Use Cases Overview The following sections give an overview of use cases related to the backup and restore processes. Managing CredentialsBackup software needs vCloud Director access to manage vApps at the metadata level, and vCenter Server access to manage vApps at the virtual machine and virtual disk level. The backup software must collect and retain authentication credentials for both vCloud Director and vCenter Server.Finding a vAppThere are different ways to locate a vApp managed by vCloud Director. One way is to traverse the vCloud Director inventory. Another way is to use the query service. Protecting Specified vAppsBackup systems typically identify vApps to be backed up in a given Organization based on their identity, using vApp attributes such as name and ID or user defined metadata. A set of vApps to be backed up can also be created based on their Organization (for example, all vApps in the Human Resources Organization), the VDC where they are deployed, and so forth.Recovering an Older Version of a vAppIf a vApp has become corrupted, or if users need to revert to an older state of the vApp, the administrator can restore a version of the vApp from backup storage even when the vApp still exists in vCloud Director. The backup/restore application in these cases can access vCloud Director to get vApp identity information and metadata before restoring the backup copy.Recovering a Deleted vAppWhen recovering a deleted vApp, the backup/restore application must identify the vApp from user input to locate the vApp metadata and virtual machine files on the backup storage medium. After the virtual machines have been restored using vSphere APIs, the vApp can be recomposed using the vCloud API. The backup software must first create a vApp from one of the virtual machines, then import the remaining virtual machines into the same vApp. Recovering a Single Virtual MachineThe process of recovering a single virtual machine from the backup storage medium is a special case of recovering a deleted vApp. In the case of a deleted vApp, the backup software must re-create the vApp in vCloud Director, then import the remaining virtual machines. For a single lost virtual machine, the backup software must only import the one virtual machine into the existing vApp. Backing Up vCloud DirectorThe vCloud SDK for .NET does not offer any special features for backing up or restoring the vCloud Director application and its data. Users should follow standard industry advice for protecting Tomcat applications and Oracle or SQL Server databases. Parent topic: Backing Up vApps in vCloud Director