The third part of the guide “How to upgrade your Catalyst Center :)” is all about backup. Before you start the system upgrade you need to run a backup depends on what you need to backup.
You can run 2 different type of backup:
- A system and configuration backup called “Cisco DNA Center (without Assurance data)”
- A system and configuration + Assurance data backup called “Cisco DNA Center (All data)”
Important note about backup: a backup file of a specific Catalyst Center version cannot be used to be restored in a different Catalyst Center version. You can backup and restore a file inside the SAME Catalyst Center version. This is because you can restore all your data in case you need to reimage the Catalyst Center to the same version as before.
Catalyst center supports only external backup server running:
- RedHat Enterprise (or CentOS) 7 or later
- Ubuntu 16.04 (or Mint, etc) or later
You cannot create a local backup, for obvious reasons!
Linux configuration is pretty easy, you simply need to assign an ip address to the remote server, create a directory to store the data,create a user that own that folder and change the folder permission. If you also want to store the Assurance data you need to activate NFS protocol.
You can consult all the configuration steps at https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/cloud-systems-management/network-automation-and-management/dna-center/2-3-5/admin_guide/b_cisco_dna_center_admin_guide_2_3_5/b_cisco_dna_center_admin_guide_2_3_5_chapter_0110.html#task_jbm_mnf_pdb
After you set the backup server you need to add it into the Catalyst Center, so you need to go to System –> Backup & Restore –> Configure menù and set all the proper information:
When you are ready, you can create a single backup clicking on “Create Backup” button and type in the backup name, scheduling e backup scope:
You can also create a scheduled backup and run it every day or week, for your convenience
