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Windows Backup taking waaaaay to long
While I'm not a heavy user of these MS forums I have had to resort to them from time to time over the last 15-20 years. Yet I still can't figure out the organizational structure and it seems I can never find the right forum for my query. Almost every time my post gets moved to the correct forum or message board, or someone gives me a link directly to it. I expect it to be no different this time, and I'm perfectly fine with that. So here we go. I have Windows Server 2025 installed as a VM using MS's built-in Hyper-V on a Server 2025 computer. the VM is set up as a DC and all that stuff functions exactly as it should. However, doing the backup has suddenly gone from taking anywhere from 2 hours to a max that comes close to but has never exceeded four hours. Obviously, it depends on how much there is to actually back up. I've already gone through the troubleshooting tips to do things like checking the VSS settings and a bit of other stuff I can't exactly recall at the moment. I have an external physical 1TB usb hard drive attached to the physical computer and then it's attached as a drive to the Server 2025 VM and shows up in computer management/disk manager ad Disk 1, as it should. I have the VM set up to use this Disk 1 as the backup disk with the Windows Server Backup program. Some things I note and add here in case it matters. - The size of the VM disk for this Server 2025 VM is 500GB and the partition size of Drive C shows as 498.91GB with the remaining shown as 100MB for the EFI system partion and 1001MB for the recovery partition. - When backup starts, a new disk labeled Disk 2 appears in the disk management window on the VM and I note it's the same size as Drive C on the VM at 498.91GB. I'm wondering if this has anything to do with why my backups suddenly went from taking a max of 4 hours to as long as 20 hours to complete. Where is this virtual disk created? I looked on the VM host machine in the C:\programdata\microsoft\windows\Virtual Hard Disks directory, and it's not there. It's not on the VM machine because the virtual hard disk directory doesn't exist in that same location on the VM. THe host machine itself has a 2TB hard drive in it with 993GB of free space. Any advice or suggestions here? I have no idea why backups went from 2-4 hours to taking 20 hours or more to complete. Thanks for any help, advice or suggestions anyone can offer here. -CarlBLOG: Determine and modernize Filesystem Deduplication
Version history - 1.4 revised script so ReFS volumes with classic dedup will be identified, added more eligibly checks and error handling - 1.3 added point #4 in migration guidance - 1.2 revised script - 1.1 formatting This blog explains the two Windows deduplication modes classic Windows Data Deduplication (ReFS or NTFS) and ReFS Deduplication (ReFS). It covers how they differ, why you should consider upgrading to Windows Server 2025 to leverage the new ReFS dedup engine, and clear warnings about scenarios where ReFS is not recommended. Practical migration guidance and detection commands are included. Differences between classic dedup and ReFS dedup File system: Classic dedup runs on NTFS or ReFS; ReFS dedup runs on ReFS and Windows Server 2025 or later, only. Implementation: They are separate engines with different metadata formats and management cmdlets. Management: Classic dedup uses the Dedup PowerShell module (Get‑DedupVolume, Start‑DedupJob, Disable‑DedupVolume). ReFS dedup uses its own ReFS dedup cmdlets (Get‑ReFSDedupStatus, Enable‑ReFSDedup). Conversion: There is no in‑place conversion between the two; metadata and chunk formats are incompatible. Improvements: the new in-line ReFS Deduplication leverages the advantages of ReFS files system. This makes deduplication more efficient and less CPU intensive. The new ReFS Deduplication can also compress data in-line using L1Z algorithm. This makes it up to par with enterprise solutions, often found in SAN storage or Linux appliances. Compression needs to be set per volume, and optional. Why upgrade to Windows Server 2025 Improved version of ReFS Filesystem Improved ReFS in-line deduplication + optional L1Z compression: Server 2025 includes enhancements to ReFS dedup performance, scalability, and integration with modern storage features. Support and fixes: Windows Server 2016 and 2019 are past mainstream support, increasing the likelihood of costly support cases and delayed fixes; upgrading reduces operational risk and ensures access to ongoing improvements. Future compatibility: Newer OS releases receive optimizations and bug fixes for ReFS and dedup scenarios that older releases will not. SMB compression: for reasonably faster data transfer at minimal CPU when transferring data through the networks. Feature and security related improvements refer to availabile Microsoft Windows Server 2025 Summit content on techcommunity.microsoft.com Scenarios where ReFS is not recommended ReFS on SAN in clustered CSV environments: Avoid placing ReFS dedup on top of SAN‑backed Cluster Shared Volumes (CSVFS) in production clusters; clustered SAN/CSV scenarios causing severe performance issues in practice. Please refer to the ReFS documentation. (personal opinion and experience, not endorsed by Microsoft): Many small, fast‑changing files: Workloads with frequent small writes—user profiles, redirected AppData, or applications that churn small config files (for example, Lotus Notes config files)—can cause locks, performance degradation, or unexpected behavior on ReFS. Exclude these paths from dedup or keep them on NTFS. Restrictions, like lockups or high RAM consumption, deadlocks / BSOD might have been addressed in Windows Server 2025. Improving reliability and performance is a top goal for ReFS, to improve the adoption and feature parity with NTFS. For information about feature parity please refer to the ReFS documentation. Migration guidance The following instructions describe a high level and supported migration path from Windows deduplication using the NTFS file system to native ReFS Deduplication. Note: Step #3, data migration is not required when already using ReFS with Data Deduplication. In this case it's enough to execute step #1 and #2. Note: Validate on non‑production data first. Plan for rehydration time and network/storage throughput. Ensure backups are current before starting. Make sure to have a full backup before upgrading Server OS or making changes. 1. Disable classic dedup on the NTFS source: Disable-DedupVolume -Volume YourDriveLetter: 2. Rehydrate (un‑deduplicate) the data: Start-DedupJob -Volume YourDriveLetter: -Type Unoptimization 3. Copy or move data to a ReFS volume (new target): For straightforward NTFS→ReFS copies, robocopy is recommended. Another alternative is the Windows Admin Center File Server Migration Feature For complex scenarios, open files long path names very large datasets (< 5 TB) or many small files restructuring, GUI (including Windows Server Core) automation, improved logging cloud/hybrid migrations I recommend the usage of GScopy Enterprise by GuruSquad for higher speed (up to 40%) and reliability. 4. Optionally remove the Windows Server feature When there is no old deduplication in use consider to remove the feature. Your advantages of doing so: removes an unneccessary service. removes the file system filter driver for dedup, which causes performance impacts, even when not in use. removes the PowerShell commandlets for the old dedup, so they cannot mistakenly used by existing scripts, unaware admins etc. When migrating files over network: SMB compression: consider both source and target run Windows Server 2025 and leverage SMB compression. SMB Compression is available in Microsoft xcopy, Microsoft robocopy and Gurusquad GScopy Enterprise. Balancing and Teaming with SMB: SMB does not require LFBO or SET Teaming. It automagically detects network links and actively balances on its own on Windows Server 2016 and later. Using teaming, depending the configuration, can negatively affect transfer speed. Quick detection and diagnostic commands Check file systems: Get-Volume | Select DriveLetter, FileSystem Check classic dedup feature: Get-WindowsFeature -Name FS-Data-Deduplication Get-DedupVolume Get-DedupStatus Check ReFS dedup: Get-Command -Module Microsoft.ReFsDedup.Commands Get-ReFSDedupStatus -Volume YourDriveLetter: Diagnostic script to detect both: <# .SYNOPSIS Detects classic NTFS Data Deduplication and ReFS Deduplication across local volumes. .DESCRIPTION - Reports NTFS volumes with classic Data Dedup enabled. - Lists ReFS volumes present on the host. - If the ReFS dedup cmdlet exists AND OS build >= 26100, checks ReFS dedup status per ReFS volume. - Color coding: * Classic dedup enabled → Yellow * Classic dedup not enabled → Cyan * ReFS dedup enabled → Green * ReFS dedup not enabled → Cyan .NOTES Version: 1.7 Author: Karl Wester-Ebbinghaus + Copilot Requirements: Elevated PowerShell session, PowerShell 5.1 or newer Supported OS: Windows Server 2025, Azure Stack HCI 24H2 or newer Unsupported OS: Windows 10, Windows 11 (script terminates) #> #region Initialization Write-Verbose "Initializing variables and environment..." $Volumes = $null $Volume = $null $DedupVolumesList = $null $DedupReFSVolumesList = $null $DedupReFSVolumesListLetters = $null $DedupReFSStatus = $null $refsCmd = $null $OSBuild = $null $runReFSDedupChecks = $null #endregion Initialization #region Volume Discovery Clear-Host Write-Verbose "Querying NTFS and ReFS volumes..." $Volumes = Get-Volume | Where-Object FileSystem -in 'NTFS','ReFS' #endregion Volume Discovery #region ReFS Dedup Cmdlet, OS Build and OS SKU Detection Write-Verbose "Checking for ReFS deduplication cmdlet..." $refsCmd = Get-Command -Name Get-ReFSDedupStatus -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue Write-Verbose "Reading OS build number..." try { $OSBuild = [int](Get-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion' -Name CurrentBuildNumber).CurrentBuildNumber } catch { Write-Verbose "Registry read for OS build failed. Falling back to Environment OSVersion." $OSBuild = [int][Environment]::OSVersion.Version.Build } # end try/catch for OS build detection Write-Verbose "Checking OS InstallationType and EditionID..." $CurrentVersionKey = Get-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion' $InstallationType = $CurrentVersionKey.InstallationType # "Client" or "Server" $EditionID = $CurrentVersionKey.EditionID # e.g. "AzureStackHCI", "ServerStandard", etc. Write-Verbose "Detected InstallationType: $InstallationType" Write-Verbose "Detected EditionID: $EditionID" Write-Verbose "Detected OSBuild: $OSBuild" # Block Windows 10/11 (Client OS) if ($InstallationType -eq 'Client') { Write-Error "Unsupported OS detected: Windows Client (Windows 10/11). Only Windows Server or Azure Stack HCI are supported. Script will terminate." exit } # Allow Azure Stack HCI explicitly if ($EditionID -eq 'AzureStackHCI') { Write-Verbose "Azure Stack HCI detected. Supported platform." } else { # Must be Windows Server if ($InstallationType -ne 'Server') { Write-Error "Unsupported OS detected. Only Windows Server or Azure Stack HCI are supported. Script will terminate." exit } Write-Verbose "Windows Server detected (EditionID: $EditionID). Supported platform." } Write-Verbose "Evaluating ReFS dedup eligibility based on cmdlet presence and build >= 26100..." $runReFSDedupChecks = $false if ($refsCmd -and ($OSBuild -ge 26100)) { $runReFSDedupChecks = $true Write-Verbose "ReFS dedup checks ENABLED (cmdlet present and OS build >= 26100)." } else { Write-Verbose "ReFS dedup checks DISABLED (cmdlet missing or OS build < 26100)." } #endregion ReFS Dedup Cmdlet, OS Build and OS SKU Detection #region Main Loop foreach ($Volume in $Volumes) { # begin foreach volume loop Write-Host "Volume $($Volume.DriveLetter): ($($Volume.FileSystem))" Write-Verbose "Processing volume $($Volume.DriveLetter)..." #region Classic Dedup + ReFS Volume Listing if ($Volume.FileSystem -eq 'NTFS' -or $Volume.FileSystem -eq 'ReFS') { Write-Verbose "Checking classic deduplication status for volume $($Volume.DriveLetter)..." $DedupVolumesList = Get-DedupVolume -Volume $Volume.DriveLetter -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue if ($DedupVolumesList) { Write-Host " → Classic Data Dedup ENABLED on $($Volume.DriveLetter), $($Volume.FileSystem)" -ForegroundColor Yellow } else { Write-Host " → Classic Data Dedup NOT enabled on $($Volume.DriveLetter),$($Volume.FileSystem)" -ForegroundColor Cyan } # end if classic dedup enabled Write-Verbose "Listing ReFS volumes on host..." $DedupReFSVolumesList = Get-Volume | Where-Object FileSystem -eq 'ReFS' if ($DedupReFSVolumesList) { $DedupReFSVolumesListLetters = ($DedupReFSVolumesList | ForEach-Object { $_.DriveLetter }) -join ',' Write-Host " → ReFS volumes present on host: $DedupReFSVolumesListLetters" } else { Write-Host " → No ReFS volumes detected on host" } # end if ReFS volumes present } # end NTFS/ReFS block #endregion Classic Dedup + ReFS Volume Listing #region ReFS Dedup Status if ($Volume.FileSystem -eq 'ReFS') { if ($runReFSDedupChecks) { Write-Verbose "Checking ReFS deduplication status for volume $($Volume.DriveLetter)..." $DedupReFSStatus = Get-ReFSDedupStatus -Volume $Volume.DriveLetter -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue if ($DedupReFSStatus) { Write-Host " → ReFS Dedup ENABLED on $($Volume.DriveLetter), $($Volume.FileSystem)" -ForegroundColor Green } else { Write-Host " → ReFS Dedup NOT enabled on $($Volume.DriveLetter), $($Volume.FileSystem)" -ForegroundColor Cyan } # end if ReFS dedup enabled } else { if (-not $refsCmd) { Write-Error " → Skipping ReFS dedup check: Get-ReFSDedupStatus cmdlet not present" -ForegroundColor Cyan } else { Write-Error " → Skipping ReFS dedup check: OS build $OSBuild < required 26100" -ForegroundColor Cyan } # end reason for skipping ReFS dedup check } # end if runReFSDedupChecks } # end if ReFS filesystem block #endregion ReFS Dedup Status Write-Host "" } # end foreach volume loop #endregion Main Loop #region End Write-Verbose "Script completed." #endregion End Recommendations and next steps Inventory: Identify volumes using NTFS dedup and ReFS dedup, and map workloads that create many small or rapidly changing files. Plan: Schedule rehydration and migration windows; test ReFS dedup on representative datasets. Upgrade: Prioritize upgrading servers still on 2016/2019 (End of Mainstream Support) to reduce support risk and gain the latest ReFS dedup improvements. Kindly consider reading my Windows Server Installation Guidance and Windows Server Upgrade Guidance Exclude: Keep user profiles, AppData, and other high‑churn small‑file paths off ReFS dedup or on NTFS. Consider Dedup and compression: Enable compression optionally. Mind ReFS dedup compression is not the same as compress files integration in File Explorer or File Explorer properties (Windows 9x). It's transparent to the application Make smart decisions: Avoid using dedup when the dataset is changing fast or your dedup + compression rate is below 20%. Usually you can expect 40% or more savings, and up to 80% in specific use cases like VDI VHDX Plan your dedup jobs: Ensure making use planning features for dedup jobs through PowerShell or Windows Admin Center (WAC) when using ReFS dedup on more than one volume per Server. Otherwise they might all run at the same time and impact your storage performance (esp. spinning rust) and consumption of RAM and CPU. Share and Educate: Inform your infrastructure team about the changes so they avoid using the traditional dedup on ReFS.
Remediation for CVE-1999-0532 on Windows DNS Servers
CVE-1999-0532 was detected on Windows DNS Server which involves a misconfigured Domain Name System (DNS) server that allows full or partial zone transfers (AXFR requests) to any requesting client. Based on recommendation, I have configured in DNS -> Allow Zone transfer, to only allow specific authorized servers IP addresses. Is this the correct method for CVE-1999-0532 remediation? In addition, I an unable to find any Microsoft article related to the mentioned CVE-1999-0532. Please share if there is any.
NPS network policy with multiple Client ip4 addesses
I have a wireless policy on my NPS server with the primary wireless controller added using a Client IPv4 address entry in the policy. I want to add the backup controller as well but it seems it is adding it as a and condition. I need it to be added as an or condition when the primary controller is unreachable. How can I add multiple Client ip4 addessess in a Network policy with an or condition? An and condition would require both to be reachable. thanks.WSUS changing Update Source on its own
We have 2 WSUS Servers and ConfigMgr. A week ago, one of the WSUS servers began changing the Update Source on its own, no changes had been made. It began pointing to the ConfigMgr and when changed back to use MS Update, shortly after checking again it reverted back to use ConfigMgr. Checked all Events, checked the SQL SUSDB for the WSUS server however there was no information related to this action. Any ideas where I can look next ? Thank you
AOVPN / Reasoncode 16
We have an always on vpn configuration. This worked fine till few months ago, users can't get connected anymore. After reboot of NPS server, all works fine for some time (random, sometimes 1 day, 2 days, 1 week), till the users can't get connected again. Reboot of nps server solves it. When users can't connect, I see an event on NPS server with reason code 16 Network Policy Server denied access to a user. Contact the Network Policy Server administrator for more information. User: Security ID: xxx Account Name:xxx Account Domain: xxx Fully Qualified Account Name: xx Client Machine: Security ID: NULL SID Account Name: - Fully Qualified Account Name: - Called Station Identifier: x.x.x.x Calling Station Identifier: x.x.x.x NAS: NAS IPv4 Address: x.x.x.x NAS IPv6 Address: - NAS Identifier: server-VPN01 NAS Port-Type: Virtual NAS Port: 14 RADIUS Client: Client Friendly Name: server-VPN01 Client IP Address: x.x.x.x Authentication Details: Connection Request Policy Name: Virtual Private Network (VPN) Connections Network Policy Name: Virtual Private Network (VPN) Connections Authentication Provider: Windows Authentication Server: server-NPS01 Authentication Type: PEAP EAP Type: Microsoft: Smart Card or other certificate (EAP-TLS) Account Session Identifier: 33373834 Logging Results: Accounting information was written to the local log file. Reason Code: 16 Reason: Authentication failed due to a user credentials mismatch. Either the user name provided does not map to an existing user account or the password was incorrect. As said, reboot of nps solves issues temporary. Already installed new nps server but same issue. Any suggestions where to check ?
Cache drive reconfiguration in Server 2025 Storage Spaces Direct cluster
We have a three node S2D cluster running Server 2025, with the storage in a 3 way mirror, running Hyper-V VMs. Each node has 4 x NVMe drives that are currently being used as cache drives, but which are connected to a RAID controller (in HBA mode), so in the S2D configuration they appear as SSD drives rather than NVMe drives. We've purchased the required cables and drive bays to be able to reconfigure the NVMe drives so that they're attached directly to the PCIe bus, so they'll show up as NVMe drives and hopefully give us a performance boost, so I'm just trying to plan the reconfiguration. I was hoping it would be a relatively simple process of shutting everything down, reconfiguring the storage and bringing everything back online, but ChatGPT suggests things won't be that easy and that a complete reconfiguration of the storage would be required. So in a nutshell, can the cache drives be reconfigured without a complete rebuild of the S2D storage ? Cheers, Rob
SystemSettings. exe on Windows server 2025 crashes after installing Xbox game
I installed the Microsoft App Store on Windows Server and installed Minecraft. However, entering the system>display>graphics tab in the settings will cause the settings to crash.I tested both Bedrock and Java and found this issue. I think any Xbox game in the Microsoft Store should be able to reproduce this issue. + System - Provider [ Name] Application Error [ Guid] {a0e9b465-b939-57d7-b27d-95d8e925ff57} EventID 1000 Version 0 Level 2 Task 100 Opcode 0 Keywords 0x8000000000000000 - TimeCreated [ SystemTime] 2025-12-04T08:55:23.2042032Z EventRecordID 27146 Correlation - Execution [ ProcessID] 10988 [ ThreadID] 20000 Channel Application Computer WIN-JSD290TH0EL - Security [ UserID] S-1-5-21-868965638-952098041-1598110278-1002 - EventData AppName SystemSettings.exe AppVersion 10.0.26100.7019 AppTimeStamp f88449de ModuleName Windows.Gaming.Preview.dll ModuleVersion 10.0.26100.7019 ModuleTimeStamp 8e7f4dfa ExceptionCode c0000005 FaultingOffset 000000000003aadd ProcessId 0x1230 ProcessCreationTime 0x1dc64fbb631455a AppPath C:\Windows\ImmersiveControlPanel\SystemSettings.exe ModulePath C:\Windows\System32\Windows.Gaming.Preview.dll IntegratorReportId f2340132-82be-40d6-9c76-ec8fcbb9d19e PackageFullName windows.immersivecontrolpanel_10.0.8.1000_neutral_neutral_cw5n1h2txyewy PackageRelativeAppId microsoft.windows.immersivecontrolpanelWindows 11 automatically restarting after install security Update — With GPO and WSUS.
Hi everyone, I’m facing a strange behavior with Windows 11 devices that receive updates through WSUS and are fully managed via Group Policy. Here’s the scenario: We have a GPO configured as follows: -Configure Automatic Updates → 4 (Auto download and schedule the install) -Scheduled installation every day at 10:00 -Install during automatic maintenance → disabled -Active Hours configured -Turn off auto-restart for updates during active hours → Enabled -Update deadlines set to 0 (to avoid any forced restart) -No other restart-related policies set in the domain Even with this configuration, after updates are installed, Windows 11 shows the following message: “Your organization manages update settings. We will restart and install this update at X minutes.” And then the device automatically restarts, even when: -a user is logged in -it is outside Active Hours -deadlines are disabled -no-auto-restart is enabled This behavior does not happen on Windows 10 — only on Windows 11.
