Summary
A SQL 2012 Block backup job fails with errors referencing VSS.
Symptoms
The VSS writers are in a stable/no error state before the job starts however, after the job failure some of the writers, including the SQL writer, are in an error state.
The job log lists the following errors:
SNBSNP3069E 4380: MsSnapShot::check_wrts_report_okay::check_wrt_status rc[-1]
SNBSNP3069E 4380: Failed to check the status of all writers after snapshot rc [-1]
The Windows Application Event Log also reports VSS errors that occurred at the same time:
Error "0x800423f4, The writer experienced a non-transient error. If the backup process is retried, the error is likely to reoccur.
BackupVirtualDeviceFile::PrepareToFreeze: failure on backup device '{EC15F306-4BB9-4C7B-A1EE-A4E940A268FB}1'. Operating system error 995(The I/O operation has been aborted because of either a thread exit or an application request.).
Resolution
These errors usually occur after installing SQL 2012 SP1 or SP2 but may also appear on clean SQL 2012 installations. First verify that the Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Shared Management Objects package is installed from the MS support site. Once this is verified, install SQL 2012 CU1 (Cumulative Update), CU2, and later updates. See the Reference Documents section for further information.