Volume Shadow Copy backup software is a technology utilizing the VSS Windows service that allows you to make backup copies or snapshots of data on a specific volume, even if the data is locked. This technique saves time and efforts, and can eliminate a significant quantity of human errors as well.
VSS (Volume Shadow Copy) is a standard Windows technology allowing reading files already opened. In Handy Backup, the implementation of VSS shadow copy allows hot backup, e.g. copying data actively used by other software without stopping it. Handy Backup supports VSS backup for all plug-ins and file systems that can implement it.
The VSS technology is available in all modern Windows versions including Windows 11, 10, 8, Windows Server 2022, 2019, 2016, 2012, operating primarily with backup tasks, especially with those that copy entire volumes without stopping other data jobs.
Attention: This technology allows Windows data accessing files and even disk blocks locked by other applications. It operates over the NTFS file system.
All new technologies of Handy Backup use volume shadow copy solutions always when it is possible. These technologies are especially efficient for server-type data, such as drive images, databases and virtual machines.
Handy Backup utilizes VSS for backing up some databases, such as MS SQL and MS Exchange Server, as well as for operating with Oracle RMAN.
No extra efforts or actions required for using Handy Backup as shadow copy backup software. The program automatically implements these technologies every time when it is possible.
Note: To stay with more traditional "cold" backup, just close all apps working with data you are planning to save, and then Handy Backup will process this data as common files or folders.
The key advantage, as described before, is a possibility to use any data for backup without stopping processes that use these data simultaneously. It can be especially true and useful when saving big amounts of server-level, network-oriented data, or huge information blocks such as drive images.
The reason described before allows making "hot" backup by using a VSS. Shortly, the term "hot backup" means copying data already opened and processed by other software.
If you ever tried to copy files locked or blocked by an application files, you would have a chance to see an error message like "The process cannot access the file because another process has locked a portion of the file". In a situation like that, the VSS service for backup is exactly what you need.
To ensure copying of locked files by Volume Shadow Copy Service backup, you only need to verify that these services are enabled:
Using Handy Backup as your Volume Shadow copy backup solution, you can effectively make snapshots of your data without stopping processing it when backing it up.
The featured software has a history of being an effective tool for VSS Copy backup of specific data types (several previous versions allowed making VSS backup of MS Exchange 2010 actual databases instead of the entire volume they are stored to).