Backup Exec 2010 R3 - Error backing up VMware VMs

[Hawk521]

1. BE is current (according to LiveUpdate).
2. Media Server is Windows 2008 R2 (64 bit).
3. Some VMs backup without error (repeatedly).
4. A few VMs ALWAYS get this same error.
5. These backups are being written to a 4.5 TB backup-to-disk folder that works for all other BE jobs. There is plenty of room available.

Final error: 0xe0009579 - Unable to copy the virtual machine disk using the VMware VixDiskLib.

It refers me to a link 'V-79-57344-38265' which relates to this error. BUT none of the suggested solutions work:

a) This issue is fixed in Service Pack 1 (already applied - no help)

b) Run Non-GRT backups of VM's deduplication storage. (I confess that I do not know what this is suggesting... I turned off the backup job GRT option but that did not help.)

c) Run GRT Backups to Backup to Disk folder. (Well, that IS where we write these backups and it still gets the error.)


We remain in need of backing up the full VM disk images but are finding Backup Exec unwilling to do so without these errors.

Am I overlooking something obvious here?

 

[JackOfSomeTrades]

Hi,
Its been about a month since you posted this, so no idea if you've resolved it, but on many occasions, removing the VM from the vCentre Inventory, then re-adding it seems to fix a whole load of unexplainable Backup Exec and VADP/AVVI backing up problems.

Of course the VM has to be powered off before doing this - great when its your Mail Store server that it needs doing on...!

Cheers, Mark

 

[SymcElias]

One additional item that would be extremely helpful to help diagnose this error, if you are still encountering it, is to get the logs from your attempts.

http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=content&id=TECH63926

Above is the technote on how to debug AVVI. From this issue it would be helpful to have the debug log level set to 3 for “VMware Agent” and “SymVmTools”.

 

[Hawk521]

Strange solution - but problem solved.

I eventually observed that the VM backups themselves were running to completion - only to fail during the "Writing Catalog" final phase. Wasn't sure what to make of that - but it was at least a clue. It began to "feel like" something unrelated to Backup Exec itself.

The Backup-to-Disk folder is setup on a 4.5TB raid array. When originally formatted as NTFS the Windows 'compress' option was turned on for that drive. Could it be that the compress option was causing my problems? Doubtful, but I was out of ideas that made more sense.

Eventually I reformatted the B2D drive partition. This time I turned off the 'compress' option. For whatever reason this appeared to solve the problem. I have now run backups on all our VMs and all backed up without fail. So - beware use of the Windows 'compress" option on very large drive partitions.

I still get an occassional "Completed with exceptions" error - but those are manageable. It appears some of these errors are related to having VSS invoked by both Backup Exec AND VMware. I'm still working on that.

As of this morning some 18 backups in a row have run successfully. FINALLY!