New Macrium Reflect Updates

meebers said:

OK, thanks for that.

I also re-registered Microsoft VSS components and updated the Microsoft Shadow Software Provider registry entries. (I am not asking what that is)

Good! Cause it sounds scary!

f14tomcat said:

Good! Cause it sounds scary!

If it gets the job done, no need to know what it is ....right Dick? We're on a need-to-know basis

ddelo said:

If it gets the job done, no need to know what it is ....right Dick? We're on a need-to-know basis

Bingo! With a name like Shadow Software, I'm not gonna ask either......

f14tomcat said:

Bingo! With a name like Shadow Software, I'm not gonna ask either......

Me neither... as Greek I prefer the sun from the shadow!!!!

ddelo said:

Me neither... as Greek I prefer the sun from the shadow!!!!

I was thirsty in the desert and saw a shimmering haze, and a lake of water in the distance. I chose to go the haze as I preferred Blur to Oasis.

Basic VSS Concepts - Providers

Providers manage running volumes and create the shadow copies of them on demand.

In response to a request from a requester, a provider generates COM events to signal applications of a coming shadow copy, then creates and maintains that copy until it is no longer needed.

While a shadow copy is in existence, the provider creates an environment where there are effectively two independent copies of any volume that has been shadow copied: one the running disk being used and updated as normal, the other a copy that is disk fixed and stable for backup


Software Providers

Software shadow copy providers intercept and process I/O requests in a software layer between the file system and the volume manager software. These providers are implemented as a user-mode DLL component and at least one kernel-mode device driver, typically (but not necessarily) a storage filter driver. The work of creating these shadow copies is done in software.

A software shadow copy provider must maintain a "point-in-time" view of a volume by having access to a set of files that can be used to accurately re-create volume status prior to the shadow copy. An example of this is the copy-on-write technique of the system provider.

However, VSS places no restrictions on what technique that software providers use to create and maintain shadow copies, and third-party vendors are free to implement their software providers as they see fit.

In addition, VSS provides support for much of the functionality of software shadow copy providers, such as defining the point-in-time, data synchronization and flushing, providing a common interface for backup applications, and management of the shadow copy.

A software provider will, by definition, be applicable to a wider range of storage platforms than a hardware provider, and should be able to work with basic disks or logical volumes equally well. This generality sacrifices the performance that may be available by implementing shadow copies in hardware and does not make use of any vendor-specific volume capture or file mirroring features.

Source

meebers said:

Just to be clear MR is?? Tx

Macrium Reflect.
Very useful program, tbh I don’t know how I managed without it.