- The most common cause for the Volume Shadow Copy Service error is that the service has been disabled.
- If you are facing a Microsoft Volume Shadow Copy Service error, check the storage space for shadow copies.
- Sometimes, the antivirus or Windows Firewall can interfere with the VSS and lead to errors.
- Junk files on your partition also lead to VSS errors, make sure to keep your partitions clean.

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VSS is the Volume Shadow Copy Service in Windows that automatically backs up file snapshots and storage volumes even when files are in use.
Volume Shadow Copy is essential to Windows backup and System Restore utilities. As such, you might get a Volume Shadow Copy error for a system image backup or when rolling Windows back to a restore point.
If a Volume Shadow Copy Service error pops up, the System Restore utility probably won’t restore Windows. Furthermore, the Windows backup tool might not work when you try to copy files to an external USB drive.
These are a few resolutions that might fix some Volume Shadow Copy Service errors in Windows 10.
How do I fix the Volume Shadow Copy Service error?
1. How can you recognize a VSS error?
These are two VSS error messages that can pop up in Windows: and they look like in the below pictures:

A Volume Shadow Copy Service failed. Please check VSS and SPP application event logs for more information.

The Volume Shadow Copy Service used by System Restore is not working. For more information view the event log.
2. Check the Volume Shadow Copy Service is running


3. Erase junk files for all drive partitions





Note: Some users have fixed VSS errors by utilizing Disk Clean-up in Windows to erase junk files. If you have two, or more, drive partitions, you’ll need to scan each partition with a disk clean utility.
There are numerous third-party utility software you can delete junk files with, but this is how you can utilize Disk Clean-up in Windows 10.
4. Switch off the Windows Firewall



Note: Turn off the Windows Firewall to ensure that it isn’t interfering with VSS in any way.
5. Disable anti-virus software
In addition to switching off the Windows Firewall, disable third-party anti-virus software. You can temporarily switch off the anti-virus by right-clicking the system tray icons and selecting a disable option.
However, if you can’t find a disable option on the system tray context menu, open the anti-virus software’s main window to select a switch-off option from there.
6. Expand Volume Shadow Copy storage space

vssadmin resize shadowstorage /on=c: /for=c: /maxsize=20%




Note: VSS errors can be due to a lack of storage space for shadow copies. So allocating more storage space for shadow copies can fix VSS errors.
7. Remove third-party backup software
Some third-party backup software utilizes its own VSS components to create shadow copies. For example, Acronis Backup has its own VSS writer.
Third-party backup software with VSS components can conflict with Windows’ Volume Shadow Copy Service. Thus, uninstalling third-party backup utilities can fix numerous VSS errors.
We strongly recommend removing the backup utilities with a third-party uninstaller that will also erase leftover registry entries. This is a Windows gadget that allows you to uninstall software more thoroughly.
When you uninstall the software from Control Panel, sometimes you won’t delete all the files associated with it. An uninstaller can find and remove these junk files, hidden or broken shortcuts from a previously uninstalled program.
8. Erase orphaned shadows
vssadmin delete shadows /all

Note: VSS errors can also be due to the accumulation of orphaned shadows in Windows.
Some of those resolutions might fix VSS errors on your desktop or laptop so you can utilize System Restore and other Windows backup utilities. If you have any other system backup errors, check out this post.
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