Windows agent
On Windows the agent runs as a service that backs up on schedule, and a desktop app lets the user choose folders, run backups and restore files. Both are 64-bit.
Install
- Download the Windows installer for the tenant. See Deploying agents.
- Run the setup program. It asks for administrator rights if it does not have them.
- Setup enrols the device, installs the service, and adds the desktop app to the Start menu and the desktop. No window asks for a server address or a password.
- When setup finishes, the desktop app opens. Set the backup passphrase and confirm it.
The service starts backing up as soon as a passphrase is set. Until then it runs and waits.
If you uploaded an Authenticode code-signing certificate in the global admin portal (Installer Studio), the setup program is signed with it when it is downloaded, which avoids SmartScreen warnings.
The desktop app
The app is branded with the tenant's product name, colour and logo, and follows the Windows light or dark theme.
| Tab | What it does |
|---|---|
| Dashboard | Backup health on this PC and the last backup |
| Back Up | Back Up Now with a progress bar, time and data remaining, and Cancel |
| Restore | Browse a restore point and restore a single file, a folder or everything, to the original place or a folder you choose |
| Targets | The folders and drives to protect, Automatic backups (off, every hour, every 4 or 12 hours, daily or weekly) and Back up system now for a full disk image |
| Settings | Version and Check for updates |
The app asks for the backup passphrase once, on first run. To change it later, see Agent command line.
When a policy is enforced on the device, the policy's folders and schedule replace what the user picked in the app. See Policies and schedules.
Disk images
Back up system now reads the system disk as a raw image and stores it through the same encrypted, deduplicated pipeline as files. A disk image is what you restore from when the whole machine is lost. See Bare-metal and VM recovery.
Where things are
| Item | Location |
|---|---|
| Configuration | C:\ProgramData\cvn-agent\agent.json |
| Service log | service.log in the same folder |
| Install log | Backup-Agent-Install.log in the Windows temp folder |
The configuration folder is limited to SYSTEM, Administrators and the signed-in console user, because it holds the backup passphrase.
Updates
The service checks your server for a newer agent when it connects and every six hours after. It downloads the new build, checks its SHA-256 hash and our Ed25519 release signature, swaps it in and restarts. The desktop app is updated the same way, and shows a prompt to restart when an update finished in the background. A user can also choose Check for updates in the app.