How To Restore the Missing Windows Server 2012 R2 Backup Console

I installed the Windows Server Backup feature on a Windows Server 2012 R2 Domain Controller so I can backup not only the System State but also perform a full backup of the Domain Controller. The Windows Server Backup feature installed successfully but when I tried to access the tool, it was missing in the Tools menu. I removed the feature and then reinstalled it again but got the same results. I figured I will try the Windows backup administration console (wbadmin.msc) directly but that didn’t work. Even though the feature kept on assuring me that the tool was being installed successfully, it wasn’t. So now what?

After wasting about half an hour on Microsoft TechNet site and Microsoft blogs, I found no solution. In fact, Microsoft’s search engine on Microsoft’s TechNet site offered me only one URL related to backup but it had to do with Microsoft marketing. It had nothing to do with Windows Server 2012 backup information that I was looking for. I then used Google to search for Windows Server 2012 backup and was offered this link on page 2 of the search results, which I found helpful. The documented solution recommended installing Network Load Balancing (NLB), along with Windows Server Backup. Here’s what I did.

I removed the successfully installed Windows Server Backup feature and then reinstalled it along with the Network Load Balancing feature, which also installs the Remote Server Administration Tools (RSAT).

After my installation was successful, there was no need to reboot the server.

I was now able to see the Windows Server Backup tool in the Tools menu.

Talking about Window Server backups, you might be interested in my article How to Backup Active Directory Domain Services on Windows Server 2012 R2.

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