Commands for Windows Backup

You can access certain McAfee Online Backup backup software for Windows functionality through a command interface. This is an advanced feature and generally only used by administrators.

Installation

The miscellaneous switches let you perform various installation tasks.

Preferred Activation Type

Specifies the preferred activation type for the backup software.

McAfee Online Backupsetup.exe /preferredactivationtype: {auto
| assisted  | productkey | keyless}

The preferred activation type is stored on the computer and specifies the behavior of the backup software installation program each time it is run.

Parameters

auto
Automatically activates the account based upon their Active Directory domain.

The account used to run the installation program is designated the main account, so install using the correct account. Also, the account must have administrator rights to install and activate. If you want to make a non-administrator the main account user, use assisted activation to set the main account user after the installation.

The override is to look in the Organizational Unit (OU) instead of looking it up from the NT Domain.

assisted
Activates the account using Active Directory. Users are prompted for their username and password after the installation completes.
productkey
Activates the account using a username (usually the user’s email address), password, and product key.
keyless
Activates an account using a username (usually the user’s email address) and password.

Proxy Setup

Specifies the proxy server used by the backup software.

McAfee Online Backupsetup.exe configuration authentication

Configuration Parameters

Choose one of the following for configuration.

/useproxy: url
Explicitly sets the proxy server that the backup software uses on a computer. url is the URL of the proxy server.
/usemachinedefaultproxy
Sets the proxy server that the backup software uses to the one configured for the computer based on the group policy settings for the user account.
/autodetectproxy
Sets the proxy server that the backup software uses to one that the backup software discovers configured on the computer.
/pacurl: url
Sets the proxy server that the backup software uses through a PAC script, which contains the configuration information for the proxy server. url is the URL of the PAC script.
Authentication Parameters

Choose one of the following for authentication.

/usemachineproxyauth
Specifies that the user's domain account should be used for authentication.
/proxyuser:username /proxypass:password [/proxydomain:domain]
Specifies the account used to authenticate to the proxy server.
  • username is the username of the account.
  • password is the password of the account.
  • domain is the domain of the account.

Silent Installation

Installs the backup software with no user interaction.

McAfee Online Backupsetup.exe {/silent | /verysilent}

Parameters

/silent
Runs the installation with only a progress bar.
/verysilent
Runs the installation without any dialogs at all. The installation takes place entirely in the background.

No Restart

Prevents a required reboot and hides the reboot dialog from the user.

McAfee Online Backupsetup.exe /norestart

By default, if a restart is required, the user is prompted.

No Status Window

Prevents the Status window from opening after the installation completes.

McAfee Online Backupsetup.exe /nostatus

Language

Sets the language used by the installation program and the backup software.

McAfee Online Backupsetup.exe /lang=language code

language code is the code for a supported language.

  • de - German-Germany
  • en_GB - English-United Kingdom
  • en - English-United States
  • es_ES - Spanish-Spain
  • fr - French-France
  • it - Italian-Italy
  • ja_JP - Japanese-Japan
  • nl - Dutch-Netherlands
  • pt_BR - Portugese-Brazil

Log File Name and Location

Specifies the name and location of the log files.

McAfee Online Backupsetup.exe /log=filename

The log files provide details about installation and run actions. A separate log file is created for each day with the date appended to the file name.

filename is the log file path and name. Enclose the path and filename in quotes if it contains spaces. Example: "c:\Program Files\Logs\backup.log".

If no path and name is specified, the log file is created in the current working location. The default working location is ...\Program Files\McAfee Online Backup\Data.

Directory

Overrides the default directory name displayed on the Select Destination Location wizard page.

McAfee Online Backupsetup.exe /dir=folder path

folder path is the drive letter and folder path. A fully qualified path name must be specified. For example, "c:\ utilities".

Domain

Specifies the domain.

McAfee Online Backupsetup.exe /domainid:domain

domain is the domain of the user.

Organizational Unit

Specifies the organizational unit.

McAfee Online Backupsetup.exe /ou:organizationalunit GUID

GUID is the GUID of the Active Directory organizational unit.

Setup Configuration

The setup switches let you control the behavior of the backup software configuration program. Configuration occurs after software installation.

Account Information

Populate the user information fields for an account activated using a product key.

McAfee Online Backupconfiguration.exe /username user name /password password /productkey product key

Parameters

/username user name
Email address associated with the account.
/password password
Account password.
/productkey product key
Account product key.

Backup Software Activation

These commands let you activate the backup software. These command are accessed through the McAfee Online Backup utility (McAfee Online Backuputil.exe).

McAfee Online Backup Credentials (Keyless) Activation

Activates an account using a username (usually the user’s email address) and password.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /keylessactivate /email  address /pass password
  [/partnerid partner]
  [//licensetype type]
  [encryption key type]
  

Parameters

/email address
Specifies the email address of the McAfee Online Backup account. address is the email address of the account.
/pass password
Specifies the password of the McAfee Online Backup account. password is the password of the account.
/partnerid partner
If the account email address is used by more than one McAfee Online Backup account, use this to specify the partner associated with the account.
/licensetype type
Specifies the service type used. type is "desktop" or "server". If you have a computer that is not a server and you have desktop and server service types available, you must use this to specify the service type to use.
encryption key type
Specifies the encryption key type.
  • /escrowedkey - An escrowed key is kept by McAfee separately from files backed up in the McAfee cloud, and automatically supplied when files need to be decrypted. You cannot pull an escrowed encryption key that does not correspond to this computer. 
  • /adminkey - Uses a corporate key specified by the administrator in the Admin Console.
  • /customkeytext key - Use a personal key that you specify. key is the key.
  • /randomkey - Uses a randomly generated key to activate the McAfee Online Backup backup software.
  • /defaultkey - Uses the default McAfee Online Backup encryption key.
  • /customkeyfile file - Uses a key provided in a file. file is the path to and name of the key file.

Product Key Activation

Activates an account using a username (usually the user’s email address), password, and product key.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /activate username password [/licensekey license key] [encryption key]
  

Parameters

username
Username of the account.
password
Password of the account.
/licensekey license key
Product key associated with the account. If a key is not specified, a simple activation is performed.
encryption key
Specifies the encryption key type and key.
  • /escrowedkey - An escrowed key is kept by McAfee separately from files backed up in the McAfee cloud and is automatically supplied when files need to be decrypted. You cannot pull an escrowed encryption key that does not correspond to this computer. 
  • /adminkey - Uses a corporate key specified by the administrator in the Admin Console.
  • /customkeytext key - Use a personal key that you specify. key is the key.
  • /randomkey - Uses a randomly generated key to activate the McAfee Online Backup backup software.
  • /defaultkey - Uses the default McAfee Online Backup encryption key.
  • /customkeyfile file - Uses a key provided in a file. file is the path to and name of the key file.

Assisted Activation

Activates an account using Active Directory. Users are prompted for their username and password after the installation completes.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /assistedactivate [username] password

Parameters

username
Username of the account to activate. The computer name is used if the username is not specified.
password
Password of the account to activate.

Auto Activation

Activates an account automatically using Active Directory.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /autoactivate [username]

The account used to run the installation program is designated the main account, so install using the correct account. Also, the account must have administrator rights to install and activate. If you want to make a non-administrator the main account user, use assisted activation to set the main account user after the installation.

username is the username of the account to activate. The computer name is used if the username is not specified.

Backup Service Type

Specifies the service type used to back up a computer. If you are using keyless activation, the service type is specified in the Admin Console, and this command is not applicable.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /licensetype: { Desktop | Server}

This is only applicable for accounts that have been given permission by the administrator to use both of these service types.

Parameters

Desktop
This service type lets you back up files on your laptop or desktop computer and external hard drives.
Server
This service type lets you back up files on your server, laptop, or desktop computer. This includes server application files on your computer, external hard drives, and network shares.

Remote Status and Management Commands

These commands let you perform remote status and management functions. These commands are accessed through the McAfee Online Backup utility (McAfee Online Backuputil.exe).

Start Backup

Starts a backup.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /backup

Pause Backup

Pauses a backup until the backup is resumed or the computer is restarted.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /cancel

Throttle Bandwidth

Specifies the bandwidth throttling.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /throttle start:end:speed:days

StartSec:EndSec:Value:Day

start
Throttling start time in seconds. Example: 1:00:00 A.M. is 60 seconds * 60 minutes * 1 hour = 3600.
end
Throttling end time in seconds.
speed
The throttled speed in kbps. Set this value to -1 for full speed.
days
A number that represents the days on which to throttle.
  • 1 - Sunday
  • 2 - Monday
  • 4 - Tuesday
  • 8 - Wednesday
  • 16 - Thursday
  • 32 - Friday
  • 64 - Saturday

To specify more than one day, add together the values for each day you want included.

Set to 127 for every day. Set to 62 for Monday through Friday. Set to 65 for weekends.

Example

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /throttle 32400:61200:100000:62 throttles bandwidth Monday - Friday from 9:00:00 A.M. to 5:00:00 P.M. at 1 Mbps.

Computer Backup Performance

Specifies the amount of computer processor resources used to complete backups.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /performance value

The more resources used, the faster backups occur. value is a value of 1 - 100, where 100 is fast, 80 is medium, and 50 is slow.

Last Backup

Returns the date and time of the last successful backup.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /lastbackup

The date and time is returned as an unsigned integer (time_t), which represents the number of seconds since the start of the Unix epoch at midnight UTC of January 1, 1970 (not counting leap seconds). For more information, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_t.

Next Backup

Returns the date and time of the next scheduled backup.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /nextbackup

The date and time is returned as an unsigned integer (time_t), which represents the number of seconds since the start of the Unix epoch at midnight UTC of January 1, 1970 (not counting leap seconds). For more information, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_t or search the Web for an epoch converter. If backups are set to occur automatically, "auto" is returned.

Files Backed Up

Returns a value indicating the number of files backed up.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /filesbackedup

Last Backup Result

Returns a hexadecimal code indicating the results of the last backup.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /lastbackupresult

For information on the codes, see McAfee Backup Software Error Codes for Windows.

Get Current State

Returns the current backup state: Idle, backing up, or restoring.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /currentstate

Add Backup Set

Adds a new backup set to the backup software by importing a backup set definition from a file.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /addbackupset filename

filename is the path to and name of the backup set definition file. For information on the definition file format, see Format of a Backup Set Definition File for Windows.

Get Backup Set Definition

Returns the definition of a backup set.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /dumpbackupset backup set

If you want to add a backup set, you can use this as an example of a backup file format.

backup set is the name of he backup set.

Remove Backup Set

Removes the specified backup set.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /rmbackupset backup set

backup set is the name of the backup set.

Toggle Backup Mode

Toggle between suspending and enabling the backup schedule.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /switchsuspendedmode

A suspension stays in effect until it is toggled back to running.

Suspend Backup

Suspends the backup schedule for a specified number of hours.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /suspend=number of hours

If a backup is in progress, the backup is paused until the suspension period is over. number of hours is an integer that specifies the suspension time in hours. If this is set to -1, the suspension is indefinite.

Total Storage Space

Returns the total amount of storage space, including used and unused.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /quota

Storage Space Used

Returns the amount of storage space used.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /quotaused

List of Backed up Files

Creates a CSV file listing all of the backed up files.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /backedupfiles file path

file path is the location of the CSV file.

Local Backup Location

Sets the location of the local backup folder.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /localbackup drive

drive is the drive containing the local backup folder. The drive can also be a network share.

Example

Local backup folder of the D drive.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /localbackup d:\

Backup Software Set Up

These commands let you perform backup software setup functions. These commands are accessed through the McAfee Online Backup utility (McAfee Online Backuputil.exe).

Backup Schedule

Specifies the backup schedule.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /schedule schedule

Parameters

Choose one of the following scheduling options for schedule.

Auto
Schedules backups to occur automatically when the computer is not in use.
daily|interval|time
Schedules backups daily. The |\" character must be included as a separator between the parameters.
  • interval is the number of days between backups. The value can be a number from 1 to 49.
  • time is the time of day of a backup. The format is hh:mm:ss. Example, 17:00:00 is 5:00 PM.
Example
McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /schedule daily |2|17:00:00 schedules backups every two days at 5:00 P.M.
weekly|day|interval|time
Schedules backups weekly. The |\" character must be included as a separator between the parameters.
day is a number representing the day of the week backups are performed.
  • 0 - Sunday"
  • 1 - Monday
  • 2 - Tuesday"
  • 3 - Wednesday"
  • 4 - Thursday"
  • 5 - Friday"
  • 6 - Saturday"

interval is the number of weeks between backups.

time is the time of day of a backup. The format is hh:mm:ss. Example, 17:00:00 is 5:00 PM.

Example
McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /schedule weekly|2|1|17:00:00 schedules backup every week on Tuesday at 5:00 P.M.

Add Backup Set

Adds a new backup set to the McAfee Online Backup backup software by importing the backup set definition from a file.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /addbackupset file

For information on the definition file format, see Format of a Backup Set Definition File for Windows.

filename is the path to and name of the backup set definition file. Example: c:\data\my_backupset.txt.

Backup

Starts a backup.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /backup [{ /nostatus | /status}]

Parameters

/nostatus
Hides the status window during backup.
/status
Displays the status window during backup.

Cancel Backup

Cancels all currently running backups and restores.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /cancel

Collect Log

Collect computer status information, including files in data folder, system information, VSS information, application events and system events.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /collectLog destination folder

The log files are named McAfee Online Backupsupport_date_time

destination folder is where the collected information is placed.

Restore File

Requests the restoration of a file.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /restorefilename timestamp destination

Exit code 0 means the restore request was valid, and was sent to service, but not that the restore itself was successful.

Parameters

filename
Name of the file to restore.
timestamp
Timestamp of file to restore. The timestamp is in unix epoch time. Example: 1373582798 Is equal to Thu, 11 Jul 2013 22:46:38 GMT.
destination
Location where you want the file restored to.

Example

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /restore c:\test\myfile.txt 1373582798 c:\restores

Set Proxy Password

Requests that the saved proxy password be set to password (used by the installation program).

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /setproxyauth password

User Display Name

Sets the user display name reported to the McAfee cloud.

McAfee Online Backuputil.exe /userdisplayname name

This must be set before activation.

name is the display name.

Related reference
Commands for Mac Backup
Commands for {{{sync_product_name}}}