Backup and Restore
Clicking Administration > System Settings: System Operations, then clicking the Backup and Restore tab displays controls for saving an appliance's configuration information and uploading it to an external host for safekeeping. A backed up configuration can be downloaded later to place the configuration on a new appliance. This capability is provided in the event that it is necessary to replace an appliance through Riverbed's RMA process; it is not intended for use as a means of cloning a configuration rapidly to deploy new equipment.
The backup process saves configuration information only; it does not save stored data. Most configuration information is backed up, although some is omitted for security reasons, or due to issues caused by not backing up data. All settings under Administration > Security are backed up, with the exception of the web certificate. Backups are not encrypted, so nothing that is a potential security risk is backed up. Upon reboot after a restore, the system will create a new self-signed web certificate. User accounts and passwords are backed up, stored in one-way hash format.
The backup is written to a .tgz (G-zipped TAR) file.
Sensitive configuration such as SSL certificates/keys will not be backed up, and will be reset to defaults upon a restore operation. This includes the default SSL certificate used when logging into the WebUI; your browser will complain about a self-signed certificate after a restore operation. Licenses will be left untouched, neither backed up nor deleted. Licenses are not transferrable between devices. User accounts, including one-way-hashed passwords, will be backed up and restored.
The AppResponse 11 software version and the appliance model number must match exactly when performing a restore operation.
The reset and restore process can take multiple minutes to finish, possibly hours (in situations in which the system being restored had a large amount of performance (ASA) data). The system does not provide a progress indicator, so, when you execute the Restore command, be prepared to allow the process a period of time to run to completion, and monitor it occasionally to see if it has finished.
Reset to Factory Defaults
When a restore operation is initiated from the web UI, the AppResponse 11 system is reset to its factory default state prior to the restoration of the backed up configuration information. This is achieved by the implicit execution of the CLI command, system reset-factory. This command is accessible only in the CLI, and it deletes all configuration, data, and logs from the AppResponse 11 system and resets it to the state it was in when it was powered on the very first time. The command does not perform a full disk wipe or affect the AppResponse 11 software inself; the installed version and any patches will not be touched.
Licenses are not affected by the system reset-factory command.
Backup/Restore Process
In general, the backup and restore process will follow this sequence:
1. Execute a backup command on the Web UI.
2. Once the backup completes successfully, download the backup.tgz file.
3. Upload the backup.tgz file to another compatible system, running the exact same software build.
4. Execute a Restore command for that backup.
5. The appliance will reboot, and come up with the restored configuration. Licenses will remain untouched.