Is it possible to dualboot a VHR and windows Server?

[ironster]

Hello, I want to use one of my physical servers to immutably back up my main company server. I was planning on installing the ISO for the hardened repository from here: https://community.veeam.com/blogs-and-p ... itory-4808

I currently have Windows Server 2019 on the server I was planning to use as my repository.

My question is, is it possible for me to install the iso from the link above on top of my current Windows setup so that each time the machine reboots it lets me select which OS to boot into in case some day I need to use the backup server as the company's primary server in an emergency?

The way I understand it is after hardening the VHR I lose the ability to command the machine to reboot, but couldn't I just kill the power to force the machine to go through the boot process and hopefully allow me to select whether I boot into windows or the VHR?

If it's not possible with the above ISO, but is possible if I manually harden the repository, I'd be willing to do that instead.

If neither is possible does anyone have any suggestions?

[Mildur]

Hi Ted

Not with our ISO.
What is the use case? Use the windows server to read the backup files from the ubuntu filesystem for a emergency restores? This will not work. Windows cannot read an XFS filesystem.

If you really want to go this way, you can install Ubuntu in a dual boot by yourself. But I don't see any benefit of it. The backups on the VHR partition wouldn't be readable for the emergency backup server.

Best,
Fabian

[ironster]

Fabian, I wouldn't be using it to restore from the VHR. Basically, the VHR server is set up with the software NOW (Windows server 2019 and all necessary apps and settings) to run the company in case the primary server started on fire or something. So while it's very unlikely, I would only need to retrieve two database files and paste them into their necessary directories, and the windows installation that already exists now on the potential dual boot VHR server could switch roles on the fly and run the company.

I understand that I would not be able to retrieve the veeam backup files from the same machine that they are stored on by just booting to the alternative operating system. I would instead be retrieving them from a 3rd machine while the dual boot server was in VHR mode. Then, once I had the two critical files on the 3rd machine, I'd like the ability to just shut the VHR server down with the power button, boot into windows, instead of VHR, and paste the database files from the 3rd machine into my dual boot windows machine while running windows server instead of being the VHR. This would enable the server that was being used as my VHR to take over as the company server with minimal downtime in the event that the primary server was in some way physically unable to do so.

Does that make sense? I'm looking to take this backup server I have and make it a Veeam VHR, but I would prefer to also keep it with the current setup as well because in the event of catastrophe as long as I have an up to date version of two files, all I need to do is paste them into the correct directory and it's an hour or so of being down, vs a day or so.