Backup Hyper-V virtual machines on Windows Server 2008 by using Windows Server Backup

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Hi All

I have recently come upon some settings that we can add to allow us to perform the backups of our virtual machines in windows 2008,

How to backup Hyper-V virtual machines from the parent partition on a Windows Server 2008-based computer by using Windows Server Backup

This article describes how to back up Hyper-V virtual machines from the parent partition on a Windows Server 2008-based computer by using Windows Server Backup.
To back up Hyper-V virtual machines from the parent partition on Windows Server 2008 by using Windows Server Backup, you must register the Microsoft Hyper-V VSS writer with Windows Server Backup.

1:

To register the Microsoft Hyper-V VSS writer with Windows Server Backup automatically, click the Fix it button or link. Click Run in the File Download dialog box, and then follow the steps in the Fix it wizard.

Fix this problem
Microsoft Fix it 50211

2:

To register the Hyper-V VSS writer with Windows Server Backup, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then click OK.

2. Locate the following registry key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion

3. Right-click CurrentVersion, point to New, and then click Key.

4. Type WindowsServerBackup, and then press ENTER.

5. Right-click WindowsServerBackup, point to New, and then click Key.

6. Type Application Support, and then press ENTER.

7. Right-click Application Support, point to New, and then click Key.

8. Type {66841CD4-6DED-4F4B-8F17-FD23F8DDC3DE} , and then press ENTER.

9. Right-click {66841CD4-6DED-4F4B-8F17-FD23F8DDC3DE} , point to New, and then click String Value.

10. Type Application Identifier, and then press ENTER.

11. Right-click Application Identifier, and then click Modify.

12. In the Value data box, type Hyper-V, and then click OK.

13. On the File menu, click Exit.

Back up the virtual machines by using Windows Server Backup

  • When you perform a backup of the virtual machines, you must back up all volumes that host files for the virtual machine, including the InitialStore.xml file (in C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Hyper-V, by default) and the volume(s) containing the VHD(s) and configuration XML files. For example, if the virtual machine configuration files are stored on the D: volume, and the virtual machine virtual hard disk (VHD) files are stored on the E: volume, and InitialStore.xml file is stored on the C: volume, you must back up the C:, D: and E: volumes.
  • Virtual machines that do not have Integration Services installed will be put in a saved state while the VSS snapshot is created.
  • Virtual machines that are running operating systems that do not support VSS, such as Microsoft Windows 2000 or Windows XP, will be put in a saved state while the VSS snapshot is created.
  • Virtual machines that contain dynamic disks must be backed up offline.

Note: Windows Server Backup does not support backing up Hyper-V virtual machines on Cluster Shared Volumes (CSV volumes).

Restore virtual machines by using Windows Server Backup

To restore the virtual machines, follow these steps:

1. Start Windows Server Backup in Administrative Tools.

2. On the Actions menu, click Recover.

3. Select the server that you want to recover data from, and then click Next.

4. Select the date and time that you want to restore from, and then click Next.

5. Select the Applications recovery type, and then click Next.

6. Select Hyper-V, and then click Next.

7. Select the restore location, and then click Next.

8. Click Recover to start the restore process.

Note All volumes that host files for the virtual machine will be restored. Individual virtual machines cannot be restored by using Windows Server Backup.
Virtual machines that contain two or more snapshots will not be restored. To work around this issue, follow these steps:

1. Start Hyper-V Manager in Administrative Tools.

2. Delete the virtual machine that was not restored.

3. Start Windows Server Backup in Administrative Tools.

4. On the Actions menu, click Recover.

5. Select the server that you want to recover data from, and then click Next.

6. Select the date and time that you want to restore from, and then click Next.

7. Select the Files and folders recovery type, and then click Next.

8. Select the directory where the snapshots are stored, and then click Next.
Note By default, the snapshots are located in the following directory:

C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Hyper-V\Snapshots

9. Select the location where the snapshots should be restored, and then click Next.

10. Click Recover to start the restore process.

11. After the restore has finished, perform another restore. However, use the Applications recovery type, and select Hyper-V to correctly restore the virtual machines.

Best Regards

Hugo Ferreira