Microsoft Volume Shadow Copy (VSS) and Symantec Endpoint Encryption

Products

• Endpoint Encryption

Issue/Introduction

Are VSS-based backup programs compatible with SEE Full Disk?

Resolution

Backup solutions that utilize volume-based shadowing using Microsoft VSS are likely to be problematic with SEE-FD, since they require direct access to the Master Boot Record, which must be under the control of SEE. This limitation is common among full-disk encryption products. File-based shadowing may also be problematic, but it depends on how it is implemented. If the product is doing a simple file call to back up an individual file, then it should work fine, but if it is doing anything more sophisticated, you may run into issues.