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Chapter 2. Automated recovery from manual backups

You can automatically restore data from manual backups when MicroShift fails to start by configuring automatic recovery.

2.1. Modifying backup and restore commands to automate data recovery

Use automatic recovery options to store all of your backups in a single directory, then automatically select the latest one to restore. Modifying existing backup and restore commands enables you to set up automatic recovery.

The --auto-recovery option treats the PATH argument as a path to a directory that holds all the backups for automated recovery, and not just as a path to a particular backup file. You can use the --auto-recovery option with both backup and restore commands.

  • For example, if you use the automatic recovery option with restore, such as in microshift restore --auto-recovery PATH, running the modified command automatically selects and restores the most recent backup.
  • If you use the same option in the microshift backup command, such as in microshift backup --auto-recovery PATH, a new backup is created in the PATH.
  • By default, microshift restore --auto-recovery PATH creates a backup of the failed MicroShift data in PATH/failed. You can add the --dont-save-failed option to disable the creation of failed backup data.
Important

You can only use the --dont-save-failed option with the restore command.

2.2. Creating backups using the auto-recovery feature

Use the following procedure to create backups using automatic recovery options.

Note

Creating backups require stopping MicroShift, so you must determine the best time to stop MicroShift.

Prerequisites

  • You stopped MicroShift.

Procedure

  • Create and store backups in the directory you choose by running the following command: 

    $ sudo microshift backup --auto-recovery <path_of_directory> 1
    1
    Replace <path_of_directory> with the path of the directory that stores backups. For example, /var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery.
    Note

    The --auto-recovery option modifies the interpretation of the PATH argument from the final backup path to a directory that holds all of the backups for automated recovery.

    Example output

    ??? I1104 09:18:52.100725    8906 system.go:58] "OSTree deployments" deployments=[{"id":"default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1","booted":true,"staged":false,"pinned":false},{"id":"default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0","booted":false,"staged":false,"pinned":false}]
??? I1104 09:18:52.100895    8906 data_manager.go:83] "Copying data to backup directory" storage="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery" name="20241104091852_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1" data="/var/lib/microshift"
??? I1104 09:18:52.102296    8906 disk_space.go:33] Calculated size of "/var/lib/microshift": 261M - increasing by 10% for safety: 287M
??? I1104 09:18:52.102321    8906 disk_space.go:44] Calculated available disk space for "/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery": 1658M
??? I1104 09:18:52.105700    8906 atomic_dir_copy.go:66] "Made an intermediate copy" cmd="/bin/cp --verbose --recursive --preserve --reflink=auto /var/lib/microshift /var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/20241104091852_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1.tmp.99142"
??? I1104 09:18:52.105732    8906 atomic_dir_copy.go:115] "Renamed to final destination" src="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/20241104091852_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1.tmp.99142" dest="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/20241104091852_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1"
??? I1104 09:18:52.105749    8906 data_manager.go:120] "Copied data to backup directory" backup="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/20241104091852_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1" data="/var/lib/microshift"
/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/20241104091852_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1

Verification

  • Verify that the backup you created exists in your customized storage directory by running the following command: 

    $ sudo ls -la <path_of_directory> 1
    1
    Replace <path_of_directory> with the path of the directory that stores backups. For example, /var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery.

2.3. Restoring backups using the auto-recovery feature

You can restore backups after system events that remove or damage required data. Use the following procedure to restore backups using automatic recovery. Automatic recovery selects the most recent backup and restores it. Previously restored backups that used automatic recovery are moved to your PATH/restored directory.

Prerequisites

  • You have stopped MicroShift.

Procedure

  1. Restore the latest backup from your backups directory by running the following command: 

    $ sudo microshift restore --auto-recovery <path_of_directory> 1
    1
    Replace <path_of_directory> with the path of the directory that stores backups. For example, /var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery.
    Note
    • The --auto-recovery option copies the MicroShift data to /var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/failed/ for later investigation, selects the most recent backup, and restores it.
    • The --dont-save-failed option disables the backing up of failed MicroShift data.

    Example output

    ??? I1104 09:19:28.617225    8950 state.go:80] "Read state from the disk" state={"LastBackup":"20241022101528_default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0"}
??? I1104 09:19:28.617323    8950 storage.go:78] "Auto-recovery backup storage read and parsed" dirs=["20241022101255_default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0","20241022101520_default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0","20241022101528_default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0","20241104091852_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1","restored"] backups=[{"CreationTime":"2024-10-22T10:12:55Z","Version":"default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0"},{"CreationTime":"2024-10-22T10:15:20Z","Version":"default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0"},{"CreationTime":"2024-10-22T10:15:28Z","Version":"default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0"},{"CreationTime":"2024-11-04T09:18:52Z","Version":"default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1"}]
??? I1104 09:19:28.617350    8950 storage.go:40] "Filtered list of backups - removed previously restored backup" removed="20241022101528_default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0" newList=[{"CreationTime":"2024-10-22T10:12:55Z","Version":"default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0"},{"CreationTime":"2024-10-22T10:15:20Z","Version":"default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0"},{"CreationTime":"2024-11-04T09:18:52Z","Version":"default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1"}]
??? I1104 09:19:28.633237    8950 system.go:58] "OSTree deployments" deployments=[{"id":"default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1","booted":true,"staged":false,"pinned":false},{"id":"default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0","booted":false,"staged":false,"pinned":false}]
??? I1104 09:19:28.633258    8950 storage.go:49] "Filtered list of backups by version" version="default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1" newList=[{"CreationTime":"2024-11-04T09:18:52Z","Version":"default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1"}]
??? I1104 09:19:28.633268    8950 restore.go:170] "Potential backups" bz=[{"CreationTime":"2024-11-04T09:18:52Z","Version":"default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1"}]
??? I1104 09:19:28.633277    8950 restore.go:173] "Candidate backup for restore" b={"CreationTime":"2024-11-04T09:18:52Z","Version":"default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1"}
??? I1104 09:19:28.634007    8950 disk_space.go:33] Calculated size of "/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/20241104091852_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1": 261M - increasing by 10% for safety: 287M
??? I1104 09:19:28.634096    8950 disk_space.go:44] Calculated available disk space for "/var/lib": 1658M
??? I1104 09:19:28.634507    8950 disk_space.go:33] Calculated size of "/var/lib/microshift": 261M - increasing by 10% for safety: 287M
??? I1104 09:19:28.634522    8950 disk_space.go:44] Calculated available disk space for "/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery": 1658M
??? I1104 09:19:28.649719    8950 system.go:58] "OSTree deployments" deployments=[{"id":"default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1","booted":true,"staged":false,"pinned":false},{"id":"default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0","booted":false,"staged":false,"pinned":false}]
??? I1104 09:19:28.653880    8950 atomic_dir_copy.go:66] "Made an intermediate copy" cmd="/bin/cp --verbose --recursive --preserve --reflink=auto /var/lib/microshift /var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/failed/20241104091928_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1.tmp.22742"
??? I1104 09:19:28.657362    8950 atomic_dir_copy.go:66] "Made an intermediate copy" cmd="/bin/cp --verbose --recursive --preserve --reflink=auto /var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/20241104091852_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1 /var/lib/microshift.tmp.482"
??? I1104 09:19:28.657385    8950 state.go:40] "Saving intermediate state" state="{\"LastBackup\":\"20241104091852_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1\"}" path="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/state.json.tmp.41544"
??? I1104 09:19:28.662438    8950 atomic_dir_copy.go:115] "Renamed to final destination" src="/var/lib/microshift.tmp.482" dest="/var/lib/microshift"
??? I1104 09:19:28.662451    8950 state.go:46] "Moving state file to final path" intermediatePath="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/state.json.tmp.41544" finalPath="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/state.json"
??? I1104 09:19:28.662521    8950 atomic_dir_copy.go:115] "Renamed to final destination" src="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/failed/20241104091928_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1.tmp.22742" dest="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/failed/20241104091928_default-b3442053c9ce69310cd54140d8d592234c5306e4c5132de6efe615f79c84300a.1"
??? I1104 09:19:28.662969    8950 atomic_dir_copy.go:115] "Renamed to final destination" src="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/20241022101528_default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0" dest="/var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery/restored/20241022101528_default-a129624b9233fa54fe3574f1aa211bc2d85e1052b52245fe7d83f10c2f6d28e3.0"
??? I1104 09:19:28.662983    8950 restore.go:141] "Auto-recovery restore completed".

    Important
    • The restore command does not restart MicroShift after restoration. When you execute this command, MicroShift service has already failed or you stopped it.
    • MicroShift does not monitor the disk space of any filesystem. You must ensure that your automation handles old backup removal. For example, you can add this process to the auto-recovery service or add another service that runs periodically.

  2. Restart MicroShift by running the following command: 

    $ sudo systemctl restart microshift

Verification

  • Verify that MicroShift has started successfully by running the following command: 

    $ oc get pods -A

    Example output

    NAMESPACE                   NAME                                                     READY   STATUS   RESTARTS  AGE
default                     i-06166fbb376f14a8bus-west-2computeinternal-debug-qtwcr  1/1     Running  0		    46m
kube-system                 csi-snapshot-controller-5c6586d546-lprv4                 1/1     Running  0		    51m
openshift-dns               dns-default-45jl7                                        2/2     Running  0		    50m
openshift-dns               node-resolver-7wmzf                                      1/1     Running  0		    51m
openshift-ingress           router-default-78b86fbf9d-qvj9s                          1/1     Running  0		    51m
openshift-ovn-kubernetes    ovnkube-master-5rfhh                                     4/4     Running  0		    51m
openshift-ovn-kubernetes    ovnkube-node-gcnt6                                       1/1     Running  0		    51m
openshift-service-ca        service-ca-bf5b7c9f8-pn6rk                               1/1     Running  0		    51m
openshift-storage           topolvm-controller-549f7fbdd5-7vrmv                      5/5     Running  0		    51m
openshift-storage           topolvm-node-rht2m                                       3/3     Running  0		    50m

    Note

    This example output shows basic MicroShift. If you have installed optional RPMs, the status of pods running those services is also expected to be shown in your output.

2.3.1. Using automatic recovery in RPM systems

When MicroShift enters a failed state, the systemd service starts the microshift-auto-recovery.service unit. This unit executes the auto-recovery restore process.

As a use case, consider the following example situation in which you want to automate the automatic recovery process for RPM systems that use the systemd service.

Procedure

  1. Create a directory for the microshift systemd service by running the following command: 

    $ sudo mkdir -p /usr/lib/systemd/system/microshift.service.d

  2. To instruct systemd to run microshift-auto-recovery.service when the microshift.service fails, create the 10-auto-recovery.conf file by running the following command: 

    $ sudo tee /usr/lib/systemd/system/microshift.service.d/10-auto-recovery.conf > /dev/null <<'EOF'
[Unit]
OnFailure=microshift-auto-recovery.service
StartLimitIntervalSec=25s 1
EOF
    1
    Increase the StartLimitInterval value from the default 10s to a larger value for slower systems. A value that is too low can result in systemd never marking the microshift systemd service as failed, which means that the OnFailure= service does not get triggered.

  3. Create the microshift-auto-recovery.service file by running the following command: 

    $ sudo tee /usr/lib/systemd/system/microshift-auto-recovery.service > /dev/null <<'EOF'
[Unit]
Description=MicroShift auto-recovery

[Service]
Type=oneshot
ExecStart=/usr/bin/microshift-auto-recovery

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
EOF

  4. Create the microshift-auto-recovery script by running the following command: 

    $ sudo tee /usr/bin/microshift-auto-recovery > /dev/null <<'EOF'
#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -xeuo pipefail

# If greenboot uses a non-default file for clearing boot_counter, use boot_success instead.
if grep -q  "/boot/grubenv" /usr/libexec/greenboot/greenboot-grub2-set-success; then
    if grub2-editenv - list | grep -q ^boot_success=0; then
        echo "Greenboot didn't decide the system is healthy after staging new deployment."
        echo "Quitting to not interfere with the process"
        exit 0
    fi
else
    if grub2-editenv - list | grep -q ^boot_counter=; then
        echo "Greenboot didn't decide the system is healthy after staging a new deployment."
        echo "Quitting to not interfere with the process"
        exit 0
    fi
fi

/usr/bin/microshift restore --auto-recovery /var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery
/usr/bin/systemctl reset-failed microshift
/usr/bin/systemctl start microshift

echo "DONE"
EOF

  5. Make the script executable by running the following command: 

    $ sudo chmod +x /usr/bin/microshift-auto-recovery

  6. Reload the system configuration by running the following command: 

    $ sudo systemctl daemon-reload

2.3.2. Using automatic recovery with RHEL for Edge

As a use case, consider the following example situation in which you want to automate the auto-recovery process for Red Hat Enterprise Linux for Edge (RHEL for Edge) systems that use systemd in the blueprint file.

Important

You must include the entire auto-recovery process for RHEL for Edge systems that use systemd in the blueprint file.

Prerequisites

  • You installed Podman.
  • You installed the command-line composer-cli tool.

Procedure

  1. Optional: Because the composer-cli can only create files in the /etc directory, package your files into an RPM that you include the blueprint.

  2. Use the following example to create your blueprint file: 

    [[customizations.directories]]
path = "/etc/systemd/system/microshift.service.d"

[[customizations.directories]]
path = "/etc/bin"

[[customizations.files]]
path = "/etc/systemd/system/microshift.service.d/10-auto-recovery.conf"
data = """
[Unit]
OnFailure=microshift-auto-recovery.service
"""

[[customizations.files]]
path = "/etc/systemd/system/microshift-auto-recovery.service"
data = """
[Unit]
Description=MicroShift auto-recovery
[Service]
Type=oneshot
ExecStart=/etc/bin/microshift-auto-recovery
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target
"""

[[customizations.files]]
path = "/etc/bin/microshift-auto-recovery"
mode = "0755"
data = """
#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -xeuo pipefail
# If greenboot uses a non-default file for clearing boot_counter, use boot_success instead.
if grep -q  "/boot/grubenv" /usr/libexec/greenboot/greenboot-grub2-set-success; then
    if grub2-editenv - list | grep -q ^boot_success=0; then
        echo "Greenboot didn't decide the system is healthy after staging a new deployment."
        echo "Quitting to not interfere with the process"
        exit 0
    fi
else
    if grub2-editenv - list | grep -q ^boot_counter=; then
        echo "Greenboot didn't decide the system is healthy after staging a new deployment."
        echo "Quitting to not interfere with the process"
        exit 0
    fi
fi
/usr/bin/microshift restore --auto-recovery /var/lib/microshift-auto-recovery
/usr/bin/systemctl reset-failed microshift
/usr/bin/systemctl start microshift
echo "DONE"
"""
  3. For the next steps, see Preparing for image building.

2.3.3. Using automatic recovery in image mode for RHEL systems

Important

Image mode for RHEL is a Technology Preview feature only. Technology Preview features are not supported with Red Hat production service level agreements (SLAs) and might not be functionally complete. Red Hat does not recommend using them in production. These features provide early access to upcoming product features, enabling customers to test functionality and provide feedback during the development process.

For more information about the support scope of Red Hat Technology Preview features, see Technology Preview Features Support Scope.

As a use case, consider the following example situation in which you want to automate the auto-recovery process for image mode for Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems that use the systemd service.

Important

You must include the entire auto-recovery process for image mode for RHEL systems that use systemd in the container file.

Prerequisites

  • You created a Containerfile as instructed in Building the bootc image.

  • You created the 10-auto-recovery.conf and microshift-auto-recovery.service files as explained in the "Using auto-recovery in RPM systems" section.

    Important

    The location of the the 10-auto-recovery.conf and microshift-auto-recovery.service must be relative to the Containerfile.

    For example, if the path to the Containerfile is /home/microshift/my-build/Containerfile, the systemd files need to be adjacent for proper embedding. The following paths are correct for this example:

    • /home/microshift/my-build/auto-rec/10-auto-recovery.conf
    • /home/microshift/my-build/auto-rec/microshift-auto-recovery.service
    • /home/microshift/my-build/auto-rec/microshift-auto-recovery
  • You created the microshift-auto-recovery script as explained in the "Using auto-recovery in RPM systems" section.

Procedure

  1. Use the following example snippet to update the container file that you use to prepare the image mode for RHEL image. 

    RUN mkdir -p /usr/lib/systemd/system/microshift.service.d
COPY ./auto-rec/10-auto-recovery.conf /usr/lib/systemd/system/microshift.service.d/10-auto-recovery.conf
COPY ./auto-rec/microshift-auto-recovery.service /usr/lib/systemd/system/
COPY ./auto-rec/microshift-auto-recovery /usr/bin/
RUN chmod +x /usr/bin/microshift-auto-recovery
    Important

    Podman uses the host subscription information and repositories inside the container when building the container image. If the rhocp and fast-datapath repositories are not available on the host, the build fails.

  2. Rebuild your local bootc image by running the following image build command: 

    PULL_SECRET=~/.pull-secret.json
USER_PASSWD=<your_redhat_user_password>
IMAGE_NAME=microshift-4.18-bootc

sudo podman build --authfile "${PULL_SECRET}" -t "${IMAGE_NAME}" \
    --build-arg USER_PASSWD="${USER_PASSWD}" \
    -f Containerfile
    Note

    Secrets are used during the image build in the following ways:

    • The podman --authfile argument is required to pull the base rhel-bootc:9.4 image from the registry.redhat.io registry.
    • The build USER_PASSWD argument is used to set a password for the redhat user.

Verification

  • Verify that the local bootc image was created by running the following command: 

    $ sudo podman images "${IMAGE_NAME}"

    Example output

    REPOSITORY                       TAG         IMAGE ID      CREATED        SIZE
localhost/microshift-4.18-bootc  latest      193425283c00  2 minutes ago  2.31 GB

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