Amer Networks E5Web GUI - Manual (Page 115)

• Appendix A, Update Subscriptions
2.6.3. Backing Up Configurations
The administrator has the ability to take a snapshot of a cOS Core system at a given point in time
and restore it when necessary. The snapshot can be of two types:
• A Configuration Backup
This is the entire current cOS Core configuration saved into a single file. It does not include
the installed cOS Core version. This is useful when restoring only the configuration.
It is important to create, at the minimum, a configuration backup on a regular basis so that a
configuration can be easily recreated in the event of hardware replacement. The alternative is
to recreate a configuration by manually adding its contents, piece by piece.
• A System Backup
This a complete backup of both the configuration and the installed cOS Core software saved
into a single file. This is useful if restoring both the configuration and the cOS Core version
upgraded.
A complete system backup is a much larger file than a configuration backup and can be
many megabytes, it is therefore not recommended to perform this on a regular basis because
of the time involved. However, it is recommended to create this at least once when the
Clavister Security Gateway is initially configured and goes live. This is because it a full system
backup makes it easier to restore the current configuration on new hardware.
Note: Backups do not contain everything
Backups include only static information from the cOS Core configuration. Dynamic
information such as the DHCP server lease database or Anti-Virus/IDP databases will not
be backed up.
Version Compatibility
Since a full system backup includes a cOS Core version, compatibility is not an issue with these
types of backup.
With configuration only backups, the following should be noted:
• A configuration backup created on a higher cOS Core version should never be uploaded to a
lower cOS Core version. For example, a backup created from a security gateway running a
10.00.00 version of cOS Core should never be uploaded to a security gateway running a
9.30.02 version.
• A configuration backup created on a lower version can always be uploaded to a higher
version, however there can be compatibility issues in certain cases which will be indicated by
messages from cOS Core when the uploaded configuration is activated. Such issues can
result in a cOS Core reboot.
For this reason, a full system backup is useful when trying to transfer a saved configuration to
new hardware where the new hardware comes preloaded with a higher cOS Core version.
First, upload the full system backup to get a system with the right version and then upload
the latest configuration backup. If there is a requirement to move to a higher cOS Core
Chapter 2: Management and Maintenance
115