Using Shadow Copies on Clients

After you configure shadow copying, you must install the client on computers throughout the organization. The client installs a new tab called Previous Versions on files and folders that are shared.

Obtaining and Installing the Client

Before users can access previous versions, the client must be installed on their computer. Two clients are available:

  • Previous Versions Client

  • Shadow Copy Client

You can use Group Policy or SMS to distribute either client. You can also simply copy the file to a user's computer. Both clients are made available as MSI packages that require Microsoft Windows Installer 2 or later, which is available automatically on Microsoft Windows XP or later versions of the Windows operating system.

Note

Both clients offer the same features as of the time of this writing. If you want one client for all your systems, the Previous Versions client may be the best one to use. Otherwise, you may want to install the Shadow Copy Client on systems as this one has the most current APIs.

Installing the Previous Versions Client

The Previous Version client is stored in the %SystemRoot%System32ClientsTwclient X86 folder. Its installer is named Twcli32.msi. Computers running Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, Microsoft Windows 2000 Service Pack 3 or later, and Microsoft Windows 98 can use this client.

Once the client is on the user's computer, you run it by double-clicking it. This starts the Previous Versions Client Setup Wizard. The wizard automatically installs the client, and you only need to click Next and then click Finish (see Figure 22-4).

The Previous Versions Client Setup Wizard installs automatically when you double-click the Installer Package.

Figure 22-4. The Previous Versions Client Setup Wizard installs automatically when you double-click the Installer Package.

Installing the Shadow Copy Client

The Shadow Copy Client can be downloaded from the Microsoft Web site. Its installer is ShadowCopyClient.msi. Computers running Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 Service Pack 3 or later can use this client. If you use this client with earlier versions of the Windows operating system, you must install the Shadow Copy Client on both the servers using shadow copies and the user computers that must access shadow copies.

Once the client is on the user's computer, you run it by double-clicking it. This starts the Shadow Copy Client Installation Wizard, as shown in Figure 22-5. When the wizard starts, click Next. If you accept the terms of the licensing agreement, select I Accept The Terms In The License Agreement, and then click Next again. The wizard will then install the client, and you only need to click Finish.

Start the Shadow Copy Client Installation Wizard.

Figure 22-5. Start the Shadow Copy Client Installation Wizard.

Accessing Shadow Copies on Clients

You can access shadow copies on a client that has either the Previous Versions Client or the Shadow Copy Client installed from the following components:

  • Microsoft Windows Explorer In Windows Explorer, right-click the network drive for which you want to access previous file versions, choose Properties, and then click the Previous Versions tab, as shown in Figure 22-6.

    The Previous Versions tab is available for network drives that are mapped to shared folders using shadow copies.

    Figure 22-6. The Previous Versions tab is available for network drives that are mapped to shared folders using shadow copies.

  • My Network Places In My Network Places, expand Entire Network and Microsoft Windows Network to display the available domains, and then expand the domain node to display servers on the network. When you expand a server node, any publicly shared resources on that server are listed. Right-click the share for which you want to access previous file versions, choose Properties, and then click the Previous Versions tab, as shown in Figure 22-7.

    When you access shared folders directly, you see the shared folder name rather than the network drive letter and mapping information.

    Figure 22-7. When you access shared folders directly, you see the shared folder name rather than the network drive letter and mapping information.

Tip

For local logon use My Network Places

If you are logged on locally to the server and want to examine previous versions, use My Network Places. This way, you can access the folder as a share and see the previous versions. Otherwise, if you access the folder directly, the option won't be available.

Tip

Access the full path for mount points

If a volume is a mount point, you must access the full mount point path to see its previous versions. For example, if you have a folder F:EngData, and the Data folder is a mount point for G, you enable shadow copies on both volumes F and G. You share F:Eng as \CorpSvr01Eng, and you share F:EngData as \CorpSvr01Data. In this example, users can access previous versions of \CorpSvr01Eng and \CorpSvr01Data, but not \CorpSvr01EngData.

After you access the Previous Versions tab, select the folder version that you want to work with. Each folder has a date and time stamp. Then click the button corresponding to the action you want to perform:

  • View Clicking View opens the shadow copy in Windows Explorer. You can then work with the files it contains much like a normal folder. You won't, however, be able to delete files from this folder or save files to this folder—you can of course copy files to other locations.

  • Copy Clicking Copy displays the Copy Items dialog box, which lets you copy the snapshot image of the folder to the location you specify.

  • Restore Clicking Restore rolls back the shared folder to its state as of the snapshot image you selected. Because this could result in losing any changes subsequent to the date and time of the snapshot image, you are prompted to confirm the action. Click Yes to proceed with the restore.

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