Configuring default backup settings

Last published : Apr 02, 2026
You can choose the processing method to use for Hyper-V backups. You set this option for the Backup Exec server, so the method that you choose is applied to all backups of Hyper-V virtual machines that the Backup Exec server protects.
Three processing options are available:
  • The Resilient Change Tracking (RCT) method. This method tracks the changes for virtual machines that should be backed up. The RCT method provides better resiliency than the Standard and Faster processing methods. Backups are faster for larger virtual machines compared to other 2 methods. RCT does not make use of VSS infrastructure on the Hyper-V host.
This method is available only for Hyper-V servers that run Windows 2016 and later.
  • The standard processing method. This method reads the whole virtual disk and identifies the changes that should be backed up. The changed blocks that are identified are then backed up.
  • The faster processing method. This method is faster than the standard processing method because it writes all changes to a new differencing disk and then backs up only the differencing disk. This method saves time because the entire disk does not have to be read.
Related information

Table: Difference between the Resilient Change Tracking, standard processing, and the faster processing methods

Processing method Supported Hyper-V servers Backup type Disk storage space Impacts on system performance
Resilient Change Tracking (RCT) method Windows 2016 and later. - Differential No extra space is required. Does not impact performance
- incremental
Standard processing method Windows 2008 and later. - Differential No extra space is required. Does not impact performance
- Differential with incremental
Faster processing method Windows 2012 and later. - Incremental Requires extra space on the Hyper-V host even after the backup job is complete. The extra space required depends on how long the checkpoint is not merged back into the parent disk and the number of writes that have happened before the merge. The space consumed for each virtual machine might not be significant but if there are many virtual machines in your environment, the checkpoints consumes a significant amount of space. May slow down system performance because a checkpoint is always present for each virtual machine backed up using this method.
- Full However, you can use this method if you take frequent backups and disk space is not a constraint.
- Differential backups run as incremental backups and the job completes with a status of "Success with exceptions".
How upgrades affect Hyper-V backup settings
The following notes provide information for upgrades:
  • When you upgrade from Backup Exec 15 Feature Pack 3 and later, the existing Hyper-V backup setting does not change. Existing and new backup jobs use the setting that was configured in Feature Pack 3, unless you change it.
  • When you upgrade from Backup Exec 15 Feature Pack 2 or earlier, the default Hyper-V backup setting for existing jobs is Use the standard processing method. Existing and new backup jobs use this setting unless you change it. In this scenario, the Resilient Change Tracking (RCT) method is disabled.
  • On the Backup Exec server, it is always recommended that you select the Resilient Change Tracking (RCT) method. If RCT is selected then it is used wherever applicable. If RCT is not supported by a virtual machine, then one of the two methods, standard processing or faster processing is used.
To configure Hyper-V incremental or differential backup settings
  1. Click the Backup Exec button, select Configuration and Settings, and then clickBackup Exec Settings.
  2. In the left pane, select Virtual Machines.
  3. Select the processing method that you want to use for all Hyper-V incremental or differential backup jobs.
    Use Resilient Change Tracking wherever applicable Select this option if you want to run both incremental backups and differential backups. If RCT is selected then it is used wherever applicable and is the recommended method. If a virtual machine does not support RCT, the standard or faster processing method is used, based on your selection.
    Note: This option is available only for Hyper-V servers that run Windows Server 2016 and later.
    If you do not select the RCT method and if a Windows Server 2016 or later host is found, Backup Exec sends periodic alerts for you to enable the RCT method. If you do not want Backup Exec to display the alert messages, you can disable the alerts by editing the following registry key:
    Registry Location: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Symantec\Backup Exec For Windows\Backup Exec\Server
    ValueName = SupressRCTAlert
    When you set the value as 1 , the alerts are disabled.
    Use the faster processing method Select this method if you want incremental backups jobs to be processed as quickly as possible, and do not want to perform any differential backups. This option does not support differential backups. If you select this option, all Hyper-V differential backups are processed as incremental backups.
    Note: This option is available only for Hyper-V servers that run Windows 2012 and later. For all supported previous versions of Windows, the standard processing method must be used.
    Use the standard processing method Select this option if you want to run both incremental backups and differential backups.
    Note: When you change to a different backup processing method, the next job runs as a full backup instead of an incremental or a differential backup. Note: In a CAS environment, if the processing method is not the same on the central administration server and the managed Backup Exec server, the method that is set for the managed Backup Exec server is used when a job is delegated from the central administration server.
  4. Click OK.
Changing virtual machine validation settings for VMware and Hyper-V
In the Virtual Machine Validation Settings, you can change the timeout settings of a virtual machine for VMware and Hyper-V. After you create the validation job for a virtual machine, before the job runs, you can change the maximum time that it takes for a virtual machine to boot. This is a global setting that is applicable to all validation jobs. If the virtual machine does not boot within the selected time, the validation job fails.
To change virtual machine validation settings for VMware and Hyper-V
  1. Click the Backup Exec button, select Configuration and Settings, and then clickBackup Exec Settings.
  2. In the left pane, select Virtual Machines.
  3. In the Select the maximum boot time for a virtual machine option, select the time in minutes.
By default, 5 minutes is selected. You can select from 1 to 60 minutes.