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About Backup Exec Deduplication Credentials and how they are used.

Article: 100000666
Last Published: 2022-07-22
Ratings: 0 2
Product(s): Backup Exec

Problem
 

About Backup Exec Deduplication Credentials and how they are used.
 

Solution

 

Deduplication Folder Credentials:

The Deduplication Folder Credentials are used by Backup Exec (BE) to access a Deduplication folder.  These credentials consist of a user name and a password.  The Deduplication Folder Credentials are pulled from the BE Logon Account provided when the Deduplication folder is created.  These credentials are then set in the Deduplication folder's database.  That is, a database user with this user name, and password is created.
 
 
 
Things to note about this user name and password:
 
  • The user name and password are used to create a database account.  The Deduplication software is not using these credentials to log in as a Windows user.
  • It is a good idea to create a new BE Logon Account that is used to manage the deduplication folder.  For example, create a Backup Exec Login account with an account name of Deduplication Folder Credentials, a user name of Dedup, and a password of your choice.

      
 

 

It is a good idea for the user name to not be the same as a Windows user name to minimize confusion.  It is not required though.
 

  • Do not use the caret ^ or double quotes " or the percent sign % in the password.
  • Once the Deduplication folder has been created, the user name associated with the Deduplication folder cannot be changed.  
  • If you change the BE Logon Account associated with a Deduplication folder, that new account must have the exact same user name as the original.
  • If you change the password for the BE Logon Account associated with a Deduplication folder, you must also modify the corresponding password in the Deduplication database to match (see below for instructions)
     
Checking the Password for the Deduplication Folder
 
The following is a way to check if the password being used matches the password for the Deduplication folder.
Note: To update the password via below command after BE 20.3 disable Lockdown and enable it back after updating the password. Lockdown settings can be enabled or disabled from Backup Exec Global settings -> Network and Security. Lockdown settings are not required to be disabled to run the command in 20.3 and earlier version as the feature got introduced in BE 20.4.
  • Open up a command box.
  • Change directory to the Backup Exec Program Files Directory
    • c:
    • cd \Program Files\Symantec or Veritas\Backup Exec
  • Run the spauser utility to find the username being used for the Deduplication folder.  It will be the one listed as "user 1"
    • spauser -l     (note that -l is a dash followed by a lower case letter "el"
  • Run the spauser utility as if you were going to change the password for the user 1.  In this example, user 1 is "dedupeuser"
    • spauser -c -u dedupeuser
  • When prompted for the "Old Password", type in the password that needs to be verified.
  • If the "Old Password" prompt comes up again, the password is incorrect.  If the "New Password" prompt comes up, then the password that was typed in currently matches the Deduplication folder.
  • In either case, press Ctrl-C to break out of the program without changing the password.
 
Changing the Deduplication Folder Password
 
  • Click BE Icon in top left side of Backup Exec Console -> Configuration and Settings -> Logon Accounts -> Manage Logon Accounts. Highlight the Dedupe storage account and update the password.
  • Open a command line window and go to the Backup Exec Program directory.  By default this is located in the C:\Program Files\Veritas\Backup Exec path.
  • Run the spauser -l command (that is a dash followed by a lower case letter L).  This lists out the database users.  Note the username associated with the first user (user 1)
  • Run the spauser -c -u "user associated with user 1"
  • Provide the old password and then the new password to match the password in the BE Logon Account.
  • If old password is not known, then a new password can be assigned using this command from Backup Exec version 21 onwards. This command does not prompt for old password.
    spauser.exe -r -u dedupeusername -q password 
    (replace the dedupeusername with the one used in your environment. use the password of your choice)
     
Changing the User Name associated with a Deduplication Folder
 
The user account used at the time of Deduplication Folder creation cannot be changed during its use. If at any point of time, this storage is completely deleted and a new one is configured from scratch then another user name can be chosen. Make sure to nnot use the same user name as what is being used for System Logon Account or Backup Exec Service Account in Backup Exec


 

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