Deletes shadow copies of a specified volume.

For examples of how to use this command, see Examples.

Syntax

vssadmin delete shadows /for=<ForVolumeSpec> [/oldest | /all | /shadow=<ShadowID>] [/quiet]

Parameters

Parameter Description

/for=<ForVolumeSpec>

Specifies the volume for which the shadow copy is to be deleted.

/oldest

Deletes only the oldest shadow copy.

/all

Deletes all of the shadow copies for the specified volume.

/shadow=<ShadowID>

Deletes the shadow copy specified by ShadowID. To get the shadow copy ID, use the vssadmin list shadows command. When you type a shadow copy ID, use the following format, where each X represents a hexadecimal character:

XXXXXXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXXXXXXX

/quiet

Specifies that the command will not display messages while it is running.

Remarks

  • You can delete only shadow copies that have the client-accessible type.

Examples:

To delete the oldest shadow copy of volume C, type:

vssadmin delete shadows /for=c: /oldest