PlateSpin® Protect supports workloads for English, French, German, Japanese, Chinese Traditional, and Chinese Simplified versions of Microsoft Windows for the following release versions and server configurations. It supports only the NTFS file system on any supported Windows system. PlateSpin Protect mirrors the Microsoft support of BIOS and UEFI firmware. Disks must be partitioned with MBR or GPT (up to 57 partitions) disk partitioning formats. Support includes both file-level and block-level replications for workloads, except as noted.
Supported Windows workloads
Servers
- Windows Server 2012 R2
- Windows Server 2012
- Windows Server 2008 R2 (64-bit)
- Windows Server 2008 (64-bit)
- Windows Server 2008 latest SP (32-bit)
- Windows Server 2003 R2 (64-bit)
- Windows Server 2003 R2 (32-bit)
- Windows Server 2003 latest SP (64-bit)
- Windows Server 2003 latest SP (32-bit)
Clusters
Support includes only block-level replications.
- Windows Server 2008 R2 server-based Microsoft Failover Cluster
- Windows Server 2003 R2 server-based Microsoft Failover Cluster
Hypervisors
- Windows Server 2012 R2 with Hyper-V Role
- Windows Server 2012 with Hyper-V Role
Desktops
- Windows 8.1 (requires the High Performance power plan)
- Windows 8 (requires the High Performance power plan)
- Windows 7 Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate editions
Supported Linux workloads
PlateSpin Protect supports workloads for the following distributions of Linux. It supports only the EXT2, EXT3, EXT4, REISERFS, XFS, and NSS (OES) file system on any supported Linux system. Protect mirrors the Linux support of BIOS and UEFI firmware. Disks must be formatted with the MBR disk partitioning format.
Servers
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4, 5, 6, and 7
- SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 9, 10, and 11
- Novell Open Enterprise Server 2 SP3, 11 SP1, and 11 SP2
- Oracle Enterprise Linux
Requirement for a blkwatchdriver
Replication of protected Linux workloads occurs only at the block level. PlateSpin Protect software requires a blkwatch driver compiled for a particular Linux distribution being protected. For a list of distributions that include the blkwatch driver, see Linux Distributions Supported by Protect in the PlateSpin Protect 11.1 User Guide.
If your distribution does not include the blkwatch driver, you can create a custom driver by following the steps found in the Knowledgebase Article 7005873.
Supported VM containers
VM containers can be a VMware ESXi Server or a VMware DRS Cluster, using vCenter management. ESXi versions must have a paid license. Supported platforms are:
- VMware ESXi 5.5
- VMware ESXi 5.1
- VMware ESXi 4.1
Web interface access
Most of your interaction with the appliance takes place through the browser-based PlateSpin Forge® Web Interface. Supported web browsers are:
- Google Chrome, version 34.0 and later
- Microsoft Internet Explorer, version 11.0 and later
- Mozilla Firefox, version 29.0 and later
Server specifications
Server
Install the software on a dedicated physical machine or virtual machine.
- Processor: Multi-core, 2 GHz or higher recommended; 1 GHz minimum
- Memory (RAM): 4 GB minimum
- Disk space: 15 GB
- IP address: A static IP address for the PlateSpin Server host
Operating system
For new installations, supported operating systems are:
- Windows Server 2012 R2 (64-bit)
- Windows Server 2008 R2 (64-bit)
An upgrade requires an existing PlateSpin Protect Server, running version 11.0 or 11.0.1, with or without hotfixes and field patches.
Database server
A dedicated Microsoft SQL Server database instance, running on one of the following database servers:
- New database server (local or remote)): Microsoft SQL Server 2014 Express Edition, which is included in your PlateSpin Protect software distribution.
-
Your existing database server (remote): Supported Microsoft SQL Server software versions are:
- Microsoft SQL Server 2014
- Microsoft SQL Server 2012 SP 2
- Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 SP 2
- Microsoft SQL Server 2008 SP 3
- Microsoft SQL Server 2005 SP 4
Software prerequisites
You must install the following components on the Windows server where you will install PlateSpin Protect:
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For Windows Server 2012 R2 systems:
- Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 SP 1
- Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0
- Web Server (IIS 8.0), running in 32-bit mode
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For Windows Server 2008 R2 systems:
- Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 SP 1
- Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0
- Web Server (IIS 7.0), running in 32-bit mode
National language support
In addition to the English language, PlateSpin Protect provides National Language Support (NLS) for installation and use on machines configured for the Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, French, German, and Japanese languages.
Documentation
