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BACKGROUND

Businesses recognize the commercial value of their data and seek reliable, cost-effective ways to protect the information stored on their computer networks while minimizing impact on productivity. A company might back up critical computing systems such as databases, file servers, web servers, virtual machines, and so on as part of a maintenance schedule. The company may similarly protect computing systems used by its employees, such as those used by different departments in the company. Given the rapidly expanding volume of data under management, companies also continue to seek innovative techniques for managing data growth. Enterprises also increasingly view their stored data as a valuable asset and look for solutions that leverage their data. For instance, data analysis capabilities, information management, improved data presentation and access features, and the like, are in increasing demand. Improved access to retained backup data is also increasingly valued.

SUMMARY

Backed up virtual machine (“VM”) data can be created in a hypervisor-independent format and then live-browsed without needing or using a hypervisor. (See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Pub. No. 2017-0262204 A1, entitled “Hypervisor-Independent Block-Level Live Browse for Access to Backed up Virtual Machine (VM) Data and Hypervisor-Free File-Level Recovery (Block-Level Pseudo-Mount)”, which is incorporated by reference herein). However, in seeking to browse VM backup data, a user must first know and specify the identity of the virtual machine that originated the data and further the user must select a particular VM backup copy for browsing. The user can browse the VM backup copy in a hypervisor-free setting, but the backed up files are not catalogued or otherwise tracked by the data storage management system that provides the live browse feature. Thus, after the live browse session ends, the data storage management system lacks persistent information about the backed up files.

The present inventors devised a streamlined file indexing approach that enhances what was previously possible with the hypervisor-free live browse feature for VM block-level backup copies. The illustrative approach adds capabilities for indexing files that are present in VM block-level backup copies, including indexing of directory structures and file content. In a block-level backup copy, files are not readily readable because the copy was created by block-level backup operations that are file-agnostic and file-independent, unlike file-level backups. The illustrative file indexing capability activates a live-browse session to discover files present within the VM block-level backup copy and indexes file names and directory structures as created by the original source VM. An illustrative file index is created. The hypervisor-free live browse feature is further enhanced to index the contents of files found within the VM block-level backup copy. An illustrative content index is created. The file index and content index are retained in persistent data structure(s) stored apart from the VM block-level backup copies. In some embodiments the file index and the content index are co-resident in a consolidated index.

The indexes are searchable without requiring VM block-level backup copies to be mounted, live-browsed, or restored for conducting the search. Accordingly, a user can search for backed up filenames without specifying the source VM that created them and without specifying the identity of the VM block-level backup copy that contains them. This feature relies on the illustrative file index. Furthermore, a user can search for backed up content, e.g., by using keywords, without specifying the name of the file that comprises the content, and further without specifying the source VM that created the content or the identity of the VM block-level backup copy. This feature relies on the illustrative content index. Thus users advantageously benefit from the present approach by gaining the ability to search through indexes to find backed up VM data with only minimal knowledge of where the backed up data originated and where it is currently stored. This is distinguishable from the prior art approach of the user affirmatively having to select and mount backup copies and to visually hunt through the backed up files via user-driven live browse.

The user's search environment is independent of: the original source VM that created the files/content; the source VM execution environment and/or hypervisor therefor; the backup storage environment; the immediate availability of the VM block-level backup copies; the naming conventions used for the VM block-level backup copies; and/or the naming conventions used for files and directories created by the source VM. After a successful search, the user can access the sought-after file/content by invoking a browse and/or restore operation that accesses the relevant backup copy. The advantageous result is that a user needs far less knowledge about the source VM environment and/or about VM backup copies in order to complete a successful search for files and/or content within a backup (secondary storage) subsystem.

Another advantage of the illustrative embodiment is that it does not interfere with or slow down backing up of the source VMs. Accordingly, VMs are efficiently backed up using block-level techniques. The VM block-level backup copies are then mounted and analyzed according to the illustrative embodiment to discover and index the backed up files within and their associated directory structure, followed optionally by content indexing.

According to the illustrative data storage management system, enhancements are implemented in the storage manager that manages and controls storage operations throughout the system. The storage manager is enhanced to choose an appropriate backup proxy computing device (“proxy machine” or “backup proxy”) that is suitable to analyze a given VM's block-level backup copies, to keep track of which backup copies have been indexed, to define criteria for content indexing, and to instruct backup proxies accordingly. Other enhancements are implemented in the illustrative backup proxy, which is configured to mount a hypervisor-independent VM block-level backup copy, discover the files and directory structures in the backup copy using the hypervisor-free live browse feature, discover contents within certain backup copy files that meet content indexing criteria, and transmit indexing information to an index server computing device (“index server”). Other enhancements are implemented in the illustrative index server to receive and organize the indexing information into one or more searchable indexes, which is/are stored at the index server. The index server is also enhanced to execute search queries received from users. One or more of these operations are conducted responsive to instructions issued by the illustrative storage manager.

In some embodiments, all but the storage manager and the VM hosting functions are implemented in an illustrative appliance. The illustrative backup appliance stores the block-level backup copies as well as a consolidated index that comprises both file indexing and content indexing information. The illustrative backup appliance executes the illustrative data agent, copy analyzer, indexing service, and search service. The illustrative backup appliance is implemented in cloud computing environments in some of the illustrative embodiments.

