Windows VSS

The VSS integration backs up a drive or directory on a live Windows host and restores it to a Windows host. Backups are taken from a Volume Shadow Copy of the target volume, so they are consistent while the system keeps running.

The integration includes two connectors:

Requirements

• A Windows host with OpenSSH Server installed, running, and reachable.
• An administrative user account on the Windows host to run the backup as.
• An SSH key authorized for that account.

Typical use cases

• Backing up a Windows drive in a consistent state without taking the system offline.
• Protecting data managed by VSS-aware applications such as SQL Server and Active Directory.
• Restoring a Windows file tree to the original host or to a replacement machine.

Installation

The VSS integration is distributed as a pre-built package only. Unlike most Community integrations, it has no public source repository, so plakar pkg build cannot produce it. It remains free to install with a Plakar account. See source availability for how this differs from the other integrations.

Install the VSS package:

$ plakar pkg add vss

Verify installation:

$ plakar pkg show

To list, upgrade, or remove the package, see managing packages guide.

Setting up SSH access on the Windows host

The connectors reach the Windows host over SSH, so OpenSSH Server must be running with a dedicated key authorized for the administrative account Plakar connects as. See Setting Up OpenSSH Server on Windows for the full procedure.

Host key verification

The VSS integration verifies the Windows host against the known_hosts file of the account running plakar. The host key must be verified and recorded in that file before running a backup. See SSH host key verification for more information.

Configuration

A backup connects to the Windows host over SSH and requests a shadow copy of the volume holding the target path. Plakar then reads the files from that read-only snapshot over SFTP and stores them in a Kloset store with encryption and deduplication.

A restore reconstructs files from a snapshot and writes them back to the Windows host over SFTP.

Backup flow

flowchart LR

subgraph Source["Windows Host"]
  VSS["VSS Snapshot"]
  FS["D:/"]
end

Plakar["Plakar"]

Via["Request snapshot over SSH
and read files over SFTP"]

Store["Kloset Store"]

FS --> VSS --> Via --> Plakar --> Store

Restore flow

flowchart LR

Store["Kloset Store"]

Plakar["Plakar"]

Via["Push files over
SFTP"]

subgraph Destination["Windows Host"]
  FS["D:/"]
end

Store --> Plakar --> Via --> FS

Shared configuration

The following options apply to both source and destination connectors.

Example

Configure the D: drive on a Windows machine as a backup source and back it up to a Kloset store:

$ plakar source add mywindowsbox location=vss://Administrator@192.168.1.42/D:/

$ plakar at /var/backups backup "@mywindowsbox"

Configure a destination corresponding to the source and restore a snapshot to the D: drive:

$ plakar destination add mywindowsbox location=vss://Administrator@192.168.1.42/D:/

$ plakar at /var/backups restore -to "@mywindowsbox" <snapshot_id>

See also

• Setting Up OpenSSH Server on Windows
• Windows VSS in Plakar Control Plane
• Managing packages