I am using Macrium 7.2.4325. Lately it seems none of my backups are running at all on one server. This is frightening. Where do I go to begin troubleshooting this issue? I have revisited the backup definitions and they ran fine on the day I did so, but have not since. I have a schedule of 4 different backup definitions and none of them are running consistently after having been working perfectly for several years now. I also have the same version running on a Hyper-V server with no problems. What gives?

It could be Windows Task Scheduler.  There were numerous issues reported here with folks using it.  Macrium's Task Scheduler was introduced in Version 7.3.  The GUI gives you a choice of using either one.

https://knowledgebase.macrium.com/display/KNOW72/New+in+Macrium+Reflect+7.3

I was also going to ask as a first troubleshooting step what scheduler you were using: Windows Task Scheduler or Macrium Task Scheduler?

I would also want to know which scheduling engine you were using.  And I'd also want to understand what sort of job failure condition we're looking at here.  You say that backups aren't running, but you didn't specify what you're seeing that led you to that determination.  For example, if you just noticed that you don't have new backup files at your destination as you expect, then there are different forms of failure.  So first, check the Logs tab.  Are there job log entries for the jobs where you don't have backup files as expected?  If so, that would indicate that jobs are in fact running and are then failing, as opposed to the job never having started at all.  If that's what you're seeing, then what do the logs say?  If you don't have any logs for expected run times, then look at the Scheduled Backups tab.  What is shown in the Last Run Time column for the problem jobs?  Is it the most recent date on which those jobs SHOULD have run, or some earlier date?

Actually, I just took I closer look at that version number, and you could only be running Windows Task Scheduler.  Macrium Task Scheduler didn't arrive until Reflect 7.3, and it was developed specifically to get Reflect away from WTS and some bugs that could cause backups not to run and/or to run at unexpected times in addition to expected times.  So perhaps as a basic first question, why are you running a Reflect release that is over 2 years old?  There have been quite a few bug fixes and enhancements since then.  If you've kept an eye on the release notes and made a conscious decision not to update based on their contents, then you might still want to update now to try Macrium Task Scheduler.  If on the other hand you haven't even looked at the release notes over the last 2 years and have also avoided updated because "everything's been working fine", well....first of all everything apparently HASN'T been working fine.  But in addition, sometimes bugs exist that can affect restore scenarios, so even if backups WERE working fine, it doesn't necessarily mean there's been no reason to update in 2 years.  I've seen people encounter problems when trying to restore backups using their Rescue Media created by outdated Reflect versions that never got updated, whereas if they'd updated their Rescue Media before their system died, they wouldn't have had that restore problem. I don't advocate for installing updates just for the sake of updating, since updates do sometimes break things that used to work, but I would say that if you choose not to update, understand what you're skipping out on.  Or if you don't want to take that kind of time, then on balance, keeping current is probably better than leaving everything alone.

That's right!  I failed to notice that that version # was before Macrium Task Scheduler's implementation.

I tried (subtly) to point that out to the OP in my earlier post thinking that updating to the latest V7 release might help with his/her problem.

Thank you gentlemen and/or ladies,
Going to update right now.

+x

 

SmartAceW0LF - 28 September 2021 3:51 PM

Thank you gentlemen and/or ladies,
Going to update right now.

When you install the update, you'll be given the option to convert to the Macrium Task Scheduler.  Choose that option.  All of your definition files and schedules will work with the MTS.  Let us know if that solves your issue.