Troubleshoot MABS system state and bare-metal recovery protection, including storage selection and consistency checks.
01

Confirm the protection type

In the MABS protection group wizard, select the server and choose either system state or BMR as required. Microsoft notes that you cannot protect both BMR and system state for the same computer in different groups.

02

Check the backup volume

Windows Server Backup and MABS use a drive with available free space for system state backup. Review the PSDataSourceConfig.xml configuration when you need to control the target drive.

03

Run a consistency check

After correcting configuration, run a consistency check and review the resulting alert. A clean consistency check provides evidence that the replica is synchronized.

04

Check disk capacity

System state and BMR jobs need sufficient temporary and protected storage. Confirm free space before repeating a failed job.

05

Test recovery

A successful backup job is only one part of BMR readiness. Periodically validate that the recovery workflow and required media or recovery environment are available.

Useful commands

Get-DPMDatasource
Get-DPMRecoveryPoint
Get-DPMJob
Production checklist: capture the original state, test one dependency at a time, make the smallest controlled change and validate the original symptom before closing the incident.
06

What good troubleshooting looks like

Use evidence before configuration changes. Record the symptom, test result, change made and validation result so another engineer can repeat the procedure.

Workflow
Symptom → hypothesis → direct test → controlled change → validation → documentation
07

Frequently asked questions

What should I check first?

Start with the exact failed path or dependency and test it directly before changing configuration.

Should I change production configuration immediately?

No. Capture the current state first and make one controlled change at a time.

How should I document the fix?

Record the symptom, commands, result, configuration change and validation result.

08
MABS Database Backup and Restore: DPMDB Recovery Runbook →MABS Modern Backup Storage: Planning and Troubleshooting →MABS Protection Limitations: What to Check Before Adding a Workload →
09

Primary reference

This guide was independently written for TechRunbook. Technical details were checked against current Microsoft documentation. Microsoft Learn reference →

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