type of recovery you're looking for.

There are two main server options: Same Server and Alternate Server. On the Same Server, you can choose to restore individual files and folders, or even an entire volume or system state. If you're restoring to the same location, you can create a copy of existing files, overwrite them, or skip recovering them altogether.

Restoring to an Alternate Server is similar, but with more flexibility. You can choose the volume and recovery point to restore to another location, and still have the option to create a copy, overwrite, or skip recovering existing files.

Here are the specific recovery scenarios supported by the MARS agent:

If the source machine is unavailable, you can still retain your backup data by restoring the machine and extending the backup policy through the MARS console.

To restore the machine, you'll need to perform a few steps. You'll need to restore the machine, install the MARS console, and then you can extend the policy.

The newly restored machine, protected with MARS, will continue to take backups. This ensures that your backup data is preserved even when the source machine is down.

Here's a step-by-step guide to restoring the machine:

The MARS agent can be run directly on on-premises Windows machines, on Azure VMs that run Windows side by side with the Azure VM backup extension, or on a Microsoft Azure Backup Server (MABS) instance or a System Center Data Protection Manager (DPM) server.

You can install the MARS agent on Azure VMs to back up specific files and folders, in addition to using the Azure Backup extension to back up the entire VM. The data that's available for backup depends on where the agent is installed.

To install and register the MARS agent, you'll need to run the MARSagentinstaller.exe file on the machines you want to back up, and then follow the wizard to select the installation settings, proxy configuration, and encryption settings. You'll also need to specify a passphrase to encrypt and decrypt backups, and you can save this passphrase securely to Azure Key Vault for added security.

Configuring antivirus is an important step in ensuring the smooth operation of the MARS Agent. To avoid conflicts, exclude the following paths from real-time monitoring by the antivirus software.

To prevent degradation of performance and possible conflicts, add path exclusions for the following paths: /path/to/exclude. This will help prevent issues with the MARS Agent.

A different take: Which of the following Is Important When Using Technology

Exclude processes for the following binaries from real-time monitoring by the antivirus software: binary1.exe, binary2.exe. This will help prevent conflicts with backup and console activities.

Some antivirus software may still interfere with MARS Agent operations even after excluding the recommended paths and binaries. If you're seeing unexpected failures, try uninstalling the antivirus software temporarily and monitor to see if the problem goes away.

To install the MARS agent, you'll need to run the MARSagentinstaller.exe file on the machines you want to back up. This will start the installation process.

The MARS Agent Setup Wizard will guide you through the installation settings, where you can choose where to install the agent and select a location for the cache. You'll also need to specify how the agent will connect to the internet.

For proxy configuration, you'll need to specify how the agent will connect to the internet. This is a crucial step in the installation process.

Expand your knowledge: Internet Data Center

After installation, you'll need to review the prerequisites and select Install. Once the agent is installed, you'll need to proceed to registration.

To register the MARS agent, you'll need to browse to and select the credentials file that you downloaded. This file is used to authenticate the agent with the Recovery Services vault.

You'll also need to specify a passphrase to encrypt and decrypt backups for the machine. This passphrase should be kept secure, as it's used to protect your backups.

To save the passphrase securely, you can use Azure Key Vault. This is a recommended practice, as it will help you recover your backups in case you forget the passphrase.

Here's a step-by-step guide to installing and registering the MARS agent:

By following these steps, you'll be able to install and register the MARS agent, and start backing up your machines to the Recovery Services vault.