Enable SQL Database exclusions from application-aware image processing

This article provides information about excluding a SQL Database from being part of Application-Aware Processing.

Note: Excluding a database from Application-Aware Processing only means it will not be processed as part of the VSS snapshot operation. The database files will still be backed up as part of the VM backup.

If you are using a third-party tool to manage the SQL Transaction Logs and want to prevent Veeam Backup & Replication from truncating the transaction logs, consider enabling the copy-only option within the Backup Job.

The solution below will instruct you on enabling and using the DBExclusion menu that is built-in to Veeam Backup & Replication v7 or newer.

1. Connect to the server where Veeam Backup & Replication is installed
2. Close any open Veeam Backup & Replication console windows.
3. Open Regedit.exe
4. Navigate to the key HKLM\SOFTWARE\Veeam\Veeam Backup and Replication\
5. Add a new DWORD ‘EnableDBExclusions’
6. Set the Value to 1
   
7. Close the Registry Editor and open the Veeam Backup & Replication Console
8. Open “Database Exclusions” in the Main Menu
   
9. In the window that pops up, click Add.
10. Specify the DNS name (case sensitive) or the IP address and the instance name (case sensitive) containing the data you wish to exclude from VSS Freezing and being Quiesced.
11. Specify the Database name (case sensitive) that you wish to exclude from application-aware image processing.
    A wildcard cannot be used, a valid database name must be specified.