How to remotely stop the inSync Client and kill inSync related processes? | Druva

This article applies to:

OS: Windows
Product edition: inSync Cloud

Overview

Under specific operational or troubleshooting scenarios, system administrators need to remotely stop the Druva inSync Client service and terminate all active background processes on a target end-user machine.

Key Scenarios & Use Cases

Configuration File Updates: When modifying inSync.cfg located at `C:\ProgramData\Druva\inSync4\users</username>`, the client service must be completely stopped for changes to take effect.

Database Corruption & Cache Reset: When renaming or resetting the local client sync database folder (C:\ProgramData\Druva\inSync4\), running processes lock files and must be forced closed.
Unresponsive UI / Hung Processes: When the inSync Agent GUI fails to launch or hangs during background sync sessions.
Software Deployment & Scripted Maintenance: Before running remote client upgrades, uninstallation scripts, or antivirus exclusion updates.

Prerequisites & Requirements

Before attempting remote execution, verify the following network and security prerequisites on the remote machine:

Administrative Privileges: Domain Administrator or local Administrator rights on the remote endpoint.
Services Running on Target: Remote Registry and Server services must be active for native remote management tools (services.msc, sc.exe, taskkill).

Druva inSync Process Reference

The following binaries are executed by the Druva inSync Client:

inSyncCPHwnet64.exe (or inSyncCPHwnet.exe on 32-bit)
inSyncAgent.exe
inSyncUSyncer.exe
inSyncUpgrade.exe
inSync.exe

Method 1: Remote GUI (Windows Services Console)

Best for quick manual troubleshooting on individual machines.

On your local admin machine, press Win + R, type services.msc, and press Enter.
In the Services console, click Action > Connect to another computer...
Select Another computer, enter the hostname or IP address of the target endpoint, and click OK.
Locate Druva inSync Client Service under Services
Right-click the service and select Stop (or Restart).

Method 2: Command Line (sc.exe, Tasklist, & Taskkill)

Use legacy command-prompt utilities.

Step 1: Stop the Remote Service

sc \\TargetComputerName stop inSyncCPHwnet64

(Alternatively, using net stop via PsExec: psexec \\TargetComputerName net stop "inSyncCPHwnet64")

Step 2: Query Active inSync Processes

tasklist /S TargetComputerName /U DOMAIN\AdminUser /FI "IMAGENAME eq inSync*"

Step 3: Force Kill Running Processes

Run taskkill for each active executable:

taskkill /S TargetComputerName /U DOMAIN\AdminUser /F /IM inSyncAgent.exe

taskkill /S TargetComputerName /U DOMAIN\AdminUser /F /IM inSyncCPHwnet64.exe

taskkill /S TargetComputerName /U DOMAIN\AdminUser /F /IM inSyncUSyncer.exe

taskkill /S TargetComputerName /U DOMAIN\AdminUser /F /IM inSyncUpgrade.exe

taskkill /S TargetComputerName /U DOMAIN\AdminUser /F /IM inSync.exe

Security Note: Avoid passing the `/P

flag directly in command scripts. When/P` is omitted, the prompt will securely request your password without storing it in shell logs.

Method 3: Automated PowerShell Cleanup Script

To stop the service and kill all lingering processes in a single step across one or multiple remote machines:

<#
.SYNOPSIS
    Remotely stops Druva inSync Service and force-kills lingering processes.
#>

param (
    [Parameter(Mandatory=$true)]
    [string[]]$ComputerNames
)

$ScriptBlock = {
    Write-Host "Stopping Druva inSync Client Service..." -ForegroundColor Yellow
    Stop-Service -Name "inSyncCPHwnet64" -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue

    Start-Sleep -Seconds 3

    $inSyncProcesses = @(
        "inSyncAgent", 
        "inSyncCPHwnet64", 
        "inSyncCPHwnet", 
        "inSyncUSyncer", 
        "inSync",
        "inSyncUpgrade"
    )

    foreach ($proc in $inSyncProcesses) {
        $running = Get-Process -Name $proc -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
        if ($running) {
            Write-Host "Terminating $proc..." -ForegroundColor Red
            Stop-Process -Name $proc -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
        }
    }
    Write-Host "inSync processes stopped successfully." -ForegroundColor Green
}

foreach ($computer in $ComputerNames) {
    Write-Host "Connecting to $computer..." -ForegroundColor Cyan
    Invoke-Command -ComputerName $computer -ScriptBlock $ScriptBlock
}

Troubleshooting Common Errors

Error: "Access is Denied" (0x80070005):
- Ensure your user account belongs to the local Administrators group on the remote host.
- If the machine is not domain-joined, local account remote administration may be restricted by Remote UAC. Add DWORD LocalAccountTokenFilterPolicy = 1 under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System.
Error: "The RPC server is unavailable" (0x800706BA):
- Check if RPC Endpoint Mapper service is running on the target.
- Verify Windows Firewall allows "Remote Administration" and "Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI)".