Veeam SureBackup ensures that saved backups are not corrupted and that VMs can be successfully booted, but running SureBackup on a Deduplication Appliance can be challenging due to the nature of deduplication storage.
During the Veeam SureBackup operation, the VM verification may fail with the following error:
OS did not boot in the allotted time
When a VM is powered on for testing by a SureBackup Job, it must complete the boot process and reach a stable state within a specific timeframe. To verify stability, the system checks if the VM's IP address is reported to the hypervisor using stabilization algorithms, such as Stabilization by IP.
This value, set by default to 600 seconds, is specified in the Maximum allowed boot time option within the Startup Options tab of the Linked Job.
SureBackup vs Deduplication Appliances
SureBackup relies on storage random I/O performance to verify VMs. If a deduplication appliance is used as the primary backup repository, you may experience performance issues.
While deduplication appliances are optimized for sequential write operations, they introduce higher latency when performing random read operations.
During a SureBackup Job, if backups are stored on a dedupe storage, the process will be slow because each block must be rehydrated as the VM powers on.
This is often the main reason for the error "OS did not boot in the allotted time".
Workaround
Of course the suggestion is to avoid using deduplication appliances as primary backup repository as it negatively impacts not only SureBackup but also some other useful features such as Instant Recovery and FLR.
- Increase the Maximum allowed boot time value by adding 5 minutes or more. You may need to do some adjustments to find the correct value.
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- Make sure to apply the recommended best practices to the deduplication appliances by following the Veeam's KB17545.
If the adjustments are appropriated, the SureBackup will complete successfully.
Keep in mind that these workarounds may not fix the correct functionality of SureBackup if the deduplication storage has poor performance.
Wherever possible, avoid using deduplication appliances as the primary repository to store backup data, as this can impact the ability to perform fast restores and leverage features like SureBackup and Instant Recovery effectively.
