Veeam Endpoint Backup functionality

[mcw]

Hello,

I have some newbie questions regarding Veeam Endpoint Backup FREE and Veeam Agent for Windows free:

1. Is Veeam Endpoint Backup FREE (VEB) compatible with Microsoft Small Business Server 2011 (SBS 2011)?

2. Is Veeam Agent for Windows free (VAW) compatible with SBS 2011?

3. Is VEB able to make a consistent backup of SBS 2011, especially of the Exchange and SQL server applications?

4. Is VAW able to make a consistent backup of SBS 2011, especially of the Exchange and SQL server applications?

5. In case of recovery of a server that runs Exchange: Is it possible to restore a) single user mailboxes or b) even single items of a mailbox, e.g. an email?

6. a) Is it possible to restore a backup of a physical machine to a different hardware? b) What about different drivers e.g. for the chipset or for another RAID controller?

7. Is it possible to convert the VEB or VAW backup of a physical machine to a Hyper-V virtual machine?

8. Does VEB support encryption of the backup sets?

9. Does VAW support encryption of the backup sets?

10. a) Is it possible to use two locally attached SATA disks as (rotating) backup targets, meaning that only one of the disks will be attached at a single point of time, but both disks should carry a complete backup of the entire machine? b) As we can only define a single backup job: How can the two disks be specified in VEB? c) Is it possible to use disks with volume-level encryption (e.g. done by Bitlocker, VeraCrypt or DiskCryptor) for this purpose, if we call the VEB backup job by CLI from within a script that unlocks the volumes before?

11. a) Are VEB or VAW able to backup machines with a running Hyper-V (host AND virtual machines)? b) Will VEB backup the machines in a consistent state? c) Is it possible to recover a single virtual machine from a backup?

12. Are VEB or VAW able to perform a bare metal backup of a Hyper-V host (only the host component, NOT the virtual machines)?

Thanks for your answers,
Christian

[Vitaliy S.]

Hi Christian,

1-2. Since SBS server is based on Windows Server 2008 R2, then it should be supported by both products.

3-4. VEB is using VSS to do application-consistent backups. If you want more advanced functionality for processing Windows Servers (similar to what we have in Veeam B&R product), then VAW should be a way to go.

5. To do that, you should import backups to the Veeam B&R Free version and then use Veeam Explorer for Exchange > Restoring Application Items

6. Yes, that's possible. You will just need to import proper (new) drivers in case of BMR to a different hardware. Here is the list of topics with the same question.

7. Yes, you can restore backups as VHDX disks, but please keep in mind that VAW/VEB is not a P2V tool.

8. VEB backups can be encrypted when pointing to the Veeam backup repository.

9. Yes, that would be possible too for all repository types.

10. Yes, rotated drives as a target for the backup jobs are fully supported > Backup to Rotated Drives. Given that these disks are "visible" to the Windows server running VEB, it should be possible to back up to them.

11. Yes, that's possible. For consistent backups you should be running VEB/VAW inside the guest as opposed to the host-level. Recovering virtual machines will be similar to restoring regular files from the backup.

12. You can do backup for the system volume running all the roles > Volume-Level Backup

Thanks!

[mcw]

1-2. Since SBS server is based on Windows Server 2008 R2, then it should be supported by both products.

Can anyone here confirm successful backup AND restore of a SBS 2011 with VEB and VAW?

5. To do that, you should import backups to the Veeam B&R Free version and then use Veeam Explorer for Exchange > Restoring Application Items

Just to clarify, as I do not have experience with Veeam products yet: One can make a backup of an entire SBS 2011 machine with VEB or VAW, then import this backup into Veeam B&R free and from within this application you can start Veeam Explorer for Exchange and restore application items?

Does "import" mean that Veeam B&R free will consume additional storage space in the size of the VEB backup or does import mean that the VEB backup will be loaded?

7. Yes, you can restore backups as VHDX disks, but please keep in mind that VAW/VEB is not a P2V tool.

In the link you provided it says that an export to VHDX disk format is possible from a VEB volume-level backup.
Does this also work from a backup in "Entire Computer" mode?

You remark that this procedure is not a P2V tool. I know that, but it would be nice if we were able to recover an SBS 2011 installation that formerly resided on a physical machine on a virtualized system. Would this be possible going this way or what steps are missing compared to a P2V tool?

11. Yes, that's possible. For consistent backups you should be running VEB/VAW inside the guest as opposed to the host-level. Recovering virtual machines will be similar to restoring regular files from the backup.

If we perform the backup from the host level we will only get crash-consistent backups of the VMs, right?

If we want to restore VMs from a host level backup performed by VEB/VAW we would restore the virtual disk files and the machine description files/meta files and import this into Hyper-V, right?

In case of such a host level backup it would also be possible to perform incremental backups, right?

In general: Does VEB / VAW also use Veeam's forever forward incremental backup technology?

Thanks a lot for your answers!

Christian

[Dima P.]

Can anyone here confirm successful backup AND restore of a SBS 2011 with VEB and VAW?

Yes: our QA team is using SBS in their test lab.

One can make a backup of an entire SBS 2011 machine with VEB or VAW, then import this backup into Veeam B&R free and from within this application you can start Veeam Explorer for Exchange and restore application items?

Correct. You can use Veeam B&R repository as a target for your backup job. In such case import is not required and you can perform all recovery actions within VBR console.

Does this also work from a backup in "Entire Computer" mode?

Yes

Would this be possible going this way or what steps are missing compared to a P2V tool?

It is possible. Keep in mind that you should create a blank VM and assign exported disks manually. Better option if you are running Hyper-V environment - to run and Instant restore to Hyper-V from VAW backup.

If we perform the backup from the host level we will only get crash-consistent backups of the VMs, right?

Agent backup is always application aware due the nature of VSS. However, if you want to protect the applications like AD, Exchange, SharePoint, SQL or Oracle addition logic is required, thus server edition should be enabled on the agent side (requires Server license).

If we want to restore VMs from a host level backup performed by VEB/VAW we would restore the virtual disk files and the machine description files/meta files and import this into Hyper-V, right?

Yes or run Instant restore to Hyper-V

In case of such a host level backup it would also be possible to perform incremental backups, right?

Incremental level backup is supported

Does VEB / VAW also use Veeam's forever forward incremental backup technology?

Yup.

[mcw]

Thanks for your profound answers.

Please be so kind and help me with another couple of questions:

1. Is it possible to create a repo with Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V and then perform a backup using Veeam Endpoint Backup Free (VEB) or Veeam Agento for Windows directly into this repo? Or is this only possible with the non-free version?

2. You wrote that it is possible to import a VEB backup set into Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V. Does import here mean that the existing VEB backup set will be copied into the repo so that we need extra space in the size of the VEB backup set? Or will the backup set just be loaded from the place were the VEB backup set is stored (with no extra space requirements)?

3. Consider that we have created a backup of a Hyper-V server with VEB on hypervisor level (VEB NOT running inside each VM but on level of the hypervisor): If one has successfully imported this VEB backup set into Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V: Is it possible to restore whole VMs to a destination Hyper-V server or is it only possible to restore their VHDX files?

4. If we chose "File level backup" as backup mode in VEB: Is this file level backup VSS aware (do we get a backup of a file set which is consistent, with all data having exactly the state it had when the backup started - will a snapshot be taken before the backup starts)?

Thanks,
Christian

[Dima P.]

Is it possible to create a repo with Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V and then perform a backup using Veeam Endpoint Backup Free (VEB) or Veeam Agento for Windows directly into this repo? Or is this only possible with the non-free version?

Yes, it’s possible. You should switch VBR to full functionality mode, add agent license and you are good to go.

Does import here mean that the existing VEB backup set will be copied into the repo so that we need extra space in the size of the VEB backup set? Or will the backup set just be loaded from the place were the VEB backup set is stored (with no extra space requirements)?

It’s up to you. You can copy backup files to your repository or import backup from existing location. Take a look at this article

Is it possible to restore whole VMs to a destination Hyper-V server or is it only possible to restore their VHDX files?

No, only the Hyper-V host you are backing up with VEB/VAW. Although, you can file level restore the VM disks.

If we chose "File level backup" as backup mode in VEB: Is this file level backup VSS aware

Yup.

[mcw]

It’s up to you. You can copy backup files to your repository or import backup from existing location.

Is the following procedure possible?

1. Create a backup of an entire computer to a SMB share on a Windows machine. Product used for performing backup: Veeam Endpoint Backup Free (VEB Free) or Veeam Agent for Windows Free (VAW Free).
2. Import this backup into Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V, running in free mode.
3. Restore of single files from the imported backup using Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V, running in free mode.

Other questions:

Synthetic full backup:

VAW: You announce that with the paid versions it will be possible to automatically create periodic full synthetic backups. Two questions regarding this:

1. Does VAW Free still offer a possibility to specify a retention period for the restore points as we know it from version 1.5 Free?
2. I thought that the integration of the oldest incremental backup into the full backup is de facto a creation of a new synthetic full backup!? What is the difference to the newly announced feature in VAW Free?

VAW licensing:

1. Is it possible to install and run VAW Free on a Windows Server operating system, e.g. Server 2016?
2. Is it possible to install and run VAW Workstation on a Windows Server operating system, e.g. Server 2016?
3. The license seems to be a subscription in fact. If we buy e.g. a one year subscription: What happens after the year has passed in case we do not prolong the subscription: Can we still use the software without restrictions?
4. Is it possible to directly backup to a repo of Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V (running in free mode), using VAW workstation?
5. If answer to question 4. is yes: Is it possible to restore single items (or the whole machine in case of a backup of an entire computer) to a target machine from Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V (running in free mode)?

Bitlocker encrypted backup targets:

Consider that we run a backup (using VEB Free or VAW Free) of an entire computer to a volume on a USB or SATA hard disk that is encrypted using Bitlocker:

1. Is it possible to access the Bitlocker encrypted volume from within the booted VEB Free recovery media?
2. Is it possible to access the Bitlocker encrypted volume from within the booted VAW Free recovery media?

[Neo32]

I am also interested in answers to these questions. Does anyone have ideas?

[nielsengelen]

Is the following procedure possible?
1. Create a backup of an entire computer to a SMB share on a Windows machine. Product used for performing backup: Veeam Endpoint Backup Free (VEB Free) or Veeam Agent for Windows Free (VAW Free).
2. Import this backup into Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V, running in free mode.
3. Restore of single files from the imported backup using Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V, running in free mode.

1. Yes, this is possible.
2. This is possible but you can also send the backup directly to a Veeam repository even with Veeam Backup Free.
3. Yes, this is possible.

Synthetic full backup:

VAW: You announce that with the paid versions it will be possible to automatically create periodic full synthetic backups. Two questions regarding this:

1. Does VAW Free still offer a possibility to specify a retention period for the restore points as we know it from version 1.5 Free?
2. I thought that the integration of the oldest incremental backup into the full backup is de facto a creation of a new synthetic full backup!? What is the difference to the newly announced feature in VAW Free?

1. Veeam Agent for Windows 2.0 is just the next version on 1.5. We have just renamed the product and everything you could do is still there so this hasn't changed.
2. A synthethic full is different. More information can be found in the helpcenter.

VAW licensing:

1. Is it possible to install and run VAW Free on a Windows Server operating system, e.g. Server 2016?
2. Is it possible to install and run VAW Workstation on a Windows Server operating system, e.g. Server 2016?
3. The license seems to be a subscription in fact. If we buy e.g. a one year subscription: What happens after the year has passed in case we do not prolong the subscription: Can we still use the software without restrictions?
4. Is it possible to directly backup to a repo of Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V (running in free mode), using VAW workstation?
5. If answer to question 4. is yes: Is it possible to restore single items (or the whole machine in case of a backup of an entire computer) to a target machine from Veeam Backup Free Edition for Hyper-V (running in free mode)?

1. Yes
2. Yes
3. The product will switch to the free version
4. Yes
5. Yes

Bitlocker encrypted backup targets:

Consider that we run a backup (using VEB Free or VAW Free) of an entire computer to a volume on a USB or SATA hard disk that is encrypted using Bitlocker:

1. Is it possible to access the Bitlocker encrypted volume from within the booted VEB Free recovery media?
2. Is it possible to access the Bitlocker encrypted volume from within the booted VAW Free recovery media?

You can only do a full recovery of an encrypted media.

[Neo32]

2. This is possible but you can also send the backup directly to a Veeam repository even with Veeam Backup Free.

How can i do this?

I tried it with Veeam Agent for Windows free 2.0.0.700 and Backup and Replication free 9.5.0.823 and become the Error Message

Unable to obtain a Veeam Agent for Windows license from the backup server.
Veeam Backup and Replication version 9.5.0.283 is not compatible with Veeam Agent for Windows

[nielsengelen]

You need update 2 for VBR 9.5 which will be available soon (currently in RTM status).

[Neo32]

Ahhhh, thats the reason

sounds good !

[Neo32]

One more question: is it possible to use the "veeam.agent.configurator" to import a config file in the free VAW version?

In my test's i become an error like

Errors:
Failed to perform the operation.
The configuration file you are trying to import does not match the product edition.

I used the same file that i've exported a few seconds ago with the configurator, without any change in the file and with a little change (RestorePointsCount from 14 to 10), same error.

[nielsengelen]

The configurator only works with a paid edition (workstation/server).

[Neo32]

You need update 2 for VBR 9.5 which will be available soon (currently in RTM status).

The Update is out now and we installed it on our server.
After that we tried again to save backups with veeam agent for Windows 2.0 free (2.0.0.700) directly in the repository of Veeam Backup and Replication free (9.5.0.1038).
Now the Agent say: "Unable to obtain a Veeam Agent for Windows license from the backup server. Not enough licenses on Veeam Backup & Replication server."

It looks as the function is not allowd in free mode of both tools, or can we do any configuration to solve this?

[Dima P.]

Bernd,

You should either have agent license installed in VBR or regular VBR license for Veeam Agent for Windows running free edition. Same approach as with VEB 1.5, except now you can license VBR FREE for agent use only with agent license installed.