Replacing an Existing Computer

CTERA Agent allows you to replace an existing computer connected to an agent and restore the backed up content without involving an administrator.

The process, which gives you full ownership of your devices, allows you to restore all backup files from the existing computer to the replacement device. It also works with different operating systems so that, for example, you can replace a Windows workstation with a Mac OS X machine.

Note: You cannot replace a server with a workstation, or a workstation with a server.

To replace an existing computer:

1. Install CTERA Agent on the replacement computer.

2. Sign in using the same account credentials as the computer you want to replace.
   CTERA Agent detects automatically that you have another computer on the same account. The Activating CTERA Agent window is displayed, prompting you to select an agent activation option.
   

3. Select Replace an existing computer.

4. Select the computer you are replacing from the drop-down list.

5. Click Continue.

6. Click OK to the confirmation message that is displayed.
   The computer you are replacing is disconnected from the agent services and a window is displayed that gives you the option to restore its files from the backup to the new computer.

7. To restore the backed up files to the replacement computer, click Restore My Files.
   Note: To restore the files to the replacement computer at a later time using CTERA Agent's regular restore process, click Skip restore instead.
   The Select Files to Restore window is displayed.
   

8. Select the files you want to restore:

   • To select specific folders, expand the folder tree in the left pane, then make sure only the folders you want are checked.
     Folders which include content to restore are indicated with the icon.
   • To select individual files in a folder, select the folder in the left pane, and then select the individual files in the right pane.
     Note: You can create a new folder and restore files to the new folder. You can also restore backups that require a user password.

   

9. Select the settings for restoring the files:

   • To select a different folder to which to restore the files, click ... and browse to the desired folder in the Directory window.
   • To specify the action to take if the file already exists on the computer, select a new action from the If file exists drop-down list.
   • To restore files attributes, check the Restore file attributes check box.

10. Click Next.
    A progress bar is displayed that shows the status of the restoration process.
    When the files are restored successfully, a success message is displayed. The folders that were just restored are added automatically to the list of files for the backup operation.
    The Set Up Your Cloud Backup window is displayed. For details, see Setting Up Cloud Backup.