User Profile Disks - Backup/Restore

I was considering deploying User Profile Disks in my 2012 R2 RDS environment instead of Roaming Profiles / Folder Redirection.

However, I have noticed a potential flaw unless someone can shed some light on this. With UPD being relatively new there is limited documentation on this.

If I backup my UPD directory (stored on a central server), and / or my Terminal Servers and I use a backup product which allows granular file-level restore. Initial testing shows that this won't work as you would want it to e.g. I can restore the VHDX associated with the UPD but cannot restore the individual files stored on the UPD e.g. a single word document.

This leads me to think it is more beneficial to use the tried and tested Roaming Profiles / Folder Redirection combo. Or indeed, possibly deselect the UPD option for Documents etc. and combine UPD with Folder Redirection.

Or does anyone have any further info on this?

April 22nd, 2014 6:42am

Hi,

Thank you for your posting in Windows Server Forum.

From your description I can say that you understand correctly. Sorry to say but you cannot restore the individual files stored on the UPD e.g. a single word document. As we need to backup and restore the whole UPD for the user. Previously, profiles could be corrupted if used simultaneously on multiple computers. User profile disks are specific to the collection, so they cant be used on multiple computers simultaneously. User profile disks can be stored on Server Message Block (SMB) shares, cluster shared volumes, SANs, or local storage.

Please refer beneath for more information.

1.Easier User Data Management with User Profile Disks in Windows Server 2012
2. Working with User Profile Disks on Session-Based Desktop Deployments

Hope it helps!

Thanks.
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April 23rd, 2014 2:12am

Hi,

I would treat UPD the same way one would treat regular (roaming) profiles:

Use them for holding user specific settings, not for data.

Users should store their data on fileshares, therefor I would most definitely redirect any folder a user could store data on.
A restore of UPD would only be needed to restore a user's settings, and it doesn't matter that you can't do this brick-level.

Although UPD is a great step towards profile stability, it's still possible you experience issues with it. You don't want issues that could potentially lead to data loss.

Cheers

April 23rd, 2014 4:00am

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