This knowledge base article provides detailed information on how to perform VM backup using VMware UltraBlaze technology. With UltraBlaze, the need for an exclusive physical agent for VM backup is eliminated. Instead, it seamlessly integrates with your existing VMware Server. To achieve this, you'll utilize a proxy VM for processing VMware backups. This proxy VM can either be a new VM or an existing one from the ESXi server.

To effectively use VMware UltraBlaze Technology, you must meet the following requirements specified by VMware:

1. The agent must be installed on the Virtual Machine (VM) located on the same ESXi server where the source VMs reside. If the proxy VM, where the backup agent runs, is on a VFMS3 datastore, the volume on the proxy VM should be formatted with an appropriate block size based on the maximum disk size of the source VM(s):

1. 1MB block size – supports up to 256GB
2. 2MB block size – supports up to 512GB
3. 4MB block size – supports up to 1024GB
4. 8MB block size – supports up to 2048GB
   

2. The disks to be hot-added must be SCSI; IDE drives are not compatible with hot-add. The proxy VM should have VMware Tools installed, and it's recommended to immediately upgrade VMware Tools to the latest available version.

To utilize VMware UltraBlaze Technology, you'll need to create a proxy VM and install the Vembu BDR agent on it or select an existing VM for Vembu BDR agent installation while ensuring the above requirements are met.

1. Open VMware vSphere Client and select "File -> New -> Virtual Machine."

2. Name your proxy VM.

3. Select the datastore where you want to create the disk for the Proxy VM.

4. Choose the latest virtual machine version.

5. Select the Guest OS (Windows or Linux), with a preference for Ubuntu 64-bit for Linux.

6. Allocate the recommended resources (CPU-1 and RAM-2 GB).

7. Use default options for SCSI controller.   

8. Create a new virtual disk.

9. Allocate 50 GB of storage for the Proxy VM.      

10. Select SCSI as the Virtual Device Node; selecting IDE will not support this feature.

11. Verify your inputs and create the Proxy VM.

1. Download the Vembu BDR Windows agent build from the following URL: https://www.vembu.com/try/

2. Run the installer with the "Run as Administrator" option.

3. Accept the terms and conditions.

4. Enter a name for this proxy VM, which will be used to identify the installation on the Vembu BDR backup server.

5. Choose the "Typical" installation option with default settings.

6. Click "Finish" to complete the installation process.

1. Open a web browser (e.g., Firefox, IE, or Chrome) and enter "http://localhost:6060."

2. Log in with the default username and password (admin / admin).

3. Select your timezone.

4. Go to "Backup -> Image Backup -> VMware" page.

5. Enter the Vembu BDR backup server's IP address or DNS name.

6. Choose "Add VMware Server" to add ESXi host information.

7. Enter the required information and save the details.

8. Return to the "Select VMware Server" page and select the added ESXi host.

9. All VMs from the ESXi host will be listed, and you can select the VMs to be backed up.