VMware recommends creating full virtual machine backups of the PSC and vCenter Server when these components are running in virtual machines. There are many third-party backup software products that can also be used to make full virtual machine backups. This allows the virtual machines to be restored quickly in the event of a failure.

If the PSC or vCenter Server is running as a physical machine, a third-party backup application can be used to take a full bare-metal backup. It is important to realize that this type of backup will take longer to restore, impacting the RTO.

File-based backups are also supported for the VCSA. File-based backups are configured through the Virtual Appliance Management Interface (VAMI) and sent to remote servers via FTP, FTPS, HTTP, or SCP.

Configuration and performance data is stored in the vCenter Server database. How backups are done depends on the database software that is used to host the database. For example, if the database is a Microsoft SQL database, a backup can be performed on demand in the SQL Management Studio, or as a scheduled SQL job. Third-party backup tools can also be used to back up the vCenter databases.

If the vCenter is using the embedded vPostgreSQL database on either a Windows vCenter Server or the VCSA, it can be backed up using a script from the VMware KB Article 2091961, located at http://kb.vmware.com/kb/2091961. There are separate scripts to support a Windows or VCSA vCenter deployment.

The vCenter Server database should be backed up regularly, based on the RPO that has been defined for the management components.