Hyper-V VM Backup
Breeze can discover, back up, and restore Hyper-V virtual machines directly from the Backup dashboard. VM backups support both application-consistent and crash-consistent modes, and incremental backups via Resilient Change Tracking (RCT).
Discovering VMs
Section titled “Discovering VMs”Before you can back up VMs, Breeze needs to discover what’s running on your Hyper-V hosts.
- Go to Operations > Backup > Hyper-V.
- Click Discover VMs for the host device you want to scan.
- Breeze queries the Hyper-V host and populates the VM list.
The VM list shows:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| VM name | The virtual machine’s display name |
| State | Running (green), Off (gray), Paused/Saved (yellow) |
| CPU count | Number of virtual processors assigned |
| Memory | Allocated memory in MB |
| VHD count | Number of virtual hard disks |
| RCT enabled | Whether Resilient Change Tracking is available for incremental backups |
Use the search box and state filter to find specific VMs.
Backing Up a VM
Section titled “Backing Up a VM”Manual Backup
Section titled “Manual Backup”- On the Hyper-V tab, find the VM you want to back up.
- Click the Backup button on the VM row.
- Choose the export destination path.
- Select the consistency type:
- Application-consistent (default) — uses Hyper-V’s VSS integration for a clean snapshot. Best for VMs running databases or Exchange.
- Crash-consistent — saves the VM state before export. Faster, but equivalent to pulling the power plug.
- Confirm to start the export.
The backup job appears in the Recent Jobs feed on the Overview tab.
Scheduled Backup
Section titled “Scheduled Backup”To back up VMs automatically, create a backup policy with the Hyper-V mode. By default, all VMs on assigned hosts are included. Configure exclude lists in the policy to skip specific VMs (e.g., test or development VMs).
Viewing Checkpoints
Section titled “Viewing Checkpoints”Expand a VM row to see its checkpoint (snapshot) tree. Each checkpoint shows its name and creation timestamp, arranged in a hierarchy that reflects the checkpoint chain.
Restoring a VM
Section titled “Restoring a VM”- On the Hyper-V tab, find the VM and click Restore.
- The restore dialog walks you through:
- Select snapshot — choose which backup snapshot to restore from
- Target host — pick the Hyper-V host to import the VM onto (can be a different host)
- VM name and ID — keep the original name or rename. Toggle whether to generate a new VM ID.
- Review the settings and confirm.
The restore imports the exported VM onto the target host with a new VM ID (unless you chose to keep the original). The VM is created in an Off state — start it manually when you’re ready.
Restore as New VM
Section titled “Restore as New VM”You can also restore a backup snapshot as a new VM from the Restore Wizard. This lets you adjust hardware specs (CPU count, memory, disk size) and select a virtual switch before creating the VM.
Instant Boot
Section titled “Instant Boot”For fast recovery validation, use Instant Boot to boot a VM directly from a snapshot without fully restoring it. This lets you verify that the backup is usable without waiting for a full import. Instant boot status is tracked on the Hyper-V tab.
VM Power State Control
Section titled “VM Power State Control”From the Hyper-V tab you can manage VM power state — start, stop, save, or pause VMs on managed hosts. This is useful for pre-backup preparation or post-restore validation.