What's New: VSS in Windows Server 2008 R2 & Windows 7
Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7 introduce the following changes to the Volume Shadow Copy Service.
New VSS Interfaces
New VSS Classes
New VSS Enumerations
New VSS Functions
Existing VSS Interface Modifications
IVssHardwareSnapshotProviderEx interface
- Added method: ResyncLuns
VSS Event Tracing and Logging
Beginning with Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7, you can use the VssTrace tool, the Logman tool, or the Tracelog tool to collect tracing information for the VSS infrastructure. For more information, see Using Tracing Tools with VSS.
LUN Resynchronization
In Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7, VSS requesters can use a hardware shadow copy provider feature called LUN resynchronization (or "LUN resync"). This is a fast-recovery scheme that allows an application administrator to restore data from a shadow copy to the original logical unit number (LUN) or to a new LUN. The shadow copy can be a full clone or a differential shadow copy. In either case, at the end of the resync operation, the destination LUN will have the same contents as the shadow copy LUN. During the resync operation, the array performs a block-level copy from the shadow copy to the destination LUN. For more information, see the following:
- LUN Resync - A fast recovery scenario in Server 2008 R2
- "How Shadow Copies Are Used" in Volume Shadow Copy Service
Express Writers
In Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7, the VSS express interface allows an application to register the location of its data files without implementing a VSS writer. For more information, see Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) Express Writers.
New VSS Writers
Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7 introduce the following VSS writers:
- Performance Counters Writer
- Task Scheduler Writer
- VSS Metadata Store Writer
These new writers are documented in In-Box VSS Writers.