Backup Troubleshooting

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

Troubleshooting

This section provides problem-solving guidelines for the Backup utility.

What problem are you having?

  • Backup does not back up to a CD device.

  • I cannot locate one of my old backup logs.

  • I want to do an Automated System Recovery (ASR) backup, but my computer does not have a floppy drive.

  • I want to do an Automated System Recovery (ASR) restore, but I do not have the original floppy disk created during the ASR backup.

Backup does not back up to a CD device.

Cause:  Backup does not support the use of backup media such as CD-RW (compact disc rewritable), CD-R (compact disc recordable), and DVD-R (digital video disc recordable).

Solution:  Back up to an alternate media type, such as a tape or hard disk. If you plan to use CD-RW, CD-R, or DVD-R disks as backup media, you must backup to a file and copy that file to the CD.

Note

  • You can use Backup to restore from a CD-R, CD-RW, or DVD-R disk.
I cannot locate one of my old backup logs.

Cause:  Backup saves only the last 10 backup reports (log files).

Solution:  Copy the backup log files that you want to archive to another location. By default, Backup saves the backup log files in the Documents and Settings\user name\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Windows NT\NTbackup\Data folder, where user name is the name of the user who performed the backup.

I want to do an Automated System Recovery (ASR) backup, but my computer does not have a floppy drive.

Cause:  When you restore your system files in an ASR restore, Backup requires that you insert a floppy disk containing the ASR backup files.

Solution:  Perform an ASR backup on the computer without the floppy drive. Copy the asr.sif and asrpnp.sif files located in the %systemroot%\repair directory to another computer with a floppy drive, then copy those files onto a floppy disk.

Important

  • Before running the ASR restore, you must attach a floppy drive to your computer.
I want to do an Automated System Recovery (ASR) restore, but I do not have the original floppy disk created during the ASR backup.

Cause:  When you restore your system files in an ASR restore, Backup requires that you insert a floppy disk containing the ASR backup files asr.sif and asrpnp.sif.

Solution:  When you perform an ASR backup, the files asr.sif and asrpnp.sif are copied to a floppy disk and also to the ASR backup set (on tape or other backup media). If you lose the floppy disk, first use the Backup utility to locate and catalog the corresponding ASR backup set, then restore the asr.sif and asrpnp.sif files (located in the %systemroot%\repair directory on the backup media) to a floppy disk. You can use this newly created ASR floppy disk to perform the ASR restore.

See also:  Update a catalog; Restore files from a file or a tape