User's Guide Acronis® True Image Echo Enterprise Server Compute with confidence www.acronis.
Copyright © Acronis, Inc., 2000-2007. All rights reserved. “Acronis” and “Acronis Secure Zone” are registered trademarks of Acronis, Inc. "Acronis Compute with Confidence", “Acronis Startup Recovery Manager”, “Acronis Snap Restore” and the Acronis logo are trademarks of Acronis, Inc. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. Windows and MS-DOS are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. All other trademarks and copyrights referred to are the property of their respective owners.
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Table of Contents Chapter 1. Introduction ......................................................................................8 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Acronis® True Image Echo Enterprise Server – a complete solution for corporate users ...........8 Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server components.....................................................10 New in Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server ............................................................10 Supported file systems and storage media ......
3.7.5 Getting Acronis Universal Restore ...............................................................................33 3.8 Backing up to tape libraries and tape drives .......................................................................34 3.8.1 Backing up to tape libraries and autoloaders................................................................34 3.8.2 Backing up to tape drives...........................................................................................34 3.8.
7.3.2 Archive selection .......................................................................................................82 7.3.3 Restoration type selection..........................................................................................83 7.3.4 Selecting a disk/partition to restore ............................................................................84 7.3.5 Selecting a target disk/partition ..................................................................................84 7.3.
12.5 Managing System Restore ............................................................................................ 118 Chapter 13. Working with a virtual environment ...........................................120 13.1 Backing up data on virtual machines ............................................................................. 120 13.2 Recovering data on virtual machines ............................................................................. 120 13.3 Using the disk conversion feature.......
Chapter 1. Introduction 1.1 Acronis® True Image Echo Enterprise Server – a complete solution for corporate users Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server is a comprehensive backup and recovery solution for heterogeneous computer infrastructure that may include any combination of physical and virtual, networked and standalone, Windows- and Linux-based servers.
availability for mission critical applications. Additionally, users can control hard disk drive writing speeds and control network bandwidth used during backups, allowing minimal disruption of business operations. A feature that allows you to suspend database activity for several seconds is provided so that you can create a valid image of mission-critical applications such as Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft SQL Server and Oracle.
1.2 Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server components Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server includes the following components. 1. Acronis True Image Management Console is a tool for remote access to Acronis components. Administrator uses the console to install, configure and control the components from remote. 2. Acronis True Image Agent is an application that resides on client computers and performs Acronis operations such as data backup or restore.
Set how often to check the computers state (status refresh rate) Wake on LAN for backup Backup server Import/export archives from external locations Limit number of connections Limit bandwidth used per connection Access to tape library for every user Backup Backup and restore of 2+TB volumes Encrypting backups with industry-standard AES cryptographic algorithm (key size 128, 192, 256 bit) Multi-volume snapshot for databases spread on several disks Control network bandwidth usage when backing up to FTP Error
Operations with hard disks Convert basic disk to dynamic Create dynamic volumes CLI features MBR restore Backup to FTP server Allow logs on net share Merge unallocated space by moving partitions and create Acronis Secure Zone on the space Security Encrypted (SSL) communication between Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server components 1.4 Supported file systems and storage media 1.4.
• USB 1.0 / 2.0, FireWire (IEEE-1394) and PC card storage devices • ZIP®, Jaz® and other removable media * - an FTP-server must allow passive mode for file transfers. Data recovery directly from FTP-server requires the archive to consist of files no more than 2GB in size. It is recommended that you change the source computer firewall settings to open ports 20 and 21 for both TCP and UDP protocols and disable the Routing and Remote Access Windows service.
Chapter 2. Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server installation and startup 2.1 System requirements 2.1.1 Minimum hardware requirements Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server requires the following hardware: • Pentium processor or higher • 256MB RAM • FDD or CD-RW drive for bootable media creation • Mouse (recommended). 2.1.
• Windows Server 2000 /Advanced Server 2000 /Server 2003 • Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows Server 2003 x64 Editions • Windows Vista all Editions Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server bootable version enables disk-level backup and recovery on a computer running any PC-based operating system. 2.2 Security parameters 2.2.1 Credentials Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server fully supports all security standards used in Windows.
2.2.3 Encrypted communication Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server provides capability to secure all data transferred between Acronis components within local net and through DMZ, including the backup stream. Encryption starts on the first (earliest) stage of connection attempt, so all data transferred on the next steps (including data required for client authentication) is encrypted.
For detailed information about Windows GPO Editor please see: http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa374163.aspx For detailed information about Group Policies please see: http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa374177.aspx The Acronis Administrative Template contains the following settings. Encryption Options • Server Requires Encryption This option defines the server behavior in case the client does not support encryption. When enabled, connection to the client will be terminated.
Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server Install Window It is recommended that you install Acronis True Image Management Console first. After that you will be able to install most of other components remotely to any networked computer. 2.3.1 Installation of Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server local version and Acronis True Image Agent for Windows For Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server and Acronis True Image Agent for Windows, Typical, Custom and Complete installation is available.
2.3.2 Installation of Acronis True Image Agent for Linux To install the Acronis True Image Agent for Linux, extract its setup file to a shared network drive or removable media, assign the attribute Executable to this file, then perform installation procedure on a Linux-based system. For how to extract the file, see 2.4 Extracting Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server components. 2.3.
4. Acronis Backup Server Management -> Specify Default Settings -> Set Backup Location -> specify path to the storage drive. You can create a folder for the backup location on the storage drive. To see the folder in the tree and add it to the path, collapse and expand the drive. 5. Click Back -> Configure Backup Locations -> make sure that the new default location is created and delete the location in \Documents and Settings. 6.
Select from the local backup server users or the domain users Choose Create user with administrator’s rights. Click Proceed. User or administrator? 9. Define which users will be allowed to back up data on the backup server. Add the users as follows: Add the person’s local or domain account to the AcronisBackupServerUsers group on the backup server. Click Set up User profiles -> Add. Choose the user name. Choose Use default settings. Click Proceed. 10.
Click Set up Administrator profiles -> Add. Choose the computer or enter its name. Choose Use default settings. Click Proceed. Adding a computer to the administrator profile 11. Schedule a check for exceeding the quotas and time limits, if needed according to the selected policy. To do so, select Acronis Backup Server Management -> Specify Default Settings -> Schedule automatic consolidation and backup management. Choose Periodically. Choose Weekly.
2.3.5 Acronis Universal Restore installation Acronis Universal Restore is an option for Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server. It is purchased separately and installed from a separate setup file. Acronis Universal Restore has its own serial number that is required at installation.
to learn more about this procedure. To run the program, press F11 during the server bootup when you see a corresponding message that tells you to press that key. Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server will be run in the standalone mode, allowing you to recover the damaged partitions.
Chapter 3. General information and proprietary Acronis technologies 3.1 The difference between file archives and disk/partition images A backup archive is a file or a group of files (also called in this guide “backups”), that contains a copy of selected files/folders data or a copy of all information stored on selected disks/partitions. When you back up files and folders, only the data, along with the folder tree, is compressed and stored.
A standalone, full backup could be an optimal solution if you often roll back the system to the initial state (for example, systems in a gaming club or Internet café where you need to undo changes made by the guests). In this case, you need not re-create the initial full image, so the backup time is not crucial and the restore time will be minimal.
You can back up data automatically on a schedule (see Chapter 8. Scheduling tasks), and not worry about zone overflow issues. However, if you keep long chains of incremental backups, it is a good practice to check the zone free space periodically. To do so, start the Manage Acronis Secure Zone wizard and see the zone free space that is displayed on the wizard’s second page. For information on how to create, resize or delete Acronis Secure Zone using this wizard, see Chapter 9.
Here’s an example of how you would use this feature. If failure occurs on a computer, turn on the computer and press F11 when you see the "Press F11 for Acronis Startup Recovery Manager" message. This will run a standalone version of Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server that only slightly differs from the complete version. For information on restoring damaged partitions, see Chapter 7. Restoring the backup data.
of archives in a location may be a serious problem. Practice is the best criterion for your choice. You can move, clear or delete existing backup locations or edit their size limitations and storage period. 3.5.2 Quotas and time limits for computers and users Individual quotas and time limits determine every computer’s or user’s quota on a backup server.
The person who installed the program becomes the administrator in this group. The administrator is automatically registered on the backup server. Generally, there are two types of profiles on the backup server: Administrators and Users. The Administrators profiles are designed to perform backups on remote computers with Acronis True Image Agents. Whatever computer the administrator backs up, backup data will be sent to the same location, assigned to the computer.
drivers receive the system queries and restore the sectors that are necessary for the requested operation. 3. At the same time, Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server proceeds with the complete sector-by-sector image restoration in the background. However, the requested sectors have the highest priority. Finally, the image will be fully restored even if the user performs no actions at all.
Using Microsoft System Preparation Tool (Sysprep) does not solve this problem, because Sysprep permits replacing drivers only for Plug-and-Play devices (sound cards, network adapters, video cards etc.). As for system Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) and mass storage device drivers, they must be identical on the source and the target computers (see Microsoft Knowledge Base, articles 302577 and 216915).
3.7.4 Limitations in using Acronis Universal Restore 1. The system recovered by Acronis Universal Restore might not start if the partition structure in the image or the target disk partitioning does not coincide with that of the source disk. As a result, the loader, restored from the image, will point to the wrong partition and the system will not boot or will malfunction.
3.8 Backing up to tape libraries and tape drives Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server supports tape libraries, autoloaders and SCSI tape drives as storage devices. Tape libraries, autoloaders and tape drives are accessible both remotely through the Acronis Backup Server and locally when installed on the computer with Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server local version. The following diagram illustrates ways of access to tape for networks with (I) and without (II) backup server. 3.8.
Low-quality or old tape, as well as dirt on the magnetic head, might lead to pauses that can last up to several minutes. 3.8.3 Setting up backup to a tape or a tape library in the local network To enable backup to a tape or a tape library in the local network: 1. Install the tape or the tape library on a server accessible to all users 2. Install Acronis Backup Server on that server 3. Create local accounts on that server for all users who will back up their data to the tape/tape library.
Chapter 4. Using Acronis True Image Management Console 4.1 General information Acronis True Image Management Console is the primary tool for managing data backup/restore on remote computers where Acronis True Image Agent is installed. The console allows for the managing of computer groups and corporate backup archives using Group and Backup Servers, as well as managing individual backup/restore tasks for every computer. Acronis True Image Management Console main window 4.
To install Acronis components: 1. Click Install Acronis components to a remote computer in the center of Acronis True Image Management Console main window, on the toolbar or the sidebar, or select the same item from the Tools menu. 2. Select the installer location from the list (Registered Components, Search removable media or Specify location). The default selection Registered Components will use setup files from the default C:\Program Files\Common Files\Acronis\RemoteInstall folder. 3.
5. Provide administrator username and password for each computer. If there is a universal administrator account on the network, enter the account credentials for one computer and set the option to apply it to all computers that you select. Domain administrator credentials and universal credentials for workgroups can be applied in this way.
7. Once the installation starts, the program displays the operation progress and the name of the computer on which the component is being installed. To update an Acronis component on a remote computer, perform the same procedure. 4.3 Managing a single remote computer To perform any operation on a single remote computer, you must first connect to it. 4.3.1 Connecting to a remote computer To establish a remote connection: 1.
The task list content depends on the programs installed on the connected computer. The most populated list will include managing Backup and Recovery Tasks (using the Acronis True Image Agent), Acronis Group Server Management and Acronis Backup Server Management. While you are operating on a remote computer, the computer could reboot or the connection to the computer could be broken for other reasons.
Set up default backup or restore options, Click Remote Computer Options, select such as system/network resources usage, Default backup options or Default restoration options and make settings. before/after backup commands, etc. See details in 6.3 Setting backup options and 7.4 Setting restore options.
Other Tools Create bootable rescue media, its ISO or See Chapter 10. Creating bootable media. RIS package Update the remote agent Click Update the remote agent, then follow the Wizard’s instructions. The procedure is the same as described in 4.2 Installing/updating Acronis components on remote machine After you perform all necessary operations on the remote computer, select Disconnect or New connection on the toolbar, sidebar or the Connect menu. 4.4 Managing groups of computers 4.4.
Failed – the task could not be completed because of an error Finished – the task has been completed successfully Cancelled – the task has been cancelled on the remote computer Offline - the remote computer is not connected to the network or is switched off Inaccessible - the remote computer is not accessible due to lack of access rights, firewall and security settings, etc. Unmanaged - the Acronis True Image Agent is not installed on the remote machine. Use Search to find a computer in the list quickly.
5. Set (or change) the MAC address for each computer. To do so, select the computer, then select on the sidebar Computer details -> MAC address: Set or Change and type the hex MAC address as XXXXXXXXXXXX or XX-XX-XX-XX-XX. The program will test the MAC address for validity and display the test result. 6. Hide computers that you do not wish to browse or make a hidden computer visible. To hide a computer, select it, then select on the sidebar Computer details -> Visibility: Hide.
5. Specify the paths for the backup archives. To place every archive on its local computer, specify Local path or select Acronis Secure Zone, if there is such a zone on every remote computer. For more information about the Acronis Secure Zone see 3.3 Acronis Secure Zone. To place backups on the network, check Network path, select the target folder and specify the username and password for access to the network drive.
12. After you click Proceed, Acronis True Image Management Console connects to every computer of the group in turn to distribute the task. If a remote computer is inaccessible (shut down, for example), a dialog box appears. In this box, choose Ignore to exclude the computer from the group or Cancel to cancel the entire task. When distribution is complete, the group task appears in Group Tasks Management window.
Check – the group server will connect in turn to all computers involved in the group task and check if the child tasks are intact on the computers so that the group task can run effectively. The result will be displayed. When managing a group task, enter the same username and password you entered when created the task. 4.4.4 Acronis Group Server options Acronis Group Server regularly polls computers included in its database for their status (Ready, Offline and so on, according to 4.4.
When connecting to a backup server inside a domain, be aware whether your domain or local account is registered on the backup server. If you entered Windows on a network computer using your domain account while your local account is registered, enter the local user name along with the backup server name (for example, Server1\username). Otherwise the name will be identified as a domain one. 4.5.
The default quotas/time limits are preset to Unlimited, except for Maximum number of incremental backups for each full backup, which is set to 5 (the largest value of this parameter is not limited, but it is recommended that you do not set unreasonably large values). You can change the default user/computer quotas/time limits by selecting Specify Default Settings -> Set Quotas/Time limits and entering the desired values.
Please take note of the fact that checking limitations makes no sense if you have not changed at least one of the preset Unlimited values for quotas/time limits. The actual number of backups created in a backup location can exceed the Maximum number of backups by one. This enables the program to detect the fact of exceeding and start consolidation. Backup to the full location will be prohibited until the consolidation takes place. 4.5.
To change a computer backup location within the same device, you must have at least as much free space on the device as the computer archives occupy because the archives will first be copied to the new location and then deleted from the old folder. If you select a computer and click Clear, all archives of this computer data will be deleted. Deleting a computer profile will disable backup to backup server for this computer and delete its existing archives.
To add another administrator, first add this person’s local or domain account to the AcronisBackupServerUsers group. Then click Set up User profiles -> Add, select the user name and choose Create user with administrator’s rights on the next page. An administrator can manage all archives on the backup server regardless of their owner, while a common user can only backup or restore his data from the backup server.
To edit limitations for a backup location, select the backup location, click Quotas and Time Limits and enter the new values in the appearing window. To move a backup location along with all archives existing on it, select the backup location and click Move to. The Move Backup Location Wizard will display all users and computers associated with the selected backup location so you could make sure your choice is right. Then select the new location for the archives.
You can: 1. Sort the list by Location or Owners (users and computers) by clicking on the respective item above the list. 2. Filter out from the list all user’s or all computer’s backups (use buttons in the Filter group). 3. Consolidate any backup (except for the oldest one in the archive) with the preceding backup file. This operation deletes the preceding backup and sets concatenation between the backup being consolidated and the backup before the deleted one.
starting their task. They will be trying to connect to the server every 5 seconds until the connection is allowed. Therefore, the real backup start time may differ from the scheduled one. If it is not practical or efficient for you, be aware of this setting when creating group tasks so that number of computers in the group does not exceed the limit you set. By default, the number of connections is unlimited. This corresponds to setting “0”. The console connection to Acronis Backup Server is not counted. 2.
Chapter 5. Using Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server (local version) Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server (local version) supports the GUI mode, the command-line mode, and can be used to execute XML scripts. Here we describe the operations available in the GUI mode, which provides the widest functionality. For console commands and scripting please see Chapter 16. Command-line mode and scripting. 5.
• Explore and Validate Backup Archives – explore file-level archives, mount disk/partition images as virtual drives, run the archive integrity checking procedure • Manage Hard Disks – clone disk (i.e.
Most of the operations are represented two or even three times in different window areas, providing several ways to select them for more convenience. For example, you can start the necessary operation or tool by clicking its icon in the main area or by selecting the same item from the Operations or Tools menu. Status bar There is a status bar divided into two parts at the bottom of the main window.
Run, stop, edit, clone, rename, delete Click Tasks in the Manage Tasks group or select the Task Scheduling category backup and archive validation tasks on the sidebar to navigate to the Scheduled Tasks window. See details in 8.2 Managing scheduled tasks. Archives Management Explore any archive’s contents and restore Select Tools -> Explore Backup Archive individual files from any archive and follow the wizard’s instructions. See details in 11.2.
Transfer the system to a new hard disk See Chapter 14. Transferring the system to a new disk. Format partitions on a new hard disk See Chapter 15. Adding a new hard disk. Other Tools Create bootable rescue media, its ISO or See Chapter 10. Creating bootable media. RIS package Turn on/off Windows System Restore tool See 12.5 Managing System Restore. Some of the above operations can be executed in command-line mode.
Chapter 6. Creating backup archives To be able to restore the lost data or roll back your system to a predetermined state, you should first create a data or entire system backup file. If you are not concerned about restoration of your operating system along with all settings and applications, but plan to keep safe only certain data (the current project, for example), choose file/folder backup. This will reduce the archive size, thus saving disk space and possibly reducing removable media costs.
You can also apply custom filters, using the common Windows masking rules. For example, to exclude all files with extension .exe, add *.exe. My???.exe will exclude all .exe files with names consisting of five symbols and starting with “my”. All of these settings will take effect for the current task. For information on how to set the default filters that will be called each time you create a file backup task, see 6.3.2 Source files exclusion. 5. Select the name and location of the archive.
The “farther” you store the archive from the original folders, the safer it will be in case of data damage. For example, saving the archive to another hard disk will protect your data if the primary disk is damaged, but won’t be useful if the computer is destroyed in a fire or flood. Data saved to a network disk, ftp server or removable media will survive even if all your local hard disks are down. You can also use Acronis Secure Zone (see details in 3.
7. Select the backup options (that is, backup file splitting, compression level, password protection, pre/post backup commands etc.). You may select Use default options or Set the options manually. If the latter is the case, the settings will be applied only to the current backup task. Alternatively, you can edit the default options from the current screen. Then your settings will be saved as the defaults. See 6.3 Setting backup options for more information. 8. Provide a comment for the archive.
You can adjust the backup process priority. To do so, click on the process icon in the System Tray and select Low, Normal, or High priority from the menu that appears. For information on how to set the default priority, see 6.3.6 Backup performance. 11. You may want to see the log when the task is completed. To view the log, click the Show Operation Logs button on the toolbar.
4. Select the name and location of the archive. If you are going to create a full backup, type the file name in the File Name line, or use the file name generator (a button to the right of the line). If you select an existing full backup, it will be overwritten. Including [date] in the backup file name will add to the name the time and date of the backup creation formatted as . Example: C:\MyBackup[date].tib. If you are going to create an incremental backup (see 3.
See notes and recommendations for using the FTP server in 1.4.2 Supported storage media. 5. If your choice was not Acronis Backup Server, select whether you want to create a full or incremental backup. If you have not backed up the selected disks/partitions yet, or the full archive seems too old to append incremental changes to it, choose full backup. Otherwise it is recommended that you create an incremental or differential backup (see 3.2 Full, incremental and differential backup). 6.
6.3.1 Archive protection Password The preset is no password. An archive can be protected with a password. To protect the archive data from being accessed by anybody except you, enter a password and its confirmation into the text fields. A password should consist of at least eight symbols and contain both letters (in the upper and lower cases preferably) and numbers to make it more difficult to guess.
This option is effective for file/folders backup only. When creating a disk/partition image, you cannot filter out any files. 6.3.3 Pre/post commands You can specify commands or batch files to be automatically executed before and after the backup procedure. For example, you may want to remove some tmp files from the disk before starting backup or configure a third-party antivirus product to be started each time before the backup starts.
net start “Microsoft Exchange POP3” net start “Microsoft Exchange Routing Engine” Create batch files in any text editor (for example, name it pause_services.bat and resume_services.bat). Use Edit buttons to the right of Before data capture command and After data capture command fields, to open the Edit Command window where you can browse folders to find the respective batch files or scripts. A single command can be specified in the same window along with its arguments and working directory.
The preset is Low. The priority of any process running in a system determines the amount of CPU usage and system resources allocated to that process. Decreasing the backup priority will free more resources for other CPU tasks. Increasing the backup priority may speed up the backup process due to taking resources from the other currently running processes. The effect will depend on total CPU usage and other factors. 2. HDD writing speed The preset is Maximum.
6.3.8 Archive splitting Sizeable backups can be split into several files that together make the original backup. A backup file can be split for burning to removable media or saving on an FTP server (data recovery directly from an FTP server requires the archive to be split into files no more than 2GB in size). The preset is Automatic.
Properties -> General -> Advanced Attributes -> Encrypt contents to secure data). Check the option if there are encrypted files in the backup and you want them to be accessed by any user after restore. Otherwise, only the user who encrypted the files/folders will be able to read them. Decryption may also be useful if you are going to restore encrypted files on another computer. These options relate only to file/folders backup. 6.3.10 Media components The preset is disabled.
Corporate administrators need an option to continue a back up despite any errors that might occur without the system popping up an error box. Details of the operation, including errors, if any, could be found in the operation log. With the silent mode enabled, the program will not display interactive windows. Instead, it will automatically handle situations requiring user intervention such as running out disk space (except for handling bad sectors, which is defined as a separate option.
2. Set the NIC properties on the computer as follows. Control Panel -> System -> Device Manager -> Network adapters -> select the NIC -> Properties -> Advanced: Enable PME -> Enabled Wake On Link Settings -> OS Controlled Wake On Settings -> Wake On Magic Packet. 3. Find out the computer MAC address (Local Area Connection -> Status -> Support -> Details -> Physical Address.) 4. Repeat steps 1-3 for all computers you wish to wake on LAN. To enable the Wake On LAN option on the Acronis Group Server: 1.
4. Reset archive bit The preset is disabled. The option relates only to file-level backup. In Windows operating systems, each file has an attribute File is ready for archiving, available at selecting file -> Properties -> General -> Advanced -> Archive and Index attributes. This attribute, also known as archive bit, is set by the operating system each time the file is changed and can be reset by backup applications each time they include the file in a backup copy.
Chapter 7. Restoring the backup data 7.1 Considerations before recovery 7.1.1 Restore under Windows or boot from CD? As mentioned above (see 2.5.1 Running Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server (local version)), Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server can be run in several ways. We recommend that you first try to restore data running Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server under Windows because this method provides more functionality.
7.1.3 Recovering dynamic volumes Dynamic volumes are volumes located on dynamic disks, i.e. disks managed by Windows Logical Disk Manager (LDM). For more information on dynamic disks, please refer to your Windows documentation. Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server can back up and recover dynamic volumes. A dynamic volume can be recovered over the same volume or unallocated space of a dynamic group.
If the archive is located on removable media, e.g. CD, first insert the last CD and then insert disks in reverse order when Restore Data Wizard prompts. Data recovery directly from an FTP server requires the archive to consist of files no more than 2GB in size. If you suspect that some of the files may be larger, first copy the entire archive (along with the initial full backup) to a local hard disk or network share disk. See notes and recommendations for supporting FTP server in 1.4.
4. Select a folder on your computer where you want to restore selected folders/files (a target folder). You can restore data to their original location or choose another folder, if necessary. 5. Select files and folders to restore. You can choose to restore all data or browse the archive contents and select the desired folders or files. 6. Select the options for the restoration process (that is, pre/post restoration commands, restoration process priority, file-level security settings etc.).
7. Set filters for the specific types of files that are not to be restored. For example, you may want hidden and system files and folders, as well as files with .~, .tmp and .bak extensions, not to be restored from the archive. You can also apply custom filters, using the common Windows masking rules. For example, to exclude all files with extension .exe, add *.exe. My???.exe will reject all .exe files with names consisting of five symbols and starting with “my”.
(disk) can not be blocked, close applications that use this partition (disk) and start over. If you can not determine which applications use the partition (disk), close them all. 7.3.1 Starting the Restore Data Wizard Start the Restore Data Wizard by clicking on the restore operation icon in the main program window. 7.3.2 Archive selection 1. Select the archive. If the archive is located in Acronis Secure Zone, select it to choose the archive at the next step.
7.3.3 Restoration type selection Select what you want to restore: Restore specified files or folders With this selection, you will be further offered to select where to restore selected folders/files (original or new location), choose files/folders to be restored and so on. These steps look like those in file archive restore. However, watch your selection; if you want to restore files instead of disk/partition, uncheck the unnecessary folders. Otherwise you will restore a lot of extra files.
Finally, if you are not going to recover the system, but only want to repair damaged files, select Restore specified files or folders. 7.3.4 Selecting a disk/partition to restore The selected backup can contain images of several partitions or even disks. Select which disk/partition to restore. Disks and partitions images contain a copy of track 0 along with the MBR (Master Boot Record). It appears in this window in a separate line.
If there are partitions on the target disk, you will be prompted by the Nonempty Destination Hard Disk Drive window stating that the destination disk contains partitions, perhaps with data. You will have to select between: • Yes, I want to delete all the partitions on the destination hard disk before restoring – all existing partitions will be deleted and all their data will be lost. • No, I do not want to delete partitions – no existing partition will be deleted, discontinuing the recovery operation.
Selecting Active for a partition without an installed operating system could prevent your server from booting. 7.3.7 Changing the restored partition file system You can change the partition file system during its restoration, although it is seldom required. Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server can make the following file system conversions: FAT 16 -> FAT 32 and Ext2 -> Ext3. For partitions with other native file systems, this option is not available.
7.3.9 Assigning a letter to the restored partition Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server will assign an unused letter to a restored partition. You can select the desired letter from a drop-down list. If you set the switch to No, no letters will be assigned to the restored partition, hiding it from OS. You should not assign letters to partitions inaccessible to Windows, such as to those other than FAT and NTFS. 7.3.
- the driver repository - a folder or folders on a network drive or CD specified in restore options. If you have not specified the driver repository in advance, you can do it at next step. - the mass storage device driver specified by the user at the current step - the Windows default driver storage folders (in the image being restored). The program will find the most suitable drivers of all available drivers and install them into the restored system.
7.4.1 Files to exclude from restoration The preset is Restore all files. You can set the default filters for the specific types of files that are not to be restored. Use the common Windows masking rules. For example, to exclude all files with extension .exe, add *.exe. My???.exe will exclude all .exe files with names, consisting of five symbols and starting with “my”. This option is effective only when restoring files from file/folders archives.
The backup process will run concurrently with your commands if you uncheck the Do not perform operations until the commands execution is complete box, which is checked by default. 7.4.4 Restoration priority The default setting – Low. The priority of any process running in a system determines the amount of CPU usage and system resources allocated to that process. Decreasing the restoration priority will free more resources for other CPU tasks.
7.4.7 Additional settings 1. You can choose whether to restore files’ date and time from the archive or assign the files the current date and time. 2. Before data is restored from the archive, Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server can check its integrity. If you suspect that the archive might have been corrupted, select Validate backup archive before restoration. To check archive data integrity you must have all incremental and differential backups belonging to the archive and the initial full backup.
1. Close all applications that use the basic disk(s) that will be converted. 2. If there are partitions on the basic disk(s), define whether you want to keep them. If yes, the partitions will be converted to simple dynamic volumes. Therefore, only the existing unallocated space will be available as a target for dynamic volume recovery. If you want to recover over the entire disk, delete partitioning using the Add New Disk operation (see Chapter 15. Adding a new hard disk) or third-party tools. 3.
4. Select the type of dynamic volume that will be created: simple/spanned, striped, mirrored or RAID 5. 5. Specify amount of space that the dynamic volume will occupy on each of the selected disks. The value you set is adjusted to the selected volume type. For a spanned volume, amount of space on each disk is selected independently. If only one disk is selected, a simple volume is created. Striped, mirrored and RAID 5 volumes imply even distribution of data between disks.
Chapter 8. Scheduling tasks Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server allows you to schedule periodic backup and archive validation tasks. Doing so will give you peace of mind, knowing that your data are safe. You can create more than one independently scheduled task. For example, you can back up your current project daily and back up the application disk once a week. All the scheduled tasks appear in the Scheduled Tasks window, where you can start, stop, edit, delete and rename them.
• Manually later – the task will be saved, but not launched automatically.
In the upper field, enter a user name. Enter a password twice in two fields below. 7. At the final step, the task configuration is displayed. Up to this point, you can click Back to make changes in the created task. If you click Cancel, all settings will be lost. Click Finish to save the task. 8. The task schedule and default name appear in the Scheduled Tasks window. You can rename the task, if need be. 8.1.
If the computer is off when the scheduled time comes, the task won’t be performed, but you can force the missed task to launch at the next system startup by checking a box under the Start time fields. 8.1.2 Setting up weekly execution If you select weekly execution, set the Start time, specify the task execution periodicity in the Every x weeks box (every week, every two weeks, etc.) and check the days on which to execute the task.
8.1.3 Setting up monthly execution If you select monthly execution, set the Start time and days on which to execute the task: • Day – on the specified date • The – on the specified day (e.g. on second Tuesday or fourth Friday); select this from the drop-down lists. If the computer is off when the scheduled time comes, the task won’t be performed, but you can force the missed task to launch at the next system startup by checking a box under the Start time fields. 8.1.
If the computer is off when the scheduled time comes, the task won’t be performed, but you can force the missed task to launch at the next system startup by checking a box under the Start time fields. 8.1.5 Setting up event-driven execution Execution on increasing or decreasing free space on a disk. The task will be started when the free space on the either disk selected for the backup changes by the specified value. The preset is 20MB. 8.
Chapter 9. Managing the Acronis Secure Zone The Acronis Secure Zone is a hidden partition for storing archives on the computer system itself. It is necessary for using Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. For more information about these functions, see 3.3 Acronis Secure Zone and 3.4 Acronis Startup Recovery Manager. When you click Manage Acronis Secure Zone in the menu, the program searches for the zone on all local drives.
4. In the next window, enter the Acronis Secure Zone size or drag the slider to select any size between the minimum and maximum ones. The minimum size is approximately 35MB, depending on the geometry of the hard disk. The maximum size is equal to the disk’s unallocated space plus the total free space on all partitions selected at the previous step. When creating the zone, the program will first use the unallocated space. If there is not enough unallocated space, the selected partitions will be decreased.
5. You can set a password to restrict access to the zone. The program will ask for the password at any operation relating to it, such as data backup and recovery, mounting images or validating archives on the zone, using the Acronis Startup Recovery Manager with the F11 key, resizing and deleting the zone. Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server repair or update will not affect the password.
2. Select Change password. 3. Enter the new password and confirm it or select Do not use password protection. You can also select a secret question that will be asked in case you forget the password. 4. To perform the password change operation, click Proceed in the final wizard window. 9.4 Deleting Acronis Secure Zone Acronis Secure Zone deletion will automatically disable Acronis Startup Recovery Manager if it is activated and destroy all backups stored in the zone.
Chapter 10. Creating bootable media 10.1 Creating Acronis rescue media You can run Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server on a bare metal or on a crashed computer that cannot boot. You can also back up disks on a non-Windows computer, copying all its data sector-by-sector into the backup archive. To do so, you will need bootable media with the standalone Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server version.
The bootable version of Acronis True Image Agent. This component is designed to provide unattended restores from remote locations. To find more about components of other Acronis products, see the respective user guides. The Start automatically after parameter specifies the timeout interval for the boot menu. If this parameter is not specified, at booting a computer the program will display the boot menu and wait for someone to select whether to boot the OS or the Acronis component.
4. If you are creating a CD, DVD, diskettes or any removable media, insert the blank disk so the program can determine its capacity. If you chose to create a bootable disk ISO image, specify the ISO file name and the folder in which to place it. If you chose to save bootable data on a RIS server, specify the server and provide the user name and password to access it. 5.
Chapter 11. Operations with archives 11.1 Validating backup archives You can check the integrity of an archive to be certain that the archive is not damaged. Here’s how to run a one-time validation task. For how to schedule regular archive validation, see 8.1 Creating scheduled tasks. 1. To start the Backup Archive Validation Wizard, select Validate Backup Archive in the main window or in the Tools group or click Validate Backup Archive on the toolbar. 2. Select the archive to validate.
Mounting images as virtual drives lets you access them as though they were physical drives. This means that: • a new disk with its own letter will appear in the drives list • using Windows Explorer and other file managers, you can view the image contents as if they were located on a physical disk or partition • you will be able to use the virtual disk in the same way as the real one: open, save, copy, move, create, delete files or folders.
If you added a comment to the archive, it will be displayed to the right of the drives tree. If the archive was protected with a password, Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server will ask for it. Further steps will not be enabled until you enter the correct password. 3. The program opens a Windows Explorer window displaying the archive contents.
If you added a comment to the archive, it will be displayed to the right of the drives tree. If the archive was protected with a password, Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server will ask for it. Neither the partitions layout, nor the Next button will be enabled until you enter the correct password. 3. If you selected an archive containing incremental images, Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server will suggest that you select one of the successive incremental images by its creation date/time.
5. Select whether you want to mount image in Read-only or Read/Write mode. 6. If you select Read/Write mode, the program assumes that the connected image will be modified, and creates an incremental archive file to capture the changes. It is strongly recommended that you list the forthcoming changes in the comment to this file. 7. The program displays a summary containing a single operation. Click Proceed to connect the selected partition image as a virtual disk. 8.
security of the archive in case the consolidation fails because of power failure or lack of disk space. 2. On the backup server, you only can consolidate two backups in one. File name-based consolidation keeps whichever backups you choose and deletes any backups that are not selected. Consolidation can be performed both using the Acronis True Image Management Console connected to Acronis True Image Agent and with Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server local version.
The clone archive will consist of MyBackup3 and MyBackup5, however, their numbers will be zero (no number) and 2. MyBackup3 will change into a full backup 4. Choose location and name for the archive copy. By default, the program suggests the same location and the source archive name with (1) added. New archive will be created in the same folder and named MyBackup(1) 5. The program displays the summary window. Click Proceed to start consolidation.
6:54:40 PM. You can make sure of this by starting the consolidation wizard again, selecting the archive MyBackup(1) and proceeding to the next window. The resulting archive contents 114 Copyright © Acronis, Inc.
Chapter 12. Notifications and event tracing Sometimes a backup or restore procedure can last for 30 minutes or more. Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server can notify you when it is finished through the WinPopup service or e-mail. The program can also duplicate messages issued during the operation or send you the full operation log after operation completion. By default all notifications are disabled. 12.
1. Enable the Messenger service on both the computer executing the task and the computer that will receive messages. The Messenger service is disabled by default in Windows Server 2003 family. Change the service Startup mode to Automatic and start the service. 2. Select Tools -> Options -> Notifications -> Windows Messenger (WinPopup): Provide the name of the computer to which notifications will be sent.
The left panel can contain up to 50 logs. If there are more, you can browse the list using the More and Less buttons with the left and right arrows. To delete a log, select it and click Delete. If any step was terminated by an error, the corresponding log will be marked with a red circle with a white “X” inside. The right window features the list of steps contained in the selected log.
An additional choice is available - recording All events, Warnings and Errors, or Errors only. 12.4.2 SNMP notifications Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server can provide the following Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) objects to SNMP management applications: 1.3.6.1.4.1.24769.100.200.1.0 - string identifying a type of occurred event (Information, Warning, Error) 1.3.6.1.4.1.24769.100.200.2.
This feature is available in Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server local version only. Managing System Restore using Acronis True Image Management Console is not possible. 1. To start the System Restore Management Wizard, click the Manage System Restore icon in the main program window. 2. Click Next. 3. Now you can turn on/off System Restore on all your hard disk(s) partitions at once or do it individually for each partition.
Chapter 13. Working with a virtual environment Virtual machine technologies provide a powerful tool to help accelerate the development, testing, deployment and support of PC applications. As with physical machines, virtual machine (VM) data needs to be backed up periodically to prevent its loss due to hardware failure or human errors.
If the virtual machine cannot start, boot it into Acronis rescue environment using physical bootable media or RIS server, or by adding the bootable media ISO to the virtual machine. Another option is to create a new virtual machine with same configuration and disk size as the imaged machine and recover data to this disk. The procedure is the same as with physical machines. See details in Chapter 7. Restoring the backup data. The alternative way of recovering a VM is by converting the image (.
4. Add the other converted disks to the VM. 5. Start the VM and complete the hardware drivers configuration, if Windows prompts. This allows: • the fastest replacement of the physical machine with the previously created virtual copy • moving multiple workloads from legacy physical servers to virtual machines to reduce hardware maintenance and power consumption costs. The alternative method of physical to virtual migration is by restoring a physical disk from an image to a virtual machine.
1. Do one of the following: Connect the console to the computer where Acronis True Image Agent is installed. Select Backup and Recovery tasks and click Convert to Virtual disk. On a computer where Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server local version is installed, select Tools -> Convert to Virtual Disk in the main program menu. 2. Select the disk image to convert.
Chapter 14. Transferring the system to a new disk 14.1 General information Sooner or later computer users find that their hard disk is just too small. If you don’t have space for more data, you can add another disk specifically for data storage. For example, you might find that your hard disk does not have enough space for the operating system and installed applications, preventing you from updating your software. In this case, you have to transfer the system to a higher-capacity hard disk.
14.2 Security Please note the following: If the power goes out or you accidentally press RESET during the transfer, the procedure will be incomplete and you will have to partition and format or clone the hard disk again. No data will be lost because the original disk is only being read (no partitions are changed or resized) until data transfer is completed.
You can determine the source and destination using the information provided in this window (disk number, capacity, label, partition and file system information). 14.3.3 Selecting destination disk After you select the source disk, select the destination where the disk information will be copied. The previously selected source becomes grayed-out and disabled for selection. If either disk is unpartitioned, the program will automatically recognize it as the destination and bypass this step.
14.3.4 Partitioned destination disk At this point, the program checks to see if the destination disk is free. If not, you will be prompted by the Nonempty Destination Hard Disk window stating that the destination disk contains partitions, perhaps with data. You will have to select between: • Delete partitions on the destination hard disk – all existing partitions will be deleted during cloning and all their data will be lost.
• Keep data – leave the old disk partitions and data intact • Destroy data – destroy all data on the old disk. If you are going to sell or give away your old disk, we recommend that you make sure you destroyed the data on it. If you are going to keep it for data storage, you can create a new partition layout on it. In this case, the disk will be ready right after cloning is complete.
The second method takes more time, but makes it impossible to recover data afterwards, even with special equipment. The first method is less secure, but is still suitable for most cases. 14.3.
If you elect to transfer information "as is," a new partition will be created for every old one with the same size and type, file system and label. The unused space will become unallocated. Further, you will be able to use the unallocated space to create new partitions or to enlarge the existing partitions with special tools, such as Acronis Disk Director Suite. As a rule, "as is" transfers are not recommended, as they leave much unallocated space on the new disk.
Along with the hard disk number, you will also see disk capacity, label, partition and file system information. Different partition types, including primary, logical and unallocated space are marked with different colors. If you selected manual partition creation earlier, the partition layout will look different. This partitioning method is described below. 14.3.11 Cloning summary In the next window, you will see a list of briefly described operations to be performed on the disks.
To resize either partition, check the Proceed relayout box. If you are satisfied with the partition layout shown, uncheck this box (if checked). Clicking Next, you will proceed to the cloning summary window. Be careful! Clicking Back in this window will reset all size and location changes that you've selected, so you will have to specify them again. First, select a partition to resize. It will be underlined in red. Resize and relocate it on the next step.
Chapter 15. Adding a new hard disk If you don't have enough space for your data, you can either replace the old disk with a new, higher-capacity one (data transfers to new disks are described in the previous chapter), or add a new disk to store data, leaving the system on the old disk. If the server has space for another disk, it would be easier to add a data disk drive than to clone a system one. This feature is available in Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server local version only.
If the cursor turns to two vertical lines with left and right arrows, it is pointed at the partition border and you can drag it to enlarge or reduce the partition size. If the cursor turns to four arrows, it is pointed at the partition, so you can move it to the left or right (if there is unallocated space near it). Having provided the new partition location and size, you can input a label for the new partition. If you make a mistake at partitioning, click Back to redo the process.
Chapter 16. Command-line mode and scripting Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server (local version) supports the command-line mode and enables backup automation by executing XML scripts. The command-line mode functionality is somewhat limited as compared to the GUI mode. You will not be able to perform operations that require the reboot of the system, such as restore a system partition or clone a system drive. These operations only can be done through the GUI. Scripting is intended only for backup. 16.
deploy Restores disks and partitions, except for the MBR, from an image /filename:[file name] /password:[password] /asz /index:N /net_user:[username] /net_password:[password] /ftp_user /ftp_password /oss_numbers /reboot /log:[file name] /log_net_user:[remote user] /log_net_password:[password] /harddisk:[disk number] /partition:[partition number] /target_harddisk:[disk number] /target_partition:[partition number] /file_partition:[partition letter] /start:[start sector] /fat16_32 /size:[partition size in se
convert Converts an image to virtual disk format for using with a virtual machine list Lists available drives and partitions.
asz_delete_fi les Deletes the most recent backup in the archive located in the Acronis Secure Zone /filename:[file name] /password:[password] /log:[file name] /log_net_user:[remote user] /log_net_password:[password] /partition:[partition number] Deletes the Acronis Secure Zone /password:[password] /oss_numbers /reboot /log:[file name] /log_net_user:[remote user] /log_net_password:[password] clone /reboot /harddisk:[disk number] /target_harddisk:[disk number] asz_delete Clones a hard disk help Show
/ftp_password:[password] Specify a password for access to an FTP server FTP server Set the backup type to incremental. If not specified or there is no basic full backup, a full backup will be created Any Set the backup type to differential. If not specified or there is no basic full backup, a full backup will be created Any Specify the data compression level.
By specifying /harddisk:DYN you will back up all dynamic volumes present in the system. /partition:[partition number] Specifies the partitions to include into the image file. The list of available partitions is provided by /list. Partition numbers are specified as -, e.g.: /partition:1-1,1-2,3-1 Dynamic volumes are specified with prefix DYN, e.g.
Dynamic volumes are specified with prefix DYN, e.g.: /file_partition:DYN1 /filename:”\1.tib” /harddisk:[disk number] /partition:[partition number] Specifies the basic hard disks to restore. Specifies the partitions to restore. Dynamic volumes are specified with prefix DYN, e.g.: /partition:DYN1 /target_harddisk:[disk number] Specifies the hard disk number where the image will be restored.
partition’s entry will occupy the same position as in the source disk MBR saved in the image. If the position is not empty, the existing entry will be moved to another position. The following options are available when using the Acronis Universal Restore add-on to Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server. For more information see 3.7 Acronis Universal Restore.
/harddisk:[disk number] Specifies the hard disks to convert by numbers. For each disk, a separate virtual disk will be created. By specifying /harddisk:DYN you will convert all dynamic volumes that present in the system. /vm_type:[vmware|esx|Micro soft|parallels] /ur The type of the virtual machine to which the virtual disk will be added. Use when converting image of a disk, containing Windows, and the resulting virtual disk is supposed to be bootable.
/partition:[partition number] /size:[ASZ size in sectors | unallocated] Specifies partitions from which free space will be taken for Acronis Secure Zone. Sets the Acronis Secure Zone size (in sectors). If not specified, the size is set as an average between the maximal (unallocated space plus free space on all partitions selected with the /partition option) and minimal (about 35MB) values. Either way, the program will first use the unallocated space.
• This will append an incremental image to the image named 1.tib of hard disk 2. The image will be saved to C:\Test\ folder, protected with password “qwerty”, split into parts of 640MB, and contain all cluster data. Image compression level is 5. The server will be rebooted after the operation is completed. trueimagecmd /create /partition:2-1 /filename:\\server1\folder\arc.tib /net_user:user1 /net_password:pw1 /log:\\server2\dir\log1.
• This will restore MBR from the image of hard disk 1 to the hard disk 2. The image is contained in the arc.tib file located on the FTP server. 3. Back up files trueimagecmd /filebackup /filename:E:\Backups\Myproject.tib /include:D:\Workarea\MyProject /exclude_names: D:\Workarea\MyProject\Old /exclude_hidden • This will back up files from the MyProject folder residing in D:\Workarea, except for files in the Old subfolder and hidden files, to the file Myproject.
• This will list available partitions. trueimagecmd /list /asz • This will list contents of the latest image located in Acronis Secure Zone. 8. Acronis Secure Zone: managing backups by archive numbers trueimagecmd /asz_content • This will list the Acronis Secure Zone size, free space and contents. In our example, the Acronis Secure Zone contains two archives. The older archive #1 consists of one full (base) file-level backup created on 4/2/2007 at 3:52.
The archive FAAA (F means that this is a file-level archive) contains one base file-level backup. The archive FAAB2 (B means that this is the second file-level archive in the zone) consists of: - full (base) file-level backup created on 8/14/2007 at 2:17 - incremental backup created on 8/14/2007 at 2:19. trueimagecmd /filerestore /filename:asz//FAAA /target_folder:e: /password:aszpw • This will restore files and folders with their original paths from the sole base backup FAAA to the root of partition E.
Files\Acronis\TrueImageEchoEnterpriseServer). This utility is also used to monitor backup progress. TrueImageTerminal execution parameters: TrueImageTerminal.exe [arguments] Arguments include the following: /help – outputs help information about TrueImageTerminal.exe parameters. /progress – outputs progress of backup operations run either from Acronis True Image Echo Enterprise Server graphics user interface, or from the script. /execute: [script file name] – executes a script.
the program will create a complete image file. The default value for this parameter is “true”. Description: adds a description to an image file. The comment must be a single string (though its length is not limited.) Split: splits a large image file into a number of smaller files of the specified size, which can be provided in bytes, kilobytes, megabytes, etc. Password: adds password protection to an image file. 16.2.
