Backup-Dashboard/collectors/wsb

Windows Server Backup collector

A PowerShell script that runs on each server using Windows Server Backup (WSB) and reports its backups to the dashboard. Each server appears as one job, named <SERVER> - Windows Server Backup by default.

Checked against: Server 2019 Hyper-V host backing up VMs, successful backups only. Not yet seen on a real server: a failed backup, a failed VM or volume, or a backup in progress. Those paths are written to the same object model, but if one looks wrong, run Get-WsbCollectorDiagnostics.ps1 while it's in that state and send the output.

Install (on the server, as an administrator)

Requires the Windows Server Backup feature with its PowerShell module (Install-WindowsFeature Windows-Server-Backup). Runs under Windows PowerShell 5.1 (powershell.exe), which that module targets.

1. On the dashboard host, create a key for this server:

   python manage.py create-key wsb-acme-dc01
   

2. Copy this folder to the server and run:

   .\Install-WsbCollector.ps1 -ApiUrl https://backups.example.com -Tenant "Acme Corp"
   

   Add -JobName "Domain Controller" to choose the name shown on the dashboard. It prompts for the key, then:
   • writes C:\ProgramData\BackupDashboard\wsb-collector.json (readable only by SYSTEM and Administrators)
   • copies the script to C:\Program Files\BackupDashboard\
   • registers the scheduled task Backup Dashboard - WSB collector (SYSTEM, every 60 minutes)
3. Preview the payloads, then backfill 30 days so the history view is populated straight away:

   powershell.exe -File 'C:\Program Files\BackupDashboard\Send-WsbBackupStatus.ps1' -DryRun
   powershell.exe -File 'C:\Program Files\BackupDashboard\Send-WsbBackupStatus.ps1' -LookbackHours 720
   

It can be installed alongside the other collectors: it uses its own config, state, log and task. Re-run the installer to change settings or update the script.

What it sends

Dashboard	Windows Server Backup
Company	Tenant from the config
Job	One per server, ID wsb:<computer name>, so changing JobName renames rather than duplicates it
Run	One per backup job from Get-WBJob, identified by its start time (WSB jobs have no ID). Restores are ignored. details.items lists what was backed up: the VMs for a Hyper-V backup, otherwise volumes
Status	Error HRESULT → Failed. Success, but a detailed error or a failed item (e.g. one volume) → Warning. Cancelled or unrecognised → Warning. In progress → Running
Started / finished	Job start / end time. WSB gives these as local-time text to the minute, in the server's date format; the collector parses them with that format
Next scheduled	Get-WBSummary's NextBackupTime. Empty when there's no scheduled backup
Message	Error description, error codes (as 0x8XXXXXXX), failed VMs/volumes, and the failure log path
Size	Bytes processed across the backup's items

Each run covers the last 48 hours (LookbackHours). Runs already delivered are recorded in wsb-collector.state.json.

Troubleshooting

• Log: C:\ProgramData\BackupDashboard\wsb-collector.log. Exit codes: 0 OK, 1 some runs failed to send (retried next run), 2 setup failed (config or WindowsServerBackup module).
• Wrong status, times or messages: run .\Get-WsbCollectorDiagnostics.ps1 (read-only). It prints the real structure of what the cmdlets return, plus recent Microsoft-Windows-Backup events to compare times against.

Testing without Windows Server Backup

. ./tests/MockWsb.ps1                    # or: . ./tests/MockWsb.ps1 -WithRunningJob
./Send-WsbBackupStatus.ps1 -ConfigPath ./my-test-config.json -DryRun