These are the last points I'm going to make in this thread. I hope you read them carefully:
- Quiescing in ESXi/vSphere is available for both Windows and *nix systems. Windows use the VSS system while *nix uses the vmsync driver.
- Some databases do not need to be quiesced to have consistent backups taken with regular vSphere snapshots. One example is vPostgres where everything is written to a redo log first before being committed to the database. This is why the vCenter Server Appliance, for example, does not need to be quiesced to be successfully backed up.
- Any vendor can write support for quiescing in their app. While VMware provides the VSS writer and vmsync driver, the vendor is responsible for hooking into this system and then implementing whatever is necessary to put their product into a consistent state. Thus, VMware provides the framework necessary to take backups of any system running on top of it, but the responsibility is on the vendor building said system in order to use it.
- If the appliance that you have chosen to deploy on vSphere does not offer a snapshot-based (VADP) method to protect the solution, this is not VMware's fault. You need to speak to the vendor of that appliance. Almost all vendors have some method of protecting their appliances. Sometimes that is through an in-guest method; sometimes that is with built-in scripts; and sometimes that is based on VADP. You complaining about Veeam or VMware's software being poor because your Palo Alto or Checkpoint appliance cannot be backed up with snapshots in a consistent state is absurd. It would be like me complaining to a gasoline company that my Subaru Forester doesn't have power steering.
- If you've found that capturing the memory state of a VM appliance during snapshot, followed by snapshotting the LUN is the only way to achieve a consistent backup on vSphere, then one or more things below apply to you and I don't much care which it is:
- You haven't read the vendor's documentation or know very much about this appliance. I have absolutely never once heard in all my experience that this is the only or required method to produce a consistent backup of any type of appliance. If you're claiming this is so, provide evidence of it or at least the mythical appliance name in question.
- You haven't actually tested a restore of your appliance using simple snapshots, or something unusual happened in case that test restore failed to lead you to believe that it won't work.
- This appliance is not VMware certified
- This appliance is a piece of garbage
or lastly
- You'll have to make do with your backup hack system
- Replication is not backup. Read that very carefully. Replication is not backup. You comparing LUN replication and vSphere Replication with other backup applications shows you don't understand the difference between these two technologies.