The Veeam File Level Restore wizard is intended for performing instant file-level restore of VM guest files and folders directly from image-level backups created with Veeam Backup & Replication 5.0, without requirement to extract actual VM disks files.
The key difference between the Veeam File Level Restore wizard and built-in file-level restore functionality that has been in the product since version 1.0, is additional file systems support. Built-in file level restore only supports Windows file system (NTFS and FAT). The Veeam File Level Restore wizard supports the following Linux, Unix, BSD, Solaris (ZFS) and Mac file systems:
Guest OS Supported File System
Linux ext2
ext3 ext4
ReiserFS (Reiser3 only) JFS XFS Unix JFS XFS UFS BSD UFS UFS2 Solaris UFS ZFS Mac HFS HFS+ Windows NTFS FAT FAT32
Tip: Recovery for file systems mentioned in the table is wizard-driven; however, with the new vPower engine in Veeam Backup & Replication, you can recover files from any file system. To restore individual files from file systems other than those specified in the table, you should leverage Instant VM Recovery functionality to publish VMDK from backup on vPower NFS datastore (without actually starting the VM). With the VMDK files readily available, you can mount these VMDKs to any VM that can read the corresponding file system (including the original VM), and restore the required files using native OS file management tools. Alternatively, you can mount the VMDK to a Windows VM, and use tools such as Portlock Explorer.
Starting from version 5 of Veeam Backup & Replication, the File Level Restore wizard can be used if Veeam Backup & Replication is installed both on a physical or virtual machine. When restoring guest OS files, the File Level Restore wizard does not extract the VM image from the backup. Veeam Backup & Replication presents a compressed and deduplicated backup file as an NFS datastore to an ESX server so it is seen as a standard VM.
To perform file-level restore, the wizard uses a proxy appliance. The proxy appliance is a small VM that is created in the same network where a restored VM is located. Whenever you perform file-level restore, the File Level Restore wizard automatically starts the appliance in the necessary network and mounts to it disks of a backed up VM you want to restore files from. The wizard then displays the file browser window providing you with direct access to VM file
disks). Spanned/striped/raid-5 volumes and GPT disks are not supported.
The File Level Restore wizard provides support for Linux Logical Volume Manager. If LVM volumes are detected, the LVM node will be added to the file tree in the file browser. If ZFS pools are detected, the ZFS node will be added to the file tree in the file browser. Encrypted LVM volumes are not supported.
Restoring VM Guest Files
This section will guide you through all steps of the wizard and provide explanation on offered options.
Step 1. Launch the Veeam File Level Restore Wizard
To launch the Veeam File Level Restore wizard, select Programs > Veeam > Veeam File Level Restore from the Start menu or select Tools > File Level Restore > Other OS from the main menu of Veeam Backup & Replication 5.0. You can also start it from the general Restore wizard by selecting the Guest files (other OS) option.
Important! Before starting the wizard, make sure no file-level restore operation is performed in Veeam Backup & Replication 5.0. In the opposite case, the work of the wizard will be aborted. The welcome screen of the wizard will be displayed. If you do not want to see the welcome screen at subsequent launches of the wizard, select the Don't show this step again check box at the bottom of the screen.
Step 2. Select a Virtual Machine
At this step of the wizard, you will see a list of backups created with Veeam Backup & Replication 5.0. In the list of available backups, select a necessary virtual machine.
Step 3. Select the Restore Point
Select a necessary restore point for the virtual machine.
Step 4. Specify Restore Reason
If necessary, enter the reason for performing restore of VM guest OS files. The information you provide will be saved in the session history so that you can reference it later.
Step 5. Select Location for Proxy Appliance
At this step of the wizard, you should select where a proxy appliance used to mount VM file system should be run.
To locate the appliance, at the last step of the wizard, click the Choose button.
In the FLR Appliance Settings window, select the ESX host, resource pool and the network on which the proxy appliance will be run. Keep in mind that you should locate the proxy
appliance in the same network where a VM from which you want to restore files resides.
Step 6. Complete the Work with the Wizard
Click Finish to start restoring files from a backup or replica. Please note that the file-level restore appliance may take about 30-40 seconds to boot.
Step 7. Save Restored Files
Once the restore process is completed, a file browser displaying the file system tree of the restored virtual machine will be opened.
a necessary destination and folder on the local or remote host. The file or folder will be saved at the specified folder on the host.
Note: If you are recovering files to a remote Linux host, you can select the Preserve permissions and ownership check box to keep original permission settings for recovered files. Ownership settings are restored only if you have privileges to change the owner at the remote Linux host where files are restored.