Troubleshooting WMI

Categories: Troubleshooting, Windows, Q-Hybrid, Hyper-V, Alike v3, Alike v4


Introduction

Alike utilizes WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation) to gather information and perform aspects of its Q-Hybrid backup jobs. WMI is a powerful tool, but can sometimes be a bit difficult to get working correctly.

WMI is dependent upon COM, and can be effected by COM security, user authentication as well as firewall and security software. This KB article covers some basic WMI troubleshooting information for Alike and Q-Hybrid & Hyper-v connections.


WMI Requirements

  • DCOM needs to be enabled on the target system
  • The user account must have administrative privileges on the target system
  • The target system’s firewall must not block inbound WMI access
  • The remote RPC server for WMI must be running on the default port: TCP 135
  • No security software (antivirus/anti-spyware, etc) must be blocking WMI requests

Troubleshooting WMI

  • Make sure that the user account is an administrator on the target computer
  • Make sure that the user account’s password is correct and not expired
  • Make sure the local time is correctly set on the Alike server, the target system and, if applicable, the domain controller. A time difference greater than 15 minutes between client and server can cause errors
  • Try removing and re-adding the computer to the domain as a last resort

A handy utility for troubleshooting WMI problems can be found on nearly all installations of Windows: WBemTest.exe.

This tool allows you to independently test your remote computers’ WMI configuration to isolate and correct any problems. Once you have determined what type of problems you are dealing with, you can look at the following list of general categories of WMI issues:

80070005 – Access is denied

Error 0x80070005 means that the Domain Controller/local Windows system could not verify the credentials for the target computer.

  • Incorrect credentials can cause this issue. Please double check your password and try again.
  • DCOM needs to be enabled on the target system.
  • If the Alike server is part of a domain, and the target system is not in the same domain, you must use a local administrative account on the target system.
  • If you are using a DNS name for the system, try using an IP address instead. Sometimes troubles with DNS/DHCP entries can cause misleading errors.
  • If the target host(s) are accessible with the WBEMTEST. But you still receive the 80070005 error, try using “localhost” as “domain or computer name” in the Windows credentials section of the device’s settings.
  • Check the your Alike service account and make sure it is part of the local “Administrators” group. Often, using the local Administrator works best.
80041003 – Access is denied

Error 0x80041003 is slightly different. It means that the user can log in, but has insufficient rights to use WMI. You might want to check your access rights or the respective policies.


Final Notes

If you are still receiving these error codes after troubleshooting, please open a support ticket. See the KB article, “How to Use Quadric Support,” for instructions on how to open a ticket.

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