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WBAdmin

command

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionMay 13, 2023
Entity authorityQ17048723
Source-derived summary

In computing, WBAdmin is a command-line utility built into Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows 8, Windows Server 2012, Windows 10 and Windows 11 operating systems. The command is used to perform backups and restores of operating systems, drive volumes, computer files, folders, and applications from a command-line interface.

Features

WBAdmin is a disk-based backup system. It can create a "bare metal" backup used to restore the Windows operating system to similar or dissimilar hardware. The backup file(s) created are primarily in the form of Microsoft's Virtual Hard Disk (.VHD) files with some accompanying .xml configuration files. The backup .VHD file can be mounted in Windows Disk Manager to view content. However, the .VHD backup file is not a direct "disk clone".

The utility replaces the previous Microsoft Windows Backup command-line tool, NTBackup, which came built-into Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003. It is the command-line version of Backup and Restore. WBAdmin also has a graphical user interface option available to simplify creation of computer backup (and restore).

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “WBAdmin” as command. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA practical starting point whose main value is the path it opens into stronger specialist and primary sources. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2008, 2012, 2000, 2003—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. The account is most persuasive where WBAdmin and command can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the general reference register because the source frames it as command. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 13, 2023. The linked authority identifier is Q17048723. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2008, 2012, 2000 and 2003.

Critical limits

Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “WBAdmin”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow WBAdmin primary sources, WBAdmin archive and WBAdmin research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “WBAdmin”?
  2. What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
  3. Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from WBAdmin” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.