AWS ZertoTools for Windows
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- Last UpdatedDec 23, 2024
AWS ZertoTools for Windows
Zerto continues to support ZertoTools for Windows when failing over VMs with Windows operating systems from VMware vSphere to AWS. ZertoTools for Windows must be installed when failing over:
• | VMs with encrypted on-premises disks |
• | VMs running Windows 2012 or 2008R2 |
Best Practice
It is recommended to install ZertoTools before you create VPGs. This ensures that all checkpoints are valid when failing over.
If you install ZertoTools after VPG creation, make sure you select a checkpoint after the installations are completed.
ZertoTools Requirements
• | ZertoTools supports the following operating systems: |
• | 2008R2 |
• | 2012 |
• | 2012R2 |
• | 2016 |
• | Windows 2019 |
• | Run ZertoTools from C: Windows OS drive only. |
• | .Net Framework 4.5 and up must be installed. |
ZertoTools Execution Options
• | When recovering to C5/M5 instances, Windows 2008R2, Windows 2012, Windows 2012R2, Windows 2016 and Windows 2019 are supported. |
• | For Windows 2012R2, Windows 2016 and Windows 2019, the following drivers are downloaded on the protected virtual machine. ZertoTools installs these drivers on the recovered virtual machine: |
• | Windows ENA (Elastic Network Adapter) Drivers |
• | NVMe driver |
For Windows 2008R2 and Windows 2012, Windows ENA (Elastic Network Adapter) drivers and NVMe driver are downloaded on the protected virtual machine. ZertoTools installs these drivers on the protected virtual machine and executes the below command:
start rundll32.exe sppnp.dll,Sysprep_Generalize_Pnp -wait
This command removes computer-specific information for the drivers. When recovering to C5/M5, the instance will boot on AWS and install all the drivers again.
Executing the ZertoTools Script
1. | Login to myZerto to access ZertoTools from myZerto > Support & Downloads > Tools > ZertoTools for Windows |
2. | Extract the zip file and copy the Zerto Tools.bat to each protected Windows virtual machine in VMware. |
3. | Execute the batch files with one of the following arguments: |
• | -q (quiet mode): Install ZertoTools without any prompt. The default for prompt will be Yes. This argument is relevant only when recovering to C5/M5 instance types with Windows 2008R2 and Windows 2012. |
• | -v: Verify that all required components are downloaded and your machine is ready for failover. |
• | -u: Uninstall ZertoTools. |
4. | Wait a few minutes and verify you get the following message: Process successfully finished. |
Important:
If you receive an error message, DO NOT perform failover.
5. | The script downloads the drivers and installs them upon failover on the AWS machine. If the download of these drivers fails, manually download them from the following links: |
• | Download ENA (Enhanced Network Adapter): |
• | For Windows 2008R2: AwsEnaNetworkDriver.zip |
• | All other OS: AwsEnaNetworkDriver.zip |
• | Download the NVMe driver: |
• | For Windows 2008R2: AWSNVMe.zip |
• | All other OS: AWSNVMe.zip |
Note: If you need to download the drivers manually, the zip file name of each driver should not be changed.
ZertoTools will also backup the VMtools to ensure re-IP works upon Failback to the protected VMware site.
Important:
• | A folder named ZertoTools is created on C:/ProgramData folder. |
• | If you installed ZertoTools after VPG creation, wait for the next checkpoint to be created before performing failover. |