You can create HBase and HDFS snapshots using Cloudera Manager or by using the command line.

• HBase snapshots allow you to create point-in-time backups of tables without making data copies, and with minimal impact on RegionServers. HBase snapshots are supported for clusters running CDH 4.2 or higher.
• HDFS snapshots allow you to create point-in-time backups of directories or the entire filesystem without actually cloning the data. They can improve data replication performance and prevent errors caused by changes to a source directory. These snapshots appear on the filesystem as read-only directories that can be accessed just like other ordinary directories.