No option on bootable media (under recovery) for Acronis Active Restore
Hi,
I'm running Acronis Backup & Recovery 11.5 Advanced Server SBS Edition (trial) and I'm having problems with the active restore. The OS is Windows 2008 SBS
I need to test this to make sure it's the right disaster recovery plan for the company I'm setting it up for.
So far I've managed to run a full backup on the production server and I've organized an old server for the recovery. I created the bootable media and managed to boot into the Acronis GUI. I see that "Apply Active Restore" appears at the home screen but it wont work as I need to check it under the recover option (I saw this on another forum post). So I go to "Recover" and select the backup archive I want to restore and then under the recovery operations it should list the Universal Restore settings but all I get is where to recover and recovery options.
Am I missing something here? Do I need to install an extra component or is my bootable media not set up right?
I've read the kb article explaining how to do an active restore but alas when they get to the Active Restore options and that it should be selected I don't have this option.
Your help will be greatly appreciated.

- Log in to post comments

Sorry, universal restore. Ok, what would be the best approach to get my server up and running again in the fastest possible time? And how can I test this if the universal restore is not available? I ran normal recovery and it took quite long.
- Log in to post comments

Slive,
The main thing you need to check with your recovery CD is that you can boot and the environment can see all your drives. UR will allow you to 'inject' drivers into the recovery media or into the image being restored should you need to restore to dissimilar hardware.
Are you imaging to an external drive NAS or network server?
- Log in to post comments

Hi Colin,
The environment can see all my drives. I'm trying to recover to dissimilar hardware.
I'm using an external drive (the backup resides on this drive) and there is another external drive connected as well as the internal drive with the OS. Can I recover to either?
Thanks for the help.
- Log in to post comments

Slive,
Are you trying to recover by using the recovery CD or from wihtin Windows 2008?
You can recover to either, but to boot the system the drive will need to be internal as Windows cannot be easily booted from a USB drive.
- Log in to post comments

Colin,
I'm using the recovery CD. UR is not available in the trial version so even if I get this right I can only try the normal restore which is not what I'm looking for as it takes way too long. I have the drivers for the back up server and I have the hardware to restore to (I have an extra internal drive) but showing a client that after 3 hours it's only restored about 35% doesn't really convince them to spend money on it.
So basically how can I test the best possible disaster recovery or business continuity plan, get it working and prove that this product is what they're looking for.
- Log in to post comments

Why doesn't someone make a video tutorial of how to use Acronis 2014 Premium Universal Restore? This is a common issue, & the Acronis techs do not even know how to do this. I have had them connect remotely three times to my PC to setup the drives. I even had the drivers attached on a separate drive. All three times I got different answers, & there was never a Universal Restore option. The only place there is an option for this is if you open your windows version of Acronis 2014 Premium, & the Use Universal Restore checkbox is greyed out, so you cannot select it. Why is it even there, when these support techs tell you that you have to boot from their ISO Image, to do a Universal Restore, which doesn't have the option at all. A step by step tutorial, with someone that can narrate the video would be nice. There are so many instructional videos where the person doesn't even speak. & good luck with the Acronis broken English Techs. I have asked several times "Why can't I do all this from the Windows version?' or "Why is there a greyed out option for Universal Restore on the Windows version?" They don't respond. I paid extra for this aggravation. I have Used Acronis for years, & I understand it in and out, but this illusive Universal Restore is like trying to find the Acronis G Spot. Am I holding this drive right?
- Log in to post comments

Missing/grayed out checkbox is most likely due to absence of OS in the backup. (or inability to detect it even if it is there). For Windows 7 the System Reserved partition must be included in the backup if it was present. If this condition is met, it needs detailed investingation. May be Acronis Backup 11.5 media will handle it better (the support may offer it after everything else failed)
P.S. This forum section is about Acronis Backup, not True Image.
- Log in to post comments
