---
title: WSL2 Backup via PowerShell Scheduled Task
domain: linux
category: distro-specific
tags:
  - wsl2
  - windows
  - backup
  - powershell
  - majorrig
status: published
created: '2026-03-16'
updated: '2026-03-16'
---

# WSL2 Backup via PowerShell Scheduled Task

WSL2 distributions are stored as a VHDX file on disk. Unlike traditional VMs, there's no built-in snapshot or backup mechanism. This article covers a simple weekly backup strategy using `wsl --export` and a PowerShell scheduled task.

## The Short Answer

Save this as `C:\Users\majli\Scripts\backup-wsl.ps1` and register it as a weekly scheduled task.

## Backup Script

```powershell
$BackupDir = "D:\WSL\Backups"
$Date = Get-Date -Format "yyyy-MM-dd"
$BackupFile = "$BackupDir\FedoraLinux-43-$Date.tar"
$MaxBackups = 3

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path $BackupDir | Out-Null

# Must shut down WSL first — export fails if VHDX is locked
Write-Host "Shutting down WSL2..."
wsl --shutdown
Start-Sleep -Seconds 5

Write-Host "Backing up FedoraLinux-43 to $BackupFile..."
wsl --export FedoraLinux-43 $BackupFile

if ($LASTEXITCODE -eq 0) {
    Write-Host "Backup complete: $BackupFile"
    Get-ChildItem "$BackupDir\FedoraLinux-43-*.tar" |
        Sort-Object LastWriteTime -Descending |
        Select-Object -Skip $MaxBackups |
        Remove-Item -Force
    Write-Host "Cleanup done. Keeping last $MaxBackups backups."
} else {
    Write-Host "ERROR: Backup failed!"
}
```

## Register the Scheduled Task

Run in PowerShell as Administrator:

```powershell
$Action = New-ScheduledTaskAction -Execute "PowerShell.exe" `
    -Argument "-NonInteractive -File C:\Users\majli\Scripts\backup-wsl.ps1"
$Trigger = New-ScheduledTaskTrigger -Weekly -DaysOfWeek Sunday -At 2am
$Settings = New-ScheduledTaskSettingsSet -StartWhenAvailable -RunOnlyIfNetworkAvailable:$false
Register-ScheduledTask -TaskName "WSL2 Backup - FedoraLinux43" `
    -Action $Action -Trigger $Trigger -Settings $Settings `
    -RunLevel Highest -Force
```

## Restore from Backup

```powershell
wsl --unregister FedoraLinux-43
wsl --import FedoraLinux-43 D:\WSL\Fedora43 D:\WSL\Backups\FedoraLinux-43-YYYY-MM-DD.tar
```

Then fix the default user — after import WSL resets to root. See [WSL2 Instance Migration](wsl2-instance-migration-fedora43.md) for the `/etc/wsl.conf` fix.

## Gotchas

- **`wsl --export` fails with `ERROR_SHARING_VIOLATION` if WSL is running.** The script includes `wsl --shutdown` before export to handle this. Any active WSL sessions will be terminated — schedule the task for a time when WSL is idle (2am works well).
- **Backblaze picks up D:\WSL\Backups\ automatically** if D: drive is in scope — provides offsite backup without extra config.
- **Each backup tar is ~500MB–1GB** depending on what's installed. Keep MaxBackups at 3 to balance retention vs disk usage.

## See Also

- [WSL2 Instance Migration](wsl2-instance-migration-fedora43.md)
- [WSL2 Training Environment Rebuild](wsl2-rebuild-fedora43-training-env.md)