Frequently Asked Questions
The following are answers to frequently asked questions related to ECX functionality. The questions and answers are organized by deployment, resources, connectivity, cataloging, operation, and control topics.
- Review the frequently asked questions by topic:
- For questions related to ECX installation and logging in, see Deployment.
- For questions related to resources used by ECX, see Resources.
- For questions related to connecting to ECX resources, see Connectivity.
- For questions related to ECX cataloging and jobs, see Cataloging.
- For questions related to general ECX operation, see Operation.
- For questions related to Copy Data and Use Data policies in ECX, see Copy Data/Use Data.
How is ECX distributed?
In most cases, ECX is distributed as a virtual appliance through an OVF template.
How do I configure ECX out-of-box?
See the topics Deployment Checklist and Install ECX as a Virtual Appliance.
What are the requirements of the datastores used for the hard disks? What types of VMware datastores are supported?
The type of datastore on which ECX is deployed is transparent to ECX.
Can the virtual appliance hard disks be thin provisioned?
Yes. This is a function of the virtual appliance, and can be set during ECX installation. Better performance can be achieved with thick provisioning of the appliance.
Why is there a delay from when the machine boots to login?
When you boot the machine, several processes occur including:
- Operating system and network connections initiate.
- Dependencies are scanned and resolved.
The more heavily loaded the ESX server is, the longer the boot process might take.
Is it important to configure the time zone for the ECX virtual appliance?
Yes. The time zone is for the scheduling of policies. An incorrect time zone may cause scheduled tasks to run at a shifted time. See the topic Set Time Zone.
What are the default ECX user names and passwords?
When logging on to ECX for the first time, the default user name is admin and the default password is password. You will be prompted to reset the default password.
When logging on to the management console of the virtual machine, the default user name is administrator and the default password is ecxadLG235.
How is the root password secured?
You are prompted to change the root password on the first root login.
Can the disks be increased dynamically?
ECX data volumes can be expanded if necessary with the approval of Catalogic Software Data Protection Technical Support.
What resource can I add to improve ECX performance?
Increasing memory should help improve performance.
How much of the virtual machine default configuration can be modified?
Parameters such as network, CPU, and memory can be configured at the virtual machine level, but adjusting to below the default levels may impact performance. For default requirements, see the topic
Is it possible to install proprietary software, such as antivirus software, on the virtual appliance?
It is not recommended to install third party applications on the virtual appliance without approval from Catalogic Software Data Protection Technical Support.
Can I access the ECX user interface remotely?
Yes. The ECX user interface is browser based. Supported browsers and the URL are described in the topic
What ports are needed to access the ECX user interface?
To access ECX, appropriate ports need to be opened through the firewall. For details, see the topic User Administration and Security Management.
What operating system is ECX built on?
CentOS 6.7 is the operating system on the ECX virtual appliance.
Is Java required for accessing ECX?
A browser that supports JavaScript is required.
Do the ECX cataloging and reporting functions impact the performance of the registered storage systems?
The cataloging function is built on technology that is designed to run as low priority on the storage system and automatically adjust itself to give top priority to primary workload operations. The reporting functions do not impact registered storage systems as they run on the ECX virtual appliance.
How does ECX connect to NetApp storage systems?
ECX connects to NetApp storage systems through HTTPS or HTTP.
Is the network traffic secure?
Network traffic between the ECX virtual appliance and the the ECX user interface is secured using HTTPS protocol. Network traffic between the ECX virtual appliance and an external resource, such as a NetApp storage system, a vCenter, or an LDAP server, uses either HTTPS or HTTP protocol, which is decided by the System Administrator when registering the resource.
Does ECX work with storage vendors other than EMC, IBM, and NetApp?
ECX software works with EMC, IBM, and NetApp storage and VMware infrastructure.
ECX provides Copy Data and Use Data support for customers with VMware leveraging heterogeneous storage, extending Copy Data use cases to VMware on mixed storage.
For the search and reporting features of ECX, the VMware environment can use any storage; it does not have to be EMC VNX, IBM, or NetApp. Therefore, ECX provides visibility and insight into VM information across any storage device.
Does ECX work with volumes that have non-Windows file systems?
Yes. ECX catalogs NFS and CIFS files residing on NetApp volume snapshots. Linux/Unix files are stored using NFS and Windows files are stored using CIFS protocol.
Does ECX work with SnapManager data?
ECX catalogs the meta-data on LUNs created by SnapManager for SQL Server and Exchange. File level granularity of content hosted inside these LUNs is not available.
Is ECX software SNMP compliant?
Not at this time.
If you add a vCenter into a catalog policy, does that automatically discover all the ESX servers within that vCenter?
Yes. Once cataloged, view available VMware resources through the catalog browse function on the Search tab.
How many storage systems can be cataloged?
ECX can catalog any number of storage systems and is only limited by the data disk in its delivered configuration.
When a catalog job runs, is it a full catalog job each time?
Yes. A full catalog job, not an incremental, is run each time.
Why is it that sometimes many jobs and tasks are marked with Waiting indicators on the Monitor tab?
The number of operations in progress on the Monitor tab varies depending on the number of jobs currently running. ECX controls the number of jobs allowed to run. When the number of jobs exceeds the value defined by ECX, jobs marked with Waiting indicators display on the Monitor tab. ECX also controls the number of job tasks to run simultaneously for a given job when multiple jobs are running.
When does the cataloged data get cleaned up?
After a certain number of job runs for a given policy, older objects for that job are purged from the Catalog. This retention parameter is set when the policy is defined.
The Maintenance policy removes resources and associated objects created by ECX when a policy in a pending state is deleted. The cleanup procedure reclaims space on your storage devices, cleans up your ECX catalog, and removes related snapshots.
See the topic Maintenance Policy .
How do I protect and recover the ECX appliance itself?
Backing up the ECX appliance regularly is a critical operation. For a description of the recommended procedure,
Can I restore an individual file by using the Search window?
Yes. To restore a file on a Windows machine, search for the file in ECX and discover its location through the file's properties pane. See the topic Find and Restore a File.
The recommended Best Practice for protection/recovery is to use Copy Data and Use Data policies in ECX.
Why is it that when I select Hide Duplicates when performing an advanced search, some duplicate objects still display in the search results pane?
In some cases, the name of a returned object on the search results pane may be the same as another object, however the resources where the objects reside is different. Review the file properties of the objects by selecting their names on the search results pane to view the differences between the returned entries.
Can I generate customized reports?
ECX provides a set of predefined reports that can be customized through the use of parameter selection.
How do I access the most current Help?
By default, the Help system accessed from the management interface is online. To ensure you are seeing the latest Help system, clear your browser cache before selecting Help.
To use a local Help system that does not require an Internet connection click the arrow next to Help 
to open the About Catalogic ECX window. Select Use local help system. The local version might not contain the latest updates.
How are ECX logs collected for troubleshooting?
There are two approaches for downloading logs. Download logs from the Support menu or access the ECX appliance through a command prompt. The first approach is simpler and generally sufficient. The second approach produces a more comprehensive set of logs. See the topic Collect Logs For Troubleshooting.
Is audit tracking provided?
An audit log displaying ECX activity is available through the Support menu. Click the arrow next to the Support 
icon, click Download Audit Log, then select a location to save the log file.
For a Copy Data policy, how do I update the retention after a policy has run?
Open the existing policy, click Snapshot in the workflow pane, and update the Keep Snapshots parameter. The retention policy changes to the supplied value when the policy is next run.
To what extent do the ECX Copy Data and Use Data functions impact the performance of NetApp storage systems?
The Copy Data and Use Data functions employ technologies such as Snapshot and FlexClone that are designed to be low-impact on the NetApp storage systems. Generally, users should observe little unexpected performance impact on the storage systems.
For a Copy Data policy, can I exclude swap partitions?
No. The lowest granularity of protection is a virtual machine.
Catalogic ECX™ 2.4
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