This article will tell you how to solve the “Failed to initialize backup” that can be experienced using Citrix Provisioning Services.

When you are trying to capture a new image, using Citrix Provisioning services, you may experience an error where the wizard fails to create the disk. If you click the log button or go to C:\AppData\Citrix\PVS, you will see this error in the log file:

• Failed to initialize backup 0x80042302

How to solve the Failed to initialize backup error

The reason this error is because these two services on the machine you are are trying to snapshot is not started:

• Microsoft Software Shadow Service
• Volume Shadow Copy

Once you start these two services and set these to start automatically, you will be able to create your PVS image.