VSS Manager - Volume Shadow Copy Service Manager

A modern PowerShell-based application for managing Windows Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) with both command-line and graphical user interfaces.

Features

🖥️ Modern WPF GUI

• Volume Management Tab: View all VSS-supported volumes with detailed statistics
• Shadow Copy Operations Tab: Create, view, and delete shadow copies
• Real-time Progress Tracking: Visual progress indicators for all operations
• Usage Statistics: Color-coded volume capacity bars and usage percentages

📋 Core Functionality

• List VSS-Supported Volumes: Display all volumes that support shadow copies
• View Shadow Copies: Show existing shadow copies with creation time, state, and age
• Create Shadow Copies: Generate new volume snapshots with progress tracking
• Delete Shadow Copies: Remove individual or all shadow copies for a volume
• Volume Statistics: Display capacity, free space, usage percentages, and file systems

Requirements

• Windows 10/11 (or Windows Server equivalent)
• Windows PowerShell 5.1 (not compatible with PowerShell 7/Core)
• Administrator privileges (required for VSS operations)
• .NET Framework (for WPF GUI components)

Installation & Usage

Quick Start

1. Clone or download this repository
2. Run: Double click Launch.bat
3. The application will automatically launch the GUI interface

Command Line Usage

You can also use the core functions directly in PowerShell:

# Import the functions
. .\main.ps1

# List all VSS-supported volumes
Get-VSSSupportedVolumes

# View shadow copies for C: drive
Get-VSSShadowCopies -VolumePath "C"

# Create a new shadow copy
New-VSSShadowCopy -VolumePath "C:"

# Remove shadow copies (with confirmation)
Remove-VSSShadowCopy -VolumePath "C:"

GUI Interface

The GUI provides two main tabs:

Volume Management

• View all available volumes with detailed information
• Color-coded usage indicators (Green < 70%, Orange < 85%, Red ≥ 85%)
• Select volumes for shadow copy operations

Shadow Copy Operations

• View existing shadow copies for selected volumes
• Create new shadow copies with progress tracking
• Delete selected shadow copies with confirmation dialogs
• Real-time status updates and operation feedback

File Structure

ps_vss_app/
├── main.ps1           # Core VSS functions
├── VSSManager.ps1     # WPF GUI application
├── Launch.bat         # Batch file launcher
├── LICENSE           # Apache 2.0 License
└── assets/png/       # GUI icons and images

Compatibility Notes

• PowerShell Version: This application requires Windows PowerShell 5.1 and will not work with PowerShell 7 (Core)
• Platform: Windows-only (uses Windows Management Instrumentation)
• Architecture: Compatible with both x64 and x86 Windows systems

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. "Script cannot be loaded" error

   • Run: Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser

2. "Access Denied" errors

   • Ensure you're running as Administrator
   • Check that VSS service is running: sc query vss

3. GUI doesn't appear

   • Verify you're using Windows PowerShell 5.1 (not PowerShell 7)
   • Check that .NET Framework is installed

4. Missing PNG files warning

   • The application will create the assets directory automatically
   • GUI will function without icons, but some visual elements may be missing

Security & Permissions

This application requires administrative privileges because:

• Volume Shadow Copy operations require elevated permissions
• WMI queries for system volume information need admin access
• Shadow copy creation/deletion affects system-level services

License

Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0. See LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

This is a system administration tool for Windows VSS management. Contributions should focus on:

• Improving error handling and user experience
• Adding additional VSS-related functionality
• Enhancing the GUI interface
• Bug fixes and performance improvements

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⚠️ Important: Always test shadow copy operations in a non-production environment first. Volume Shadow Copy operations can affect system performance and disk space.