Azure Backup Reviews

We have been this as our default backup solution since we migrated to Azure. We have both Windows and Linux systems in our environment.

This solution allows us to take complete Windows backups on a schedule that we choose. This can be hourly, daily, or weekly.

The MARS agent makes it easy to use.

There is no MARS agent for Linux, which is a problem for us because we have systems that use Linux Red Hat and Ubuntu.

There are other things missing in Azure that require us to use third-party tools. We would prefer to use Azure alone because it would be easier, as well as more secure.

The time required to restore files should be a little faster. It takes quite a long time to restore files at the moment.

We began using Azure Backup about six months ago.

Technical support is very supportive and they are giving me the best that they can do.

We began using Azure Backup as soon as we migrated to Azure from on-premises, AWS, and Oracle workloads.

We have no complaints about the deployment process, and everything installed fine.

We are currently evaluating options to back up our Linux filesystems.

While Azure Backup works well for our Windows systems, because it is not working with Linux, it is only doing half of the job that we need. If we had a MARS agent that worked for Linux then I would rate this solution a least an eight out of ten. It would allow us to use Azure as the only backup tool, without having to use products by third-parties.

I would rate this solution a five out of ten.

The primary use case is to have in Azure or backup with a machine on-prem.

Its only feature is backup. That's literally all it does is back up and restore, that's it.

I have been using Azure Backup for five years. 

I have no issues with the stability at all. So I don't necessarily care about the stability of the product. I look more at whether or not can I recover. And I haven't had a failed recovery yet. I have not had any failed recoveries of all my years. 

Scalability is fine.

Technical support is good enough.

Azure Backup is the only solution I've really worked with. You wouldn't know about the other tools. The only other backup tool I've done before was one called OmniBack, which you wouldn't know about because it's not sold anymore.

The initial setup complexity depends on the environment. On-prem can be complex to set up but the cloud is simple.

The time it takes to deploy depends. It can take anywhere from half a day or a few days, depending on the complexity.

The price is pretty good, maybe $30 for a machine, I can't complain.

Pricing is based on consumption base. 

I would rate it a ten out of ten and I would definitely recommend it.

We use it to backup on-premise data to Azure. We can backup the whole virtual machine to Azure if we need offsite backup. If you don't have any backup solution on-premise data center, you can rely on Azure Backup to do a backup to Azure, to the cloud. That means from on-premise to cloud backup, for data and virtual machines. 

It has many features. First of all, you can schedule a backup for the client as you like. You can also control the bandwidth so the backup will not utilize. The internet will depend on the bandwidth. You can also configure the retention period as you like and monitor everything from the cloud. You can monitor it from anywhere and you can log on and see. Doing a restore is also easy. It's easy to use.

The second thing is that if you have multiple computers and you need to utilize the bandwidth, you can install a dedicated server on the data center and let this backup server communicate with Azure and the local servers will only communicate with the local computers and the server only will communicate with Azure.

You can do a backup from the whole virtual machine as an image. You can do a backup only from files and folders. It has every option. All options are available for the backup, for the restore, for the bandwidth utilization to do backups even virtual machines or a physical machine. If you need to do a backup from the whole image from the virtual machine, all these options are there.

It doesn't have the option to have a backup from the database. It has a backup for the files, folders, and backup only the whole virtual machine. But if I need to do a backup from the Oracle database, from an Exchange server or from SharePoint, this ability isn't there. There is no application backup. 

We have been using Azure Backup for around three years. 

Stability depends on the bandwidth. It's very stable. If you have a good bandwidth, it's fine. If you don't have a good bandwidth, you can have a problem. If you have limited bandwidth, you will pay the cost. 

With cloud there is no limit. The limit is the sky and so for Microsoft infrastructure, there are two options. If you have a small data center, small servers or small computers and you need to do a backup, this is fine. You only need to install the agent. 

But if you have big servers or it's a number of servers, Microsoft also offers the ability to do a local Azure Backup and this Azure Backup will communicate with the local server and these servers can be communicated to the cloud and you can often install multiple servers. It will distribute different loads. 

I haven't needed to contact the support or get a ticket with the support team because the document and the tutorials were available and even when we try to do a main backup, Microsoft guides you in steps and will not go to the next step until you finish the first one. For each and every step there is a guideline, and even if you didn't read the tutorial, just you go to the steps and follow the steps.

I didn't raise any requests or get any support from Microsoft but I got other support from Microsoft and raised other support tickets but not for this particular project.

In addition to Azure Backup we used Azure Backup as an off-site backup because we have on-site backup. We also use EMC NetWorker which backups up to a disk. It's backup to disk software which we then do a backup from our local data and local servers to the local backup device. We use Azure because it is off-site backup so it helps us a lot in case of a disaster, in case of any problems so we can still have data be off-site so we can restore it from anywhere.

The initial setup was easy. I did it myself. It is not very complicated at all. This is another one of its valuable features, that it is easy to set up. Microsoft has guidelines, documentation, instructions, procedures, and tutorials available.

Because it's a Microsoft product, admin guidelines and instructions are available. It's not that complicated. You can have any infrastructure on the cloud or on-premise. If you want to install a server you will need to install maybe a virtual machine. But if you don't need to install it, you can install only an agent on the computers. That's it.

The deployment took around two days. I have experience with other backup solutions so I understand the concept. It's like a car. You have a car, you know how to drive a car. But this is Rolls Royce or a Porsche or whatever, but it is the same concept. You can still own the car and you can go. It is the same. So for us, it doesn't take that much time to understand the concept of backup and then implement it. 

The deployment required two people, myself and a colleague. 

It requires three people for maintenance.

From a cost perspective, it is a very good solution because it doesn't need a lot of costs because it's only a matter of storage on the cloud. You don't need any license at all, and on the cloud, you only need bandwidth. Bandwidth utilization will have various calculations of bandwidth utilization or bandwidth utilization and storage.

You don't need a license. There's only a subscription with Azure, that's it. Azure will calculate the bandwidth which you are utilizing and the storage. The worst thing at Azure is software allocations. That is not required, even in Azure, to implement a server or install backup software. From Azure itself, it's a matter of configuration. No need to have infrastructure. You don't need to have a server and install the software in the cloud. It's only a matter of some steps you need to follow. It's only a platform and a service. 

It is easy to configure a solution at any time, from anywhere. I can also restore the data, easily, without any complication. You can implement it in a very short time. The lesson learned in the beginning is that you can implement a solution in a very short time. 

I would rate it a seven out of ten. It has some good features. You can sort the data in many ways and at anytime. But it is not user-friendly. To be frank, it is not a software and a service. Software and service is easier and not complicated but infrastructure is more complicated. A platform lies somewhere in between. It's a platform and service.  

We are a solution provider and this is one of the products that we implement for our clients.

Our customers use this solution for backing up their data to the cloud.

Azure Backup has given me the opportunity to offer a non-hardware backup solution to my customers. I try to improve their productivity by offering them this alternative if it is suitable for their scenario. We often conduct a PoC to see if it works for them.

My customers are very happy with Azure Backup.

The scalability is very good because it will scale to whatever we need.

The encryption is very good and I feel like the data is totally secure.

Customers often ask if it is possible to connect another device, and it is something that is very easy to do. There is no hassle.

It is easy to schedule backups.

I am happy with the documentation.

The price of this solution should be lowered because it is the biggest complaint from my customers.

Technical support is in need of improvement.

I have been working with Azure Backup for two years.

Azure Backup is easy to scale and it will scale up as much as you need it to. Also, I don't need to worry about whether it is serialized or not because the data is always structured.

My customers are small and medium-sized businesses.

Technical support by Microsoft can be improved. 

The deployment is not complicated and easy to do.

This is an expensive solution in the Bangladesh marketplace.

This is a product that I recommend for backing up data on the cloud. It is easy to use and manage, even for somebody with no backup knowledge. Overall, I think that everybody will be happy with it.

I would rate this solution a seven out of ten.

Our customers have VMs on their test environment that are backed up with Azure Backup for short retention, around one month. They need a machine that does not need integration with backup over BPE.

The most valuable feature is that it's very simple to configure which is very useful. It's not complex to configure it. 

I would like for the backup of VMs to be improved. The first thing our customers require is for me to back up their VM. I would like to do the backup using the integration. But I don't think the customers I am managing are ready for this yet. 

I have been using Azure Backup for around two to three years. 

It is stable. There are no problems regarding the backups. Some customers require a double copy of the backup. From on-prem to Azure or from Azure to on-prem or to another site. In these cases, it is necessary to use other software to perform the backup. 

The scalability is a great improvement that is offered on the cloud. With a few clicks, you can scale up resources. 

When you open a ticket, it is transferred to India. We've had problems that have taken two or three days to resolve. Their response time isn't so fast.  

I have used Commvault, Veeam, NetBackup - a lot of other softwares. The difference between these solutions and Azure is that they offered better options for backup across hybrid environments. It depends on what the customer is looking for. 

The initial setup is very simple. The time it takes to deploy depends on the environment. For a medium deployment, it will usually take one day to deploy. 

In my opinion, the price should be a little lower to be more competitive with other software. It depends on the customer's environment and subscription.

I would rate Azure an eight out of ten. 

To make it a ten, it should have the ability to extend the retention and to perform a copy of the data outside of the subscription - with no additional costs. There is a cost for downloading data on Azure or on-prem. If I would like to have a copy on-prem I need to pay more for the data. Azure should modify its policies. 

I am a consultant. We discuss what the customer is looking for and we'll recommend this solution based on their environment. Azure is easy and simple to configure. It's easy to use. If there are other requirements, I would recommend another software. 

We primarily use the solution for disaster recovery.

The solution is cost-effective.

The backup features are very useful.

The solution overall is very reliable.

The interface needs improvement and it doesn't offer as many features as other third-party backup solutions.

The solution is still in its infancy; it's not a mature product yet.

The stability of the solution is good. 

The scalability of the solution is good.

As Microsoft partners, we get support when we need it. We've been satisfied with them so far.

Previously we were using Windows Network Backup as well as Veeam. Right now, we are testing Azure.

The initial setup is pretty easy. You literally load an agent from the servers to whatever machines you want to backup. It's pretty intuitive when you go into Azure to set it up. Deployment times depend on the bandwidth, and in South Africa, that can vary. It might take up to a day or so. Once you do your full backup, you're only doing incremental backups going forward, so it's just the initial setup and backup that might take a while.

I handled the implementation myself.

We're Microsoft partners.

We had issues before where there were no Azure Data Centers in South Africa. From a compliance point of view, backing up to outside the country was a bit of an issue. Now Microsoft has two data centers in South Africa, so it is no longer a problem.

I'd recommend the solution to others, but only if they have decent and reliable bandwidth. They should also make sure their alerts and monitoring are all set up to notify if the backups fail or succeed.

I'd rate the solution eight out of ten.

We are a Microsoft partner and we implement solutions for our customers. We also provide managed services. We work with most of the services on Azure, and this is one of the solutions that we have provided.

Azure Backup is a public cloud service, and you can use it to backup on-premises or cloud services. The primary use case is backing up cloud services. However, if you are using it on-premises then the cloud part is much more convenient.

The storage backup is very efficient.

The solution needs to be fully supported by VMware. It works, but when you go to VMware they say that Azure Backup is not recommended, or is not a very good solution.

I would like to have an application-level backup, rather than interface-level only. Examples would be Exchange backup,  SharePoint backup, and SQL backup.

The support for Office365 backup is atrocious and is something that has to be improved. 

I have not faced any problems with the stability of this solution.

Scalability has not been an issue.

Technical support for this solution depends on the type of support that you have.

Their response time is within the SLA, which is good, but sometimes I have trouble communicating with the support staff. It is normally a case of the technical support person having an accent which is difficult for me to understand, which makes it inconvenient. I have trouble trying to explain the problem.

The initial setup of this solution is straightforward. 

The pricing of this solution is good, and it is one of the easiest things that you can sell Azure with. 

This is a solution that I might recommend, depending on the customer's requirements. If they need application-level backup then I will not even consider it. However, if they need infrastructure backup for Azure, then, of course, it is a good option. Generally speaking, I recommend this solution.

Overall, the service is good for certain use cases, but it is short of functionality when you consider the competitors.

I would rate this solution a five out of ten.

Currently, I'm working on a project in a desktop environment where this is one of the solutions that is being used. It is a public-cloud deployment model.

We are using this solution to back up VMs and data from our customers.

The most valuable feature of this solution is the integration with cloud services. I do not have to use an external application, such as Veeam, to back up files or VMs. It works like a standard backup, which is very useful when you want to provide a secure backup environment for your customer.

This solution allows me to restore either the VM or the data, depending on what is needed.

Technical support for this solution is good but it can still be improved.

The user interface is a little bit confusing and it could be better. It took some time to learn, although I was able to read about it and adapt. For a customer without backup experience, it will take longer to get used to. The same goes for customers without cloud backup experience because the options differ from what existed in their on-premises solution.

The price of this solution is something they should focus on improving.

The backend of this type of solution is complex, so stability and security can always be improved.

This solution is stable and I haven't faced any issues while using it. It is as stable as Windows is, or as Linux is, so it is stable.

When I was working for HP we had our own private cloud for the customers, and it is not easy to stabilize everything, especially if you have several data centers around the world and you need to synchronize them. Once you add a new feature and it has to be deployed in all of them, it can be very messy.

This is a scalable solution.

Usually, my customers are small to medium-sized businesses with between ten and fifty users.

Technical support for this solution is very good. I can either ask questions in the forum or raise a call, and people reply to me right away. It is great.

I have used support from many big companies in the past, such as HP and Fuji. Also, when I first implemented this solution, people suggested that I do not take support from Microsoft. Rather, I should purchase a support contract from another company. I opted to test the Microsoft support, and I found that I am very satisfied with it. I would rate them between seven and eight out of ten.

Previously, we used other backup solutions, but this is our first cloud backup solution. We used to use NetBackup and a backup solution from HP, but these were on-premises deployments.

We chose Microsoft for this solution because they developed a data center in Switzerland, and the people there gave me a good feeling about it. I am really satisfied with this solution and support.

This is an easy solution to implement. I didn't need to obtain or read a lot of information. If you have experience in IT then you will find it easy to set up a basic configuration.

Deployment time for this solution depends on the environment. As an example, the last deployment that I performed was for a company with twenty-five users. It took five days to complete. Some of the time, of course, was spent in preparation. The deployment itself is really easy and short.

I implement this solution for my customers.

It may take several years before a customer sees ROI, but they will immediately gain in terms of security, stability, and automation.

The pricing of this solution is ok, but I'm expecting that the price will decrease in the future.  

I have used many different backup solutions, and in my experience, none of them will do everything. Each of them has pros and cons. You have to choose a backup solution based on several aspects including your knowledge, the price, the license, the support, how long the backup will be deployed, the agent, the stability, the scalability, and what it is that you are backing up. For example, in the past, the HP solution that I used did not support backing up a mailbox.

For our customers, we only needed a simple backup solution. With Azure Backup, it was easy because I didn't have to search for an external solution. I did not have high expectations, but it matched them and does what I need it to.

I came from a Unix environment in the past, and I was not really a Microsoft or Windows users. Now, however, I'm more confident with Microsoft products. I worked for HPE for a long time in a private cloud environment, and I really appreciate services that are well-integrated with each other and can be used right away, without having a great deal of Microsoft experience.

There are some services that different customers do not require, but everybody needs to have a backup solution as a prerequisite, whether they operate on-premises on in the cloud.

This is a simple backup solution. To understand, you can consider Unix as an example. We used to have a single backup command that worked from the command line interface, and it was sufficient. Then, dedicated backup applications were released. They were more complex with new features, handled new infrastructure, and handled new applications, but with that came bigger expectations. In this case, my expectations are small and Azure backup is sufficient for my customers. If tomorrow, for example, the customer's requirements change, then I may advise them to use Veeam, NetApp Cloud Backup, or another solution. 

My advice to anyone who is implementing this solution is to test the restore process regularly and to manage the backup of the data depending on the certainty of the restore. Even if the backup completes successfully and is stable, it doesn't mean that the data is not corrupted. This is the same advice that I would give for an on-premises backup. Be vigilant on that.

When it comes to this type of solution, sometimes you have to dedicate a specific engineer for a long time. They will train themselves and know everything about the backup. They will be able to troubleshoot and answer questions about the solution.

I would rate this solution a seven out of ten.