Книга: Windows Server 2012 R2 Storage, Security, & Networking Pocket Consultant

Selecting a backup utility

Selecting a backup utility

Many backup and recovery solutions are available for use with Windows Server 2012 R2. When selecting a backup utility, you need to keep in mind the types of backups you want to perform and the types of data you are backing up. Windows Server 2012 R2 includes the following installable backup and recovery features:

? Windows Server Backup A basic and easy-to-use backup and recovery utility. When this feature is installed on a server, you can open the tool by using the Tools menu in Server Manager.

? Backup Command-Line Tools A set of backup and recovery commands accessible through the Wbadmin command-line tool. You run and use Wbadmin from an elevated, administrator command prompt. Enter wbadmin /? for a full list of supported commands. Windows PowerShell cmdlets for managing backups are also available.

? Windows Server Backup Module for Windows PowerShell A set of backup and recovery cmdlets accessible through Windows PowerShell. You run and use these cmdlets from an elevated, administrator Windows PowerShell prompt. Enter get-help *wb* for a full list of supported cmdlets.

? Microsoft Online Backup Service This service is an add-on that can be downloaded and installed from within Windows Server Backup to schedule backups from a server to Microsoft’s Internet cloud-based service. Online backups are possible only for fixed NTFS volumes that don’t use BitLocker Drive Encryption. Volumes cannot be shares and must also be configured for read/write access.

? Repair Your Computer You can restore a server by using repair options if you cannot access recovery options provided by the server manufacturer.

NOTE Windows Server Backup and the backup command-line tools are available only for management of backups when you add the Windows Server Backup feature to a server. If you add server administration tools to a server, you might be able to open Windows Server Backup. however, you won’t be able to use Windows Server Backup to configure and manage backups.

Windows Server Backup is the feature you’ll use the most. You can use Windows Server Backup to perform full or copy backups. You cannot use Windows Server Backup to perform differential backups. Windows Server Backup uses the Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) to create fast, block-level backups of the operating system, files and folders, and disk volumes. After you create the first full backup, you can configure Windows Server Backup to automatically run full or incremental backups on a recurring basis.

When you use Windows Server Backup, you need separate, dedicated media for storing archives of scheduled backups. You can back up to external and internal disks, DVDs, and shared folders. Although you can recover full volumes from DVD backups, you cannot recover individual files, folders, or application data from DVD backups.

NOTE You cannot back up to tape by using Windows Server Backup. If you want to back up to tape, you need a third-party backup utility.

You can use Windows Server Backup to easily recover individual folders and files. Rather than manually restoring files from multiple backups if the files are stored in incremental backups, you can recover folders and files by choosing the date on which you backed up the version of the item or items you want to restore. Windows Server Backup also works with the Windows Recovery tools, making it easier for you to recover the operating system. You can recover to the same server or to a new server that has no operating system. Because Windows Server Backup uses VSS, you can easily back up data from compliant applications, such as Microsoft SQL Server and Windows SharePoint Services.

Windows Server Backup also includes automatic disk management. You can run backups to multiple disks in rotation simply by adding each disk as a scheduled backup location. After you configure a disk as a scheduled backup location, Windows Server Backup automatically manages the disk storage, ensuring that you no longer need to worry about a disk running out of space. Windows Server Backup reuses the space of older backups when creating newer backups. To help ensure that you can plan for additional storage needs, Windows Server Backup displays the backups that are available and the current disk usage information.

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