Agent Task - Backup and Restore
The Backup and Restore tasks are an extremely important part of the Enterprise Administration Module. Performing a Collect Backup is required if you want to do an Agent recovery.
The Gateway Tasks discussed in this section are the Collect Backup, Restore Backup, Install Modules and Restart Agent.
Collect Backup​
Collect Backup is a Gateway Task that performs a Gateway backup on the selected Agent's machine. Additionally, this task will archive copies of the Agent's modules.
Transfer timeout is configurable using the system property ignition.eam.task.collectBackup.transferTimeout.
On the Controller, navigate to Config > Enterprise Administration > Agent Tasks
Click Create new Gateway Task.
Collect Backup is one of the several Gateway tasks you can perform. Select Collect Backup, and press Next. The EAM Task Wizard will walk you through each step of the Collect Backup process.
There are several different task scheduling options available. For this collect backup example, choose to Execute Immediately, and click Next. If you need more information on other scheduling options, refer to Task Scheduling.
Select the Agent you want to perform the Collect Backup on, and click Next.
Follow the step that corresponds with the version of Ignition you are running:
Ignition 8.1.18 and prior: The EAM Task wizard will prompt you to do a Force Backup even if nothing changed since the last backup. This step is optional, but it is useful when your backups are performed on a regular schedule. To be safe, check the Force Backup box, and click Next.
Ignition 8.1.19 to 8.1.24: Skip to step 7.
Ignition 8.1.25+: The EAM Task wizard will prompt you to set up a maximum number of concurrent backups. There is no limit by default, though setting a higher value may help if there is a large number of agents, or if network bandwidth is limited. Set the number of Max Concurrent Backups you want, and click Next.
Review the Collect Backup Task Summary information, and press Finish.
Once the Collect Backup task is complete, a success message will be displayed. You can even check the Task History which will provide a list of all previously executed tasks. Your new Gateway backup will be stored wherever your Controller settings are pointing to when the Controller was initially created.
To check, go to the Controller, and navigate to Config > Enterprise Administration > Controller Settings. You can have your Archive Path set to Automatic or Manual. If you have it set to Automatic, you can find your backups inside the directory for Ignition, otherwise, it will be the folder location that is specified in the Controller Settings. To learn more about controller settings, refer to Creating a Controller.
Restore Backup​
Now, let’s restore a Gateway backup on the selected Agent.
When restoring from a backup using this task, the newly restored agent will retain it's previous name.
On the Controller, navigate to Config > Enterprise Administration > Agent Tasks.
Click on the Create new Gateway Task link.
Select the Restore Backup, and press Next.
Schedule the Restore Backup task from any of the listed scheduling options. This example uses Execute Immediately, and press Next.
Select the Agent, and press Next.
If your Archive Path was set to Manual when you created your Controller, you will have to select the Choose File button, and navigate to the folder on your computer to locate the Gateway Backup file. If you are unsure about your Archive Path, refer to your Controller Settings.
note​
New in 8.1.39You can also restore a Gateway Backup from the Controller's archive by pressing the Select a backup from the Controller archive, and selecting the .gwbk file you want to restore.
Once you choose the file, click Open. Click Next on the Restore Backup task.
Review the Restore Backup Task Summary, and press Finish. Once the Restore Backup task completes, you will receive a successful message from the Gateway Task.
Now go to your Agent, and click Home. It takes a few moments to bring up the Gateway. You will see a progress bar while the Gateway is starting up. Once it’s complete, you will see all your projects uploaded and ready to go.
Install Modules​
This task allows you to install one or more modules on an Agent. You may pass in the modules to install while creating the task, or choose from the archived modules. Modules are archived in the Collect Backup task.
As an example, suppose you accidentally uninstalled the Alarm Notification and OPC UA Modules from your Agent. Let's go ahead and reinstall them using the Install Modules task.
Go to the Controller, and navigate to Config > Enterprise Administration > Agent Tasks. Click the Create new Gateway Task link.
Select Install Modules, and click Next.
Schedule the Install Modules task from any of the listed scheduling options. This example uses Execute Immediately, and press Next.
Select the Agent, and press Next.
From the list of Archived Modules, click the Add buttons for Alarm Notification and the OPC UA modules. You will notice, that once you select a module, it shows up in the Selected Modules box at the bottom of the screen. You can choose as many modules as you need, and when you're finished, press Next.
Review the Install Modules Task Summary, and press Finish. Once the Install Module task completes, you will get a successful message from the Gateway Task.
Go back to your Agent, and navigate to Status > Modules to verify that both the Alarm Notification and OPC UA modules were installed and are running successfully.
Restart Agent​
On the Controller, let's create another Gateway Task to restart the agent. This task will stop the Ignition service on the Agent and start it back up again.
Go to the Controller, and navigate to Config > Enterprise Administration > Agent Tasks.
Click on the Create new Gateway Task link.
Select the Restart Agent, and click Next.
Schedule the Restart Agent task to Execute Immediately, and click Next.
Select the Agent, and click Next.
Review the Restart Agent Task Summary, and click Finish. Once the Restart Agent task completes, you will receive a successful message from the Gateway Task.
Go to your Agent and refresh your page. You will see a progress bar while the Gateway is starting up. This will take a few moments, and once this task completes, your Agent will be up and running.