Storage Providers Backup and Recovery
Back up the storage itself — not just the VMs on top of it. Storware protects Ceph RBD, Nutanix Files, Nutanix Volume Groups, and NAS file shares as first-class backup sources: agentless, incremental, with granular file-level restore, under one universal license.
Key Highlights
Storage as a first-class source
Protect Ceph RBD, Nutanix Files, Nutanix Volume Groups, and file systems directly — for storage that runs with no virtualization layer, or that VM- and app-centric backup never reaches.
Genuinely agentless Ceph
The Ceph RBD provider uses RBD-NBD to read snapshots straight from the cluster — no proxy VM, no in-guest agent.
Efficient incrementals per source
Snapshot difference for Ceph RBD, Changed-File Tracking for Nutanix Files, and Changed-Region Tracking for Nutanix Volume Groups — only what changed moves.
Granular or full recovery
Restore individual files from mounted backups, share them over iSCSI, or recover entire volumes.
Storage protection, source by source
Ceph RBD backup with RBD-NBD
Supply the Ceph keyring and configuration; the provider detects pools and volumes and applies policy-driven backups, mounting remote RBD snapshots over NBD to read directly from the cluster — no proxy VM.
Nutanix Files (AFS) with Changed-File Tracking
Full and incremental backups of Nutanix Files, tracking changed files for efficient incrementals and granular file-level restore.
Nutanix Volume Groups with Changed-Region Tracking
Block-level incremental protection of Nutanix Volume Groups through changed-region tracking.
File systems and NAS shares
Protect file systems mounted on the Storware Node, including remote NAS file shares, under the same policies as everything else.
Full and incremental backups
Efficient incrementals across every storage-provider source.
Granular and full recovery
File- and folder-level restore from mounted backups, iSCSI share of backup data, or full-volume recovery.
Any destination, with deduplication
Write to file systems, S3-compatible and cloud object storage, or enterprise backup platforms; deduplication reduces storage consumption. Ceph RBD can also serve as a secondary backup destination.
Multi-Ceph and multi-AZ
Assign a storage provider per availability zone to protect distributed Ceph layouts from one platform, under one universal license.
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Ceph replicates. Replication isn't backup.
Ceph's built-in replication protects against hardware failure — not against deletion, corruption, or ransomware, and not when you can't afford to duplicate the whole cluster. Storware backs up the storage layer itself.
Ceph, with or without a hypervisor
Whether Ceph backs an OpenStack cloud or runs standalone, the storage-provider path protects RBD volumes directly and agentlessly over RBD-NBD.
Nutanix Files and Volume Groups
Change-tracked backups of Nutanix Files (AFS) and Volume Groups, with granular file recovery — a layer beyond native snapshots.
File systems and NAS
Traditional file systems and NAS shares protected under the same policies and the same license as the rest of your estate.
Backing up Ceph and storage systems with Storware
See agentless Ceph RBD backup over RBD-NBD, plus Nutanix Files and Volume Groups protection with change tracking and granular restore.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Storware protect under Storage Providers?
Ceph RBD block volumes, Nutanix Files (AFS), Nutanix Volume Groups, and file systems — including remote NAS file shares. The focus is protecting the storage itself, rather than the VMs or applications running on top of it.
Is Ceph backup agentless?
Yes. The Ceph RBD storage provider uses the RBD-NBD approach — mounting a remote RBD snapshot over NBD and reading data directly from the cluster. There’s no proxy VM and no in-guest agent.
How do incremental backups work for each source?
Ceph RBD uses snapshot difference to read only changed blocks; Nutanix Files uses Changed-File Tracking; Nutanix Volume Groups uses Changed-Region Tracking. Each moves only what changed since the last backup.
Can I back up standalone Ceph with no OpenStack?
Yes. Ceph running with no virtualization layer is a primary use case — the storage provider protects RBD volumes the same way Storware protects VMs or applications, without needing a hypervisor.
How do restores work?
You can restore individual files and folders from mounted backups, share backup data over iSCSI, or recover entire volumes — whichever fits the incident.
Is this different from backing up Ceph inside OpenStack?
Yes. Inside OpenStack, Ceph-backed VMs are protected through Cinder disk-attachment. The storage-provider path protects Ceph RBD directly over RBD-NBD — no proxy VM. Both are available; you choose based on what you’re protecting.
Is synthetic backup available for storage providers?
No. Synthetic backup destinations aren’t available for storage-provider sources; protection uses full and incremental backups.
Where can storage backups be stored?
File systems, S3-compatible and cloud object storage, or enterprise backup platforms — with deduplication to reduce footprint. Ceph RBD can also be used as a secondary backup destination.