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Agent Version(s): Connected Backup/PC 8.0 - 8.1
Component(s): Agent
Last updated: April 26, 2006
Document number: 1426
This document explains how to recover a Connected Backup/PC Version 8.0 or later Agent account. There are separate documents that describe how to recover a Server Agent account or Legacy PC Agent account.
Description of the Problem
In the event of a failure on a user's computer, such as loss of the hard disk or loss of the entire computer, it is necessary to recover the Agent account before it is possible to restore backed-up data. You can reinstall the Agent on the same or a new computer and recover the original account. This process is called account recovery.
You should only recover an account onto a new computer if the account will no longer be used on the old computer. Remember that an account must only be used on one computer at a time.
There are two ways to recover an account:
Preparing for Account Recovery
Do the following to prepare for an account recovery:
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Ensure you have the following:
- For Hands-Free Account Recovery or if opening the Account Management Website from Support Center, the Account number associated with the account that you want to recover.
You can use the Account Search screen in Support Center to display account numbers. Refer to Support Center Help for details about searching for accounts.
- If opening the Account Management Website from a browser window, the account's email address and password.
- The same operating system as the computer on which the account was last installed. For accounts configured for Full System backups, the same service pack is also required.
- The same software version of the Agent you last used or a higher version of the Agent. If you download an Agent Setup file from Support Center, it will be the same as or later than the version used to install the Agent. If you or a user downloads the Agent Setup file from the Account Management Website, it will be the same version as the one associated with the account. You can check the Account Summary screen in Support Center to determine which software version the account most recently registered.
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An account recovery can take a significant amount of time to complete, depending on the size of the data that the Agent must recover. You should wait until the recovery completes before attempting any other operation.
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If you cancel an account recovery while it is in progress, the Agent may not be able to completely synchronize its information with the information on the Data Center. In this situation, do not attempt to use Heal until after you perform at least one backup.
Hands-Free Account Recovery
Do the following to recover an account using the installation command-line interface:
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Download the Agent Setup file by doing the following:
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Log on to Support Center and expand the community node where the Agent registers.
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Expand the Configurations node and expand the PC subnode.
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Select the configuration that the account used previously.
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Select Download from the menu.
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Click Download to download the Agent Setup file.
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Copy the Agent Setup file to the machine where you want to recover the account.
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Open a Command Prompt window.
Note: To recover an account on Microsoft® Windows Vista™ operating system, you must run the Command Prompt in Administrator mode. To do so, click Start and right-click Command Prompt or right-click the Command Prompt desktop shortcut. Click Run As Administrator. The User Account Control window appears. Click Continue.
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Navigate to the folder where you copied the Agent Setup file.
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Use the following command syntax to recover the account:
msiexec /qn /i <filename.msi> ACCOUNTNUMBER=account_number TECHID=technician_id PASSWORD=technician_password
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The value for the ACCOUNTNUMBER parameter is the number of the account that you want to recover. You must use the following syntax, including the hyphen: nnnnn-nnnnn.
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The values for the TECHID and PASSWORD parameters must be a technician ID and password that has access to the community where the account was registered.
Each account is associated with a specific account number and computer name. If you install the software on a computer that has a name that is different from the computer where you originally installed the software, the Agent prompts the user to move their account when they attempt their first backup from that computer.
One Step 7.x to 8.x Upgrade During Account Recovery
Note: Only use the command-line arguments communityID and configurationID with new installs. These arguments do not work for upgrades. You can run the same command-line arguments to recover either a 7.x account or an 8.x account. You do not need to know in advance what version the account is currently running. This process upgrades a 7.x account to version 8.2 of Connected. The upgrade process works whether recovering a 7.x account to a Vista system or to a Windows XP system.
Upgrade Limitations
Only use the command-line arguments community ID and configuration ID with new installs. If used to move an account, the database tables do not upgrade properly. Instead, move accounts in Support Center.
Similarly, pushing out an MSI for a different community to upgrade a deployed Agent will also not upgrade database tables correctly.
You are also not required to change the Assigned Configuration before performing command-line account recovery. The Data Center automatically changes the configuration of the account to the community default when recovering the account with an 8.x agent.
Using the command-line account recovery to upgrade an account from 7.x to 8.x removes local rules and file selections created by the user.
Account Recovery using the Account Management Website
The following procedure describes how to recover an account by reinstalling the Agent from the Account Management Website.
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Do one of the following:
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Open Support Center, open the Account Summary screen for the account, and then click the Access User's Online Account link. (Only Technicians with the Access User's Data permission see that link.)
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Open Windows Explorer and enter the URL of the Account Management Website. When the Logon screen opens, enter the account's email address and password, and then click Log On.
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Click the Reinstall Agent link in the left navigation bar.
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On the Reinstall Agent screen, read the displayed information and click Download Software.
The Account Management Website sends a request to the Data Center. While the Data Center is creating the Agent Setup file, the Account Management Website displays the Preparing the Software to Download screen. When the Agent software is ready for download, the Account Management Website displays the Download Instructions screen.
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Follow the instructions from the Download Instructions screen to download and run the installation procedure.
Each account is associated with a specific account number and computer name. If you install the software on a computer that has a name that is different from the computer where you originally installed the software, the Agent prompts the user to move their account when they attempt their first backup from that computer.
After Account Recovery
After a user reinstalls the Agent and recovers their account, they can retrieve files or use the Heal feature as needed to recover missing files. A user should retrieve all necessary files before performing a backup with a recovered Agent.
A user should perform their first backup as soon as possible after retrieving all necessary files. If the user moved their account to a new computer, then a Move Backup Account? pop-up window opens during their first backup. Click Yes to change the name of the computer associated with the account to the new computer name. Once the account is moved, users can no longer perform backups from the old computer. In the event that a user incorrectly moves an account to a new computer, a Support Center technician can use the Allow Computer Name Change tool to delete the computer name associated with the account; the next time an Agent attempts to perform a backup for that account, the Agent presents the Move Backup Account? pop-up window so that the user can move the account to the computer performing the backup.
After account recovery, history events from prior to the recovery no longer appear in the Agent user interface; however, the Support Center user interface shows an account's entire history.
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