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Recover files and folders

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You can recover files and folders:

Recover files via the Veeam Service Provider Console portal

For your information

Veeam Agent must be running on the source machine and be connected to Veeam Service Provider Console. If the backup agent is unavailable, file recovery via the Veeam Service Provider Console portal is impossible.

Any type of backup created via Veeam Agent is suitable for recovering files and folders via the portal.

During recovery, the backup agent mounts the file system from the backup into the /mnt/backup directory (Linux) or C:\VeeamFLR (Windows). Learn more about file recovery in the Performing File-Level Restore article in the Veeam documentation.

  1. On the Veeam Service Provider Console portal, go to Management → Protected Data.
  2. Select the virtual machine with the files you want to recover.
  3. Click File-Level Restore Portal. The recovery portal will open in a new tab.
  4. In the left menu, under Restore Point, click Select.
  5. Select a restore point and click Select.
  6. If multiple backup policies are assigned to the virtual machine, choose the policy in the Job field in the left menu.
  7. Select the files and folders you want to recover. If indexing was enabled in the backup policy settings, you can use the file search on the Search tab.
  8. Click Add to Restore List.
  9. Open the Restore List.
  10. If you want to recover files to the original location without overwriting existing files, click Restore → Keep. If a file with the same name exists, the recovered file will be renamed with the RESTORED- **** prefix.
  11. If you want to recover files to the original location and overwrite existing files, click Restore → Overwrite. If a file with the same name exists, it will be replaced by the file from the backup.
  12. If you want to download files as an archive, click Download and enter the administrator credentials for the source machine. Files will be downloaded through the source machine, which may affect download speeds.
  13. Optional: on the Audit tab, verify that the files have been recovered. The backup from which the files were recovered will be unmounted from the source machine 30 minutes after the recovery portal tab is closed or after inactivity.

Recover files using Veeam Recovery Media

  1. Connect the Veeam Recovery Media drive to the machine.
  2. In BIOS/UEFI, set the boot priority to this drive.
  3. Turn on the machine and wait for Veeam Recovery Media to load. The SSH server will start automatically and provide connection parameters.
  4. If SSH is not required, click Proceed without SSH.
  5. Accept the license agreement and click Continue.
  6. Click Configure network → Edit a connection.
  7. Configure the network settings for internet access and click OK.
  8. Click Back.
  9. Click Activate a connection.
  10. Once configuration is complete, click OK.
  11. Select the Restore files recovery type. Wait for the file system to finish mounting.
  12. To display files after mounting is complete, click Start file browser. The Midnight Commander file manager will open. The files on the machine (/mnt/system) will be displayed on the left, and the files in the backup (/mnt/backup) on the right.
  13. Select the files and directories for recovery and copy them to the machine.
  14. To exit the file manager, press F10.
  15. To complete the process, click Stop backup mount, shut down the machine, and remove the drive with Veeam Recovery Media.

Recover files using the backup agent

Any type of backup created via Veeam Agent (Entire computer, Volume level, File level) is suitable for recovering files and folders. File recovery is performed on a running system with the backup agent installed.

The following file recovery options are available:

Learn more about preparing for file recovery in the Before You Begin instructions (Linux, Windows) of the Veeam documentation.

Recover files via the backup agent interface

During recovery, the backup agent mounts the file system from the backup into the /mnt/backup directory.

  1. Launch the interface:

    veeamconfig ui

  2. Press R.

  3. Select the policy and press Enter.

  4. Select a restore point and press Enter. Wait for the file system to finish mounting.

  5. Press Enter.

  6. Press Esc.

  7. In the /mnt/backup directory, verify that the mounted file system is available.

  8. Copy the necessary files and directories from the mounted system to the machine (for example, using the cp command).

  9. Invoke the backup agent interface:

    veeamconfig ui

  10. To unmount the backup, press U.

  11. If the message “Target is busy” appears, the copy process is not yet finished or the working directory is inside the mounted backup (/mnt/backup). Return to the user's home directory by running the cd command without arguments.

  12. To exit the backup agent interface, press Esc.

Recover files via the command line

Learn more about command line recovery in the Restoring Files and Folders with Command Line Interface article of the Veeam documentation.

  1. List the available backups (policies):

    veeamconfig backup list --all

  2. Copy the Backup ID of the required policy.

  3. View available restore points:

    veeamconfig point list --backupid <backup_id>

    Specify <backup_id> — the Backup ID of the policy.

  4. Copy the OIB ID of the required restore point.

  5. Mount the file system from the restore point:

    veeamconfig point mount --id <oib_id> --mountdir <path>

    Specify:

    • <oib_id> — OIB ID of the restore point; ;
    • <path> — path to the directory where the file system will be mounted.

  6. Wait for the Restore point is mounted message.

  7. Copy the Session ID.

  8. Copy the necessary files and directories from the mounted backup (for example, using the cp command).

  9. After recovery, unmount the restore point:

    veeamconfig session stop --id <session_id>

    Specify <session_id>, the session ID.