Numerous problems (no settings import, OneDrive authentication, tray icon) updating Duplicati to run as a Windows service

Support
1

Hi friends,

I recently updated to v2.3.0.104_canary_2026-06-04 from v2.3.0.103_canary_2026-05-22 and have run into numerous problems.

Problem 1: Service installation does not import settings from previous installation

Just what it says. If you install as a service the service will behave as a new installation instead of pulling settings from the existing installation as it should. I tried manually copying settings from the user folder to the LocalSystem settings folder, but Duplicati didn’t pick them up.

Problem 2: Can’t authenticate to previously existing perfectly working OneDrive backup

To fix the above problem, I tried importing a backup of a previous working Duplicati config but keep getting authentication error messages. When I click the link to go to the log the page that loads has no visible log. The Test Connection option disappears and reappears at random. I can’t get it to show up reliably. I’m still confused as to why the Test Connection UI was changed from the reliable classic implementation to this one.

Problem 3: Can’t change Duplicati password

I tried getting the service to pick up my previous settings by setting it to run under my username, but when I do that the tray icon can’t connect to it. The web UI asks for a password, but both the previous one and the one generated during the update fail. Trying to change the password to either value via the tray icon has no effect, either.

Problem 4: Can’t set up new OneDrive backup?

I switched the service back to LocalSystem (which, BTW … is widely regarded as an insecure way to run a service on Windows, but it fixed the password issue) and removed the previous backup job, attempting to start from scratch. Clicking Continue after entering my OneDrive credentials in the Destination section of the backup workflow just results in a spinning progress animation on that icon with nothing else happening.

Here are my questions based on the above:

  1. Why doesn’t installing Duplicati as a service pickup the previous installation’s config automatically?
  2. Why, after approximately a decade, is Duplicati OneDrive connection support still so painful?
  3. The UI password process is unnecessarily convoluted. Just have the web UI go through an initial password setup like every other web UI in existence. This whole generate a password which can be lost during installation and then changing it from a tray icon which might not even be able to connect to the service is a solution desperately in search of a problem
  4. Why does the Duplicati service run as LocalSystem? This is insecure as it means compromising Duplicati could compromise the entire host machine. Running as a user is not only more secure but it allows different users to have different settings. Yes, I know the default installation allows that too, but the default installation also uses the ancient process tray icon concept instead of a proper service anyway
2

First thing I’d separate is the service data folder issue from OneDrive. The service under LocalSystem will not normally read the per-user database/config, so copying only parts can leave it looking like a clean install. I’d stop the service, copy both Duplicati-server.sqlite locations somewhere safe, then start the service once with an explicit --server-datafolder pointing at the intended folder (or at a clean copied folder) so it is clear which database it is using. After that, test OneDrive with a tiny new backup to a new folder; if auth still spins, grab the server log/browser console around the auth redirect. That gives the maintainers one reproducible problem instead of four symptoms mixed together.

3

Makes sense. However, I was able get the OneDrive connection to work. The solution is to specify the path Like/This. I was confused by the official documentation using server/path as I thought sever was a variable but couldn’t figure out what it could be as OneDrive doesn’t use that term for a user’s storage account. After specifying the path correctly and getting the correct AuthID, I clicked Continue and just had to wait for the next step. Patience is required here because for whatever reason validating enumerating both the OneDrive repo and local storage takes a while. Currently in the Recreating Database phase. Fingers crossed!

This leaves Duplicati using LocalSystem (excessive permissions), the service update pathway not automatically importing user jobs and settings, the bizarre initial password workflow that has a high possibility of DOSing the user, and the unreliability of Test Connection being available as outstanding issues.