Snapshot Quiescing Fails on Windows 2022 VMs

[jimbryan11]

Each time I attempt to create a quiesced snapshot of the Windows 2022 server which is a remote desktop host running MSSQL Express 2019 it fails. I can create a snapshot from within Windows. Before I attempt a VMware snap all VSS Writers are in a stable state with no errors. After the snapshot fails System Writer, WIDWriter, IIS Config Writer, WMI Writer,  TermServLicensing and SQLServer Writer all report they are in a failed state (Timed Out). I have tried the following to resolve the issue:

• Updating ESXi to 7.0 u3
• Updating VMware Tools on the VMs
• Installing all Windows updates
• Creating a domain service account for VMware Tools service
• Resizing and moving msr partition before OS partition
• Reregistering VSS writers

The ESXi error message is:

Create Snapshot

Key

haTask-1-vim.VirtualMachine.createSnapshot-13707

Description

Create a new snapshot of this virtual machine

Virtual machine:

SRVXXX

State

Failed - An error occurred while quiescing the virtual machine. See the virtual machine's event log for details.

Errors

 

• An error occurred while saving the snapshot: Failed to quiesce the virtual machine.
• An error occurred while taking a snapshot: Failed to quiesce the virtual machine.

 

The associated Windows event log entry is:

Volume Shadow Copy Service error: Unexpected error calling routine IOCTL_DISK_SET_SNAPSHOT_INFO(\\.\PHYSICALDRIVE1) fails with winerror 1168. hr = 0x80070490, Element not found.
.

Operation:
Processing AbortSnapshots
Executing Asynchronous Operation

Context:
Device: \\.\PHYSICALDRIVE1
Provider Name: VMware Snapshot Provider
Provider Version: 1.0.0
Provider ID: {564d7761-7265-2056-5353-2050726f7669}
Current State: DoSnapshotSet

[ObjectifDubai]

Good evening,

You seem to be in the same case as some Windows 2012 and 2016 VMs, can you check this KB

https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/71130