The following is a list of commonly asked questions about Azure Backup.

Installation & Configuration

Q1. What is the list of supported operating systems from which I can backup to Azure using Azure
Backup?
A1. The following list of operating systems is supported by Azure Backup
Operating System

Platform SKU

Windows 8 and latest SPs

64 bit

Enterprise, Pro

Windows 7 and latest SPs

64 bit

Ultimate, Enterprise, Professional, Home Premium,

Home Basic, Starter

Windows 8.1 and latest SPs

64 bit

Enterprise, Pro

Windows Server 2012 R2 and latest

64 bit
SPs

Standard, Datacenter, Foundation

Windows Server 2012 and latest SPs 64 bit

Datacenter, Foundation, Standard

Windows Storage Server 2012 R2

and latest SPs

64 bit

Standard, Workgroup

Windows Storage Server 2012 and

latest SPs

64 bit

Standard, Workgroup

Windows Server 2012 R2 and latest

64 bit
SPs

Essential

Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1

64 bit

Standard, Enterprise, Datacenter, Foundation

Windows Server 2008 SP2

64 bit

Standard, Enterprise, Datacenter, Foundation

Q2. Where can I download the latest Azure Backup agent?

A2. You can download the latest agent from here. This can be installed on Windows Server, SCDPM
server or Windows client
Q3. Which version of SCDPM server is supported?
A3. We recommend that you install the latest Azure Backup agent on the latest update rollup of
SCDPM (UR6 as of July 2015)
Q4. When configuring the Azure Backup agent, I am prompted to enter the vault credentials. Is
there any expiration date attached to the vault credentials?
A4. Yes, the vault credential expire after 48hours. If the file expires, log in to the Azure portal and
download the vault credentials files from your Backup vault.

Q5. Is there any limit on the number of backup vaults that can be created in each Azure
subscription?
A5. Yes. As of July 2015, you can create 25 vaults per subscription. If you need more vaults, then
create a new subscription.
Q6. Should I look at a vault as a billing entity?
A6. Though it is possible to get a detailed bill for each vault, we highly recommend that you consider
an Azure subscription as a billing entity. It is consistent across all services and is easier to manage.
Q7. Are there any limits on the number of servers/machines that can be registered against each
vault?
A7. Yes, you can register up to 50 machines per vault. If you need to register more machines, create
a new vault.
Q8. Are there any limits on the amount of data that can be backed up from a Windows
server/client or SCDPM server?
A8. No.
Q9. How do I register my server to another datacenter?
A9. In general the backup data is sent to the datacenter of the Backup Service to which it is
registered. The easiest way to change the datacenter is to uninstall the agent and reinstall the agent
and register to a new datacenter.
Q10. What happens if I rename a Windows server that is backing up data to Azure?
A10. Any currently configured backups will be stopped. You will need to reregister the server with
the backup vault and it will be considered a new server by Recovery Services, so the first backup
operation that occurs after registration will be a full backup of all of the data included in the backup
instead of just the changes since the last backup occurred. However, if you need to perform a
recovery operation you can recover the data that has been backed up using Recover from another
server recovery option. For more information, see Rename a server.
Q11. What types of drives can I backup files and folders from?
A11. The following set of drives/volumes can be backup:

Removable Media: The drive must report as fixed to be used a backup item source.

Read-only Volumes: The volume must be writable for the volume shadow copy service (VSS)
to function.

Offline Volumes : The volume must be online for VSS to function.

Network share: The volume must be local to the server to be backed up using online backup.

Bitlocker protected volumes: The volume must be unlocked before the backup can occur.

File System Identification: NTFS is the only file system supported for this version of the
online backup service.

Q12. What file and folder types can I back up from my server?
A12. The following types are supported:

Encrypted

Compressed

Sparse

Compressed + Sparse

Hard Links: Not supported, skipped

Reparse Point: Not supported, skipped

Encrypted + Compressed: Not supported, skipped

Encrypted + Sparse: Not supported, skipped

Compressed Stream: Not supported, skipped

Sparse Stream: Not supported, skipped

Q13. What's the minimum size requirement for the cache folder?
A13. The size of the cache folder is determined by the amount of data that you are backing up. In
general you should expect that 10-15% of the space required for data storage should be allocated
for the cache folder.
Q14. How can I isolate specific server data from being recovered by other servers in my
organization?
A14. Any servers that are registered using the same vault will be able to recover the data backed up
by other servers that use the same passphrase. If you have servers that you want to ensure recovery
only occurs to specific servers in your organization, you should use a separate passphrase designated
for those servers. For example, human resources servers could use one encryption passphrase,
accounting servers another, and storage servers a third.
Q15. Can I migrate my backup data between subscriptions?
A15: No
Q16. Can I migrate my backup vault between subscriptions?
A16: No. The vault is created at a subscription level and cannot be reassigned to another
subscription once its created.
Q17. Does the Azure Backup Agent work on a server that uses Windows Server 2012
deduplication?
A17: Yes. The agent service converts the deduplicated data to normal data when it prepares the
backup operation. It then optimizes the data for backup, encrypts the data and then sends the
encrypted data to the online backup service.

Q18. Does the backup data get deleted if I cancel a backup after it has started?
A18: No. The backup vault stores the backed up data that had been transferred up to the point of
the cancellation. Azure Backup uses a checkpoint mechanism so that the backup data gets checkpointed occasionally during the backup and the next backup process can validate the integrity of the
files. The next backup triggered would be incremental over the data that had been backed up
previously. This provides better utilization of bandwidth, so that you do not need to transfer the
same data repeatedly.
Q19. Why am I seeing the warning "Azure Backups have not been configured for this server" even
though I had scheduled regular backups previously?
A19: This can occur when the backup schedule settings stored on the local server are not the same
as the settings stored in the backup vault. When either the server or the settings have been
recovered to a known good state, the backup schedules can lose synchronization. If this has
happened, you should reconfigure the backup policy and then Run Back Up Now to resynchronize
the local server with Azure.
Q20. What firewall rules are to be configured for backup of Azure Backup?
A20. Ensure firewall rules enable communication with URLs below for seamless backup of onpremises to Azure and workload protection on Azure:

www.msftncsi.com

*.Microsoft.com

*.WindowsAzure.com

*.microsoftonline.com

*.windows.net

Backup & Retention

Q1. Is there a limit on the size of each data source being backed up?
A1. As of July 2015, each data source should be less than or equal to 1.7 TB. A data source is either

File/Folder volume

SQL DB

Sharepoint farm

Exchange server

Hyper-V VM

Q2. Is there are limit on the number of times backup can be scheduled per day?
A2. Yes, Azure Backup enables 3 backup copies per day through Windows Server/Client and 2
backup copies per day through SCDPM.

Q3. Is there a difference between DPMs and Azure Backups (i.e on Windows Server without
DPM) backup scheduling policy?
A3. Yes. Using DPM, you can specify daily, weekly, monthly, yearly scheduling while from a Windows
Server (without DPM), you can specify only daily, weekly schedules.
Q4. Is there a difference between DPMs and Azure Backups (i.e on Windows Server without
DPM) retention policy?
A4. No, you have the same capabilities. You can specify daily, weekly, monthly and yearly retention
policies.
Q5. Can I configure my retention policies selectively i.e. configure weekly and daily but not
yearly and monthly?
A5. You have the full set of knobs to come up with policies which best define your
compliance/retention requirements.
Q6. Can I schedule a backup at 6pm and specify retention policies at a different time?
A6. No. Retention policies can only be applied on backup points. In the below image, the retention
policy is being specified on backups taken at 12am and 6pm.

Q7. Is an incremental copy transferred for the retention policies scheduled?

A7. No, the incremental copy is sent based on the time mentioned in the backup schedule page. The
points that can be retained are determined based on the retention policy.
Q8. If backup is retained for a long duration, does it take a significant time to recover the data (say
the oldest point)?
A8. No the time taken to recovery the oldest or the latest point is one and the same. Each recovery
point behaves like a full point.
Q9. If each recovery point is like a full point, does it impact the total billable backup storage?
A9. Typical long term retention point products store backup data as full points. However, these are
storage inefficient but are easier and faster to restore. Incremental copies are storage efficient but
require you to restore a chain of data which impacts your recovery time. Azure Backups unique
storage architecture gives you the best of both worlds by optimally storing data for fast restores and
incurring low storage costs. This approach ensures that your (ingress and egress) bandwidth is
efficiently used, storage is kept to the minimum and the time taken to recover is kept to the
minimum.

Q10. Is there a limit on the number of recovery points that can be created?
A10. As of April 2015, you can have upto 366 recovery points. You can use any permutation to arrive
at a number which is less than 366. Eg the retention points in the below picture add to 354.

Q11. Once Microsoft improves the limit from 366, will I need to upgrade the agent or reseed the
initial backup?
A11. No. Once we make the change in our service, you will be notified through our social media
outlets (blogs, Azure announcements, portal etc). Based on your needs, you would then be required
to only change the retention policy.
Q12. Why is the amount of data transferred in backup not equal to the amount of data I backed
up?
A12. All the data that is backed up is compressed and encrypted before being transferred. You can
expect 30-40% compression benefits depending on the type of data being backed up.
Recovery
Q1. How many recoveries can I perform on the data that is backed up to Azure?
A1. There is no limit on the number of recoveries from Azure Backup.
Q2. Do I have to pay for the egress traffic from Azure data center during recoveries?
A2. No. Your recoveries are free and you are not charged for the egress traffic.
Security
Q1. Is the data sent to Azure encrypted?
A1. Yes. Data is encrypted on the on-premises server/client/SCDPM machine using AES256 and the
data is sent over a secure HTTPS link.
Q2. Is the backup data on Azure encrypted as well?
A2. Yes. The data which is sent to Azure remains encrypted (at rest). Microsoft does not decrypt the
backup data at any point.

Q3. What is the minimum length of encryption key used to encrypt backup data?
A3. The encryption key should be at least 16 characters.
Q4. What happens if I misplace the encryption key? Can I recover the data (or) can Microsoft
recover the data?
A4. The key used to encrypt the backup data is present only on the customer premises. Microsoft
does not maintain a copy in Azure and does not have any access to the key. If the customer
misplaces the key, Microsoft cannot recover the backup data.