Veeam Agent – Setup ADK/AIK for Recovery Media

Challenge

Veeam Recovery Media Creation process is failing. The error will typically be:

Windows recovery image file not found:

 

Cause

Veeam Recovery Environment is built off the Windows Recovery Environment, and the Recovery Environment is made from the Windows Preinstallation Environment.
If a system is missing the Windows PE/RE components, Veeam Recovery Media will fail to create.

 

Solution

To resolve this issue, we will need to Install the Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit *ADK* (Windows 8 and later), also known as Windows Automated Installation Kit *AIK* for Windows 7. The Server OS versions will use the same Kits as their matching Desktop OS. In this article, we will cover the installation for Windows 10 and Windows 7, as AIK and ADK have different installation steps.

For the first step, you will want to download the appropriate Kit from this link.

For Windows 10 1809 and later: Download the WinPE add-on for the ADK which is available here - https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/get-started/adk-install  

Windows 10 - ADK

1. Start the installation from the downloaded file


2. Specify Location. You do not need to change the default path. Click on Next:

3. Select if you want to join the Microsoft CEIP and Click Next:

4. Accept the License Agreement

5. Proceed the installation process

6. Once the install is completed, click Close

7. Proceed to “Setting Registry Values”
 

Windows 7 - AIK

For Windows 7 (and Server 2008 R2), Microsoft had the Windows AIK, instead of the ADK.
The installation for the AIK is different, and we will be walking through these differences in this section.

1. AIK is provided as an ISO. To begin the install you will need to first mount the ISO file.
2. Once the ISO is mounted, you will be able to start the installer

3. You will need to select the “Windows AIK Setup” option to start the install

4. Click Next on the Welcome screen for the install

5. Accept the License Agreement and click Next

6. Specify Location. You do not need to change the default path. Click on Next:

7. Click Next to confirm the Install.

8. Click "Close" to finish the install

9. Proceed to “Setting Registry Values”
 

Setting Registry Values

ForceUseAdkForRecoveryMedia

This key Forces Veeam to only use the ADK(or AIK) component.
It is the same key name for both kits.
1. Open Regedit
2. Browse to “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Veeam\Veeam Endpoint Backup”
3. Create a new Registry key with these details:

• Name: ForceUseAdkForRecoveryMedia
• Type: REG_DWORD
• Value: 1

4. Restart the “Veeam Agent for Microsoft Windows” service
 

DismPath

This key is used to specify the path toward the DISM tool, which is used to mount the Windows image for setup. This key will only need to be used if the default location for the dism.exe is changed.
The default location is typically: C:\Windows\System32

The dism.exe tool is included within the installation folder path of ADK(AIK), and there will be separate dism.exe(s) for various CPU Architectures. You will want to use Windows Explorer to locate the appropriate dism.exe for your CPU Architecture.

For example, on a 64-bit Windows 10 Install, the dism.exe will be located under:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Kits\10\Assessment and Deployment Kit\Deployment Tools\amd64\DISM\Dism.exe

To add this key, you will need to perform these steps:
1. Open Regedit
2. Browse to “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Veeam\Veeam Endpoint Backup”
3. Create a new Registry key with these details:

• Name: DismPath
• Type: String
• Value: Full path to your EXE, including the dism.exe

EXAMPLE:  C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Kits\10\Assessment and Deployment Kit\Deployment Tools\amd64\DISM\Dism.exe

4. Restart the “Veeam Agent for Microsoft Windows” service

More Information

Starting with Windows 10, version 1809, WinPE is an add-on to the Windows Assessment and Deployment Kit (ADK).