[Networker] backing up VSS SYSTEM FILESET taking a very long time

The size will be bigger, Microsoft's new method.

The speed was improved for me using 
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/826936/en-us  KB826936 & increasing the default 
VSS workspace to the max (3gb):

This hotfix makes some classes of writer (SQL, Active Directory, and others) 
less likely to experience time-out errors. In part, this hotfix is designed to 
improve the performance of the default shadow copy driver (Volsnap.sys) when 
there are high input/output levels. The hotfix also includes a larger initial 
size for the shadow copy storage area: 300 MB instead of 100 MB. Additionally, 
if a 300 MB initial size is not sufficient, and if shadow copies are still lost 
because of high input/output levels, this hotfix includes a way for you to 
configure the initial size of the shadow copy storage area when the shadow copy 
storage area is created. You can configure the initial size of the shadow copy 
storage area by using the configurable registry key setting that this hotfix 
provides.

Follow these steps, and then quit Registry Editor:

   1. Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then click OK.
   2. Locate and then click the following key in the registry:
      HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\VolSnap
   3. On the Edit menu, point to New, and then click DWORD value.
   4. Type MinDiffAreaFileSize, and then press ENTER.
   5. On the Edit menu, click Modify.
   6. Type the size that you want for the shadow copy storage area, and then 
click OK. 

The MinDiffAreaFileSize registry key specifies the minimum size of the shadow 
copy storage area; the default setting is 300 MB, and the maximum setting is 3 
gigabytes (GB). For an accurate setting, specify a value that is a multiple of 
300 MB; otherwise, the next multiple of 300 MB will be chosen. A value of 300 
is equal to 300 MB, and a value of 3,000 is equal to 3 GB.

Note Shadow copies may not function correctly if the value of the 
MinDiffAreaFileSize registry subkey is larger than the maximum size of the 
shadow copy storage area. For example, if you set the registry setting to 1024 
MB, backup software will not generate snapshots of the 200 MB system partition. 
Therefore, before you create the MinDiffAreaFileSize registry subkey, make sure 
that the diff area file is larger than 300 MB or that the diff area file is 
larger than the value that is specified in the registry. Also, make sure that 
you have at least 300 MB of free space on the shadow copy storage volume.






Blackburn, Marvin wrote:
> We are currently beginning to add w2k8r2 servers to our environment.
> When we do a backup,
> 
> The VSS SYSTEM FILESET takes up a lot of space and takes a VERY long
> time to complete.  For newer server, the size of the fileset is greater
> than the C:\ drive.
> 
> We are running Networker Sever 7.5 on Linux and using a 7.5.3 client on
> the w2k8r2.
> 
> 
> 
> I have opened a case with Networker, but we have not been able to find a
> solution.  I wanted to find out if anyone else had this issue and how
> they are dealing with it.
> 
> 
> 
> _____________________________________
> "He's no failure. He's not dead yet."
> William Lloyd George
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> via RSS at http://listserv.temple.edu/cgi-bin/wa?RSS&L=NETWORKER


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