You can protect MS Hyper-V virtual machines against data loss using the Backup Manager. Versions 2.0 and 3.0 running on the following operating systems are supported: Hyper-V Server 2008 R2, 2012, 2012 R2 and Windows Server 2008 R2, 2012, 2012 R2.

Hyper-V machines are backed up together with their snapshots. This lets you return a machine to a previous state after recovery.

To access the Hyper-V protection feature, you should install the Backup Manager (version 13.0 or newer) to the workstation or server where Hyper-V is running (a current version is recommended).

Backing up Hyper-V machines

Pre-backup settings (optional)

To take advantage of the best possible backup speed, you can enable the volume snapshot integration service (also referred to as the volume checkpoint in the newer versions of Hyper-V). This lets the Backup Manager use the help of native VSS writers during backups. It improves backup speed and reduces the amount of data transmitted to the cloud.

1. Start the Hyper-V Manager.
2. Right-click the virtual machine you want to back up. Choose Settings from the context menu.
3. Go to Management > Integration services. Enable the Backup (volume checkpoint) option (or Backup (volume snapshot) in the older versions of Hyper-V).

Backup steps

The backup process for Hyper-V is simple. Your virtual machines can be on or off during backup (this is achieved thanks to integration with the Microsoft Volume Shadow Copy Service).

1. Start the Backup Manager.
2. Open the Backup tab.
3. Click Add next to “Hyper-V” (you will find it under “Available data sources”).
4. Configure your backup selection. You can select all virtual machines detected on the current computer or only some of them. For each virtual machine, you can select just one of its disks (.vhd or .vhdx). We recommend to select the whole virtual machine though. Click Save to apply the changes.

5. Start the backup (use the Run backup button for a one-time session or go to Preferences > Schedule to enable regular protection).

A backup process has started. Its duration can vary depending on the size of your virtual machine(s), data transfer speed, and some other factors. Please note that initial backups generally take longer than subsequent backups (you can learn more about backup processes in this post).

Recovering Hyper-V machines

Hyper-V is recovered according to a general instruction (view the instruction). Hyper-V supports both in-place restores (performed to the original location) and restores to a new location. In case of an in-place restore, the original Hyper-V machine should be powered off at the time of the restore (otherwise it won’t be possible to overwrite it).

You can recover the whole virtual machine or just a disk. Your recovery options are based on what has been backed up.

Starting the virtual machine after recovery

In most cases you’ll be able to start the recovered Hyper-V machine in the same way you have started the original one. Sometimes, however, you might see an error message prompting you to adjust some settings. The message can appear on virtual machines that are located in different networks.

1. Open Hyper-V Manager.
2. Right-click the virtual machine that hasn’t managed to start normally. Choose Settings from the context menu.

3. From the left menu, choose Hardware > Network Adapter.
4. From the Network list, choose “Configuration error” and specify the configuration of the network adapter. Alternatively, you can choose “Not connected” to disable network adapter usage.

5. Restart the recovered virtual machine.