Modify settings for Hyper-V VMs

Adjust VM group settings to change backup behavior, enable advanced features, or optimize backup performance.

Modify VM group settings

1. Navigate to Protect > Virtualization > VM groups tab.

2. Select the VM group and click the action button.

3. Click Edit.

4. On the Configuration tab, modify settings as needed:

   Time zone: Set the time zone for backup schedules.

   Changed block tracking: Enable or disable CBT for incremental backups. CBT tracks block-level changes for efficient incrementals.

   Number of readers: Set the number of parallel backup streams. Increase for faster backups when multiple access nodes and sufficient network bandwidth are available.

   Backup type: Change between streaming backups and IntelliSnap backups.

   File indexing: Enable file indexing to support guest file restore operations.

5. Click Save.

Changes apply to future backup jobs. Running jobs continue with their original settings.

Enable IntelliSnap backups

Enable snapshot-based backups for faster backups with less production impact:

1. Navigate to Protect > Virtualization > VM groups tab.

2. Select the VM group and click the action button.

3. Click Edit.

4. On the Configuration tab, enable Enable snap backup.

5. Verify that your backup plan is configured to retain snap recovery points (typically 8 snap recovery points).

6. Click Save.

IntelliSnap backups use Hyper-V native snapshots and storage array snapshot capabilities when available.

Modify VM filters

Exclude specific VMs from backups using filter rules:

1. Navigate to Protect > Virtualization > VM groups tab.

2. Select the VM group and click the action button.

3. Click Edit.

4. On the Content tab, configure filters to exclude VMs based on:

   • VM name patterns

   • Power state (exclude powered-off VMs)

   • Host location

   • Notes or custom attributes

5. Click Save.

Filtered VMs are excluded from future backups.

Modify disk filters

Exclude specific virtual disks from backups:

1. Navigate to Protect > Virtualization > VM groups tab.

2. Select the VM group and click the action button.

3. Click Edit.

4. On the Content tab, configure disk filters to exclude disks based on:

   • Disk name patterns

   • Device nodes

5. Click Save.

Filtered disks are excluded from future backups. This is useful for excluding temporary disks, swap disks, or data disks that don't require protection.

Change backup schedule

Adjust backup timing:

1. Navigate to the backup plan assigned to the VM group.

2. Modify the backup schedule as needed.

3. Save the plan.

The new schedule applies to all VM groups using this plan.