Hotfixes - what the publisher calls an 'oopsie'

We got to the bottom of the Symantec Backup Exec 11d problem with random Exchange Server mailboxes not getting backed up properly. It looks like they are being backed up - they just don't show up as a selectable mailbox when you try to restore them. The solution is to make sure you have installed all the latest hotfixes, which requires a reboot of the media server. Oh, and make sure you push out the remote agent to the Exchange Server. This is critical to making it work. Here are the reference documents:

http://seer.entsupport.symantec.com/docs/286823.htm and
http://seer.entsupport.symantec.com/docs/289852.htm

I know, this is boring stuff, but such is the life of an IT Manager. It can get real exciting when an executive calls and wants his deleted mail items restored and you discover that you are unable to do so because you haven't kept your backup software patched.

Backup Exec 11d still not perfect

One of the most basic needs of an enterprise is to ensure good backups. I have been using Symantec / Veritas Backup Exec for years. The product has gone through some growth pains lately. We are up to version 11d now.

We rely heavily on our backups. They are critical to the security of the business and the peace of mind of the IT Manager. I don't have to do a restore very often, but when I do, I sure expect the data to be there in a retrievable format.

One annoying little bug discovered this past week is that some mailboxes do not show up in the restore library selection. It seems that Backup Exec will arbitrarily choose which mailboxes in the database it will include for backup.

One of the first orders of business this week is to figure out the cause of the exclusions - there must be a logical reason, right? The product is fully patched with all the latest hotfixes and otherwise seems to work just fine. Symantec touts their product as being the best for protecting Exchange Server. Right now I'm a little bit disappointed in that claim.