MANAGING AN FLR-ENABLED NAS ENVIRONMENT WITH THE EMC FLR TOOLKIT ON VNXe

White Paper MANAGING AN FLR-ENABLED NAS ENVIRONMENT WITH THE EMC FLR TOOLKIT ON VNXe Overview Abstract EMC File-Level Retention (FLR) is a feature that provides a software infrastructure for users to secure files on a production file system and retain the files on cost-effective network-attached storage (NAS). The FLR Toolkit allows users to leverage the capabilities of this feature. This white paper covers the FLR Toolkit and the EMC VNXe series. July 2014

Copyright 2011 EMC Corporation. All Rights Reserved. EMC believes the information in this publication is accurate as of its publication date. The information is subject to change without notice. The information in this publication is provided as is. EMC Corporation makes no representations or warranties of any kind with respect to the information in this publication, and specifically disclaims implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Use, copying, and distribution of any EMC software described in this publication requires an applicable software license. For the most up-to-date listing of EMC product names, see EMC Corporation Trademarks on EMC.com. All trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners. Part Number H8189.1 2

Table of contents Executive summary... 4 Introduction... 5 Audience... 5 Terminology... 5 Managing and monitoring an FLR environment... 7 File-Level Retention for VNXe... 7 FLR states... 7 FLR Toolkit... 8 Implementation... 10 Set a retention date... 10 Manually set a retention date... 10 Automatically set retention dates by using the Monitor Service... 11 Set a soft infinite retention date, and then a hard retention date... 14 Transition files to append-only... 15 Manage expired files... 16 Monitor and report... 17 Add the FLR Retention Date attribute column in Windows Explorer... 17 Query for files with active retention periods... 18 Run a report on FLR files by using a saved query builder... 19 Conclusion... 21 References... 22 3

Executive summary All data goes through some form of an information lifecycle. With the introduction of new regulations and compliance requirements, data now has extended lifecycles that require longer maintenance periods. The rate at which files are being generated is increasingly greater than the rate at which files are being destroyed. Fixed-content data typically consumes more than half of an average organization s storage resources. Safeguarding business data is an essential business practice in many industries including health care, law, and broadcasting. There is clearly an urgent need for cost-effective file retention technology. EMC File-Level Retention (FLR) is a software technology that addresses the need for cost-effective file retention. With FLR, VNXe offers a cost-effective NAS solution that can manage files over an entire lifecycle at the compliance level. For the VNXe storage environment, FLR provides the infrastructure to protect file systems with files that require retention. The FLR Toolkit is a Windows-based solution that simplifies the management and monitoring of files that are stored on file systems that have the FLR feature enabled. Additionally, the FLR Toolkit provides extra capabilities for users to administer their FLR file systems with features such as reporting, querying, and automatic assigning of retention dates. 4

Introduction This white paper explores the features of the FLR Toolkit and the available management components. Specifically, this paper discusses the common operations used by administrators to manage and monitor files stored on FLR-enabled file systems. This white paper also highlights several features of the FLR Toolkit and demonstrates how to apply them in an FLR environment. The features covered in this paper are available with EMC VNXe version 2.0 and later, and the FLR Toolkit version 3.5. Audience This white paper is intended to be used by EMC field personnel and customers who are familiar with EMC VNXe technology, including the FLR Toolkit, but are not familiar with how to use the Toolkit in an FLR environment. Terminology This section covers some key terms that are used in this paper, but it does not include terms that are generic to the basic management and administration of FLR on VNXe. Table 1. Terminology Term Append-only state Common Internet File System (CIFS) Expired state File-level retention (FLR) Definition The append-only state is the state of a file when the data in it cannot be modified, but the file can have new data appended to the end of it. In addition, the file itself cannot be deleted. Once a file in the append-only state has been written to, changing it to the locked state by making it read-only locks it into that state until its retention date has passed. CIFS is a file-sharing protocol based on the Microsoft Server Message Block (SMB). It allows users to share file systems over the Internet and intranets. The expired state is the state of a file when its retention date has passed. A file in the expired state can be reverted back to the locked state or deleted from the FLRenabled file system, but cannot be altered. If the expired file is empty, it can be transitioned to the append-only state. FLR lets you store data on standard rewriteable magnetic disks by using CIFS operations to create a permanent, unalterable set of files and directories. 5

Term FLR clock Locked state Not-locked state Retention date Definition The FLR clock is a non-modifiable, per file system clock used to track the retention date. It is initialized when an FLR-enabled file system is mounted read/write on the VNXe. It does not advance when a file system is unmounted or mounted readonly. A file is in the locked state when its read/write permission is changed to readonly in a file system enabled for file-level retention and a retention date has been set. Files committed to the locked state cannot be altered or deleted until their retention date has passed. The not-locked state is the initial state of a file when it is created. A file that is not locked is treated in the same manner as any file in the file system not enabled for FLR. This means it can be renamed, modified, or deleted until the time that the file is locked. The retention date is the date until which a locked file in an FLR-enabled file system will be protected. Users and applications manage a file s retention date by using CIFS to set the file s last access time to a future date and time. The retention timestamp is compared to the file system s FLR clock to determine whether a file s retention date has passed. 6

Managing and monitoring an FLR environment This section describes the two main components that are used to manage and monitor an FLR environment: FLR file systems and the FLR Toolkit. This overview does not cover the FLR feature and toolkit in its entirety, but it describes the concepts and elements pertinent to administering an FLR environment. Implementation on page 10 covers the operations that are applicable in an FLR environment. File-Level Retention for VNXe FLR is an optional VNXe software feature that protects files from modification or deletion until a specified retention date. When you use FLR, you can archive data to file-level retention storage on standard rewritable magnetic disks through CIFS operations. FLR enables you to create a permanent, unalterable set of files and directories and ensures the integrity of the data. In this version of the FLR Toolkit, additional measures are taken to secure the environment in which FLR files are stored. This is to ensure the integrity and protection of FLR files. In FLR-E file systems, you cannot modify or delete files that are in the locked state. Additionally, the path to a file in the locked state is also protected from modification, which means you cannot delete or rename a directory on an FLR file system if it contains protected files. There is an append-only state that enables users to add data to the end of locked files. This feature is typically used for log files. Note The FLR Toolkit version 3.5 does not detect or display FLR state for appendonly files. FLR states In FLR-E file systems, however, there is an additional state that supports append-only files. Figure 1 shows the four possible states in the new FLR-E file systems. The four states are locked, not locked, append-only, and expired. Figure 1. FLR state diagram Not locked: All files start as not locked. A not locked file is an unprotected file that is treated as a regular file in a file system. In an FLR file system, the state of an unprotected file can change to locked or remain as not locked. 7

Locked: A locked file has a set retention period that prevents users from modifying the file data or extending, deleting, or renaming the file. A locked file remains in this state until its retention period expires. An administrator can perform two actions on a locked file: Increase the file retention date to extend the existing retention period. If the locked file is initially empty, move the file to the append-only state. Append-only: You cannot delete, rename, and modify the existing data in an appendonly file, but you can add data to it. The file can remain in the append-only state forever. However, you can transition it back to the locked state by setting the file status to read-only with a retention date. Expired: When the retention period ends, the file transitions from the locked state to the expired state. You cannot modify or rename a file in the expired state, but you can delete the file. An expired file can have its retention period extended such that the file transitions back to the locked state. An empty expired file can also transition to the append-only state. FLR Toolkit The FLR Toolkit is a solution to manage protected files that are stored on file systems that have the FLR feature enabled. After a file system is created and enabled with FLR, you can apply FLR protection on each file manually or automatically through the toolkit s Monitor Service. The toolkit also provides a GUI tool, called FLR Explorer, for file querying, reporting, and status checks. FLR Toolkit version 3.5 is an application suite for 32-bit and 64-bit Microsoft Windows platforms which include Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows Server 2008 R2, and Windows Server 2012. FLR Toolkit provides users with GUI tools, a command line interface (CLI), and a software development kit to provide management solutions for FLR-enabled file systems. You can download the toolkit from the EMC online support website. You must install the toolkit on the client machine to use the following CLI and FLR Explorer tools. The CLI tools are: flrapply: The flrapply CLI tool enables users to apply retention dates on files either individually or by specific directories. flrquery: The flrquery CLI tool enables users to query the files within a CIFS share based on specified file-selection criteria, and performs actions such as move, delete, and extend the retention date on the set of files returned by the query. The FLR Explorer tools are: Dashboard: The dashboard provides an overall snapshot of a user-specified CIFS share. It generates a report with charts that show the percentage distribution of files in various FLR states, the number of files that expire within the next month on a weekly basis, and the number of files that expire in the current year on a monthly basis. 8

Report generator: The report generator builds detailed reports about files in a user-specified CIFS share. You can customize the report by FLR state, file type, retention date, and access and modification dates. The results are displayed in graphs and tables and are listed file-by-file with their corresponding pathname and retention date, if applicable. Query builder: The query builder enables users to search for files in a CIFS share by specifying the pathname, FLR state, file type, and access and modification dates. The FLR Monitor Service is a tool that enables users to use the toolkit to actively monitor specified pathnames and automatically set predefined retention dates to files created in the directories. The tool can also monitor expiring files and act on them based on user-defined policies, such as deleting, moving, and extending retention dates on expired files. You can apply the Monitor Service to multiple pathnames. This allows each pathname to have its own policy for retention setting and file retention period expiration. Since the FLR Toolkit runs as a Windows application, it can only manage file systems that are mapped as CIFS shares. 9

Implementation This section illustrates the steps to perform the following operations: Set a retention date Set a retention date Manually set retention dates for each file in a Windows environment Set up Monitor Service to automatically set retention dates on new files in a specified pathname Set a soft infinite retention date on a file, and then set a hard retention date Transition files to append-only Manually transition a locked file to the append-only state Manage expired files Set up Monitor Service to automatically act on newly expired files Monitor and report Add the EMC FLR Date attribute column in Windows Explorer Query for files with active retention periods Run a report on FLR files by using a saved query builder Manually set a retention date To manually set a retention date on a file: 1. Set a retention date. 2. Lock the file by setting it to read-only. In a Windows environment, you can set a retention date by going to the file s Properties window and selecting the FLR Attribute tab. The FLR Attribute tab is available on the client machine after the shell extensions component of the FLR Toolkit is installed on it. The FLR Attribute tab displays the FLR Date (or retention date), if applicable. The FLR Date is the date when the file expires. You can set the retention date in three different ways by selecting the appropriate option in the Adjust FLR by field: Absolute Date and Time Incremental (with respect to the current date and time or the current FLR date if it exists) Infinite retention period In Figure 2, the file Daily_report (3-23-09).xls is saved in a folder where the files are locked for five days (Y:\Locked 5 days). The file is then set with an incremental retention period of five days. Click OK or Apply to automatically convert the file to read-only, which directs the FLR file system to lock the file until the retention period expires. 10

Figure 2. Set the retention date to five days after the current date and time It is important to note that the FLR Date is derived from the current time of the client machine and not from the VNXe. To synchronize the time reported on both the client machine and VNXe, refer to the same Network Time Protocol server. This can still represent an issue if the client machine and the VNXe are located in different time zones. For example, files may be listed as expired earlier than they should be because of the time zone difference. Automatically set retention dates by using the Monitor Service When using the Monitor Service to automatically set retention dates, a rule is set for files in Y:\Hold until 6-30-09 (the path is the same as \\48_S2\flr-e\Hold until 6-30- 09) so that all new files saved in that pathname have a retention date automatically set to June 30, 2009. 11

To automatically set retention dates: 1. From the Start menu, select Program Files > EMC > FLR Toolkit > FLR Monitor Service. 2. Click FLR Connections. 3. Click Add as shown in Figure 3. Figure 3. Add a new rule to set retention dates 4. Type the correct pathname and select Also monitor sub-directories so that the rule is applied for files in subdirectories under the pathname as shown in Figure 4. Figure 4. Select the directory pathname to apply the rule 12

5. Click Monitoring Options. You can specify when to scan the specific pathname. To initiate an immediate operation by this rule, select Fast. This option uses CIFS notifications to trigger the rule to run. 6. Click FLR Options. 7. Select Absolute Date and Time and set it to June 30, 2009. Note The Advanced button enables users to filter out the file types to exclude from this rule. 8. Click OK to save the settings for the rule. 9. In the Monitor Service application, click Apply to save the new rule. 10. If Monitor Service is not running, click Service Details in the Monitor Service application and then click Start to begin the Monitor Service. 11. If the Monitor Service was not running at the time the new rule was created, you must enable the new rule after starting the Monitor Service. In the Monitor Service application, click FLR Connections and select \\48_S2\flr_e\Hold until 6-30-09. Click Enable to enable Monitor Service for this directory tree as shown in Figure 5. Figure 5. Enable the rule for \\48_S2\flr_e\Hold until 6-30-09 13

Set a soft infinite retention date, and then a hard retention date A soft retention date has an infinite retention period. To set a soft, infinite retention date: 1. Right-click a file and click Properties to open a Properties window. 2. Click FLR Attributes in the Properties window. 3. In the Adjust FLR by list box, select Infinite. 4. Click Apply. 5. Click OK to confirm all settings. Users can then set an absolute or hard retention date to reduce the retention period. To set a hard retention date: 1. Right-click a file and click Properties to open a Properties window. 2. Click FLR Attributes in the Properties window. 3. In the Adjust FLR by list box, select Absolute Date and Time. 4. In the New FLR Value list box, set the absolute retention date. An example is March 30, 2009. Figure 6 shows an example of setting a hard retention date. Figure 6. Set a hard retention date with an existing soft infinite retention date 5. Click OK to confirm the settings. 14

Transition files to append-only You can transition an empty file from the locked state to an append-only state. In the append-only state, you can append a file but you cannot delete it. However, you cannot modify appended data in an append-only file at a later time. FLR allows users to append to the file until it is transitioned back to the locked state. In a Windows environment, clear Read-only on an empty locked file to transition to the append-only state. For example, you can set a log file to append-only to protect previous entries written to it and append additional entries to the existing data. To set an empty locked file to append-only: 1. Right-click a locked file and click Properties to open a Properties window. 2. Click General in the Properties window and set the file to read-only by selecting Read-only and clicking Apply. 3. Clear Read-only as shown in Figure 7. Figure 7. Setting an empty locked file to append-only 4. Click OK. Now you can append the file. 15

To lock the file at a later stage: Set a retention date by using the FLR Attributes tab on the file s Properties page. Figure 8 shows an example of locking an append-only file and setting a retention date. Figure 8. Lock an append-only file and set a retention date Manage expired files You can manage expired files automatically through the Monitor Service. The application provides users the ability to set a rule for a specified directory tree to handle locked files as their retention period ends. Users can use the application to: Delete expired files permanently Move expired files to a specified location Extend the retention period of expired files To manage expired files: 1. Run the Monitor Service application. From the Start menu, select Program Files > EMC > FLR Toolkit > FLR Monitor Service. 2. Click Expiration Rules and then click Add. 3. Use the Browse button to select the Retention Source to which the rule applies. Apply the rule to all subdirectories by selecting the appropriate checkbox. 16

4. Click Execution Schedule and then select the time frame (daily or weekly) the application must monitor the specified directory tree with this expiration rule. 5. Click Actions and then select an appropriate action. Note Figure 9 shows an example to extend the retention period on expired files by 30 days. The Advanced button enables the user to exclude certain file types from this expiration rule. Figure 9. Extend the retention period of expired files by 30 days Monitor and report 6. Click OK to save the settings. 7. Click Apply on the Monitor Service window to save the new expiration rule. 8. If the Monitor Service is not running, click Service Details on the Monitor Service application and then click Start to begin the monitoring service. Add the FLR Retention Date attribute column in Windows Explorer Note: The EMC FLR Date and State columns are only available in Windows XP and 2003. You can monitor the retention date for each file from Windows Explorer. When the FLR Toolkit is installed, the EMC FLR Date attribute column is available. Figure 10 shows the EMC FLR Date column in the file browser window. The following steps describe the procedure to add the column to the current file s browser view. Figure 10. File browser window with the EMC FLR Date column 17

To add the EMC FLR Date attribute column: 1. In Windows Explorer, right-click the attribute column heading as shown in Figure 11. A list of options appears. Figure 11. Adding a new attribute column to the file browser window 2. Select More. 3. Select FLR Date. 4. Click OK. Query for files with active retention periods To run a query on files stored on CIFS shares of FLR-enabled file systems, users can use the FLR Query CLI or the Query Interface found on FLR Explorer. This procedure uses an example to show how to build a query from FLR Explorer. The example shows how to build a query for files with active retention periods in \\48_S2\flr_e, except for PowerPoint files with a.ppt file extension, which expire in one year. To query for files with active retention periods: 1. Open FLR Explorer. 2. From the Start menu, select Program Files > EMC > FLR Toolkit > FLR Explorer. 3. Select Build a Query. 4. In the Query Builder: a. In the Search For list box, select Files in Specific Retention State. b. In the Search Path field, select \\48_S2\flr_e (which is locally called Y:\ in this example. c. Select Include sub-directories to query the entire directory tree. d. In the Search Pattern list box, select Exclude and then type *.ppt in the field adjacent to it. e. In the Find Files That list box, select Will Expire Within and then type 1 year in the Search Parameters area. 18

f. Click Save and Execute. g. Save the query as expire_one_year.xml. (You can set a default directory in which custom queries are saved by going to FLR Explorer > Configuration. Click Advanced to get to the Query Files area.) Figure 12 shows the parameters entered for this example and the corresponding results. Figure 12. Query Builder panel Run a report on FLR files by using a saved query builder This scenario describes how to build a report by using the Reports option in FLR Explorer. The following example runs a report on \\48_S2\flr-e by using the query search parameters shown in Query for files with active retention periods on page 18. The search parameters for the report builder are the same as for the query builder. To run a report by using a saved query builder: 1. Open FLR Explorer. 2. From the Start menu, select Program Files > EMC > FLR Toolkit > FLR Explorer. 3. Select Reports. 4. In the Report Builder: a. In the Report Type list box, select Detailed. b. In the Query Options list box, select expire_one_year. c. Click Generate Report. 19

The detailed report provides an overview of the file results segregated by file type. This report type also lists each reported file and its retention date. A file count is also provided. Figure 13 shows the search parameters and the detailed results. Figure 13. Report Builder in FLR Explorer 20

Conclusion The EMC FLR Toolkit is an important component to manage and monitor an FLRenabled file system in a CIFS environment. The FLR feature provides the software infrastructure to protect and retain mission-critical files. The toolkit provides users and administrators the ability to: Set retention dates on each file manually Set rules for the application to automatically set retention dates on multiple files Set policies for the application to automatically act on expiring locked files Query files on CIFS shares of FLR-enabled file systems Build reports on files stored on CIFS shares of FLR-enabled file systems The FLR Toolkit is an essential part of applying the FLR feature at the user level. With the Monitor Service feature, an administrator can easily set policies to enable the system to automatically set retention dates and act on expiring files. Together, FLR and FLR Toolkit provide administrators with ease of use and ease of manageability to strengthen the business practices in the company as file retention becomes a more important aspect of mission-critical operations. 21

References The following documents, located on EMC Online Support, provide additional relevant information about FLR and FLR Toolkit. Access to these documents is based on your login credentials. If you do not have access to the content listed below, contact your EMC representative: EMC File-Level Retention Toolkit 3.5 Read Me First EMC File-Level Retention Toolkit 3.5 Release Notes The File-Level Retention Toolkit can be found on EMC Online Support. 22