Announcing the new beta for Backup Exec

[Turls]

The Backup Exec team is delighted to announce registration for the next beta release of Backup Exec 2010 and 2012! This beta release supports VMware vSphere 5.1 and Microsoft Windows Server 2012 (and Hyper-V). It is available for BOTH Backup Exec 2010 R3 and 2012, and is expected to be delivered automatically to either platform (as long as you are under maintenance).

Read this blog for more details

[JuergenB]

Hi, will incremental backup working in the beta realease? In BE 2012 Symantec has removed the option to use incremental backup by the use of the archive bit, they used Microsoft Change Journal. And the increment backup isn´t working reliable. http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index?page=content&id=TECH150397&profileURL=https%3A%2F%2Fsymaccount-profile.symantec.com%2FSSO%2Findex.jsp%3FssoID%3D1360243522698d7nGo39rRSKo56Om8t78mR0vsL3yKWtx44ASH

[Colin_Weaver]

Hi Juergen - although I can't confirm what you asked you need to be more specific as I you have not mentioned that you are specifically asking about Synthetic Backups.

Incremental backups by Archive bit do exist in BE 2012 already  it is just not the default and cannot be set on a synthetic job

[Clifton_Hasting]

It was just announced that the beta has been pushed out another 2 months, now to the end of May. This is completely unacceptable. I am now pursuing other options.

[jenstf]

At my workplace we have an internal joke. "It will be supported in the next version". In the beginning based on our CEOs answer if we suggested new features for our ASP platform. But the last years this joke is a company I have liked for many years, Symantec. I have worked with IT and hosting since 2001. In IT incidents and problems will happen. What do we do if our customers needs a new feature, an update to their accounting software with this years tax and vat percentages? What do we do if a server or network component breaks down? We work day and night until the problem is solved and our customers are happy. They need a working product today, not next year. And they hate big changes in UI ;) I believe that most Symantec products are used with products from Microsoft. Often very depentent connections exists between your products and their. It is too late to release your product when M$ releases their product to GA, the man in the street. A lot of enterprise and partners get the products long before that. And I believe that is a big part of your customers. It is far, far too late to use one year or more to support new M$ products. Our backup team holds on to BE 2010 after trying 2012. They hated it. I love new stuff, but I understand them. Why try to create the wheel instead of tuning the engine and add new features? Our Windows 8 clients was unsupported by SEP for several months until it finally got supported. So I had to put my security in your competitors hands for a while. Not good marketing. "What AV software are you using?" ... err normally SEP, but they don't support my new Windows OS. I hope you guys at Symantec manage to turn the tide. I hate to be a bitch and know most of the issues is "PEBKAC" in management. I like many of your products, when they finally releases. You should learn from the Dynamics CRM team, they release updates with both bugfixes and new feature every second month. And they listen to customer demands and wishes BEFORE they release stuff. Now they have just released an major update to their UI. Why aren't their customers screaming, like we see here with BE 2012? Because they listened to their users before doing major changes, so that when major changes happens, those changes are wanted by customers and are heartly welcomed. I hope that BE 2012 have learnt you guys at Symantec a lession and that BE 201x and other new products to come will be awesome. I hope you remembered support for Exchange 2013 and Sharepoint 2013 in your next update? You remembered that, didn't you?

[Drew_Meyer]

Hi all - in case you missed it, the update is here. In short, beta in May and GA in July for both BE2010 and BE2012.

Questions and comments welcome, and be sure to watch out for pre-release information and events coming here on Connect as well as on Spiceworks, Twitter, Reddit and Google+.

[paulecoz]

Hello all, i'm not sure if this is the same for BE 2010 R3 and BE 2012...but we still haven't upgraded from BE version 2010.  I tried to push the BE Agent to a Windows 2012 server from console and it failed.  

So after some research I decided to try an manual install of the BE agent on my Win2012 server.  (on the Win2012 - i browsed to the BE Server - C:\Program Files\Symantec\Backup Exec\Agents\RAWSX64\ and ran Setup.exe )  It worked, of course it did warn me about the incompatibility, it just needed me to install .net 3.5.  In this case i'm trying to restore backups to this new Win2012 server, I need to test that it can actually run backup jobs.

So at this point the BE agent is installed on Win2012 and running, no crashing, or problems that i see and I've restore almost a TB of data so far.  I'm sure Symantec will tell us it's not supported, but until we have another option this might work for some of you.

enjoy

[CraigV]

...this probably works for as many people as it doesn't for others. The forums are mainly rife with it not working, and you're right...the official stance is that it doesn't work. Put it into production and run into a problem restoring and I am sure you will not be helped.

Thanks!

[HNeumann]

Hi Symantec,

it´s a joke isn´t it? Windows Server 2012 was released on 4th of September 2012!!!!!! Now it´s June 2013. For developers the beta was released before April 2012.

You are now testing the os for about one year!

By the way, when will you support Windows Server 2012 R2?? On July 2016?

Sorry, but i cannot laugh anymore...

[ladynerd]

where can I obtain a copy of the beta?  live update didn't pull BE 2012 SP2?  Everything is up to date...

[Clifton_Hasting]

Might want to pass this link on to the R&D teams for Backup Exec, this is the preview of Windows Server 2012 R2. I would like to upgrade to this WHEN IT RELEASES. Today is June 26, 2013. Let's see what happens. Will Unitrends, CA, and everyone else be ready before Backup Exec again? Please break this trend! http://technet.microsoft.com/en-US/evalcenter/dn205286.aspx?CR_CC=200142594

[Richard_Brown]

I have to agree with the last couple of posts.  I've been a very loyal supporter of BE for many years.  I'm going to start looking around for a replacement very soon if support for Win8 / Server 2012 is released out of beta.  I don't want to do this, but I will have to.

[jenstf]

BE still only in beta, Microsoft are soon releasing Windows Server 2012R2 (!!)
We are getting more and more Windows Server 2012 servers.

Backup is critical from day 1!!! Not after two years

[HNeumann]

Hello Symantec, can someone from symantec post a comment please? We are now looking for a new backup software to protect our data! Now it's critical!

[Drew_Meyer]

HNeumann, not sure what you are looking for here.

The beta is in final phases and you can expect it to be released by the end of July. Follow the BE blog for updates on the plan for Windows Server 2012 R2 and vSphere 5.5, and stay tuned to our social media feeds at Spiceworks, Twitter, Reddit and Google+ for expositions on the new Service Packs as they come out.

[HNeumann]

Thanks for the reply i was looking for an official statement from symantec.

[999dom999]

I'm not sure what he is looking for but what I'm looking for is a product that runs on Windows 2012 and fully supports Exchange 2013.

I bought a new server with Windows 2012, Exchange 2013 and an LTO6 tape drive and I asked the vendor for a backup solution, BE2012 they sold me, never could I imagine that it would not be compatible!

I'm running the Beta but you can only install the agent on Windows 2012 I can not run the full program so I cannot use my new LTO6 tape drive in my 2012 server. So I had to build a Windows 2008 server to install BE2012 then back up to disk. Although you now support Exchange 2013 you don't support GRT so I cannot restore individual mailbox items I can only restore the whole database, what good is that to anyone? SDR? Nope you don't support that on Windows 2012 either. These are big problems for me, especially GRT.

Here states GRT will not be a part of SP2:

http://www.symantec.com/connect/forums/protection-exchange-2013-grt

Then the bit about the agent only:

Q: Can I install this release of Backup Exec on a Windows 2012 server?
A: This release of Backup Exec will provide support for remote protection of Windows 2012 servers only.  It will not support the ability to install Backup Exec directly on a Windows 2012 server.  Support for this is being planned for a future release.

The above from here https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/blogs/new-beta-program-backup-exec-2012-r2

So yes the Beta is in the final phases but its still offering very limited support for products that have been available for almost year. It is worrying that when you do come to fully support all the options I want a new OS will be out that you don't. How can you be so behind the game? I haven't seen anyone from Symantec answer this?

[CraigV]

...the Symantec answer is on the blog below, which details why, how, and what happened:

https://www-secure.symantec.com/connect/blogs/what-going-backup-exec-2012-windows-server-2012

Thanks!

[999dom999]

So its all about quality and nothing will be released until its ready, these things take time. That's great but if you can't support products that have been around for a long time you will lose customers. You can see how unhappy people are in that blog and I totally agree with them. If I had Exchange 2013 GRT then I'd at least be happier but its very vague for when this might be supported.

In the link in my last post about GRT it says:

Current plans are that GRT support for Exchange 2013 cannot be deliverd by Hotfix but will be in the next complete/full release of Backup Exec. Sorry cannot provide any form of time estimate (although it is likely a beta program for this will be run prior to the public availability)

Can you clarify what what the next complete/full release of Backup Exec is? Does that mean a complete new version of BE, maybe called BE2013? If so would that mean I have to pay to upgrade to newer version to get Exchange 2013 GRT? No time estimate sounds like its not coming anytime soon.

[CraigV]

...I'm not a Symantec employee, so no, I can't answer any of those questions. Best to ask them of the people involved with the Beta.

Thanks!