Setting up a new Datto appliance

Topic

This article describes the process of deploying and configuring a new physical Datto appliance. For SIRIS Virtual, see Getting Started with SIRIS Virtual.

NOTE  For preventative measures and maintenance best practices for Datto appliances, see our Quick Start guides.

Environment

  • Datto SIRIS
  • Datto ALTO
  • Datto NAS

Description

Before beginning your installation, review the following prerequisites.

  • If you are installing a Datto appliance at a new location, make sure that the host network meets the Datto Networking Requirements.
  • The first backup for a protected system can be very large. If you are pairing protected systems with your Datto appliance for the first time, and are not performing a Device Migration, you should consider ordering a RoundTrip drive. Many times, host networks do not have enough throughput to replicate initial backups to the Datto cloud promptly.
  • When setting up a new Datto appliance, you need the power cable and an Ethernet cable. While not required, Datto also recommends having a monitor, mouse, and keyboard ready to plug into the appliance in case you have trouble registering it over the LAN.
  • Datto appliances, particularly larger rack-mount devices, have cooling fans that may be loud during normal operation, and are designed for the controlled climate of server rooms. Operation in a dedicated server space is recommended.

IMPORTANT  Datto appliances require Internet access to perform their first backup.

Initial appliance setup

Datto ships larger devices with the drive bays empty. The drives are included in the same packaging as the device. There is no set order for drive installation.

  1. Plug the appliance into a power outlet. Datto also recommends connecting the device to a battery backup (also known as an 'Uninterruptible Power Supply' or 'UPS') to ensure consistent operation during low voltage and brownout conditions.

  2. Connect the appliance to your LAN. Depending on the type of device, there can be two or more wired network interface card (NIC) connections located on the back of the device. You can use any of the NICs, but you cannot hot-swap them. If you need to change to a different NIC port, you can reboot the device to apply the changes. You can also select DHCP or Static, assign the IP address, move the cable, and reload networking.

  1. Turn on the power to the appliance. For smaller devices, boot time should not take longer than five minutes. For larger (Professional and Enterprise-series) devices, a cold boot may take more than five minutes. This boot duration is normal functionality. If your device does not finish booting within ten minutes, contact Datto Technical Support for assistance.

  2. From another computer on the same LAN as the Datto appliance, open a browse and go to device.dattobackup.com.

    If you only have one Datto appliance on this LAN, this URL will bring you to the web interface for that Datto. If you have more than one Datto appliance on this LAN, you will see a list of devices.

    Unregistered devices are listed as backupDevice. Click on its IP address to connect to it.

After you connect to the Datto appliance, it will download and apply device updates. If any updates fail to install, contact Datto Technical Support for assistance.

Next steps

Once the updating process completes, your browser will redirect you to a Device Registration screen. Follow the Registering a Datto Appliance article to get started. After registration, the Datto Device GUI will be available via the Datto Partner Portal.

Datto strongly recommends enabling IPMI or iDRAC on appliances that have these feature and configuring the port with a static IPv4 address. Doing so will allow you to access the device remotely for troubleshooting if necessary.

SIRIS 5 devices include firmware that will need to be updated from time to time. When setting up your SIRIS 5 device for the first time, you should check to ensure your device is on the latest firmware version recommended by Datto and update if necessary. See SIRIS 5 Firmware release notes and Updating SIRIS 5 Firmware

After registering the Datto appliance, follow the Protect a System article to pair protected machines for backup to the Datto appliance. The following articles describe the configuration and requirements for the backup agents and shares made for the BCDR devices:

It is also recommended to review the Best Practices articles for the specific protected machines that will be backed up.

If you need to regulate a Datto device's bandwidth when syncing with the cloud, refer to the following:

A Round trip, a physical device sent offsite containing the local backup data, may be a good idea for new deployments to sync the base image of the protected machines offsite. This is especially the case for protecting large machines.

Datto appliances work best when they are not domain-joined. However, if your environment requires it, you can join the device to your domain from the Network Configuration page of the appliance user interface.

Additional Resources