Backup Exec Management Command Line (BEMCLI) commands for import and export

Last published : Apr 02, 2026
Blocked items can be specified and viewed using the following BEMCLI commands.
  • Import-BEItemsToBlock
  • Export-BEItemsBlocked
For more information on how to use the Backup Exec Management Command Line Interface and the commands, view the help file named BEMCLI, located in the default installation location:
C:\< Backup Exec install path\>\Backup Exec
Import blocked items
The Import-BEItemsToBlock BEMCLI command is used to provide list of blocked items to Backup Exec. This command requires full path of the CSV file as one of its parameters.
The CSV file contains information about the items to be blocked, specifically the server name and the full path. You can use the import command to add new entries to the existing list of blocked items used by Backup Exec.
The column names in the CSV file are not required to be in a specific order and the import command can accept a CSV file, which can contain extra columns. This makes the format of the CSV file generic to accommodate any CSV file generated by different tools.
In the same operation you can import the blocked items that belong to different servers and are part of the same CSV.
Every time the import command is run, an entry is logged into the audit log under the Compliance category and the Windows Event Viewer.
Export blocked items
You can use the Export-BEItemsBlocked BEMCLI command to export information about all the blocked items that are imported.
Information about the blocked items is exported to a CSV file at a specified location. This export command requires the location to create the CSV file, as a parameter. The export command creates a CSV file in the same format as the input CSV file.
Every time the export command is run, an entry is logged into the audit log under the Compliance category and the Windows Event Viewer.
It is recommended to regularly back up the imported blocked items by running the export BEMCLI command.
CAS-MBES behavior for import and export commands
Import command behavior:
  • Import command can be run only on CAS and is blocked on MBES.
  • After the import operation on CAS is complete, the blocked items information along with the encryption key is sent to MBES.
  • If an MBES is offline during the import operation, the blocked items' information is shared with that MBES after it is online.
  • In case of a rolling upgrade, older MBES does not receive the blocked items. After MBES is upgraded to the current version of Backup Exec, the blocked items information is synced with MBES.
  • If a new MBES is added, the encryption key and blocked items information is synced with the MBES.
  • If there is an update to the blocked items or reset operations, all information including CSV data is synced with MBES.
The export command runs on both CAS and MBES.
See About GDPR Guard.
See Supported types of backed up data.
See How to block access to backed up items.
See Restoring blocked items.
See Best practices for blocking access to backed up items with GDPR Guard.
See Troubleshooting blocked access to backed up items with GDPR Guard.
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