How to: Back up and restore BIG-IP Next Central Manager

Overview

The back up process creates a compressed and encrypted file that you can use to restore your BIG-IP Next Central Manager settings. The BIG-IP Next Central Manager on which you perform the restore can use either the same or a newer version of the software than was used to generate the BIG-IP Next Central Manager backup.

Here’s a list of what gets backed up:

  • The repository that stores the secrets and certificates that BIG-IP Next Central Manager uses to access services.

  • The database that stores configuration data.

  • The audit logs that track each action a user can perform (including login).

  • The monitoring service that collects health and traffic metrics for BIG-IP Next instances, as well as health and system metrics for BIG-IP Next Central Manager.

A back up is a very useful tool to restore your configuration and seamlessly start managing your BIG-IP Next instances again after an upgrade or re-installation of BIG-IP Next Central Manager.

Prerequisites

You need to know the management IP address for the BIG-IP Next Central Manager that you want to back up from and restore to.

Note: The external storage should be configured during setup of Central Manager to enable the backup of Analytics. If you enable Analytics backup a Full Backup is created otherwise a Light Backup will be created.

Create an Immediate Backup for BIG-IP Next Central Manager

To create an immediate backup using Central Manager GUI:

  1. Log in to BIG-IP Next Central Manager as admin. Click the Workspace icon -> System -> Backup & Restore.

  2. Click + Start Backup to start the backup process. If backup file is already available, click the Backup button.

  3. Click Next.

  4. In Encryption, enter a minimum of 8 characters password in Encryption Password and Confirm Password.

  5. Click Back Up.

Results

The backup file is created.

Prerequisites

Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager API. For details refer to Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager

Procedure

To create an immediate backup using Central Manager API:

  1. Send a POST request to the /api/v1/system/backups endpoint. POST https://{{cm_mgmt_ip}}/api/v1/system/backups

  2. For the request payload, use the following example, modifying the values as required.

    {
"type" : "full",
"encryption_password": "12345678"
}

Results

The backup file is created.

Results

Description of the expected or intended results after completing the procedure.

Create a Scheduled BIG-IP Next Central Manager Backup

Procedure

To create a scheduled backup using Central Manager GUI:

  1. Log in to BIG-IP Next Central Manager as admin.

  2. Click Workspace icon > System > Backup & Restore.

  3. Click + Start Backup and followed with Next.

  4. In Encryption, enter a minimum of 8 characters password in Encryption Password and Confirm Password.

  5. If you want to schedule a backup for later date,

    a. In Schedule Backup, toggle the Enable Schedule to schedule the backup.

    b. Set the Frequency from the dropdown to Daily, Weekly, or Monthly. Default is Daily.

    • Daily: When you select Daily, the backup will run automatically everyday.

    • Weekly: You can schedule a backup for a particular day/s of the week.

    • Monthly: You can schedule a backup for the particular day of the month, select the day from the dropdown.

    c. Write the Name for schedule backup.

    d. Select the start Date and Time.

    Note: Time Zone is not editable (this will be based on the user location).

    e. For End date,

    • Select No end date, if you want the run the schedule on regular basis.

    • Select End on:, if you want to select the particular date and time to complete the schedule backup.

    f. Click Schedule Backup. The schedule backup is created. The backup is scheduled.

  6. If external storage is enabled, you can create a Full Backup by checking the Include Analytics in the backup file check-box.

  7. Click Back Up, to initiate the backup immediately. The backup file is created.

Prerequisites

Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager API. For details refer to Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager

Procedure

To create a scheduled backup using Central Manager API:

  1. Send a POST request to the system/backups/schedule endpoint.

    POST https://{{cm_mgmt_ip}}/api/v1/system/backups/schedule

  2. Create a Daily, Weekly, or Monthly backup schedules using the following examples for the request payloads, modifying the values as required.

    • Daily Backup

      {
   "name": "CM Backup RA",
   "description": "CM Backup",
   "tag": "Instance-Backup",
   "schedule_type": "BasicWithInterval",
   "schedule": {
      "start_at": "2024-06-13T21:05:00+05:30",
      "end_at": "2025-02-28T13:48:03+05:30"
   },
   "BasicWithInterval": {
      "IntervalToRun": 30,
      "IntervalUnit": "MINUTE"
   },
   "encryption_password": "Password02!"
}

    • Weekly Backup

         {
"name": "CM Backup RA",
"description": "CM Backup",
"tag": "Instance-Backup",
"schedule_type": "DaysOfTheWeek",
"schedule": {
   "start_at": "2024-06-13T21:16:00+05:30",
   "end_at": "2025-02-28T13:48:03+05:30"
},
"DaysOfTheWeek": {
   "daysOfTheWeekToRun": [1, 2, 3, 5],
   "hourToRunOn": 9,
   "interval": 1,
   "minuteToRunOn": 0
},
"encryption_password": "Password02!"  
   }

    • Monthly Backup

      {
   "DayAndTimeOfTheMonth": {
      "interval": 1,
      "hourToRunOn": 9,
      "minuteToRunOn": 0,
      "dayOfTheMonthToRun": 7
   },
   "description": "CM Backup",
   "encryption_password": "Password02!",
   "name": "CM Backup RA",
   "schedule": {
      "start_at": "2024-06-13T21:08:00+05:30",
      "end_at": "2025-02-28T13:48:03+05:30"
   },
   "schedule_type": "DayAndTimeOfTheMonth"
}

Results

The backup is scheduled.

References

For more information on the APIs, refer to Open API documentation

Upload, Download and Delete the Backup File

Procedure

Upload the Backup

To upload a backup using Central Manager GUI:

  1. Navigate to the Backup & Restore page.

  2. Click on the Upload button, either you can

    • Click Choose file… or drag and drop the file, from your local system to start the CM backup file upload

    • Drag and drop the file from your system.

  3. Click Done.

Results

The backup is uploaded to Central Manager.

Prerequisites

Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager API. For details refer to Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager

Procedure

To upload a backup using Central Manager API:

  1. Send a POST request to the system/v1/files endpoint.

  2. For the request payload, use the following example, modifying the values as required.

Form data to upload the file:

Parameter Type Value
file_name Text backup.tgz
file_type Text backup
content File

Upload the file to the content field.

Results

The backup is uploaded to Central Manager.

Download the backup

To download a backup using Central Manager GUI:

  1. Navigate to the Backup & Restore page.

  2. Select the backup file and click Actions → Download.

  3. Click Done.

Results

The backup file is downloaded to your system.

Prerequisites

Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager API. For details refer to Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager

Procedure

To download a backup using Central Manager API:

  1. Send a GET request to system/v1/files endpoint to get the list of the files.

  2. Send a GET request to the /system/v1/files/<fileId> endpoint to download the file.

Results

The backup file is downloaded to your system.

Delete the backup

Prerequisites

Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager API. For details refer to Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager

Procedure

To delete a backup using Central Manager GUI:

  1. Navigate to Backup & Restore page.

  2. Select the backup file and click Actions → Delete.

  3. Click Yes, Delete to confirm the deletion of backup file.

Results

The backup file is deleted from BIG-IP Next Central Manager.

To download a backup using Central Manager API:

  1. Send a GET request to system/v1/files endpoint to get the list of the files.

  2. Send a DELETE request to the /system/v1/files/<fileId> endpoint to delete the file.

Results

The backup file is deleted from BIG-IP Next Central Manager.

References

For more information on the APIs, refer to Open API documentation

Restore BIG-IP Next Central Manager

You can restore BIG-IP Next Central Manager configuration to the same Central Manager instance from which you got the backup or to a different Central Manager instance.

Restore the BIG-IP Next Central Manager without External Storage

Procedure

To restore the BIG-IP Next Central Manager without External Storage using Central Manager GUI:

  1. Navigate to the Backup & Restore page.

  2. If the backup file is not available in the Central Manager,

    • Click on the Upload button.

    • Click Choose file… or drag and drop the file from your local system to start the CM backup file upload.

    • Click Done.

  3. Select the backup file and click Actions → Restore, to restore the BIG-IP Next Central Manager.

  4. Click Next.

  5. Enter the Encryption Password that you have given while doing the backup, and click Yes, Restore.

  6. You will be logged out. Allow a few minutes to complete the restore process.

Results

The BIG-IP Next Central Manager will be restored using the selected backup file. You will be logged out and need to log back in after the process completes.

Prerequisites

Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager API. For details refer to Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager

Procedure

To restore the BIG-IP Next Central Manager without External Storage using Central Manager API:

  1. Send a POST request to the /api/v1/system/restore endpoint.

    POST https://{{cm_mgmt_ip}}/api/v1/system/restore

  2. For the request payload, use the following example, modifying the values as required.

    {
    "file_id": "9276689e-edee-48f7-a306-517437693bed",
    "encryption_password": "12345678"
}

Results

The BIG-IP Next Central Manager is restored.

For more scenarios, refer to Restore Scenarios

Restore the BIG-IP Next Central Manager with External Storage

Procedure

To restore the BIG-IP Next Central Manager with External Storage using Central Manager GUI:

  1. Navigate to the Backup & Restore page.

  2. Open Terminal or command prompt on your machine, use the below commands to copy the backup file.

    a. ssh admin@<Dest_IPaddress>

    b. scp admin@<source_IPaddress>:/opt/cm-backup/<Backup_filename> /opt/cm-backup/

  3. In few minutes, the backup file will be available in Destination BIG-IP Next Central Manager. Then select the file and click Actions → Restore, to restore the BIG-IP Next Central Manager.

  4. Click Next.

  5. Enter the Encryption Password that you have given while doing backup, and click Yes, Restore.

  6. You will be logged out. Allow a few minutes to complete the restore process.

Results

The BIG-IP Next Central Manager configuration is restored.

Prerequisites

Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager API. For details refer to Authenticate with the BIG-IP Next Central Manager

If you have external storage configured, you must manually copy the backup to the external storage location to restore the backup.

Procedure

To restore the BIG-IP Next Central Manager with External Storage using Central Manager API:

  1. Open Terminal or command prompt on your machine, use the below commands to copy the backup file.

    a. ssh admin@<Dest_IPaddress>

    b. scp admin@<source_IPaddress>:/opt/cm-backup/<Backup_filename> /opt/cm-backup/

  2. Restore the backup by sending a POST request to the /api/v1/system/restore endpoint.

    POST https://{{cm_mgmt_ip}}/api/v1/system/restore

  3. For the request payload, use the following example, modifying the values as required.

    {
    "file_id": "9276689e-edee-48f7-a306-517437693bed",
    "encryption_password": "12345678"
}

For more scenarios, refer to Restore Scenarios

Results

The BIG-IP Next Central Manager configuration is restored.

Restore scenarios

Following are different restore scenarios when you have two Central Manager instances.

CM 1 (Source) CM 2 (Dest) Copying the backup file
With External Storage With External Storage Manually copy backup file from CM1 to CM2:
ssh admin@<Dest_IPaddress>
scp admin@<source_IPaddress>:/opt/cm-backup/<Backup_filename> /opt/cm-backup/
With External Storage Without External Storage Manually copy backup file from CM1 to CM2
Or
1. Download (scp) the backup file to local:
scp admin@<source_IPaddress>:/opt/cm-backup/<Backup_filename> /<Local_Location>/<Backup_filename>
2. Upload it using the Upload APIs to another Central Manager instance.
Without External Storage With External Storage Manually copy backup file from CM1 to CM2
Or
1. Download the backup using the Download API
2. Copy the file (scp) to another Central Manager instance:
scp <Local_Location>/<Backup_filename> admin@<dest_IPaddress>:/opt/cm-backup/<Backup_filename>.
Without External Storage Without External Storage Manually copy backup file from CM1 to CM2
Or
1. Download the backup file using the Download API.
2. Upload the backup file using the Upload API.

References

For more information on the APIs, refer to Open API documentation