#vss #shadowcopies #sysdm #systemprotection #volume #shadowcopy ## Restoring a Deleted Shadow Copy Scheduled Task in Windows If you have accidentally deleted a scheduled task responsible for creating shadow copies (Volume Shadow Copies) on one of your drives, the snapshots for that volume will no longer be created automatically. Fortunately, this can be restored. Below are several ways to address this issue. --- ### 🔁 **Option 1: Reconfigure Shadow Copies via GUI** 1. Open **System Properties**: - Run `sysdm.cpl` via Start > Run (Win+R). 2. Navigate to the **System Protection** tab. 3. Select the volume for which the task is missing. 4. Click **Configure**: - Make sure “Turn on system protection” or another relevant protection setting is enabled. 5. Optionally, click **Set up** or **Open Task Scheduler**, and reconfigure the schedule if available. --- ### 🔁 **Option 2: Manually Recreate the Task in Task Scheduler** 1. Open **Task Scheduler** as Administrator. 2. Navigate to: `Task Scheduler Library > Microsoft > Windows > ShadowCopy` 3. If there’s only one task (e.g., only for drive D:), you’ll need to create a new one for the missing volume (e.g., drive C:). 4. Click **Create Task** on the right panel. 5. Fill in the following fields: #### General Tab - **Name**: ShadowCopyVolumeC (or any descriptive name) - **Run with highest privileges**: ENABLED - **Configure for**: Windows 10 or 11, depending on your OS #### Trigger Tab - Set a **time-based schedule**, e.g., daily at 07:00 AM #### Action Tab - **Action**: Start a program - **Program/script**: `C:\Windows\System32\vssadmin.exe` - **Add arguments (optional)**: `Create Shadow /AutoRetry=15 /For=\\?\Volume{<correct-GUID>}` 👉 To find the correct **Volume GUID**, use the following command in an elevated PowerShell or CMD prompt: `mountvol` This will list all mounted volumes and their associated volume GUID paths (e.g., `\\?\Volume{xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxxx}\`). --- ### 🔁 **Option 3: Use System Restore (If Available)** If the task was deleted recently and system restore points are enabled, you may be able to restore the system to a state before the task was deleted. Only use this option if you're confident it won't negatively affect other system components. --- ### 🧰 Extra Tip: Export Scheduled Tasks for Backup For future prevention, you can **export scheduled tasks** to an #XML file via #TaskScheduler. These can later be imported again if needed, making recovery faster and easier. [[VSS Writer Failed]] [[Windows VSS, Volume ShadowCopies]]