New Server Setup - Need to Understand Server DR in One Place

I guess I need to read a bit more into the file structure of the UrBackup. This is going to be a sort of “cloud backup” solution so I don’t really need anything all that impressive in terms of hardware beef. What I have been thinking is to have 1 machine with at least 2 mirrored drives, partitioned into C (OS) and D (DATA). I would probably encrypt D and have the client backup data folder on that drive, and possibly the UrBackup install as well so that everything related to it is on 1 partition. I may also backup the data to another drive, maybe via USB or some other method not yet decided on.

So if I were to destroy 1 physical drive I am ok. If I destroy my primary machine OS what then? I reinstall windows on C and have all of the UrBackup server/client files still on the D drive. I move that old program files install, reinstall UrBackup, copy the old program files back into the new folder. Done deal or not a done deal?

So in all of this if I had all of the actual data files needed is the largest problem the hard-links? Are the hard links stored in the partition? Are the hard-links in this case preserved because I still maintain the D partition?

I know that UrBackup more or less takes complete control over a drive; I haven’t been able to break my spanned drive in Windows ever since I set it up. So, I would guess that hard-links are maintained. Given that you are using a hot-swappable medium, and hard-links should be volume/disk, then I believe your method should work.

I myself don’t remember if UrBackup still uses hard-links, but I could have sworn that even 2.0.38 still uses them.

I am going to test it either way, so I guess I could post my results.

So for the server files can I literally take the old “C:\Program Files\UrBackupServer\urbackup” folder and place the contents of that into the new install? Will that “bring up” the server where it was as of the time of those files?

It should but at the same time I believe you only need the database files and the server identity files.

Yeah I since have seen that the DB is actually in that backup folder :slight_smile:
I’m going to test and then will put my results. Maybe early next week?

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Ok so this evening I wanted to test DR a bit so I did the following to do a barebone DR restore with no client backup data

  • Installed the 2.0.x server on a new computer
  • Shut off the urserver service on the original one
  • Copied the urbackup “DB” folder over from the original client backup directory
  • Changed my router config to point to it.
  • Logged into my new server and pointed to a new backup folder

EXISTING - My main laptop previously had a connection, and now says that it has a connection to the server but it isn’t doing anything. When I try to access/restore backups I get an access denied (nothing there of course).

NEW - I added a new client and it did a proper file backup twice so far.

So are the original clients supposed to check in as usual since it is the same DB, or am I missing something?

I also cannot add a new client and then download the client package. I get “ERROR: Signature verification failed”

Anybody?

I can get into my “new” server just fine, but previously assigned clients are not communicating.

I have no insight on this. @uroni, do you have anything?

Really?? https://www.urbackup.org/faq.html#ident_err

I always ask it. I always ask it, and about six-times-out-of-ten it is always something else.

Excellent!

Ok so I went back to the original server and copied the urbackup folder this time from the install folder instead of the client backup folder.

How can you remove the databases backup records as if the server had clients attached but no backups as of yet? Would I set the min/max to 0 and then run the cleanup batch file? Looking at the logs and they are freaking out due to missing data. IF I did this DR method then I would want to clean the DB records anyways since there would be no data.

My 2 test clients are now connecting. Here is what I found so far.

CLIENT 1
(Few MB of data)

    • Finished a backup
    • Looks like the files are over on the server
    • Added a new file and ran an incremental but the new file is not over on the server.
    • First log shows metadata copy errors code 3 (because the files are not found from the previous backup?)
    • The next 2 so far show same but error code 2

CLIENT 2
(Just over 5GB of data)

    • Client indexed and got to 100% but got stuck. Wasn’t sure what was happening but the network bandwidth confirmed it was pausing and then sending more (A few times).
    • When client said it was done there is no log of the backup.
    • Tried forcing another backup but client reports it is connected but “Waiting for server”
    • Server shows 100% backup status bar from that first backup and an old date.
    • Client now says incremental file backup running 0% but no network activity.
    • Logs show metadata copy errors code =3 (because the files are not found from the previous backup?)

I’m going to let Client 2 go a day and see if the backups iron out. Not sure those errors are going to go away though.

Here is 1 of the logs. It seems that everything is working fine so I’m not to concerned with this, especially because it is a test. But if it were prod server I would want to understand how to correct this.

“G:\UrBackup Location 1” is the backup server client data folder.

Starting incremental file backup…
Scanning for changed hard links on volume of “Desktop”…
Indexing of “Desktop” done. 1 filesystem lookups 3523 db lookups and 0 db updates
Following symbolic link at “C:\Users\is00amm\Documents\My Music” to “C:\Users\is00amm\Music” confirms symlink backup target “.symlink_Music” to “C:\Users\is00amm\Music”
Following symbolic link at “C:\Users\is00amm\Documents\My Pictures” to “C:\Users\is00amm\Pictures” confirms symlink backup target “.symlink_Pictures” to “C:\Users\is00amm\Pictures”
Following symbolic link at “C:\Users\is00amm\Documents\My Videos” to “C:\Users\is00amm\Videos” confirms symlink backup target “.symlink_Videos” to “C:\Users\is00amm\Videos”
Indexing of “Documents” done. 1 filesystem lookups 127 db lookups and 1 db updates
WL00TF18: Loading file list…
WL00TF18: Calculating file tree differences…
WL00TF18: Calculating tree difference size…
WL00TF18: Linking unchanged and loading new files…
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Aimersoft Video Converter Ultimate.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Aimersoft Video Converter Ultimate.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Aimersoft Video Converter Ultimate\Output.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Aimersoft Video Converter Ultimate\Output.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Aimersoft Video Converter Ultimate\Output\Download.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Aimersoft Video Converter Ultimate\Output\Download.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Dell Downloads.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Dell Downloads.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Dell Downloads\8f048e4f-78c8-4382-a08c-b4bb2988818c.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Dell Downloads\8f048e4f-78c8-4382-a08c-b4bb2988818c.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\My CamStudio Temp Files.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\My CamStudio Temp Files.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\My CamStudio Videos.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\My CamStudio Videos.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\My Music” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\My Music”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\My Pictures” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\My Pictures”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\My Received Files.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\My Received Files.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\My Shapes.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\My Shapes.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\My Shapes_private.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\My Shapes_private.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\My Videos” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\My Videos”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\OneNote Notebooks.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\OneNote Notebooks.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\OneNote Notebooks\Personal.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\OneNote Notebooks\Personal.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Quicken.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Quicken.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\SAP.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\SAP.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\SAP\SAP GUI.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\SAP\SAP GUI.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Projects.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Projects.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Settings.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Settings.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Templates.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Templates.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Templates\ItemTemplates.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Templates\ItemTemplates.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Templates\ItemTemplates\Visual Web Developer.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Templates\ItemTemplates\Visual Web Developer.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Templates\ProjectTemplates.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Templates\ProjectTemplates.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Templates\ProjectTemplates\Visual Web Developer.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes\Documents\Visual Studio 2010\Templates\ProjectTemplates\Visual Web Developer.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Cannot copy directory metadata from “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1339.hashes.symlink_Videos.dir_metadata” to “G:\UrBackup Location 1\WL00TF18\170131-1414.hashes.symlink_Videos.dir_metadata”. - The system cannot find the file specified. (errorcode=2)
Waiting for file transfers…
Waiting for file hashing and copying threads…
Saving file metadata…
Writing new file list…
All metadata was present
Number of re-added file entries is 2524
Backup verification is enabled. Verifying file backup…
Backup verification ok
Transferred 1.86581 MB - Average speed: 108.216 KBit/s
(Before compression: 5.35006 MB ratio: 2.86742)
Time taken for backing up client WL00TF18: 10m 31s
Backup succeeded

Seems to be a problem with symlink metadata on Windows servers. Does anyone have the same problem? When does the problem first occur?

Would also be great if you can install 2.1.x and check if the issue still exists after a full file backup.

Normally when I get this, running the remove_unknown script fixes this (uroni’s suggestion with upgrading has also fixed it in the past, at least when it errors out and there is an update available); however, mine normally errors out rather than succeeding.

This idea only works if you actually succeeded in a backup and only now is it failing; if it’s failing off the bat, I am not sure.

My best guess as to why it works for me is that for some reason the data you are trying to copy is no longer there after the index - like if it had indexed the file and made a reservation, then the file was deleted (by something or someone) during the backup and it didn’t know what to do.

The problem occurs because as a test I purposely switched to another server and then copied the urbackup folder to the new server. The new server had none of the client backup data from the old server. I wanted to see if this was a decent solution for a DR event. It seems in my case that it will be just fine, I just want to see how to get rid of those errors.

I’ll try the remove_unknown script first and see what happens.

So the remove_unknown script did not resolve the client log issues that I gave above. So are you saying now that I should try to upgrade and see if that fixes these?

I don’t remember whether you said you were Linux or Windows; apparently the Linux Beta is not working, but the Windows one works fine.

Beyond that, I can’t think of anything…

Did you send a full debug log in to UrBackup yet?

I have a windows install. What will upgrading do that might resolve the issue?

I have not sent logs and am not yet sure how to.