Error: VSSControl: Failed to freeze guest, wait timeout

[collinsandlacy]

Error: VSSControl: Failed to freeze guest, wait timeout

This is the error I am starting to get when processing the Veeam server
itself. The jobs have been previously working. Happens on a backup or
replication job. The Veeam server is a VM. I have removed it from inventory
in the vCenter and added it back. I then recreated the replication job. I
did not map it to an existing replica. I also ran vssadmin and the Writers
that are failing are the Veeam SQL Writer and the WMI writer. I also
restarted these services and rebooted. The error still appears and the job
fails. It only fails for the Veeam VM. I have that about the DB exclusion
for the Veeam server, but have not tried the registry edit for that as of
yet. Any ideas?

Support ID 00431098

[foggy]

What Veeam B&R version are you using? This registry setting is not required for backing up Veeeam B&R itself, since recent versions are able to do that even with application-image processing enabled.

[collinsandlacy]

I am using the latest, version 8 with the latest patch.

[foggy]

I'd analyze the environment for any recent changes that could lead to such behavior. Also please follow the recommendations given by our support engineer and keep working with him on the issue.

[collinsandlacy]

I have got this working. I did the following:
One error I found was the WMI writer in error. I stopped the WMI service and renamed the repository directory to Repository-OLD, then rebooted and ran winmgmt /resetRepository. This reset the WMI Repsoitory
I also found I could not run the SQL configuration tool due to a permissions error. I ran the following command in C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft SQL Server\100\Shared

mofcomp sqlmgmproviderxpsp2up.mof

This fixed the ability to get the SQL configuration tool to run. I tried the replication job again, but no luck. In looking at the server logs I saw a SQL error that suggested I did not have enough drive space when SQL went to backup the master DB. I tried to increase the drive size of the Veeam server in vCenter but it was greyed out. Come to find out I still had two remnant snapshots referencing a server that was deleted and restored last week.

This all started from the vCenter database becoming full and me deleting a server where Veeam still had some of the vmdks locked. I shutdown Veeam and deleted the vmdks manually which was not the correct thing to do. I then had to edit the Veeam vmx file to remove those attached disks. Veeam was then rebooted and Veeam worked but with the VSS error on Veeam server itself, which is where I am now. So after all this, I deleted those remnant snapshots I found on the Veeam sever from last week as that server had been deleted and restored. Increased my drive on Veeam, rebooted Veeam and it is now working.