Recovery point objective (RPO) driven backup scheduling in a data storage management system using an enhanced data agent

A data storage management system comprising:

• a storage manager that executes on a computing device comprising one or more processors and computer memory;
• a data agent associated with an application, wherein the data agent executes on a computing device comprising one or more processors and computer memory, and wherein the application generates a dataset;
• wherein the data agent is configured to:
• identify data objects within the dataset based on a granularity level,
• process the data objects for backup in a first backup job,
• track first data objects in the dataset that were successfully backed up in the first backup job, and
• detect that a failure in the first backup job caused second data objects in the dataset not to be backed up in the first backup job,
• report to the storage manager that the second data objects failed to be backed up in the first backup job, and
• in a second backup job, process the second data objects that failed to be backed up in the first backup job;
• and
• wherein the storage manager is configured to:
• re-submit the second data objects in the second backup job,
• devise a start time for the second backup job, based at least in part on failure conditions that caused the failure of the first backup job, wherein the start time for the second backup job is accelerated relative to other pending backup jobs in the system so that a recovery point objective (RPO) for the dataset, including the first data objects and the second data objects, can be met, and
• manage backup jobs in the system, including the first backup job and the second backup job.

A method comprising:

• identifying, by a data agent in a data storage management system, data objects within a dataset based on a granularity level;
• by the data agent, processing the data objects for backup in a first backup job;
• by the data agent, tracking first data objects in the dataset that were successfully backed up in the first backup job;
• by the data agent, detecting that a failure in the first backup job caused second data objects in the dataset that were targeted by the first backup job not to be backed up in the first backup job;
• by the data agent, reporting to a storage manager that the second data objects failed to be backed up in the first backup job;
• by the storage manager, determining a start time for a second backup job for backing up the second data objects in time to meet a recovery point objective (RPO) for the dataset, including the first data objects and the second data objects,
• wherein the start time is based at least in part on failure conditions that caused the failure of the first backup job, and
• wherein the start time is accelerated relative to other pending backup jobs in the data storage management system;
• wherein the data agent is associated with an application that generates the dataset, and wherein the data agent executes on a computing device comprising one or more processors and computer memory;
• and
• wherein the storage manager executes on a computing device comprising one or more processors and computer memory, and
• wherein the storage manager manages storage operations, including the first backup job and the second backup job, in the data storage management system.