Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

IBM Storage Protect vs NovaStor NovaBACKUP comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 22, 2026

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

IBM Storage Protect
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
13th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
NovaStor NovaBACKUP
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
33rd
Average Rating
9.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
Disaster Recovery (DR) Software (17th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of IBM Storage Protect is 1.7%, down from 2.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NovaStor NovaBACKUP is 0.6%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Backup and Recovery Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
IBM Storage Protect1.7%
NovaStor NovaBACKUP0.6%
Other97.7%
Backup and Recovery
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer2787573 - PeerSpot reviewer
Interim Head of Infrastructure at a real estate/law firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Backup coverage has supported immutable protection and now needs a more modern, intuitive interface
IBM Storage Protect is from a previous generation of backup software. In those days, backup software was complex in setting up and complex to manage. The new software, such as Rubrik, is very easy to use and more relatable to younger engineers because its interface design is more similar to Office 365 and the newer controls and labels that we are accustomed to. The difficulty that we now have with IBM Storage Protect is that for this day and age, compared to other products that are out there, it seems complex. If we look back 15 years ago, all enterprise class backup software was complex, so IBM was not any different. However, many of these older systems, such as Commvault, still have the same complaint that they are very complex because they have tried to keep that same interface and the same way it works. This suits them, but it probably needed a complete overhaul to bring it into the ease of use that we have with modern software. However, that upgrade has not been done. IBM Storage Protect has not been upgraded into a modern platform. It still looks a legacy platform.
Rainer Kummerfeldt - PeerSpot reviewer
IT-Teamleader at Bechtle
Easy to work and offers features for tape backups, disk backups, and whatever you want
NovaStor NovaBACKUP is still working on new features because they listen to the customers and integrate their needs into new versions. You can see they make progress with each new version. They are much faster than IBM, where you sometimes have to wait years for new features. It is very quick and fast. NovaStor have big competitors like Veeam, which is very fast and aggressive. It's good, but it depends on the price. I think NovaStor might be cheaper. They have a direct connection to their developers and sales teams, which makes getting answers very fast. Veeam has a lot of features, like a special reporting tool. However, I've heard from some customers that Veeam wasn't always the right decision because it couldn't work with their environment. But Veeam has aggressive marketing, which is why they are probably in first place at the moment, besides Commvault. IBM has lost its competitive edge and is trying to catch up, but it might be too late.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"With IBM Spectrum Protect, we optimize our costs of media and storage use, thanks to the Incremental Forever backup."
"IBM Storage Protect is very scalable, it is one of the most scalable platforms, and that is its strong point."
"So far, Spectrum Protector has been the best."
"The solution actually does a lot; it's really powerful, and the value of Spectrum Protect is it does everything: it does tape and it does disk, it's easy to migrate, you don't need any other software, and it's basically an all-in-one solution, which is its most valuable aspect."
"The most valuable features are compression and de-duplication."
"It is very stable."
"The customization and the ability to backup across all platforms are the most valuable features."
"I would recommend using Spectrum Protect."
"NovaBACKUP protects your entire system with a single solution."
"It's the easiest way to configure it."
"It is a very good and easy-to-use tool for non-technical people."
 

Cons

"It needs some software upgrades to fix some of its current bugs."
"It needs better connectivity with other non-IBM application hardware and non-IBM platforms."
"The user interface (UI) for the admin is still not good. It is way too complicated to manage the product, as we still need to use command line."
"As far as how it scales, it maybe didn't quite meet what we thought, but everybody is different."
"We would like to see cloud integration."
"The license model that they have at IBM, which is due to volume, from a certain volume onward is not the right license model."
"I should be able to backup Linux. I would like SUSE for Linux on POWER. Right now, we have to use Storex, which is a pain to use."
"The solution needs to work on disaster recovery integration. Basically, VMware applications to the cloud, for example."
"The room for improvement lies in the compatibility of NovaBACKUP with older operating systems."
"The price of NovaStor NovaBACKUP is an area that can be considered as a weakness or drawback, where improvements are required."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Licensing IBM Spectrum Protect can be somewhat confusing for new users due to the options available, such as licensing on a capacity or per server basis."
"There may be an advantage to going with IBM in terms of pricing. They have a pay-as-you-grow policy, so there is no need to take one license for the entire datacenter. You can start with small licenses and then grow, and pay, as you use more."
"That's a hard estimate. It depends on the licensing, the hardware, and other stuff, but it is fairly expensive. It is generally more expensive than other solutions."
"The solution's pricing is fair. Price-wise, I rate the solution an eight out of ten."
"One can go with either a PVU licensing model or a capacity based licensing model. Either solution does not block the usage, if over used."
"Licensing can be either complicated or simple depending on what type of licensing you wish to use and what works best for your environment."
"We chose IBM Spectrum Protect, because they actually have something called MSP pricing, which means managed services provider pricing. The pricing was attractive, and it seems to be a platform that IBM is totally investing on in terms of new functions and new capabilities."
"The price of IBM Spectrum Protect is expensive and there is only a standard licensing fee."
"My company has to make yearly payments towards the solution's maintenance and support."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Backup and Recovery solutions are best for your needs.
884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Marketing Services Firm
7%
No data available
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business53
Midsize Enterprise25
Large Enterprise95
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Storage Protect?
The best point about IBM Storage Protect is that it can use IBM tape environments, which we still use and will continue to use in the future.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Storage Protect?
I do not know the current licensing cost for IBM Storage Protect and how we get our support because our licensing model is not quite standard. We do not buy IBM Storage Protect direct from IBM. We ...
What needs improvement with IBM Storage Protect?
IBM Storage Protect is from a previous generation of backup software. In those days, backup software was complex in setting up and complex to manage. The new software, such as Rubrik, is very easy ...
What needs improvement with NovaStor NovaBACKUP?
The room for improvement lies in the compatibility of NovaBACKUP with older operating systems like Windows XP. Some customers still rely on outdated systems due to specific production requirements....
What is your primary use case for NovaStor NovaBACKUP?
It's developed in Hamburg. It's very easy to work with because it has a web interface, and the configuration is straightforward. It has features for tape backups, disk backups, and whatever you wan...
 

Also Known As

IBM Spectrum Discover
NovaBACKUP
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

CEMEX
Ex'pression College, Osborne Wood Products Inc., REIT Technologies
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Storage Protect vs. NovaStor NovaBACKUP and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.