Image for Windows Fails to Run when Invoked by the Windows Task Scheduler
Problem:
While attempting to run Image for Windows using the Windows Task Scheduler without the applicable user logged on (i.e. the user under whose context the task is running), the process doesn't seem to run at all. Or, the process starts, but Image for Windows (imagew.exe) seems to hang indefinitely.
Cause:
Image for Windows is waiting for user input, but the prompt is not visible due to the process having been invoked by the Task Scheduler.
Solution:
If you are running Image for Windows non-interactively, you will want to have Image for Windows automatically respond to Yes/No, Abort/Retry/Ignore, and OK/Cancel prompts that may appear. This can be done using the unattended backup command line parameters supported by Image for Windows (as outlined in the Image for Windows PDF manual).
Some examples of prompts that could appear and need to be handled by an automatic response:
- Unable to obtain a lock [Abort/Retry/Ignore]
- Overwrite file? [Yes/No]
A usage example:
imagew.exe /b /un /ui /d:w0@0x1 /f:"D:\BACKUP"
Where:
- /un instructs Image for Windows to automatically respond No to all Yes/No prompts, Cancel to all OK/Cancel prompts, and Abort to all Abort/Retry/Ignore prompts.
- /ui instructs Image for Windows to automatically respond Ignore to all Abort/Retry/Ignore prompts. This overrides the effect of the /un parameter for Abort/Retry/Ignore prompts only.
Another example:
imagew.exe /b /uy /d:w0 /f:"D:\BACKUP"
Where:
- /uy instructs Image for Windows to automatically respond Yes to all Yes/No prompts, OK to all OK/Cancel prompts, and Ignore to all Abort/Retry/Ignore prompts.
Using /ui with /uy is not necessary, as the use of/uy alone results in Ignore being selected for Abort/Retry/Ignore prompts. In other words, /uy and /uy /ui are equivalent.
Please also note that if you have experienced the issue addressed by this article, there may be imagew.exe and/or cmd.exe process(es) left running in the background. If this is the case, you may either terminate these process(es) using Task Manager or simply reboot.