Datto F.A.Q.2020-12-16T17:00:07+05:00

Datto F.A.Q.

  • Datto Cloud Restores Through Recovery Launchpad
    For the backups that exist only on the Datto cloud, there’s a different way to do Files Restores and Cloud Virtualization through the partners portal with a different login that we will create for you. Once the account is created you’ll receive an automatic email to create a password. Then, to perform restores, you have to click on the menu Devices > Recovery Launchpad, and follow the instructions from the document attached.
    To create new users, it has to be done, see attached the document Manage Clients on Datto Portal.
  • Restore - How can I restore a backup to a physical machine?

    The process of transferring an image backup of your server to a physical machine is called Bare Metal Restore (BMR).

    In the scenario when you have been running a virtual machine after a server crashed and now you’re ready to shut down the VM to get the operations back to the physical server, this would be the next step to follow.

    To do the BMR, the first thing you need to do is to create a bootable USB with the BMR software from Datto.

  • Restore - How can I recover files on the Datto?

    To start a file restore, follow the instructions below:

    • Over the Datto web portal, click on the Restore tab.
    • From there Choose a System that you want to restore from, Choose Recovery Type File Restore, and Choose a Recovery Point you need.
    • Click on Mount to proceed.
    • If the agent is encrypted, you would be required to enter the password at this point to have access to the contents of the backup.
    • From there you can access the contents of the restore over File Explorer. Just copy the UNC path that gets generated automatically in the Samba Share section and paste it over the address bar of Windows Explorer, so you can access everything over Windows.
    • Then just browse within the drives and folders to find what you’re looking for and copy/paste it over your desktop to recover it.
    • Once you’re done with the restore, click on Unmount to clear it, since the mounted restore uses resources from the Datto appliance and it can affect its performance.
  • Restore - How can I perform restore tests on my Datto for PCI auditing?

    On the Datto appliance, you do not need to perform manual restore jobs for your audits.

    For this Datto has the Screenshot Verification feature, which is local virtualization restore that the Datto runs automatically to one of the backups of the day for each machine and it takes a screenshot of the booting process. If the screenshot is successful, it means that the backup is healthy. And that screenshot is sent as a notification every day as an email to the account you have set up for notifications on the Configure Agent Settings option. You only need to present this screenshot to your auditors as the restore test for the local backups.

  • Restore - How to start a local virtualization on backup of a recovery point.

    Starting a local VM on a Datto appliance

    Topic

    This article explains how to start a local virtualization and backups of a recovery point on a SIRIS device through the Datto appliance GUI during a disaster recovery scenario.

    For hybrid virtualization on ALTO or SIRIS, see Hybrid Virtualization.

    Environment

    • Datto SIRIS

    Description

    1. Log into the Datto appliance GUI. Then, click theRestoretab. This will display all of the protected machines paired with the Datto device.

    blobid2.png

    Figure 1: Restore

    1. UnderChoose a Systemselect the protected machine needed to be restored
    2. UnderChoose A Recovery Type, selectLocal Virtualization
    3. UnderChoose A Recovery Point, select the date to restore.
    4. After all settings are selected, click START RESTORE

    Figure 2: Start a Restore (click to enlarge)

    1. On the following page, configure your local virtualization options. To use the local virtualization as your production machine in a disaster recovery scenario, configure its Windows networking options to match those used by the protected server. Make sure that your production machine is no longer on the network before performing this step. For more information about these settings, see Restore: Local Virtualization Options.mceclip0.png

    Figure 3: Virtualization options (click to enlarge)

    1. Once the settings are checked, selectAPPLYfollowed by START VM.
    2. With the Rescue Agent option enabled, you will be prompted to choose whether or not you would like to pause backups on the protected machine. Depending on your recovery scenario, you can choose to either PAUSE BACKUPSor CONTINUE BACKUPS. Typically, you would pause backups on a system that cannot be reached during a disaster scenario.  Once you’ve made your selection, click CONFIRM.mceclip1.png

    Figure 4: Pause or continue backups (click to enlarge)

    You will be able to see the VM booting in the Screenshot window.

    Figure 5: Screenshot window (click to enlarge)

    Your virtualization will mount and begin running in the Local Virtualization screen. On the Protect tab of the Datto appliance GUI, you will now see a new agent with a name comprised of the word ‘Rescue’ and the protected server’s IP address or FQDN. This is the Rescue Agent for your running virtualization. You can manage this agent the same way you would manage any other agent, including setting a custom backup schedule for it through the Configure Agent Settings page.mceclip2.png

    Figure 6: Rescue Agent, as seen in the Protect tab (click to enlarge)

    If the Source Agent that you created the Rescue Agent from is encrypted by the Datto appliance, the Rescue Agent will also be created as an encrypted agent. It will use the same encryption password as the Source Agent, and you will need to unseal the agent on the Protect tab of the appliance GUI in the event of a device reboot.mceclip3.png

    Figure 7: Sealed encrypted rescue agent, Protect tab (click to enlarge)

    1. Back on the Local Virtualization page, once your local virtualization boots, you can connect to it via the following methods:
    2. By clicking the Open in browser link to start a browser-based VNC session (recommended)
      B. By using any VNC viewer capable of reaching the VNC address displayed. When connecting to a virtualization via RDP or VNC, you will be prompted for the connection password shown in the VNC Password or RDP Password field.
      C.  By connecting using the options shown in the Connect via RDP dropdown. See the Connecting via RDP section of this article for more information.mceclip5.png

    Figure 8: Local Virtualization options (click to enlarge)

    To stop the local virtualization, but leave it mounted, click STOP. To stop the local virtualization and unmount it, click STOP AND UNMOUNT.

    Connecting via RDP

    RDP access to local virtualizations requires the connecting workstation to be running Windows Server 2008 SP3 or newer.

    You can connect to your local virtualization via RDP as follows:

    1. Click the Connect Via RDPlink. You will be presented with two options:
    • Connect using local network: Downloads an RDP session file configured to connect to the Virtual Machine over the local network. This is useful if you are on the same network as the local virtualization.
    • Connecting using Datto Relay: Downloads an RDP session file configured to connect to the local virtualization remotely. This is useful if you are not on the same network as the local virtualization.
    1. The Datto appliance will download the RDP file to your default download location. The file will be named with the IP address of the agent being virtualized, followed by “.rdp.”  For example:10.1.234.56.rdp
    2. Double click the file to open the RDP connection, and allow it to load. To log into Windows, select theCtrl + Alt + Deloption from the appliance GUI.

    Removing the restore

    When you no longer need the Rescue Agent, remove the protected virtualization from the Restore tab of the Datto Device Web by clicking Stop and then Archive.

    Don’t click the Stop button if you have not fully restored the production machine. The stop button does a hard shutdown of the rescue agent, which is the equivalent of unplugging the power cord on a physical machine. If you are using the rescue agent in your production environment, log into the virtual machine from its VNC session and do a soft shutdown (Start Menu → Shut Down).

    Figure 8: Stop and archive (click to enlarge)

    When you click Archive, your Datto appliance will archive the Rescue Agent’s dataset. Archiving will hide the Rescue Agent in the list of Restores, stop all backups, and unmount the VM permanently. Only use this option if you have no need to initiate backups of this Rescue Agent in the future.mceclip6.png

    Figure 9: Stop and archive (click to enlarge)

  • Which browsers are supported to access the Datto portal?

    To access the Datto web portal the most compatible browsers are Chrome and Firefox.

  • What’s the recommended schedule to set the backups to run for each server?

    To configure the times and amount incremental backups that are taken for the servers what we recommend is to adjust the schedule and the amount of backups you take per day based on the priority of the servers. So depending on how important each server is for your operations, you would choose the specific number of backups and the times you want to run the jobs.

    For example, for a database server you might want to do 5 or 6 backups per day in the times when you know it is not the busiest time. But for an interface machine you might only need to do 2 backups per day every twelve hours. This means that you would have to take the time to modify this setting for all servers to make sure that they are set correctly based on your needs.

    To do this modification, follow these instructions:

    1. Over the Datto web portal, click on the Protect tab.
    2. Scroll down and choose one of your servers.
    3. Click on Configure Agent Settings on the left.
    4. Scroll down to the Local Backup and Retention Policy section.
    5. Click on Custom Settings to open the calendar so you can modify it.
    6. To select a specific time, hit on the number to mark the whole column, or hit the week day to select the whole row.
    7. Once this is done, click on Apply or Apply to All as needed.
  • The screenshot test is failing with a Device Ready screen. How to resolve this?

    If one of your servers is failing the screenshot test showing the Windows Device Ready booting screen, this means that the Datto needs to wait longer for the server to be completely booted before it takes the screenshot verification.

    To resolve this, follow these instructions:

    1. Over the Datto web portal, click on the Protect tab.
    2. Scroll down and find the server that has the screenshot failure.
    3. Click on Configure Agent Settings on the left.
    4. Scroll down to the section Screenshot Verification.
    5. .Increase the Additional wait time to double the value that it has currently.
    6. Hit Apply to complete.
    7. Then to start a manual screenshot test, go back to the Protect tab.
    8. Find the server on the list.
    9. Click on the Manage Recovery Points option.
    10. Choose the latest recovery point available and then click on the Screenshot Verification column.
    11. After this wait for the screenshot to be generated, based on the time set up on the Additional wait time, and confirm that this resolved the issue.
  • The Screenshot test is failing with a Windows Update error. What can I do?

    Over the Datto web portal, on the Protect tab, if one of the servers has a screenshot failure, and when you click on the screenshot it shows a Windows Update screen, this means that the system was running the Windows update by the time the Datto took that specific backup that was used for the test.

    In this case to resolve the error, just make sure to reboot when it’s possible the physical server in question, and on the next backup and screenshot test this should be cleared automatically.

  • What’s the process to replace the ShadowSnap client for the Datto Windows Agent client in one of my servers?

    The process of replacing the ShadowSnap client on your server would require to use a third party tool to uninstall ShadowSnap and make sure that all leftovers are cleared. Then, you would have to reboot the machine two times, after uninstalling the client and after installing the new one. Please schedule this accordingly.

    1. To uninstall the client, use Revo Uninstaller to clear all leftovers from the application. Download the application from this link: https://www.revouninstaller.com/download-free-portable.php
    2. Once downloaded, find the file and launch it.
    3. On the list of applications, you have to search for ShadowSnap and StorageCraft software.
    4. Start uninstalling ShadowSnap first, by right clicking on it and choose Uninstall.
    5. After the process completes, over the Uninstalling ShadowSnap windows from Revo, check Scanning Modes Moderate and click on Scan.
    6. If Revo shows any leftovers in the registry click on the Select All button, and then on Delete. You’ll be prompted to confirm if you want to proceed, so click on Yes, and then on Finish.
    7. The next step is to remove StorageCraft application. Right click on it and choose Uninstall.
    8. After the process completes, you’ll be prompted if you want to restart the computer. You still have one step left before doing this, so choose No, I will restart my computer later and hit on Finish.
    9. Over the Uninstalling ShadowSnap windows from Revo, check Scanning Modes Advanced and click on Scan.
    10. If Revo shows any leftovers in the registry click on the Select All button, and then on Delete. You’ll be prompted to confirm if you want to proceed, so click on Yes, and then on Finish.
    11. Once this is completed, please proceed to reboot the server the first time.
    12. Once the machine comes back up, install the Datto Windows Agent from this link: https://www.datto.com/downloads/DattoWindowsAgent.exe.
    13. Reboot the server one last time.
    14. Then go to the Datto web Portal and click on the Protect tab.
    15. From there find the server you’re working with and click on Remove Agent on the left side.
    16. Once it completely disappears from the Protect tab list, click on the Add a New Agent button on the top upper corner.
    17. Choose Agent Based System.
    18. Enter the IP address of the machine where you installed the client.
    19. For the option, Do you want to create this agent based on a template or another agent?, choose Yes, please. Then Select a Template or agent from the dropdown. You can choose any of the servers you have already added to copy the settings it has, like scheduling, retention, screenshot verification schedule, etc.
    20. For the option, Do you want to encrypt your backups?, select Yes, please. Then enter a Passphrase. This password should be the same you have been using to add the other servers to the Datto, so it won’t be confusing to remember it. You have to save this password securely because we cannot recover it, and if you lose it we would have to delete the data and re-pair the agent again.
    21. Wait until the pairing process completes.
    22. After that, you’ll be redirected to the Protect tab and from there you can Start a Backup.
  • What’s the process to replace the Datto Windows Agent client for the ShadowSnap client in one of my servers?

    The process of replacing the DWA client on your server would require rebooting the machine two times, after uninstalling the client and after installing the new one. Please schedule this accordingly.

    1. Go to Control Panel on the specific server and open Programs and Features.
    2. Find Datto Windows Agent on the list and uninstall it.
    3. Reboot the server the first time.
    4. Once the machine is back up, install ShadowSnap from this link: https://www.datto.com/shadowsnap.
    5. Reboot the server one last time.
    6. Then go to the Datto web Portal and click on the Protect tab.
    7. From there find the server you’re working with and click on Remove Agent on the left side.
    8. Once it completely disappears from the Protect tab list, click on the Add a New Agent button on the top upper corner.
    9. Choose Agent Based System.
    10. Enter the IP address of the machine where you installed the client.
    11. For the option, Do you want to create this agent based on a template or another agent?, choose Yes, please. Then Select a Template or agent from the dropdown. You can choose any of the servers you have already added to copy the settings it has, like scheduling, retention, screenshot verification schedule, etc.
    12. For the option, Do you want to encrypt your backups?, select Yes, please. Then enter a Passphrase. This password should be the same you have been using to add the other servers to the Datto, so it won’t be confusing to remember it. You have to save this password securely because we cannot recover it, and if you lose it we would have to delete the data and re-pair the agent again.
    13. Wait until the pairing process completes.
    14. After that, you’ll be redirected to the Protect tab and from there you can Start a Backup.
  • We’re receiving a PCI vulnerability for SSL The Certificate is Self-Signed. How can I resolve it?

    For servers running ShadowSnap version 4.0.0, it is possible that you would receive a PCI vulnerability warning for SSL Certificate is Self-Signed, over port TCP 25566.

    This issue was consulted with Datto support, we got confirmation that it is a false positive. The SSL certificates that they are currently using are signed by themselves, and this can be safely ignored.

    They have one KB article that mentions this: https://kb.datto.com/hc/en-us/articles/115003216303-FAQ-Authentication-Methods-Compatible-with-Datto-Appliances

    Here is the excerpt:

    SSL: HTTPS and SSL are supported on Datto appliances running the SIRIS 3 (Ubuntu 16.04) software stack. Because these devices use a self-signed certificate, you may receive a browser warning that the certificate is untrusted when accessing the appliance’s GUI via HTTPS. If the appliance is on a managed switched network with no malicious activity, this warning can be disregarded.

  • What are the firewall rules that need to be created for my Datto appliance?

    For IP xx.xx.xx.xx allow ports 80, 443, 2200-2250,22, UDP 123 to have access to IP’s:

    8.8.8.8

    27.111.214.77

    68.169.200.209

    207.223.32.251

    88.84.155.190

    8.34.181.199/32

    8.34.176.0/24

    47.19.105.0/24

    162.244.87.51

    162.244.85.60

    162.244.87.37/32 port5044

    162.244.87.38/32 port5044

    162.244.87.0/24 port 443 and port 80

    198.49.95.0/24

    198.137.225.0/24 port 80 and port 2200-2250

    198.137.226.0/24

    206.201.136.0/24 port 80

    206.201.137.0/24

    27.111.249.0/24

    162.244.87.109 

    23.202.72.84

    8.34.181.249 

    198.135.233.13

    91.189.88.0 through 91.189.95.255

    8.34.165.0/24

    8.34.181.0/24

    192.30.37.0/24

    198.49.95.0/24

    162.244.84.0/24

    162.244.85.0/24

    206.201.139.0/24

    70.33.207.240/28

    70.33.207.241/28

    70.33.242.128/25

    198.137.227.0/24

    206.201.134.0/24

    176.74.168.192/26

    66.155.20.0/24

    185.217.56.0/24

    185.217.58.0/24

    198.137.225.0/24

    185.217.57.0/24

    185.217.59.0/24

    27.111.249.128/25

    103.109.129.0/24

    198.137.226.0/24

    103.109.128.0/24

    Also allow xx.xx.xx.xx to resolve DNS to 8.8.8.8.

    And to allow the communication between the Datto appliance and the servers that will be backed up, request the following:

    Between IP xx.xx.xx.xx and the whole vlan (or specific IPs), open TCP ports: 25566, 25568, 3260, 3262, 3389, 139, 445. This rule should be bidirectional, because source could be either way.

  • My Datto appliance seems to be offline. What should I do?

    If the Datto web portal is not accessible locally, you would have to get in front of the device and connect a monitor, keyboard and mouse to check what’s the status of the machine.

    Once there, try hard rebooting the appliance to see if it would come up normally after. Please press the power button of the device for a few seconds and make sure that it is completely turned off. Then press the button again to turn it on and then monitor the booting process to see if it loads correctly or if there are any messages or errors that we would have to review.

    If the machine comes back up, go to the Datto web portal, click on the Protect tab, and enter the encryption password to resume the backups.

    If the appliance doesn’t come back up, contact Hexistor support so we can work with you reviewing any messages or errors, to see what would be the next step.

  • How can I create a new Datto user account?
    • log in to the Datto Web portal with an existing account.
    • Click on the Configure tab and choose the Device Settings option.
    • Scroll down to the Local Users section.
    • Click on the Add User button.
    • Enter the Username and Password as needed.

    You should leave by default the Web Access option marked, to allow access to the web portal locally, and the Permissions to access all the options.

  • How do I change the password for a Datto user?
    • From the Datto web portal, click on the Configure tab and choose the Device Settings option.
    • Scroll down to the Local Users section.
    • Then select the user you want to edit and click on Set Password to update it.
  • My server is down. How can I start a Local Virtualization?

    When your server is down (because of Windows updates, hardware issues or any other issue), the first step to take is to start a local virtualization from the Datto appliance, to get your server up and running within minutes and your users working normally on the virtual machine, while you figure out what are the next steps to resolve the problem with the physical server without being in a hurry.

    Before starting a local virtualization, in the scenario where the Datto appliance is in a different vlan than the other servers, it is necessary to allow the appliance to have communication to the specific vlan of the server that failed so the virtual machine can be bridge to the correct network in order to be able to assign its production IP address.

    To do this, you would have to connect the Datto appliance to the specific vlan following the instructions below:

    1. First connect a network cable to the second NIC of the Datto (from the two Ethernet ports together, it should be the port on the right), and this cable should go to the specific vlan from the server that failed.
    2. Then, log in to the Datto web portal, click on the Configure > Networking option, and on the ETH1 section, assign an IP address to the Datto on that specific vlan that nothing else is using (not the IP of the server that failed, but a new IP just for the Datto appliance to use while you’re running the virtual machine). Also, enter the Mask that corresponds to this vlan.
    3. After clicking on the Apply button, you’ll see a new button to Reload Networking.

    Once this is done, you can start the virtualization with these steps:

    1. Over the Datto web portal, click on the Restore tab.
    2. From there Choose a System that you want to restore from, Choose Recovery Type Local Virtualization, and Choose a Recovery Point you need.
    3. Before starting the VM, select the Local Options as referenced below.
      1. For CPU Cores and System RAM, review the Available Resources section to see how much can be applied without affecting the performance of the Datto appliance. Remember that the Datto should still keep enough resources to act as a host and to keep your backups running, so we recommend to use no more than half of the resources available for the virtual machine.
      2. Keep Controller and Video Controller Options as is.
      3. For the Network Options, choose Bridge to Eth1, to enable the connection that was set on the second NIC of the Datto to the specific vlan of the server that is being restored.
      4. The hit Apply to confirm the settings.
    4. Use option Create Rescue Agent – take backups of your running VM, so the system can create an additional agent for the VM that can be used to recover the physical machine later.
    5. Hit on Start VM to get the machine booting.
    6. If the agent is encrypted, please enter the secret passphrase to have access to the backup.
    7. After the machine is fully booted, the next step is to connect to it for the first time with the local administrator credentials so you can assign the IP address it previously had, because the VM is loaded with some generic drivers and it doesn’t carry the IP automatically.
    8. Click on the Screenshot of the VM  so it can open the machine on a new tab in the browser.
    9. From there, click on the Ctrl + Alt + Del button, on the right upper corner.
    10. Enter the local administrator credentials to login.
    11. After the machine finishes loading the generic drivers and you have full access to the desktop, go to the Control Panel and open the Network and Sharing Center.
    12. From there, assign a static IP address to the server as you would normally do it. Make sure that the IP address you assign to the virtualization is the same as the IP address your production machine was using when its backups were running.
    13. After that’s complete, you should be able to see the VM on the network as the production machine and your users should be able to access it normally.

    In a disaster scenario, please contact Hexistor Support so we can guide your through this process and assist if there are any issues.

  • My Datto portal is showing the message ‘Offsite data synchronization is currently paused’. What does it mean?

    mceclip0.png

    When you’re seeing that your Datto web portal is showing message Offsite data synchronization is currently paused for all agents and shares. To re-enable offsite data synchronization, update the Device Settings. This means that your Datto appliance does not have cloud enabled to send data offsite, which might be expected if you are contracted to use Solarwinds Backup as your cloud solution instead. Unfortunately, there’s no option to hide this message from the portal, but you can discard it.

     

  • We can’t find the encryption password that my agents are using. What can be done?

    Unfortunately, we don’t have a way of recovering the encryption password used to add the agents to the Datto portal, so you should try to find this information by investigating with your team members in your IT Department.

    If you’re certain that you can’t find it we would have to remove the agents completely, which would delete all data that’s stored, and then you would need to re-add it again. To remove the encrypted agents, please contact Hexistor Support so we can assist with this request.

  • How can I encrypt my agents on the Datto portal if they are added without the encryption?

    Because the agent was added without the encryption at the beginning it would be necessary to delete it and re-added it again with the encryption password. Follow these detail instructions to do this:

    1. Remove the Agent
      1. From the Datto web portal, click on the Protect tab, then select from the list the agent that you want to remove.
      2. On the left side, click on the link Remove Agent.
      3. Confirm that you want to delete all the backups store for this backup by entering the phrase requested.
    2. Re-Add the Agent
      1. Back to the Protect tab, click on the button Add New Agent on the upper right side.
      2. Choose Agent Based System.
      3. Enter the IP address of the server that was removed.
      4. For the option, Do you want to create this agent based on a template or another agent?, choose Yes, please. Then Select a Template or agent from the dropdown. You can choose any of the servers you have already added to copy the settings it has, like scheduling, retention, screenshot verification schedule, etc.
      5. For the option, Do you want to encrypt your backups?, select Yes, please. Then enter a Passphrase. This password should be the same you have been using to add the other servers to the Datto, so it won’t be confusing to remember it. You have to save this password securely because we cannot recover it, and if you lose it we would have to delete the data and re-pair the agent again.
      6. Wait until the pairing process completes.
      7. After that, you’ll be redirected to the Protect tab and from there you can Start a Backup.
    3. Start a Manual Backup
      1. From the Protect tab on the portal, locate the agent in the list, then click on Start a Backup.
  • How can I install the Datto client in a new server?

    For servers that exist in a different vlan than the Datto appliance, the first step would be to create a firewall rule to allow the communication between both devices. So please request the following:

    Between IP xx.xx.xx.xx and specific IP, open TCP ports: 25566, 25568, 3260, 3262, 3389, 139, 445. This rule should be bidirectional, because source could be either way.

    Now, to install the client, use these instructions:

     

    1. Download the latest version of the Datto client you would like to use from this link:
      1. ShadowSnap – Version 4.0.0: https://www.datto.com/shadowsnap.
      2. Datto Windows Agent – Version 2.2.0: https://www.datto.com/downloads/DattoWindowsAgent.exe.

    Datto has available two different clients that can be installed on the servers to get them to backup. Both clients are compatible with all Windows versions and you can use either or without any requirements. We’ll provide both download links so you can have them available.

    If we find that after installing one of these clients the server is not able to backup, and Hexistor support has troubleshooted the issue with you and found that the problem is not related to the firewall, we could recommend to install the other client to see if we could get it to work. Consult with Hexistor support with questions about this.

    1. Run the installation with administrator privileges.
    2. After the client is installed, you would have to restart the machine before it can run a new backup.
    3. Once the machine is up, log in to the Datto portal. Go to the Protect tab and click on the Add a New Agent button on the right side.
    4. Choose  Agent Based System.
    5. Enter the IP address of the machine where you installed the client.
    6. For the option, Do you want to create this agent based on a template or another agent?, choose Yes, please. Then Select a Template or agent from the dropdown. You can choose any of the servers you have already added to copy the settings it has, like scheduling, retention, screenshot verification schedule, etc.
    7. For the option, Do you want to encrypt your backups?, select Yes, please. Then enter a Passphrase. This password should be the same you have been using to add the other servers to the Datto, so it won’t be confusing to remember it. You have to save this password securely because we cannot recover it, and if you lose it we would have to delete the data and re-pair the agent again.
    8. Wait until the pairing process completes.
    9. After that, you’ll be redirected to the Protect tab and from there you can Start a Backup.
  • What is the process to update the Datto client to the latest version?

    Since there are two different Datto clients available, Datto Windows Agent (DWA) and ShadowSnap, there are two different procedures to do this update.

    Datto Windows Agent

    To update the client there’s no need to uninstall it beforehand, but after the install you do have to schedule a server reboot.

    1. Download the latest installer from https://www.datto.com/downloads/DattoWindowsAgent.exe.
    2. Run the installation with administrator privileges.
    3. Reboot the server after completing.

    ShadowSnap

    To update the client there’s no need to uninstall the old version beforehand, and you do not need to reboot the server after the install.

    1. Download the latest version from the link: https://www.datto.com/shadowsnap.
    2. Run the installation with administrator privileges.
    3. After the installation is complete, open Windows Services and restart the following:
      – ShadowProtect Service
      – Storagecraft Raw Agent
      – Storagecraft Shadow Copy Provider

    After the client has been updated, confirm the client versions over the Datto web portal, on the home page, scroll down to the Local Agent Information section, and on the Agent Version column confirm versions. Latest version for Datto Windows Agent is 2.2.0 and for ShadowSnap is 4.0.0.

  • My server is not able to run backups and I noticed that the ShadowProtect application says License Expired. What should I do?

    If a server is not able to run backups and when you go over Start > All Programs > Storagecraft > and open the ShadowProtect application you see that the License says Expired on the left bottom side, please contact Hexistor support so we can request to Datto to re-provision the license to get the backup job working again.

  • One of my servers is not able to run backups. What can I do?

    The first troubleshooting step we would follow to get a server to backup is to restart the client services and to reset a client file that keeps the incremental tracker of the backup jobs. These instructions are specific based on the Datto client that each machine is using.

    ShadowSnap – Agent Version 4.0.0

    1. On the machine not able to run a backup, open Windows Services and stop the following services:
      1. ShadowProtect Service
      2. Storagecraft Raw Agent
      3. Storagecraft Shadow Copy Provider
    2. Navigate to C:\Program Files (x86)\StorageCraft\ShadowProtect\ShadowSnap.
    3. Delete the file endptconfig.sqlite3.
    4. Go back to Windows Services and restart the three services from step 1.

    Datto Windows Agent – Agent Version 2.2.0

    1. Open Windows Services and stop the Datto Backup Agent service.
    2. Open file explorer and navigate to C:\Windows\System32\config\systemprofile\AppData\Local\Datto\Datto Windows Agent.
    3. Delete the agent.sqlitefile.
    4. Start the Datto Backup Agent Service.

    After this, repair the communication between the Datto appliance and the protected machine and test the backup process, using the procedure below:

    1. Open up Remote Web for the Datto device.
    2. Click on the Protect tab.
    3. Find the agent that you wish on the list.
    4. Click Configure Agent Settings for that agent.
    5. Scroll down to the bottom of the page.
    6. Click Repair Agent Communications.
    7. After clicking Repair Agent Communication, the device will take a few seconds to repair and it will give a status update indicating that agent communications were successfully repaired.
    8. Then, go back to the Protect tab and Start a Backup.

    Once these instructions are done, if the backup is not able to start, please contact Hexistor support so we can do further troubleshooting.

  • My Datto web portal has the message “A software upgrade is available for this device. Upgrade now. '' Should I run it?

    zendesk4.png

    Normally Datto would push the OS updates for the appliance automatically on the back end and this would not be noticeable. However, when you see the message “A software upgrade is available for this device” on the homepage of your Datto, that means that this important OS update needs to be run with your consent, since it would require a reboot of the appliance. So you should proceed with it when you see it to make sure that your Datto appliance is fully up to date.

  • My Datto appliance seems to be Full. What can be done?

    When the agents in your Datto appliance are giving the error “Backup skipped due to not enough free space” it means that your device has reached its full physical capacity and because of this no more backups can be run.

    To confirm the status of the used storage, over the Datto portal’s homepage, review the Local Storage Usage section. From there, you’ll see what’s the Local Free space available and how much space each server is using individually. If you sum the usage from all the servers you’ll get the total physical space that was available for your appliance by contract.

    zendesk3.png

    Once you’re appliance is full, there are three options that could be considered:

     

    • Review the local retention for the agents to see if it can be reduced to store backups for less time so this can clear some space.

     

    The first option is to check if the space can be cleared by adjusting the retention time for the backups stored on the appliance. Normally, the best solution is to keep the minimum possible, which is a 1 week retention and this should be enough since the Datto appliance is expected to have the most recent data available for disaster scenarios. Review this option using the instructions below and adjust it as necessary.

    1. Over the Datto web portal, click on the Protect tab.
    2. Select one of the agents on the list and click on Configure Agent Settings.
    3. Scroll to Local Backup and Retention.
    4. On the Set Retention for Local Backups option, modify Keep local backups on my device for 1 week.
    5. Hit on Apply To All to confirm.

     

    • Delete some of the least important servers so the backups could keep running for the most important ones.

     

    Because of the Datto appliance space limitation you would have to evaluate which servers would be your priority to have backed up in case of a disaster scenario and you would have to choose which ones can be removed to clear space.

    In case there are retired servers still being stored on the Datto appliance these would be the first ones that should be deleted, considering that your priority should always be to keep your online servers up to date and the retired machines should not be kept on the local appliance for long term.

    To remove the servers that are not needed, follow these instructions:

      1. Over the Datto web portal, click on the Protect tab.
      2. Scroll down the page and find the server in question.
      3. On the left side, choose the option Remove Agent.
      4. Confirm the data deletion as requested.

     

    • Consider an upgrade for your Datto appliance to a bigger capacity.

     

    If after reviewing the Local Retention it is already set to 1 week and if there are no servers that can be deleted to clear space, the only option to consider then is to upgrade your Datto appliance to have a bigger capacity that could be enough to store the amount of servers that you need to keep.

    Please contact Hexistor support to provide you a quotation to upgrade to a new Datto device.

  • What should my retention be to store my local backups on the Datto appliance?

    Since your Datto appliance is expected to have the most recent data for disaster recovery, and also the device has limited space and it cannot keep unlimited data, the retention used for your local backups should not be more than 1 month of data.

    Steps to set up the local retention:

    • Over the Datto web portal, click on the Protect tab.
    • Scroll down the page and find the server in question.
    • Click on the Configure Agent Settings on the left.
    • Scroll to the section Local Backup and Retention Policy.
    • Then over the Set Retention for Local Backups choose Keep local backups on my device for 1 Month.

    your cloud solution, Solarwinds or Datto cloud, would have your data store for the longest retention, which is the 7 years expected (this configuration for your offsite data retention is managed on our end). This way, both solutions would complement the retention to give you complete compliance.

  • My server changed the IP/hostname. How can I update it on Datto?

    Instructions to update the IP address of a server:

    • Over the Datto web portal, go to the Protect tab.
    • Scroll down the page and find the server in question.
    • Click on the Configure Agent Settings on the left.
    • Scroll to the bottom of the page to the Rename Agent section.
    • From there enter the new IP address or new hostname and click on Rename Agent. Then you should see the communication repaired and you should be able to start a new backup right away.
  • What should I do if a server gets “retired”? Can I keep or remove the data?

    For retired servers, you can keep the data or remove  it.. However, since the local appliance has limited space it is expected that it would only keep your production servers and the most recent data that you would use in case of a disaster scenario. Maintaining backups from retired servers might not leave enough space for your online machines and could get your Datto appliance full at some point, so we don’t recommend keeping these old backups stored for too long.

    If the data needs to be kept, you can archive the server on the Datto, so the data could be stored but no new backups would run. For this procedure, follow the instructions below:

    • Over the Datto web portal, click on the Protect tab.
    • Scroll down the page and find the server in question.
    • Click on the Configure Agent Settings on the left.
    • Then scroll to the bottom of the page to the option Archive Agent.

    If the data does not need to be stored, the server and the data can be removed completely by following the next steps:

    • Over the Datto web portal, click on the Protect tab.
    • Scroll down the page and find the server in question.
    • On the left side, choose the option Remove Agent.
    • Confirm the data deletion as requested.
  • Datto - Reset Incremental Tracker (endptconfig.sqlite3)
    1.) Open services.msc
    2.) Stop all three Shadowsnap services :
    StorageCraft Raw Agent
    StorageCraft Shadow Copy Provider
    ShadowProtect Service
    3.) Open task manager and kill any of these process that might hang behind:
    raw_agent_svc.exe
    ShadowProtect.exe
    ShadowProtectSvc.exe
    vsnapvss.exe
    4.) Open the file explorer and navigate to C:\Program Files (x86)\StorageCraft\ShadowProtect\ShadowSnap
    5.) Find the file called endptconfig.sqlite3 and rename that to endptconfig.sqlite3.old
    6.) Restart all three services
    7.) Attempt to repair communications from the remote web
  • Uninstall Datto Agent - Install ShadowSnap

    Perform these instructions:

    1. Uninstall Datto Windows Agent from the machine. 

    – Please open Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\Programs and Features and uninstall Datto windows agent

    2. Restart the machine.
    3. Install ShadowSnap client downloading it from this link:  https://www.hexistor.com/downloads/shadowsnap-installer.exe.
    4. Restart the machine one more time.
    5. After the installation is complete, open Windows Services and restart the following services and ensure that each one is able to start/stop:

    – ShadowProtect Service
    – Storagecraft Raw Agent
    – Storagecraft Shadow Copy Provider

  • Re-Add Agent as Encrypted
    1. Remove the Agent 
    a. From the Datto portal, click on the Protect tab, then select from the list the agent that you want to remove. 
    b. On the left side, click on the link Remove Agent. 
    c. Confirm that you want to delete all the backups store for this backup by entering the phrase requested. 
    2. Re-Add the Agent 
    a. At the same Datto portal, on the Protect tab, click on the button ‘Add New Agent’ on the upper right side. 
    b. Enter the IP address of the server that was removed. 
    c. Copy the properties of one the agents that already exist selecting from the drop down list. 
    d. In the next step where it would ask ‘Do you want to encryptthe agent’ select ‘yes’. 
    e. Enter there a passphrase as a password for the encryption. Use the same password for all agents and remember to share it with your team. 
    f. Hit on continue to finish the pairing of the agent with Datto. 
    3. Start a Manual Backup 
    a. From the Protect tab on the portal, click on Start a Backup. 
  • Steps to Do Before Migrating an Old Datto to a New Datto

    1. To the old Datto, you need to assign a new vlan 20 IP so this one can communicate to the old one. Go to Configure – Network Settings and update there the IP to a new vlan 20 IP that nothing else is using. At this point we would lose connectivity to the appliance over the network.


    2. Connect the new Datto appliance to vlan 20 and turn it on. Make sure that the network cable on the back is connected to the left side port, from the two together.

    3. Once the appliance is on you need to assign the 20.15 IP address that the old appliance was using. To do that, use these instructions.

    A. Press Ctrl+Alt+F1 to go to the back end of the device.
    B. Once it asks for a login use:
    UN. backup-admin
    PW.  metal2095
    C. Enter command: sudo -i
    This should change the prompt to root.
    D.  Enter command. nano  /etc/network/interfaces
    E. Modify the network information from here. Make sure that ‘auto eth0’ is set to static. It should look as follow, with Your Network Info.
    auto lo
    iface lo inet loopback
    auto eth0
    iface eth0 inet static
    address 10.54.20.15
    netmask 255.255.255.0
    gateway 10.54.20.4
    dns-nameservers 8.8.8.8
    auto eth1
    iface eth1 inet manual
    F. After editing the information, press Ctrl+X to close the editor, then press Y, Enter, to save the changes.
    G. Back at the command prompt, write:            /etc/init.d/networking restart
    H. When it completes enter the command:            checkin
    If everything is correct, the machine should load a bunch of instructions here.
    4. After the checkin is complete, press Ctrl+Alt+F7 to go back to the GUI.
    5. At this point the system should be giving you a wizard to run some updates for the device, which will restart after, and then it will ask to register the device.
    For the registration part, enter the device name. Create the username and password as you like. And enter the contact information for the property. At the end  select the box allow third party installers.
    6.Once the registration is complete, restart the Datto appliance.
    Then we need to confirm that we have remote access to the new appliance, and Datto will join us to try to connect to the old appliance over the back end, using the new IP assigned, so they can start the device migration.
    For your information the process of the migration will take a day or so to run and while it’s running the backups won’t be able to run.
  • ShadowProtect Bare Metal Restore (BMR) Process

    The ShadowProtect BMR process is only needed when the machine the customer is going to restore to is using a software RAID, which would require the customer to have the drivers prepared to use them in the BMR environment to be able to see the drives before the transfer of the data.

    If the machine has a hardware RAID, use the Datto BMR process, which is faster than this one: https://desk.zoho.com/support/hexistor/ShowHomePage.do#Solutions/dv/198762000000119001.

    Use the following steps to do a ShadowProtect BMR:
    2. Download Rufus to create a bootable USB with the ISO: https://rufus.akeo.ie/
    3. Create a Network Share over the Datto portal, were we’re going to run a new backup with a Windows format (different to what the system does in normal basis with a zfs format. This will be the next step).  On the Datto portal, click on File Share > Network Attached Storage. Create a share with a NAS format. Then go to the Configure Share Settings, and set it up as Public.
    4. Take a new backup with a Windows format by going to the server you will be restoring (this backup has to be taken either from the Virtual Machine, if it were a disaster scenario, or from the physical machine if it is available). To do this process, go to the server, choose Start > All Programs > Storagecraft > ShadowProtect. Use the Backup wizard and set everything as default, and point to the NAS share for the output. These instructions with screenshots can be find in the document attached (Page 2).
    5. Get the Raid Controller drivers from the machine that will be restore to and save them on the same NAS Share that was created on the Datto for the backup.
    6. Once the backup is completed, connect the USB to the physical machine and select boot from the USB on the Bios.
    7. Then, for Four Seasons properties, connect a network cable to the machine to go to vlan 10. Also, make sure that the Datto appliance has a connection to vlan 10 so that both devices can communicate without restrictions for this process.
    8. Once the machine has booted to the BMR environment, go to Tools menu > Network Configuration, and from there assign a static IP to the machine, something on vlan 10 that nothing else is using. Also, on this same window, enter the UNC path of the network share where the new backup was taken, and run the rest of the restore steps. You can find these instructions on the document attached (Page 8).
    9. Also, load the RAID controller drivers over the menu Tools > Load Drives.
    10. Then, follow the next steps starting on page 10 to get the restore process initialized. The process needs to be run for each drive at a time, starting with partition C.
    11. After the process is completed, remove the USB, restart the server, change the booting to C drive, and the system should boot normally as it was on the backup.
    If there are any issues or questions while doing the process, create a ticket with Datto support so a DR technician can assist.
  • Datto Bare Metal Restore (BMR) Process
    When a customer is ready to do a BMR process, to transfer the backup of a server to a physical machine, see below the steps to follow to start the process.
    Ask the customer if the physical machine that they will restore to has a software RAID. If they do, you cannot use these instructions, but you would have to use the ShadowProtect BMR process instead: https://desk.zoho.com/support/hexistor/ShowHomePage.do#Solutions/dv/198762000000119011. If it is a hardware RAID, this process is good.
    1. Download the Datto BMR 16.04 ISO from the following
    3. Use these instructions to create a bootable USB with Rufus using the ISO
    4. Once the USB is ready, request the customer to connect the USB to the physical machine.
    5. For Four Seasons properties, ask the customer to connect a network cable to get the machine on vlan 10. It would also be required to have the Datto appliance connected to vlan 10 for this process, since this is the vlan with less restrictions to allow the communication necessary for this process. To check the steps to connect the Datto to vlan 10 are:
    6. Request to turn the machine on booting from the USB.
    7. Once booted in the BMR environment, the customer would have to set up a static IP for the physical machine. This IP should be a new, temporarily, IP on vlan 10 that nothing else is using. If the customer is not able to use the GUI to apply the static IP, create a ticket with Datto support so they can assist with the process and give you instructions to update the network from the command line.
    As a reference, here are the instructions to update the network from the back end:
    a. Boot the production machine into the BMR environment. Press CTRL+ALT+F1 on the target machine’s keyboard to switch to the BMR TTY environment.
    b. At the prompt for a user name and password, enter datto in both fields. Press Enter.
    c. Change to the root user by entering the “sudo -i” command.
    d. Enter “service network-manager stop”
    e. Enter “ifconfig eth0 xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx netmask 255.255.255.0”
    f. Then enter  “route add default gw xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx”
    g. After the network is set, to go back to the GUI, request the customer to press CTRL+ALT+F7.
    8. Having the network ready, the rest of the process should go as in the Datto knowledge base article:
    9. For any issues with the process, go back to Datto support so a DR technician can assist.
  • "You need to format this disk" pop-up with Encrypted Agents
    Some Windows Server 2008 machines running the ShadowSnap client could receive a format disk popup when the Datto appliance starts the backup process.
    That format error it is actually a Windows bug that happens because of the ISCSI service because the agents are encrypted.
     
    Unfortunately on Windows Server 2008 machines without R2 there’s no solution to resolve the issue. But in servers with Windows Server 2008 R2 the issue could be resolved by installing Service Pack 1.
     
    However, the message should not affect the machine in any way and can be discard just hitting on Cancel. Attached there’s the Datto’s knowledge database article with more information about it. 
  • Path Not Updated' Message During Datto Install

    When running the ShadowSnap installer some machines might give the message ‘PATH not updated, orginal length 1030 > 1024’. This message can be dismissed just clicking on OK and does not affect the installation at all.

  • Agent Error - (-31 A device attached to the system is not functioning)

    When receiving error ‘STC failure occurred mid transfer. – Final error (-31 A device attached to the system is not functioning.)’. this normally means that one of the drives of the server is not performing properly and might have bad sectors. Since the Datto does a volume backup, if the drive is starting to failed, is not going to be able complete a backup for the machine.
    We would recommend you to check that the hardware on the server by running the command chkdsk /f /r on the command prompt of the server. This would require you to schedule a reboot of the machine so the task can run. Also, please run an sfc /scannow and then a disk defragmentation.
  • Agent Error - Final error (-5 Access is Denied.)

    When receiving message ‘STC failure occurred mid transfer. – Final error (-5 Access is denied.)’ this is related to TrendMicro affecting the Datto client. To resolve this, use the instructions below:
    a.  Go to the TrendMicro Admin Console.
    Click on Agents > Agent Management > Locate the hostname in question > Right Click > Settings > Device Control Settings > Uncheck Enable Device Control on both Internal and External Agents tabs.

    b. Then, on the server hit on Update Now via the TrendMicro tray icon. 
  • GUI - Local Users / Contact
    This is the procedure to manage local users and contact information for the Datto appliance.
    To access the Local Users configuration, follow these steps:
    1-Open the GUI for the device.
    2-Click the Configure tab, and click Local Users / Contact
     
    Add a New Account
    To add and configure a new local device user, follow these steps:
    1-See the Add a New Account section of the page
    2-Enter the Username, Password, and Password Confirmation.
    3-Click Create Account.
    4-The user will now show up on the right side of the screen, under Local Accounts
    Configuring an Account
    Web Access Enabled/Disabled
    Web Access refers to the device’s Remote Web program. At least one account must have access to Remote Web, so you cannot disable it for all accounts.
    The first account (the admin account) has web access enabled. Additional accounts have web access disabled by default. If you are creating NAS share users, we recommend leaving web access disabled. Click the Web Access Disabled button followed by clicking the Click to ENABLE web access box to confirm the account’s web access.
    To edit the permissions for a user with web access, click the Edit Permissions button.
    Change Password
    Click this button to change the password for an account.
    Delete Account
    To delete an account, click Delete Account. You will be asked to confirm the deletion. Because there must be at least one account on the device, you cannot delete the last account.
    Edit Permissions
    To edit the permissions for a user with access to remote web, click the Edit Permissions button.
  • Datto Firewall Rules
    Rule for Datto Appliance
    For IP 10.xx.20.15 allow ports 80, 443, 2200-2250, 22, UDP 123 to have access to IP’s:
    207.223.32.253
    8.8.8.8
    8.34.181.199/32
    8.34.176.0/24
    47.19.105.0/24
    162.244.87.51
    162.244.87.37/32 port 5044
    162.244.87.38/32 port 5044
    162.244.87.0/24, port 443 and port 80
    198.49.95.0/24
    198.137.225.0/24, port 80 and port 2200-2250
    206.201.136.0/24
    206.201.137.0/24
    27.111.249.1/24
    206.201.137.0/24
    162.244.87.109 – dattobackup.com
    23.202.72.84 – datto.com
    8.34.181.249 – ntp.dattobackup.com
    198.135.233.13 – activate.storagecraft.com
    91.189.88.0 through 91.189.95.255
    Also allow 10.xx.20.15 to resolve DNS to 8.8.8.8.
    Rule Between Datto Appliance and Servers
    Between IP 10.xx.20.15 and the whole vlan 10 (and other vlans of the servers that will be backed up), open ports: 139, 25566, 3389, 3260, 445. This rule should be bidirectional, because source could be either way.
    Rule For VNC Access Over Browser for Local Virtualization
    Between 10.xx.20.15 and the IP of the IT machine open range of ports 6080-6085.
  • Install Datto Client
    To install the Datto Client:
    1- Download the latest version of the Datto client from the
    2- Run the installation, and click Next each time.
    3- After the client is installed, you would have to restart the machine before the backup.
    4- Once the machine is up, login to the Datto portal. Go to the Protect tab and click on the Add a New Agent button on the right side.
    5- Choose type Agent Based System.
    6- Enter the IP address of the machine where you installed the client.
    7- When asked if you want to copy the settings from another server, select Yes. Then choose one of the servers you have there.
    8- When asked if you want to encrypt the system, select Yes, then enter the encryption password that you used for the others servers. Remember that you have to save this password very well, because we cannot recover it, and if you lose it we would have to delete the data an re-pair the agent again.
    9- Wait until the pairing process completes and you’ll be redirect to the Protect tab after.
    See attached the knowledge base article with the detailed instructions.
  • Agent is Unreachable
    Log in to the machine not able to communicate, open Windows Services and restart the following services:
    -Shadowprotect Service 
    -Storagecraft Image Ready 
    -Storagecraft Raw Agent 
    -Storagecraft Shadow Copy Provider 
    After that, go to the Datto portal, click on the Protect tab, find the server on the list and click on Configure Agent Settings. Scroll down to the bottom and click on Repair Agent Communications. If It is successful, go back to the Protect tab and Start a Backup.
  • Datto Appliance Offline
    If appliance is not checking in, request customer to hard reboot the appliance. The encryption instruction is only for Four Seasons appliances.
    Please restart the server by pressing the red button in front for ten seconds, then push the bottom again to start the server. 
     
    Once the machine is up, please remember to go to the portal, click on the Protect tab, and enter the encryption password to resume the backups. 
  • Update Datto Agent
    Download the latest version of the Datto client from the link https://www.hexistor.com/downloads/shadowsnap-installer.exe. You don’t need to uninstall, just run the installer to overwrite the version. Also, you won’t need to restart the servers.
      
    After the installation is complete, open Windows Services in each machine and restart the following: 
    – ShadowProtect Service 
    – Storagecraft Raw Agent 
    – Storagecraft Image Ready 
    – Storagecraft Shadow Copy Provider 
      
    To confirm that this is done, if you go to the Datto portal, in the home page, scroll down to the Local Agent Information section, you should see that the servers are using Agent Version 4.0.0.
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