Restore Azure VM from backup with a different name, but is part of the Azure VM Active Directory

Question

Restore Azure VM from backup with a different name, but is part of the Azure VM Active Directory

Seth Dunn 20

Hello,
With our Azure environment, we have multiple VMs running and an Active Directory domain running on a VM that is a DC.

So with one of our VMs (a web server, say name is WebServer). I would like to take a backup of this VM.
Restore this backup to a new VM with a different computer name (i.e. WebServerTest), but then how do I bring this VM up without causing issues for Active Directory? Or is that possible?
Because it seems if I restore this backup, then the VM has to be on the same network as it was originally as well as in the same region (i.e. East US, I can't move it to East US 2)

Pranay Reddy Madireddy 4,000 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff

2025-04-14T23:53:59.39+00:00

Hi Seth Dunn
Yes, you can absolutely create a duplicate of your existing Azure virtual machine to test various OS and Web Server software upgrade options without impacting your production environment.

One of the most effective ways to do this is by using Azure Backup. This allows you to restore the VM from a backup and specify a new name for the restored instance, creating a duplicate VM.

Use Azure Backup to create a backup of your current web server VM.

Navigate to the Backup center in the Azure portal.

Select the relevant backup item and choose Restore VM.

During the restore process, you can assign a different name to the restored VM, ensuring it runs alongside the original without conflict.

Once restored, the new VM will be an exact duplicate of the original, allowing you to safely test upgrades and changes without risk to the production system.

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/backup/active-directory-backup-restore

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/virtual-machines/backup-recovery

let us know if any help, we will always help as you needed.!

If the comment is helpful, please click "Upvote it".
Seth Dunn 20 Reputation points

2025-04-15T11:55:11.8433333+00:00

Ok, so that was what I was asking in my first question
But the machine in question is part of Active Directory within the VMs (Not Azure AD).
So will the restored backup, even given a different name, not conflict with Windows AD?

The response from Marcin seems to indicate that doing so will cause issues.
Ashok Gandhi Kotnana 5,960 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff

2025-04-15T17:38:39.3933333+00:00
Hi @Seth Dunn,

When you perform a VM restore, the restored VM can end up having the same IP address as the original VM. Renaming the VM only changes its name in the portal — it does not update the VM's metadata in VM level. This can lead to conflicts or unexpected behavior, especially with domain-joined machines.

Recommended Solution:

First, restore the VM into an isolated test network (not connected to the main network or domain controller).

Change the hostname of the restored VM at the OS level.

Take a snapshot of the updated VM.

Then, restore or deploy this snapshot into the production network, ensuring no overlap with the original VM.

Always make sure that the test network remains isolated from the domain controller to avoid trust relationship issues or duplication conflicts.

Reference for your understanding:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/backup/backup-azure-arm-restore-vms#choose-a-vm-restore-configuration

Let me know if you face any challenges here while performing
Seth Dunn 20 Reputation points

2025-04-16T12:04:24.52+00:00

Awesome. Thank you for the clarification. Much appreciated.

Accepted answer

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Pranay Reddy Madireddy 4,000 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff

2025-04-14T23:53:59.39+00:00

Hi Seth Dunn
Yes, you can absolutely create a duplicate of your existing Azure virtual machine to test various OS and Web Server software upgrade options without impacting your production environment.

One of the most effective ways to do this is by using Azure Backup. This allows you to restore the VM from a backup and specify a new name for the restored instance, creating a duplicate VM.

Use Azure Backup to create a backup of your current web server VM.

Navigate to the Backup center in the Azure portal.

Select the relevant backup item and choose Restore VM.

During the restore process, you can assign a different name to the restored VM, ensuring it runs alongside the original without conflict.

Once restored, the new VM will be an exact duplicate of the original, allowing you to safely test upgrades and changes without risk to the production system.

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/backup/active-directory-backup-restore

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/virtual-machines/backup-recovery

let us know if any help, we will always help as you needed.!

If the comment is helpful, please click "Upvote it".
Seth Dunn 20 Reputation points

2025-04-15T11:55:11.8433333+00:00

Ok, so that was what I was asking in my first question
But the machine in question is part of Active Directory within the VMs (Not Azure AD).
So will the restored backup, even given a different name, not conflict with Windows AD?

The response from Marcin seems to indicate that doing so will cause issues.
Ashok Gandhi Kotnana 5,960 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff

2025-04-15T17:38:39.3933333+00:00

Hi @Seth Dunn,

When you perform a VM restore, the restored VM can end up having the same IP address as the original VM. Renaming the VM only changes its name in the portal — it does not update the VM's metadata in VM level. This can lead to conflicts or unexpected behavior, especially with domain-joined machines.

Recommended Solution:

First, restore the VM into an isolated test network (not connected to the main network or domain controller).

Change the hostname of the restored VM at the OS level.

Take a snapshot of the updated VM.

Then, restore or deploy this snapshot into the production network, ensuring no overlap with the original VM.

Always make sure that the test network remains isolated from the domain controller to avoid trust relationship issues or duplication conflicts.

Reference for your understanding:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/backup/backup-azure-arm-restore-vms#choose-a-vm-restore-configuration

Let me know if you face any challenges here while performing
Seth Dunn 20 Reputation points

2025-04-16T12:04:24.52+00:00

Awesome. Thank you for the clarification. Much appreciated.

Answer 1

Marcin Policht 44,595 MVP

Restoring an existing Windows Server instance to another VM will create a duplicate of the original Windows Server (regardless how you name the Azure VM) - so this is not something you can perform in an Active Directory environment. This is not different from you restoring a backup of a Hyper-V (or ESXi) VM in your own data center.

The restore is meant to be used to recover the VM from a failure or data loss - but it's not something you could do in order to (effectively) clone a VM to create another server

If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

hth

Marcin

Seth Dunn 20 Reputation points

2025-04-14T17:46:27.8066667+00:00

Thank you for the answer. That is what I was thinking.

So let me ask. Is there a way to take this existing web server and create a duplicate so we can test various upgrade options for the OS and Web Server software?

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Restore Azure VM from backup with a different name, but is part of the Azure VM Active Directory

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