Azure blob versions don't show up under the blob versions

Question

Azure blob versions don't show up under the blob versions

Ted Molavi 0

We have setup a blob (versioning enabled) for our Veeam Backup cloud storage and per Veeam's documentations their immutable storage setting only works with Azure blob versioning. Blob Soft delete and blob snapshots are not supported.

After creating this blob with versioning enabled, the Veeam backups are getting stored in the Azure blob fine, but we need to confirm the blob versioning is working as we are adding more incremental backups. Veeam support couldn't be a help and said that's something we need to check with Azure support.

Currently, I don't see any previous blob versions getting created under the versions options and I need to confirm this immutable storage is working. Any ideas how we can confirm this?

Thanks,

Ted

Ted Molavi 0 Reputation points

2025-09-19T00:29:12.7733333+00:00

Hi Ravi,

Thanks for your respond here. I checked your steps and there are no blob versions created.

I got a respond back from the Veeam support confirming these backups don't change the original blob. So, that's why I don't see any old versions of the blob in Azure. Below is how Veeam makes these backups immutable.

Regards,

Ted

==============================================================

Thank you for sharing the logs.

Checking the infrastructure logs for that repository, I can see that immutability is in fact enabled with a 90 days policy, so we're good with that.

Blob Versioning in Azure works per object, a new version is only created when the same blob name is overwritten. Simply adding new blobs (like Veeam does when offloading blocks to subfolders) does not create versions. Each new block is just a new object.

To ensure backups are immutable in Azure (or any object storage), Veeam uses Object Lock / Immutability flags rather than blob versioning alone.

When you configure your Capacity Tier with immutability enabled, Veeam sends API calls to Azure to mark each blob as immutable for X days. This prevents deletion or modification, even by an admin, until the retention expires.

Versioning = keeps old copies if a blob is overwritten.

Immutability = prevents delete in the first place.

For backups, immutability is the protection you need, because ransomware or a rogue admin could try to delete blobs, but immutability blocks that.
Ravi Varma Mudduluru 1,790 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-09-19T19:56:04.6566667+00:00

Hello @Ted Molavi,

Thank you for the update and for sharing the details from Veeam support.

Kindly let us know if the above helps or you need further assistance on this issue.

Please "Accept the answer" if the information helped you. This will help us and others in the community as well.

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Your answer

Ted Molavi 0 Reputation points

2025-09-19T00:29:12.7733333+00:00

Hi Ravi,

Thanks for your respond here. I checked your steps and there are no blob versions created.

I got a respond back from the Veeam support confirming these backups don't change the original blob. So, that's why I don't see any old versions of the blob in Azure. Below is how Veeam makes these backups immutable.

Regards,

Ted

==============================================================

Thank you for sharing the logs.

Checking the infrastructure logs for that repository, I can see that immutability is in fact enabled with a 90 days policy, so we're good with that.

Blob Versioning in Azure works per object, a new version is only created when the same blob name is overwritten. Simply adding new blobs (like Veeam does when offloading blocks to subfolders) does not create versions. Each new block is just a new object.

To ensure backups are immutable in Azure (or any object storage), Veeam uses Object Lock / Immutability flags rather than blob versioning alone.

When you configure your Capacity Tier with immutability enabled, Veeam sends API calls to Azure to mark each blob as immutable for X days. This prevents deletion or modification, even by an admin, until the retention expires.

Versioning = keeps old copies if a blob is overwritten.

Immutability = prevents delete in the first place.

For backups, immutability is the protection you need, because ransomware or a rogue admin could try to delete blobs, but immutability blocks that.
Ravi Varma Mudduluru 1,790 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-09-19T19:56:04.6566667+00:00

Hello @Ted Molavi,

Thank you for the update and for sharing the details from Veeam support.

Kindly let us know if the above helps or you need further assistance on this issue.

Please "Accept the answer" if the information helped you. This will help us and others in the community as well.

Answer 1

Hello @Ted Molavi,

Thanks for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A

I understand that you want to check if Azure blob versioning is working correctly with your Veeam backups. Here are some steps to help you verify this:

Ensure that blob versioning is enabled on your storage account in the Azure portal under Storage Account settings → Data protection → Blob versioning.

Reference Document: https://free.blessedness.top/en-us/azure/storage/blobs/versioning-enable?tabs=portal

Versions are only created when an existing blob is overwritten or deleted, not when new blobs are added. Since Veeam typically adds new blobs for backups, you may not see versions unless a blob is updated. Reference Document: https://free.blessedness.top/en-us/azure/storage/blobs/versioning-overview#blob-versions-are-created-when-a-blob-is-modified-or-deleted
Check if your backup job is set up to create versions and that incremental backups are configured to update existing blobs if needed.
Make sure Veeam has the right permissions to manage blob versions in Azure Blob Storage.
Use Azure Storage Explorer tool this tool allows you to view blobs and their versions in your container.

Run the following Azure CLI command to list blob versions:

az storage blob list --container-name <your-container-name> --account-name <your-storage-account-name> --include=versions --output table

This command will display all versions in the specified container.

You can also test by uploading a blob, modifying it, and checking the "Versions" tab in the Azure portal to see if previous versions are listed. Remember, Veeam creates new blobs for incremental backups, so versions will only appear if an existing blob is modified.

To apply immutable storage policies at the blob version level, blob versioning must be enabled on the storage account. If versioning is not enabled, version IDs will not be generated, and immutability cannot be enforced for individual versions.

Reference Document: https://free.blessedness.top/en-us/azure/storage/blobs/immutable-storage-overview

Please validate the above and let us know if you have any question, please provide the requested information in private message.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

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Azure blob versions don't show up under the blob versions

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