Windows Server Backup API Registry Keys
To register with the Windows Server Backup feature, an application must contain a Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) writer and must set the Application Support and Application Identifier registry keys. An application that implements an add-in using the Windows Server Backup API interfaces must also set the CLSID key.
Setting these registry keys requires system administrator privilege.
Application Support
The Application Support registry key is used to register the application's VSS writer ID.
If the Application Support registry key does not exist, the application should create it under the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\WindowsServerBackup
Create a subkey with the name Application Support. Do not set a value for this key. Under the Application Support key, create a subkey with the name WriterGUID, where WriterGUID is the writer class ID for the application's VSS writer. Do not set a value for this key.
Application Identifier
The Application Identifier registry key is used to register the application identifier to be used in the Windows Server Backup user interface and command-line interface to identify the application.
If the Application Identifier registry key does not exist, the application should create it under the following registry key, where WriterGUID is the writer class ID for the application's VSS writer:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\WindowsServerBackup\Application Support\WriterGUID
Create a subkey with the name Application Identifier and type REG_SZ. The value should be a string that end users will recognize as the name of the application whose data is to be backed up and recovered. The application identifier string can contain a maximum of 256 characters and must be unique. If two applications register using the same application identifier string, the second registration is ignored. This string will not be localized.
You can use a batch script to set the Application Support and Application Identifier registry keys. To do so, create a file with a .bat file name extension that contains a reg add command in the following format, where:
- WriterGUID is the writer class ID for the application's VSS writer
- ApplicationDisplayName is the application identifier string
reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\windows nt\currentversion\WindowsServerBackup\Application Support\WriterGUID� /v "Application Identifier" /t REG_SZ /d ApplicationDisplayName /f
In the following example script:
- {CE4EF7DC-18CE-4A11-B4C9-D7A668637D1B} is the value of WriterGUID
- "My Application" is the value of ApplicationDisplayName
reg add "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\windows nt\currentversion\WindowsServerBackup\Application Support\{CE4EF7DC-18CE-4A11-B4C9-D7A668637D1B}� /v "Application Identifier" /t REG_SZ /d "My Application" /f
For more information about the reg add command, see the TechNet Command-line Reference documentation at https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?linkid=169397. For more information about how to use batch files, see "Using batch files" at https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?linkid=169398.
CLSID
An application that implements an add-in using the Windows Server Backup API interfaces must set the CLSID registry key in addition to the Application Support and Application Identifier registry keys. An application that does not include an add-in should not set the CLSID registry key.
If the CLSID registry key does not exist, the application should create it under the following registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\WindowsServerBackup\Application Support\WriterGUID
Create a subkey with the name CLSID and type REG_SZ. The value should be the GUID of the COM coclass that implements the add-in.
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