SAN backup causing boot problems

[merit_it]

Hello,

I am in the process of switching to veeam and have been happy with it so far. I would like to use the direct san backup mode to do our backups. Our backup server is a boot from san box that I attached the vmfs volumes to (compellent storage) and veeam could see the vms and was able to do the backups just fine. However now that I have the vmfs volumes shared with the windows backup server, the server wont boot all the way. It will give me the server 2003 loading screen where the windows logo is, then when it fades to black and comes up with the log in dialog it will just sit there with a black screen and never get to the login prompt. Has anyone seen this issue before when presenting vmfs to a server 2003 box? Im not sure who to call on this: veeam, storage, dell, vmware?

If i remove all the vmfs volumes it boots up fine, i cant get it booted in safe mode either.

Thanks

[Gostev]

Hello, it will be best to contact Microsoft to troubleshoot this, since the problem is with Windows not booting properly. Veeam service does not start until the computer is fully booted, for you it looks like the OS hangs during the storage initialization. This could be an issue with HBA or its drivers, or the storage itself - Microsoft should be able to pin point the exact problem. BTW did you disable automount before mounting VMFS volumes to your Windows server?

Also, I would try different, fresher Windows version to see if the problem persists... btw could be issue with specific computer, as well.