VSS Backup. How to backup Microsoft Windows machines with Bacula Enterprise and VSS?

To back up every file on a Windows system, the Wizard requires only a name:

and in the simplest case, just tell the wizard the OS type and to back up all files.

The wizard will create a default fileset that includes all mount points, excludes some common items like pagefile and system temporary directories, and backs up everything else.

The actual configuration file will look something like this:

The Bacula Enterprise Windows File Daemon can automatically detect mounted drives, and the fileset above will back up all the files on all mounted drives, using VSS for the backup snapshot. The VSS line is optional, as Bacula will use it if possible, but it’s often a good idea to explicitly add the line so that there’s no question when you look back at the fileset in the future. If you’re automating fileset deployment, there’s no harm in having ‘Enable VSS = yes’ in every fileset, as it will simply be ignored by non-Windows file daemons. The Windows File Daemon also now supports multiple concurrent jobs from a single VSS snapshot, which in some cases allows for greater backup throughput to multiple storage destinations from a large, well provisioned Windows file server.

So while it’s true that Bacula Enterprise Edition’s core components run primarily on Linux servers, Windows servers, workstations, filesystems, and advanced applications can be fully backed up and recovered with the use of the Windows File Daemon and Enterprise plugins. Please contact Bacula Systems with any questions at baculasystems.com/contactus

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