Cloud Connections

View status and configuration information for cloud connections.

A cloud connection defines all the information that IBM Spectrum Protect requires to connect to a cloud storage system for read and write operations. Cloud connections are used by cloud-container storage pools and by cloud device classes.

The following actions and status indicators are available on the page:

Create Connection
Use this action to create a connection to a cloud storage system. The fields that are displayed in the Create Connection dialog depend on the type of cloud platform to which this connection provides access. For example, to create a connection to an S3 cloud environment, you must provide an access key ID, a secret access key, a bucket name, cloud URL. Before you use this action to create a connection, ensure that you have the location information and credentials for accessing the cloud storage system through your provider.
Modify
Use this action to modify a connection to a cloud storage system. When you define a cloud connection, the server verifies that it can access your cloud storage system through your cloud provider. If you later reconfigure the cloud storage system with your provider, the server might not be able to access the cloud storage system. By using the Modify action, you can edit the properties of the cloud connection to reestablish access.
Copy
You can use this action to copy a cloud connection to another server that is known to the Operations Center. By copying the connection to another server, the access to cloud storage that it provides is made available to storage pools and device classes on the other server.

You can also use the action to simplify the creation of similar cloud connections on the same server or on a different server. If an existing connection is similar to one you want to create, you can use this action and change only the properties that are different for the new connection. Although you can change properties of the connection copy, the copy must be of the same cloud type. If you are copying a connection to the same server, you must specify a unique name for the copy.

Delete
Use this action to delete a cloud connection that is no longer needed. You cannot delete a cloud connection if it is defined on a cloud-container storage pool or a cloud device class. Before you attempt to delete a cloud connection, verify that the connection is not used by any cloud storage pools or cloud device classes. The Storage Pools column shows whether any cloud storage pools use the connection, and the Device Class column shows whether any cloud device classes use the connection.
Test Connection
Use this action to verify that the server can access the cloud storage system. The server tests whether it can access the cloud storage system through your provider by using the credentials that the connection provides. A success message is displayed if the credentials for the cloud service provider are verified, and the server can access the cloud storage system. If the server cannot access the cloud storage system though your provider, an error message is returned. The error message explains why the connection failed and you can use this information to resolve the problem.
Status
Indicates whether the server was able to connect to the cloud storage system when the connection was most recently tested.
After a cloud connection is created, the server tests the cloud connection at regular intervals. The interval is determined by the server option ConnectionHealthStatusInterval. By default, this server option is set to 1440 minutes, which is once a day. You can also manually test a connection by using the Test Connection action. The following states can be shown:
  • Normal status icon Normal: When the server tested the cloud connection, the server was able to access the cloud storage system by using the credentials in the cloud connection.
  • Error status icon Critical: When the server tested the cloud connection, the server was not able to access the cloud storage system by using the credentials in the cloud connection.

    A cloud connection might fail because access information was updated for your cloud service provider, but the cloud connection was not updated. A failure might also indicate a temporary problem that is resolved without your intervention. For example, a temporary network problem might prevent the server from accessing the cloud service provider, or your provider might be experiencing an outage.

    To determine whether the problem was resolved, you can test the connection again. To test the connection, select the connection and click Test Connection. If the server is still unable to access the cloud storage system, the server displays an error that describes why the connection failed.

Cloud Type
Specifies the type of cloud platform to which this connection provides access. The following types can be shown:
S3
Specifies that the connection is to a cloud computing system that uses the Simple Storage Service (S3) protocol, such as IBM Cloud® Object Storage or Amazon Web Services (AWS) S3.
Azure
Specifies that the connection is to a Microsoft Azure cloud computing system.
Google
Specifies that the connection is to a Google Cloud Storage cloud computing system.
Storage Pools
The name of the storage pool that uses this connection, or the number of storage pools that use this connection. If a number is shown, you can hover over the number to display a list of the storage pools.

By using the cloud connection that is specified by a cloud-container storage pool, the server can read and write to the cloud storage system.

Device Class
The name of the device class that uses this connection, or the number of device classes that use this connection. If a number is shown, you can hover over the number to display a list of the device classes.

A cloud device class can be specified when you are backing up a server database, and can also be specified by a retention storage pool. By using the cloud connection that is specified by a cloud device class, the server can back up the server database to the cloud or can copy retention sets to the cloud for long-term storage.