Creating a volume snapshot

You can create a snapshot of the active volume to preserve the volume image at any point in time. You can create the snapshot immediately or create a schedule to automate future snapshots of the volume. You can create up to 32 snapshots for a single volume.

1. Select NetApp Element Management > Management.
   Note: If two or more clusters are added, ensure that the cluster you intend to use for the task is selected in the navigation bar.
2. Click the Volumes sub-tab.
3. From the Active view, select the check box for the volume you want to use for the snapshot.
4. Click Actions.
5. In the resulting menu, select Create Snapshot.
6. Optional: In the Create Snapshot dialog box, enter a name for the snapshot.
   Tip: Use descriptive naming best practices. This is especially important if multiple clusters or vCenter Servers are used in your environment.
   Note: If you do not enter a name, the system creates a snapshot default name using the date and time the snapshot was created.
7. Optional: Select the Include snapshot in replication when paired check box to ensure that the snapshot is replicated when the parent volume is paired.
8. Select one of the following as the retention period for the snapshot:
   • Keep forever: Retains the snapshot on the system indefinitely.
   • Set retention period: Determine a length of time (days, hours, or minutes) for the system to retain the snapshot.
   Note: When you set a retention period, you select a period that begins at the current time (retention is not calculated from the snapshot creation time).
9. To take a single, immediate snapshot, select Take snapshot now.
10. To schedule the snapshot to run at a future time, perform the following steps:
    1. Select Create snapshot schedule.
    2. Enter a schedule name.
    3. Select a schedule type from the list and configure the schedule details.
    4. Optional: Select the Recurrent Schedule check box to repeat the scheduled snapshot periodically.
11. Click OK.