Troubleshoot a Client That Is Not Backing Up

There are quite a few things that could affect a client backing up. One obvious answer that shouldn't be overlooked is the fact that when a user is on vacation they won't be generating any new files to backup.

Open the web management console and do these things starting at the top:

Did several clients stop backing up about the same time? If so…

1. Select the org for those clients and click Edit Organization in the navigation menu.
   If the org quota has been reached there will be a big red warning message.
2. Check the mount points on the Servers tab to make sure they are still OK.

1. Enter the user's email address in the search box to search for a user you know is not backing up.
2. On the User Info page, verify that the user quota has not been reached.
   If quota has been met, there is a large red warning message on that page.
3. On the same page, determine when the user last connected. If the user hasn't connected in a while see the article on how to troubleshoot a client that can't connect.
4. On the same page, click on the mount point name for the computer that hasn't been backing up (link is in the far, right column).
5. Review the computer stats.
   Make sure the mount point is not full or bad.

For the computer that is not backing up, click the Client Settings tab and check the following:

1. Is it configured to run all the time or during a window of time? It should be set to run all the time.
2. Is real-time monitoring enabled? Real-time monitoring should be enabled.
3. Is the Verify backup file selection time set to a time when the client is going to be on? Be sure to configure this setting for when the client will be on.
4. Has the CPU throttling been set to 0%? This setting ensures that resources are being allocated to CrashPlan.
5. Are the files to be backed up available, or are they on a detachable drive that isn't mounted? The selected files need to be available for back up.
6. Go to the computer in question and add up the size of the folders that should be in the backup.
   Compare that to what PRO Server says are the “Selected” bytes. It's always possible that the folders set to backup aren't what you thought they were.

Assuming a configuration problem is brought to light, examine the client's state. You can remotely execute these commands from the computer edit page on the web management console when the client is connected or execute them from the client itself.

1. Click “Resume Backup” if it's paused.
2. Click “Scan Client Folders” to tell the client to rescan the file selection
3. Click “Retrieve Latest Log” to see why it's not connecting.
4. Click “Restart Backup Engine”

Once the client's logs arrive, filter on the word “history” get a summary of the client's activities and see how it's been behaving over time. Was it backing up before and it's stopped or has it never been able to back up successfully?

CrashPlan queries Spotlight for a list of files that have changed. If Spotlight is not enabled for the volume or its index becomes corrupted then it may stop returning results for this query. If this happens you may need to instruct Spotlight to reindex the volume.

Anti-Virus applications can lock files in the client cache folder that could stop backups from occurring. Exclude CrashPlan folders from your Anti-Virus scanner.

If no cause can be determined then submit a description of the environment and the client logs to support for review.

Support will need to know a few things in order to help.

1. What version/platform are the PRO Server and Client?
2. How are you determining that the client is not backing up?
   • Does the Client Desktop UI show work to be done? (Click the i icon under the progress bar on the Backup tab to see these details.)
   • Is the client connected to the backup destination (Is there a green bubble next to the destination)?
   • Are the files showing up in the Restore tab?
3. Is there anything known about the client or its environment?
   • Is it a traveling laptop?
   • Is it an office machine that goes to sleep or gets turned off at night?
   • Is the client connecting to the server on a LAN, through a firewall and / or over the Internet?
4. How are the client Settings configured? Specifically:
   • Is it configured to Always or Only between a specific times?
   • Is it configured to monitor in real-time?
   • Is the Verify backup file selection every setting at a time when the client is on or is it off / sleeping every day through its time slot?
5. Is there anything special about the drive the files to be backed up are on? A detachable USB drive, network mount on a Linux box, etc?