Windows Home Server Backup - To The Rescue!

TechLarry

TechLarry

RIP [H] Brother - June 1, 2022
Joined
Aug 9, 2005
Messages
30,481
I've been running a WHS system for several months now, with backups occuring on all of my machines every night. As you have read, the backup system is the cats meow, but what you haven't read (that I've seen) is someone having to restore a machine from scratch from one of these backups.

Well, now you have :)

Over the weekend I took my main desktop and did the following:

1. Removed the RC version of SP1.
2. Installed the RTM version of SP1.
3. Did some general cleanup (desktop, temp folders, etc...).
4. Removed some old software I never really used.
5. Spyware and Virus scans, etc...

All of this went without a hitch, and the system was running beautifully all day saturday and sunday.

Last night I started a boot-time defragmentation withi DiskKeeper 2007 Premier Pro edition. It was verified as the latest version before use.

When I started work this morning I restarted the machine. I never saw the desktop again. The DiskKeeper boot-time defrag had done something to the system. It never even made it to the login screen.

Rut Roh....

I fiddled with it for about 30 min, but it wouldn't even boot in safe mode. Double Rut-Roh...

So I booted from the restore CD that came with WHS and commenced to restore from the last good backup, which was the night before running DiskKeeper.

I restored only the boot volume, which was 235GB and contained all my programs and documents.

The restore took exactly one hour.

I rebooted and the system was back to exactly the way it was before running Diskeeper.

Man, what a wonderful system this WHS is :)
 
Very cool.
Completely off topic, sort of.
I've been toying with the idea of setting up a home server......using WHS.

What hardware do you use?
How do you find the software to work with?
What is the server's main function, in your house?

Thanks alot for the advice.:D
 
I just used an old server I used to run Server 2003 Enterprise on.

ABIT IT7-Max 2
P4 2.53Mhz.
512MB RAM
550 watt antec
Intel Pro/1000 MT NIC
5 Seagate 300GB drives
1 Seagate 500GB drive (replaced a dead 300GB).
1 Seagate 120GB drive (boot drive).
3Ware 9500S-8 SATA controller for all the drives (single drive mode).

I really had no issues at all setting it up.

I use it as a file server, backup server, media server and remote access/download server
 
I can't wait for MS to release the first SP for this because of the same thing. Right now this only works with 32bit desktops but there will be 64 bit support in the SP along with LOTS of other fixes/updates.

Also mine is used for a print server as well as the above mentioned items.
 
Larry,

You aren't alone. I've had the Restore CD save my butt twice now :)
 
Yeah, count me in the list of people holding their copy of WHS, waiting for PowerPack 1 to be released.
 
If I was holding it, instead of using it, I'd be really screwed right now :)
 
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