Failure to Backup Up Specific Files
I have a differential backup scheduled in Acronis 2016. A complete backup and 5 differentials are created, and then the cycle repeats. Three backups are stored before the oldest is deleted through the automatic cleanup function. One of the files that is backed up is my Outlook database which is very large - ~4Gb. I use Outlook every day, and hence the file date is changed every day, so it should be backed up every day. As you can see in the attached screen grab of the folder containing the Acronis backup files, this was done for the first two backups, and then in the third set it was not. I have validated this by opening the third backup and validating this. Any idea why the differential backup is failing to backup this Outlookk file? The file is of course selected in the setup for the backup - I have also validated this. Thanks.
Agree with Steve - most best backup practices with .pst files recommend backing up the PST when it is not in use because the changes are often stored in memory and not written to the disk yet. There are many online forum posts with users having trouble with VSS and open .pst's. As a test, you could try to temporariliy disable VSS in your backup script and let Acornis backup with the proprietary snapapi backup method which was the default in 2014 and earlier versions. If the file is actually on the disk (and not in memory), but the issue is with Microsfoft VSS, then the snapapi method may resolve this. However, if it's simply that the PST file is open in system memory and changes have not been commited to the hard drive yet, neither option will help unless the PST is closed down while the backup is running due to the changes being committed to memory.
If you want to try disabling VSS for your specific backup task, you could try this:
https://forum.acronis.com/forum/116164#comment-346710
1) open the folder where your backups settings are saved: C:\ProgramData\Acronis\TrueImageHome\Scripts
2) each file there stores settings for particular backup job. Open files one-by-one in Notepad, or open latest modified file (if you have just modified your task), until you find the one that has backup name on 5th line, e.g. MyBackups
3) click Edit - Replace and replace use_vss="true" with use_vss="false"
4) save changes and close the file
Thanks all for your feedback. I will try the examples you provided. However, in all cases when Acronis runs it is after Outlook has been closed. Acronis is running on my server (with the Outlook files), and the workstation with Outlook is shut down (Acronis runs at 11PM).
What version is the server OS? Please keep in mind that Acronis True Image home is not designed for servers OS. I know that others are doing this as well, and many with good luck, but it's not supported:
56517: Acronis True Image 2016: Supported Operating Systems
If the PST is not in use at the time of the backup, VSS may be the issue and hopefully reverting to the SNAPAPI backup method will allow this backup to run better with the .pst files.
Thanks again. I do not run a server OS - it is just vanilla W7 Pro using file sharing. There should be no issue.
Did you try the .snapai method as well? If that works, but not with VSS, it may be a VSS limitation or issue with the VSS service on the system. At least rule it out or confirm if this allows he PST files to be backed up (while they are closed out and not in use).
https://forum.acronis.com/forum/116164#comment-346710
1) open the folder where your backups settings are saved: C:\ProgramData\Acronis\TrueImageHome\Scripts
2) each file there stores settings for particular backup job. Open files one-by-one in Notepad, or open latest modified file (if you have just modified your task), until you find the one that has backup name on 5th line, e.g. MyBackups
3) click Edit - Replace and replace use_vss="true" with use_vss="false"
4) save changes and close the file