---
title: "Before You Begin"
description: "Before you configure the backup job, check the following prerequisites: A valid license must be installed. For more information, see Licensing. The target location where you plan to store backup files must have enough free space."
canonical: "https://helpcenter.veeam.com/docs/agentforaix/userguide/backup_job_before.html"
breadcrumb: "User Guide > Performing Backup > Creating Backup Jobs > Before You Begin"
dateModified: "2026-11-03"
---

# Before You Begin

## Prerequisites

Before you configure the backup job, check the following prerequisites:

- A valid license must be installed. For more information, see [Licensing](licensing.md).
- The target location where you plan to store backup files must have enough free space.
- [For Veeam Backup & Replication repository targets] You can store created backups in a backup repository only if the backup server runs Veeam Backup & Replication 13.1.
- [For Veeam Backup & Replication repository targets] If you plan to use a Veeam Backup & Replication repository as a target for backups, you must pre-configure user access permissions on this backup repository. To learn more, see [Setting Up User Permissions on Backup Repositories](integrate_permissions.md).

## Considerations and Limitations

Before you configure the backup job, consider the following:

- You can exclude specific devices from backup, such as SAN LUNs or multipath devices. To do this, you must edit the `veeam.ini` Veeam Agent configuration file. For more information, see [Excluding Devices from Backup](#exclude).
- When you configure the backup job with the Backup Job wizard, Veeam Agent creates the job with default values for the following advanced settings: compression level and data block size. You can specify custom values for these settings in the command line interface when you create a new backup job or edit an existing backup job. For more information, see [Creating Backup Job in Command Line Interface](backup_job_create_cmd.md) and [Editing Backup Job Settings](backup_job_edit.md).
- You cannot save the backup of entire computer on the local computer disk. Use an external hard drive or USB drive, network shared folder or backup repository as a target location.
- Veeam Agent automatically stops running the backup job session if it has not finished after 21 days (504 hours).
- If any files are skipped during backup, Veeam Agent creates a `.csv` file that lists the skipped files and adds it to the backup job session log.

## Excluding Devices from Backup {#exclude}

::: important

Do not exclude devices that contain system volumes. Otherwise, you may not be able to use such backup to perform bare metal recovery.

:::

To specify devices that must be excluded from backup, do the following:

1. On the Veeam Agent computer, open the `veeam.ini` configuration file located in the `/etc/veeam` directory.
2. In the `backup` section, uncomment the `ignoreDevices` line.
3. Specify the devices that you want to exclude. Use a semicolon to separate device names. For example:

   ```
   ignoreDevices = hdisk100;hdisk101
   ```

   You can also use a wildcard character (an asterisk) to specify a range of devices whose names follow the same convention. For example:

   ```
   ignoreDevices = hdisk10*
   ```

## Navigating Backup Job Wizard {#keys}

The Backup Job wizard window comprises the following areas:

- The navigation pane, located on the left of the window, displays the list of wizard steps and currently selected step of the wizard.
- The working area displays controls relating to a specific step of the wizard.
- The buttons area, located at the bottom of the window, displays buttons that you can use to switch between steps of the wizard (**Previous** and **Next**) and close the wizard (**Cancel** and **Finish**).

In the Backup Job wizard, the use of a mouse is not supported. To navigate the Backup Job wizard and associated dialog windows, you can use the following keys:

- [Tab] — to switch between displayed controls in the working area and buttons in the buttons area. The currently selected control or button is highlighted with a green color.
- [Up] and [Down] — to switch between items in a scrollable list.
- [Space] — to select the necessary item in a list. The selected item's mark may vary in different steps of the wizard.
- [Enter] — to proceed to the next step of the wizard or to open a directory.
- [Backspace] — to return to the previous step of a wizard.
- [Esc] — to cancel the backup job configuration and exit the wizard.

::: tip

You can switch between steps of the Backup Job wizard in two ways. The easier and more comfortable way is to use the [Enter] key to proceed to the next step and [Backspace] key to return to the previous step of the wizard. You can also use the [Tab] key to select the **Next** or **Previous** button in the buttons area and then press [Enter] to switch to the next or previous step of the wizard respectively.

:::