"Creating Snapshot Error" with Domain Controller VM

[Lyle]

Our 6.0.0.153(64bit) is backing up VM's over the network. More often than not, the backup of one Domain Controller VM (running Windows 2003) fails with:
"Creating snapshot Error: Cannot create a quiesced snapshot because the create snapshot operation exceeded the time limit for holding off I/O in the frozen virtual machine". About half the time, a subsequent retry will succeed.

The message seems pretty explanitory, but any advice? Thanks....Lyle

[Cokovic]

Hi Lyle,

1. i would recommend you to install Patch 3
2. did you try take a quiesced snapshot of your VM over the vsphere client? Does it succeed?
3. how did you setup your Veeam backup job? Do you use application aware image processing? Or do you have checked for VMWare tools quiescence?

[Vitaliy S.]

Lyle, looks like you're using VMware Tools Quiescence to backup your DC VM, right? If I were you I would use application aware image processing instead. Thanks!

[Lyle]

Of course: "Read the FAQ" (dummy).

Will see how the run goes tonight. Thanks...Lyle

[Lyle]

Well, almost nothing worked. 8-o

I enabled "application-aware image processing" for the entire Job, which is backing up the vSphere cluster. Looks like the account I specified had trouble logging in to most machines.

I'll play around with it, but 2 questions:
- should I be striving to use "application-aware image processing" on all Windows VM's, or only when I have a problem getting the snapshot done in time?
- if I want to enable it for the cluster, the VM's span multiple domains so would take different logins; but it looks like the authentication can only be specified on a per job basis; does that mean splitting the job up, into one job per valid login? another way of asking this: if I only had one VM I wanted to do app-aware processing on, that would have to be in a seperate job, right?

Thanks...Lyle

[Gostev]

1. All Windows VMs.
2. Authentication can be specified per-VM. via Advanced settings on the same step of the wizard.