Dell EMC BoostFS for Windows

Version 1.2

Configuration Guide
302-005-020
REV. 01
Copyright © 2018 Dell Inc. or its subsidiaries. All rights reserved.

Published July 2018

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2 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

CONTENTS

Figures 5

Tables 7

Chapter 1 Introduction to BoostFS for Windows 9

Revision history...........................................................................................10
Introduction to BoostFS..............................................................................10
Supported environments.............................................................................10
Supported applications............................................................................... 10

Chapter 2 Preparing the Data Domain system for BoostFS 13

Prepare the Data Domain system for BoostFS............................................ 14
Join a Data Domain system to an Active Directory domain..........................15
Set the host name and domain name on the Data Domain system...............15
BoostFS and existing Data Domain commands............................................16
Assign multiple users to BoostFS................................................................ 16
Create storage units....................................................................................17
Logical stream limits for storage units (optional)........................................ 18
Client Groups and BoostFS......................................................................... 18
Distributed segment processing option....................................................... 18

Chapter 3 Installing BoostFS for Windows 19

Installation overview................................................................................... 20
Prerequisites.............................................................................................. 20
CBFS driver................................................................................................20
Components of BoostFS for Windows........................................................ 21
Upgrade the BoostFS client........................................................................ 21
Uninstall the BoostFS client........................................................................ 21

Chapter 4 Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows 23

BoostFS for Windows configuration overview............................................ 24
BoostFS for Windows command overview..................................................25
BoostFS parameters......................................................................25
BoostFS and high availability...................................................................... 26
RSA Lockbox-based authentication............................................................26
Sharing a BoostFS Lockbox file on multiple Windows clients......................26
Create the Lockbox on the master client....................................... 26
Use the shared Lockbox on other clients....................................... 27
Modify the shared Lockbox............................................................27
Mounting the BoostFS file system..............................................................28
Command options for mount......................................................... 28
Mount on startup...........................................................................29
BoostFS client connection details..................................................29
Compressed restoration................................................................ 30
Unmounting the BoostFS file system......................................................... 30
File security.................................................................................................31
ACL requirements.......................................................................... 31

BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide 3

CONTENTS

User identity...................................................................................31
ACL default permissions................................................................. 31

Chapter 5 Troubleshooting 33
Log information.......................................................................................... 34
Common issues...........................................................................................34

Appendix A Appendix 37
References................................................................................................. 38

4 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

FIGURES

1 Sample output of ddboost storage-unit show..............................................................18

2 Windows Security warning for the EldoS Corporation device driver........................... 20

BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide 5

FIGURES

6 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

TABLES

1 Revision history of BoostFS for Windows Configuration Guide, version 1.2.................10

2 Troubleshooting mount issues.................................................................................... 35

BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide 7

TABLES

8 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

CHAPTER 1
Introduction to BoostFS for Windows

l Revision history.................................................................................................. 10
l Introduction to BoostFS..................................................................................... 10
l Supported environments.................................................................................... 10
l Supported applications....................................................................................... 10

Introduction to BoostFS for Windows 9

Introduction to BoostFS for Windows

Revision history
The following table presents the revision history of this document.

Table 1 Revision history of BoostFS for Windows Configuration Guide, version 1.2

Revision Date Description

01 (1.2) July 2018 Initial version introducing BoostFS for Windows.

Introduction to BoostFS
Data Domain Boost Filesystem (BoostFS) 1.2 provides a general file-system interface
to the DD Boost library, allowing standard backup applications to take advantage of
DD Boost features.
Advantages of BoostFS
By leveraging the DD Boost technology, BoostFS helps reduce bandwidth, can
improve backup-times, offers load-balancing, allows in-flight encryption, and supports
the Data Domain multi-tenancy feature set.
As a file server system implementation, the BoostFS workflow is similar to CIFS but
also leverages the DD Boost protocol. In addition, BoostFS improves backup times
compared to CIFS and various copy-based solutions.
BoostFS supports single-node Data Domain systems, high-availability (HA) systems,
Extended Retention systems, Data Domain Virtual Edition, and Extended Distance
Protection.
Purpose
This document describes how to install and configure BoostFS on client systems.

Supported environments
Environments that use BoostFS 1.2 must meet the following specifications.
BoostFS for Windows requires the following:
l Data Domain Operating System version 6.1.2 or later
l Windows Server 2012, Windows Server 2012 R2, or Windows Server 2016

Supported applications
BoostFS for Windows supports the following applications:
l Commvault Simpana versions 10 and 11
l Microsoft SQL Server 2012 and 2016
l MySQL Community 5.6. and 5.7
l MySQL Enterprise Manager 5.6 and 5.7
l MongoDB Community 2.6, 3.0, and 3.2
Information about integrating BoostFS with other applications can be found in the
following white paper on the Data Domain Community site: Boost Everywhere - Data

10 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

 Introduction to BoostFS for Windows

Domain BoostFS Integration Guide: Application Validation and Best Practices for the
DD Boost File System Plug-In.
Boost features supported by BoostFS
Transport Layer Security (TLS) anonymous authentication is supported to provide
encryption.

Note

If you select TLS, be aware that there is no configuration option to enable TLS from
the client. It must be enabled through the Data Domain System.

Boost features not supported by BoostFS

l Managed File Replication (MFR)
l DD Boost-over-Fibre Channel (DFC)
l Retention Lock
Compatibility
BoostFS for Windows does not support accessing files and directories that are
created by other means, such as BoostFS for Linux, other Boost-enabled applications,
NFS, or CIFS.
If you use ACL functionality with BoostFS for Windows, changing file permissions by a
protocol other than BoostFS for Windows causes the ACLs to be lost.
Unsupported file system features
BoostFS for Windows does not support the following NTFS features through the file
system interface:
l Alternate data streams
l File links
l Quotas

Supported applications 11
Introduction to BoostFS for Windows

12 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

CHAPTER 2
Preparing the Data Domain system for BoostFS

l Prepare the Data Domain system for BoostFS....................................................14

l Join a Data Domain system to an Active Directory domain................................. 15
l Set the host name and domain name on the Data Domain system...................... 15
l BoostFS and existing Data Domain commands................................................... 16
l Assign multiple users to BoostFS........................................................................16
l Create storage units........................................................................................... 17
l Logical stream limits for storage units (optional)................................................ 18
l Client Groups and BoostFS.................................................................................18
l Distributed segment processing option...............................................................18

Preparing the Data Domain system for BoostFS 13

Preparing the Data Domain system for BoostFS

Prepare the Data Domain system for BoostFS

Every Data Domain system that is enabled for Data Domain Boost deduplication must
have a unique name. You can use the DNS name of the Data Domain system, which is
always unique.
Procedure
1. On the Data Domain system, log in as an administrative user.
2. Verify that the file system is enabled and running by entering:
$ filesys status
The file system is enabled and running.
3. Verify DD Boost is already enabled:
$ ddboost status
DD Boost status: enabled

If the DD Boost status is reported as disabled, enable it by entering:

$ ddboost enable
DD Boost enabled
4. Verify distributed segment processing is enabled:
ddboost option show

You should see the following output:

Option Value
----------------------------------- --------
distributed-segment-processing enabled
virtual-synthetics enabled
fc disabled
global-authentication-mode none
global-encryption-mode medium
----------------------------------- ---------

If distributed segment processing is shown as disabled, enable it by entering:

ddboost option set distributed-segment-processing enabled

Note

l If secure multi-tenancy (SMT) is used, the user role must be set as none.
l Users who run backup applications that connect to Data Domain systems
must have their user names configured on the Data Domain system. For
more information, refer to the Data Domain Operating System Administration
Guide.
l Multiple applications can use DD Boost to access a Data Domain system, and
multiple users can be configured for DD Boost access. The username,
password, and role must have already been set up on the Data Domain
system using the DD OS user add command:
user add <user> [password <password>]
[role {admin | limited-admin | security | user | backup-operator |
data-access}]
[min-days-between-change <days>] [max-days-between-change <days>]
[warn-days-before-expire <days>] [disable-days-after-expire <days>]
[disable-date <date>] [force-password-change {yes | no}]

14 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

 Preparing the Data Domain system for BoostFS

For example, to add a user with a login name of jsmith and a password of
mP34$muk*E with administrative privilege, enter:
$ user add jsmith password mP34$muk*E role admin

Once the user has been created on the Data Domain system, the user must be
made a DD Boost user. To add jsmith to the DD Boost user list, enter:
$ ddboost user assign jsmith

Join a Data Domain system to an Active Directory domain

To enable access control list (ACL) support, the Data Domain system must be joined
to the Active Directory domain. This procedure is not required if the Data Domain
system is already joined to an Active Directory domain.
For more information about ACLs, see File security on page 31.
Procedure
1. To join a Data Domain system to an Active Directory domain, type the following
command:
# authentication kerberos set realm <domain> kdc-type windows

You are prompted to type credentials for the domain.

2. Type the domain username and password.
Results
If the credentials are valid, the system is joined to the Active Directory domain. The
use of this command does not enable CIFS.

Set the host name and domain name on the Data Domain
system
Set the host name and the domain name on the Data Domain system using the net
set CLI command.
Procedure
1. On the Data Domain system, type the following:
# net set hostname [host]
# net set {domain name [local-domain-name]}

For more information on net commands, see the Data Domain Operating System
Command Reference Guide.

Join a Data Domain system to an Active Directory domain 15

Preparing the Data Domain system for BoostFS

BoostFS and existing Data Domain commands

You must create one or more storage units on each Data Domain system enabled for
BoostFS. Data Domain administrators can use existing DD OS CLI commands to create
and manage storage units used by BoostFS.

Assign multiple users to BoostFS

When, as a system administrator, you create the storage units that users employ with
the backup applications, you associate a username with each storage unit. This
associated username can be changed after creation of the storage unit.
Storage units are accessible only to applications with the username that owns the
storage unit.
Each storage unit is owned by one username, and the same username can own
multiple storage units. The application passes the username and password to BoostFS,
and DD Boost passes them to the Data Domain system when attempting to connect to
the Data Domain system. The Data Domain system then authenticates the username
and password. The username and password can be shared by different applications.
When a storage unit is created with a valid Data Domain system local user but not
assigned to DD Boost, the user is automatically added to the DD Boost users list in the
same way that a user is added via the ddboost user assign command.
Assign one or more users to the DD Boost users list:
$ ddboost user assign user1 user2
User "user1" assigned to DD Boost.
User "user2" assigned to DD Boost.

To verify and display the users in the users list, enter:

$ ddboost user show

DD Boost user Default tenant-unit Using Token Access

------------- ------------------- ------------------
user1 Unknown Yes
user2 Unknown -
user3 Unknown Yes
user4 Unknown -
user5 Unknown -
user6 Unknown -
user7 Unknown Yes
user8 Unknown -
------------- ------------------- ------------

To unassign the user from the users list, enter:

$ ddboost user unassign user1
User "user1" unassigned from DD Boost.

16 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

 Preparing the Data Domain system for BoostFS

Create storage units

You need to create one or more storage units on each Data Domain system enabled
for BoostFS.
Procedure
1. Create a storage unit on the Data Domain system:

$ ddboost storage-unit create NEW_STU1 user user1

Created storage-unit "NEW_STU1" for "user1".

A storage unit name must be unique on any given Data Domain system.
However, the same storage unit name can be used on different Data Domain
systems.
The username owns the storage unit and ensures that only connections with
this username's credentials are able to access this storage unit. See the section
on ddboost storage-unit commands in the Data Domain Operating System
Command Reference Guide for details on command options.

2. Repeat the previous step for each storage-unit needed on the Data Domain
system.
3. If you want to modify a storage unit on the Data Domain system, enter:

$ ddboost storage-unit modify NEW_STU1 user user2

Storage-unit "NEW_STU1" modified for user "user2".

The ddboost storage-unit modify command allows the backup

application to change the username ownership of the storage unit. Changing
the username does not require that attributes of every file on the storage unit
be changed.

4. Display the users list for the storage units:

$ ddboost storage-unit show

After entering the command, the output you see should be similar to the
following:

Create storage units 17

Preparing the Data Domain system for BoostFS

Figure 1 Sample output of ddboost storage-unit show

Logical stream limits for storage units (optional)

BoostFS is restricted to the same stream limit and storage quota features as DD
Boost. See the DD Boost for Partner Integration Administration Guide for more
information.

Client Groups and BoostFS

The Client Group feature identifies specific client loads when clients are associated
with groups.
The client group command set is supported only for clients that use DD Boost or
NFS protocols. For more information about Client Groups, see the Data Domain
Operating System Command Reference Guide.

Distributed segment processing option

BoostFS supports distributed segment processing as supported by DD Boost. For
more information, refer to the Data Domain Operating System Administration Guide.

Note

Enabling or disabling the distributed segment processing option does not require a
restart of the Data Domain file system.

18 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

CHAPTER 3
Installing BoostFS for Windows

l Installation overview.......................................................................................... 20
l Prerequisites......................................................................................................20
l CBFS driver....................................................................................................... 20
l Components of BoostFS for Windows................................................................ 21
l Upgrade the BoostFS client................................................................................21
l Uninstall the BoostFS client................................................................................21

Installing BoostFS for Windows 19

Installing BoostFS for Windows

Installation overview
Install or upgrade BoostFS for Windows by using the provided MSI installer. Do not
change the default settings.

Note

If you are prompted to restart after installing, failure to do so can cause features such
as Explorer integration to not work correctly. If you are not prompted to restart,
restarting is not necessary.

Prerequisites
When installing or upgrading BoostFS for Windows:
l Use an account with administrator rights to run the installer.
l Ensure that there is enough free space to complete the installation, which requires
approximately 7 MB of disk space.
l Deactivate all BoostFS mount points. If any mount points are active, the upgrade
and removal processes fail.

CBFS driver
The MSI installer includes several binary files as well as a device driver from EldoS
Corporation.
BoostFS for Windows uses CBFS, a software interface from EldoS that enables file
systems to exist in user space and not only within a driver in kernel space. This
functionality is similar to that of FUSE on UNIX operating systems. To install BoostFS
for Windows, you must install the CBFS driver from EldoS Corporation.
Figure 2 Windows Security warning for the EldoS Corporation device driver

If another program on the system previously installed the CBFS driver, the driver that
BoostFS installs is installed alongside it and does not affect operation of the other
program.

20 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

 Installing BoostFS for Windows

Components of BoostFS for Windows

Components in the installation location
The BoostFS for Windows installation includes the following files at the installed
location:
l boostfs.exe—An executable that supports various commands including
establishing a BoostFS mount.
l Shared libraries that enable boostfs.exe.
l The RSA Lockbox libraries.
l The Universal C Runtime Library (UCRT). If the UCRT is already installed on the
system, boostfs.exe uses the system version of the UCRT.
l HTML files that provide basic guidance on the use and configuration of
boostfs.exe.
l If not already installed, the 2012 and 2015 Visual C++ redistributables are installed.
Entries on the Start Menu
Three links are added to the Start Menu under Programs > BoostFS.
These links open:
l A command prompt at the installed location of BoostFS.
l The BoostFS help file.
l The BoostFS configuration help file.
Files in C:\BoostFS
A directory is created at C:\BoostFS. This directory is the default location for
BoostFS logs, Lockbox containers, and the sole location of the configuration file C:
\BoostFS\boostfs.conf. The Lockbox and Logs directories may be configured
to be placed elsewhere after installation, but the configuration file must exist in this
location.
A sample configuration file, C:\BoostFS\boostfs_sample.conf, is provided.

Upgrade the BoostFS client

To upgrade BoostFS, run the MSI installer of the new BoostFS release.

Note

If you are prompted to restart after upgrading, failure to do so can cause features
such as Explorer integration to not work correctly. If you are not prompted to restart,
restarting is not necessary.

Uninstall the BoostFS client

To uninstall BoostFS for Windows, use either of the following methods:
l Run the MSI installer and select Remove.
l Use the Add or remove programs interface in the Control Panel.

Components of BoostFS for Windows 21

Installing BoostFS for Windows

22 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

CHAPTER 4
Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows

l BoostFS for Windows configuration overview....................................................24

l BoostFS for Windows command overview......................................................... 25
l BoostFS and high availability..............................................................................26
l RSA Lockbox-based authentication................................................................... 26
l Sharing a BoostFS Lockbox file on multiple Windows clients............................. 26
l Mounting the BoostFS file system..................................................................... 28
l Unmounting the BoostFS file system................................................................. 30
l File security........................................................................................................ 31

Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows 23

Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows

BoostFS for Windows configuration overview

Specify BoostFS configuration parameters by using the command line interface (CLI),
the configuration file, or both.
The BoostFS configuration file location is C:\BoostFS\boostfs.conf.
The configuration file has sections for global and mount-point–specific parameters.
Mount-point–specific parameter values override global parameter values. If the global
section does not define data-domain-system and storage-unit parameters,
those parameters must be passed to the mount command by using the CLI.
Parameters that are configured by using the CLI override conflicting values in the
configuration file.

The following is a sample configuration file:

#############################################################################
# BoostFS 1.2 example config file for Windows
#
# The configuration file is divided into sections, delineated by brackets [].
# Options that are to apply to all mount points are in the [global] section.
# More details on the various configuration options can be found in the
# BoostFS manual. Command line options override what is in this file.
#
# Format:
# # - Identifies a comment line, and must be at the start. Configuration
# parameters can be disabled by adding a “#” to the start of the line.
#
# Values which contains spaces should use double quotations around the
# entire value.
#
# No whitespace is allowed between the option and the value, i.e.
# log-dir = \path is not allowed.
#
# Comments are not allowed after the option value pair.
#
#############################################################################

[global]
# Data Domain Hostname or IP address
# data-domain-system=dd2500-1.yourdomain.com

# Storage Unit
# storage-unit=su-name

# Lockbox path (default: C:\BoostFS\Lockbox\boostfs.lockbox)

# lockbox-path=C:\lockbox-name

# Enable logging (default: true)

# log-enabled=<true|false>

# Log level (default: info)

# log-level=<debug|info|warning|error>

# Directory for log files (default: C:\BoostFS\Logs)

# log-dir=C:\directory-name

# Log file name (default: ddboostfs_ddr-name_su-name.log)

# A unique log file name should be used for each mount point.
# log-file=unique-file-name.log

# Maximum log size in MB (default: 100MB)

# log-maxsize=100

24 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

 Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows

# Number of log files to save (default: 8)

# log-rotate-num=10

# Text string that describes the application using boostfs with additional information such
as the version.
# app-info="text_string"

# Maximum number of connections that can be used at the same time (default: 128)
# Min value is 64. Max value is 256.
# max-connections=128

# Allow for Windows ACLs to be set on files in the mountpoint

# NOTE: Unless the client is joined to an AD domain, this parameter cannot be set to true.
# local-user-security=<true|false> (default: false)

# UNC Mount point sections are delineated by [UNC Path]

# The UNC Path must be of the form [\\ddr-name\su-name].
# Forward slashes and extra slashes must not be used.

# [\\ddr-name\su-name]
# Drive Letter specifies the Windows drive to map to this UNC mount point
# drive-letter=h:

BoostFS for Windows command overview

Use the Windows command prompt or PowerShell to issue BoostFS commands.
The BoostFS installation includes a shortcut on the Start menu to open the command
prompt in the directory containing the executable. You can also add the location of the
executable to the PATH environment variable so that you do not need to specify the
path when issuing BoostFS commands.

BoostFS parameters
The following parameters are used to configure BoostFS:
<data-domain-system>
The hostname or IP address of the Data Domain system.

<storage-unit>
The target storage unit on the Data Domain system.

<storage-unit-username>
The username of the storage unit owner on the Data Domain system.

<lockbox-path>
The path to the lockbox file. If this parameter is not set with the CLI or in the
configuration file, the default path is C:\BoostFS\Lockbox
\boostfs.lockbox.

<UNC-mount-path>
The Universal Naming Convention (UNC) path of the mounted storage-unit. The
UNC path must be of the form\\<data-domain-system>\<storage-unit>

<drive-letter>
The drive letter to which the BoostFS mount is mapped.

BoostFS for Windows command overview 25

Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows

BoostFS and high availability

If you are configuring a Data Domain high availability (HA) system, you should make
sure the IP address (or hostname) that you specify for the system is one of the
floating IP addresses. Only the floating IP addresses in an HA system are accessible
after a failover.
If you incorrectly specify one of the fixed HA addresses, you will not be able to
connect to the Data Domain system in the event of a recoverable failure.

RSA Lockbox-based authentication

RSA Lockbox is the password manager for BoostFS for Windows.
To use RSA Lockbox, you need to set the lockbox using the boostfs lockbox set
command. You can also set up a shared BoostFS lockbox file.

Sharing a BoostFS Lockbox file on multiple Windows clients

Sharing a common Lockbox file enables you to create a single management point for
BoostFS clients to access BoostFS mount points on Data Domain systems.
You can create a common Lockbox file for all BoostFS clients from a master client.
This feature allows you to avoid creating a separate Lockbox file for each unique
BoostFS client.
The master client is the client from which the shared Lockbox is initially created. Since
some operations can only be performed from the master client, it is recommended to
record which client is the master.
The easiest way to share a Lockbox file is to store it in a network share that is
accessible by all clients that use it.

Create the Lockbox on the master client

Before you begin
Verify that BoostFS is installed on the server that manages access to the shared
Lockbox.

Note

The command boostfs lockbox set fails if there is an existing Lockbox file in the
same location.

In this example, Z: represents the network share that is accessible by all clients.
Procedure
1. Create the Lockbox with the -l option:
boostfs lockbox set -u <storage-unit-username> -d <data-domain-
system> -s <storage-unit> -l Z:\boostfs.lockbox

You can also specify the lockbox-path in the configuration file.

2. Repeat the lockbox set command for each Data Domain system or storage
unit that needs to be accessed by the Lockbox.

26 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

 Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows

After you finish

Optionally, record which client is the master.

Use the shared Lockbox on other clients

Before you begin
Create a shared Lockbox and add credentials for the Data Domain systems and
storage units that need access to the Lockbox.
In this example, Z: represents the network share that is accessible by all clients.
Procedure
1. To allow access to the Lockbox for the other clients, type the following
command on the master client:
boostfs lockbox add-hosts -l Z:\boostfs.lockbox
client1.dell.com,client2.dell.com

In this example, clients with the hostname client1.dell.com and

client2.dell.com are allowed access to the shared Lockbox.
2. On each client that needs access to the shared Lockbox, specify the path to the
shared Lockbox by either:
l Using the mount command:
boostfs mount -d <data-domain-system> -s <storage-unit> -l Z:
\boostfs.lockbox
l Editing the configuration file:
[global]
lockbox-path=Z:\boostfs.lockbox

Modify the shared Lockbox

Only the master client can modify the Lockbox file. Other clients encounter an error
when they try to modify the Lockbox. Other clients are still able to query the Lockbox.
In this example, Z: represents the network share that is accessible by all clients.
Procedure
1. To remove client access:
boostfs lockbox delete-hosts -l Z:\boostfs.lockbox
client2.dell.com

Note

After removing a client from the Lockbox, the client can no longer use the
Lockbox and can no longer access any of the Data Domain systems defined in
the Lockbox.

2. To remove a Lockbox entry:

boostfs lockbox remove -d <data-domain-system> -s <storage-
unit> -l Z:\boostfs.lockbox

Use the shared Lockbox on other clients 27

Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows

Note
After removing a Data Domain system or storage unit from those that the
Lockbox grants access to, none of the clients that use the Lockbox can access
the system or storage unit.

Mounting the BoostFS file system

The boostfs mount command allows you to mount the BoostFS file system
You can mount the BoostFS file system in either of the following two ways:
l To use a UNC mount path, type:
boostfs mount [-l <lockbox-path>] [[-o <param>=<value>] ...] <UNC-
mount-path> [<drive-letter>]

Where the UNC mount path is in the form \\<data-domain-system>

\<storage-unit>.
l To use the Data Domain system and storage unit names, type:
boostfs mount -d <data-domain-system> -s <storage-unit> [-l
<lockbox-path>] [[-o <param>=<value>] ...] [<drive-letter>]

Where -d specifies the Data Domain system and -s specifies the storage unit.
If no drive letter is specified, the mount is only accessible through the UNC path.
If a BoostFS mount is established with an optional drive letter, the drive letter must be
an unused drive letter. On mount, the drive shows up in the Windows Explorer sidebar
immediately.
After mounting without a drive letter, you can use the Map Network Drive context
option in Explorer or the net use command to map the UNC path to a drive letter.

Command options for mount

The following options are valid for the boostfs mount command.

Option Description
-o log-enabled=<true | false> Enable or disable logging.
Default value: true

-o log-level=<debug | info | Set the log detail level.

warning | error> Default value: info

-o log-dir=C:\directory-name Specify the directory for log files.

Default value: C:\BoostFS\Logs

-o log-file=unique-file-name.log Specify the log file name.

Default value: ddboostfs_ddr-name_su-
name.log

-o log-maxsize=100 Specify the maximum log size in MB.

Default value: 100

-o log-rotate-num=8 Specify the number of log files to save.

Default value: 8

28 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

 Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows

Option Description
-o app-info="text_string" Display a text string describing the application
using BoostFS.

-o local-user-security=<true | Allow Windows ACLs to be set on files in the

false> mount point.
Default value: false
For more information, see File security on
page 31.

-o ddboost-read-compression=<true Enable compressed restoration.

| false> Default value: false
For more information, see Compressed
restoration on page 30

Mount on startup
BoostFS is a regular process that the operating system stops when the system
restarts or the user logs off, and BoostFS for Windows mounts do not survive without
the process.
To remount BoostFS mounts during system startup, you can add boostfs mount
commands as part of a system startup or user login script. For information on system
startup and user login scripts, refer to Microsoft documentation.

BoostFS client connection details

After mount points are created, you can use the ddboost show connections
command to see details about clients that use BoostFS to connect to the Data Domain
system.
The details displayed in the output include the BoostFS version number and the Boost
library, as shown in the following example:

See the Data Domain Operating System Command Reference Guide for more information
about the ddboost show connections command.

Mount on startup 29
Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows

Compressed restoration
This option reduces bandwidth usage when sending and receiving data, but increases
CPU usage.
When the mount option ddboost-read-compression is set to true, data is
compressed on the server before being sent to the client. When the client receives the
data, it must decompress the data. Sending and receiving compressed data uses less
network bandwidth, but compressing and decompressing the data requires a
significant amount of CPU power. By default, this option is set to false.

This option can be used in one of the following two ways:

l As a command-line option:
boostfs mount -o ddboost-read-compression=true /mnt/bfs-mount
l As an option configured in the boostfs.conf file:
ddboost-read-compression=true

Unmounting the BoostFS file system

The boostfs umount command allows you to unmount the BoostFS file system.
Use one of the following two formats:
l boostfs umount <UNC-mount-path>

l boostfs umount <drive-letter>

If the BoostFS file system is mounted with a drive letter, you must unmount by using
the drive letter.
If the BoostFS file system is mounted with a drive letter and a mount path, you must
unmount by using the drive letter.
If the BoostFS file system is mounted without a drive letter, you must unmount by
using the UNC mount path.
If the BoostFS file system is mounted using the Map Network Drive option:
1. Disconnect the network drive.
2. Unmount by using the UNC mount path. Do not use the drive letter.

Note

Do not use the Explorer disconnect utility to disconnect a drive that was mapped to a
drive letter with the boostfs mount command.

30 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

 Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows

File security
If the required conditions are met, BoostFS for Windows supports access control lists
(ACLs) on files and directories within the BoostFS mount point.

Note

If ACLs are not used, the Boost user credentials are used for all users who access the
client mount point. Any files or directories that are created in the mount point are fully
accessible by any user with access to the mount point or storage unit.

ACL requirements
l The Data Domain system and the client must be joined to the same Active
Directory domain. If the client is not joined to a domain, ACLs cannot be enabled
during the mount process. If the Data Domain system is not joined to the domain
and ACLs are enabled during the mount process, the mount point is not accessible.
l The local-user-security option must be set to true during mount. This
setting can be applied by using the CLI or the BoostFS configuration file.

User identity
When local-user-security is enabled, the identity of the client user determines
access to a file or directory, not the identity of the storage unit user.
For a user on the client system to access a file in a BoostFS mount point, the ACL on
the file must give that user the required rights. Without Active Directory support for
ACL configuration, a client user on one system may appear to be a different user when
using a different system and be denied access to the file.

ACL default permissions

CAUTION

If you use ACL functionality with BoostFS for Windows, changing file permissions
by a protocol other than BoostFS for Windows causes the ACLs to be lost.

File
If no inheritance occurs, the default ACL on a file contains:
l No system access control list (SACL)
l A discretionary access control list (DACL) with the following permissions:
Creator of the file—Full control
Group of the creator of the file—Read and execute permissions
Everyone—Read and execute permissions
If inheritance occurs, the ACL on a file contains the permissions inherited from the
parent directory.
Directory
If no inheritance occurs, the default ACL on a directory contains:
l No SACL
l A DACL with the following permissions:

File security 31
Configuring and using BoostFS for Windows

Creator of the directory—Full control on the directory

Group of the creator of the file—Read and execute permissions on the
directory
Everyone—Read and execute permissions on the directory
If inheritance occurs, the ACL on a directory contains the permissions inherited from
the parent directory.
Subdirectory
Subdirectories and files within the directory inherit the following permissions:
Creator of the subdirectory—Full control
Creator of the file—Full control
Group of the creator of the subdirectory or file—Read and execute permissions
Everyone—Read and execute permissions

32 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

CHAPTER 5
Troubleshooting

l Log information..................................................................................................34
l Common issues.................................................................................................. 34

Troubleshooting 33
Troubleshooting

Log information
You can use the following log files to diagnose BoostFS problems:
l BoostFS log file
By default, the BoostFS log file is found the directory C:\BoostFS\Logs. The
default name of the file is ddboostfs_<data-domain-
hostname>_<storage-unit>.log, where:
n <data-domain-hostname>
is the hostname or IP address for the BoostFS mount
n <storage-unit>
is the storage-unit name of the BoostFS mount
A typical BoostFS log message appears in the following format:
Date + Time + Procss-ID + Thread-ID + [logging-leve: E - error, W
- warning, I - info, D - debug) + Message-Text

The following is an example information message:

May 23 12:53:51 2996 4014012160 [I] bfs_close_open_nodsp: File /
00000004 opened in non-DSP mode
l DD Boost SDK precert log file
l Data Domain File System logs
Data Domain File System logs are found on the Data Domain system in the
directory /ddr/var/log/debug. See the Data Domain Operating System
Administration Guide for more information.
BoostFS generates a local log file that contains its internal status, activities, warnings,
and errors. You can specify the logging level in addition to the name and location of
the log file by using the CLI or the BoostFS configuration file.
You might need to set a size limit on the log file to ensure that when the size of the log
file reaches that limit, BoostFS will rotate log messages.
You can configure the maximize size of the BoostFS log file in the configuration file.
You can also configure the number of older log files you wish to keep.
When the log file size reaches the maximum specified size (in MB), the log file is
renamed by appending ".1" to the log file name. If there is already an existing log file
that ends in ".1," that file is renamed to replace ".1" with ".2." As each log file reaches
the maximum size, log files with numbers (n) appended are renamed .n+1 up to the
maximum log rotate number.

Common issues
Some common issues with BoostFS for Windows can be resolved quickly.
Installation fails
If installing BoostFS Windows fails, verify that:
l There is enough space on the drive on which you are installing BoostFS.
l The VeriSign Class 3 Public Primary Certification Authority - G5 is not blocked.
This root certificate is used to sign the driver.
Mount fails
Table 2 on page 35 explains the causes and resolutions of several common errors
that are encountered when mounting BoostFS.

34 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

 Troubleshooting

Table 2 Troubleshooting mount issues

Error message Cause Resolution

Mount failed with This error occurs when a To map a drive to the same
error code 183: mount has the same Data mount, use the net use
Cannot create a Domain hostname and command.
file when that file storage-unit name as an
already exists. existing BoostFS mount.

Cannot mount mount- This error usually occurs Review the BoostFS log files
point: unexpected when the DD Boost protocol for more details. Use the
error, please see is not enabled and configured ddboost status command
log for details. on the Data Domain system. on the Data Domain system to
confirm that DD Boost is
enabled.

Invalid mount point This message can appear Review the specific key and
option and value when errors occur during the value in the BoostFS
pair [option=key processing of the BoostFS configuration file and make
from config file ] configuration file. any necessary corrections.
[value= value from
config file]:
Configuration
initialization
failed

Explorer performance degraded

If the Properties window for files or directories loads slowly, ACLs cannot be set from
the Explorer interface, or both, verify that port 445 is not blocked from the client to
the Data Domain system. These issues occur because SMB messages over port 445
are used to determine the security configuration of the Data Domain system.
To resolve both issues, unblock the SMB port. Alternatively, you can set ACLs using
the Windows command prompt or PowerShell.
Access denied when using ACLs
To perform operations on a file or directory that is a child of a directory, the
traverse folder permission is required on the parent directory, in addition to any
other applicable permissions. This includes, but is not limited to, creating or deleting a
child file or directory.
For example, to delete the file M:\parent\child.txt, both traverse folder
and delete subfolders and files permissions are required on M:\parent, as
well as delete permissions on M:\parent\child.txt.
To delete a directory, the list folder and delete permissions are required
because Windows checks that a directory is empty before deleting it.

Common issues 35
Troubleshooting

36 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide

APPENDIX A
Appendix

l References.........................................................................................................38

Appendix 37
Appendix

References
The following documents, located at Online Support, provide additional and relevant
information. Access to these documents depends on your login credentials. If you do
not have access to a document, contact a sales representative.
l Data Domain BoostFS Integration Guide: Application Validation and Best Practices,
available on https://community.emc.com
l Data Domain Operating System Version Administration Guide
l Data Domain Operating System Version Initial Configuration Guide

38 BoostFS for Windows 1.2 Configuration Guide