Azure Backup Reviews

We use Azure Backup to back up Azure servers and databases. It isn't used for active data storage. 

Azure Backup helps us resolve some issues on the back end. 

Azure Backup enables us to store anything Azure-related. 

The recovery time could be faster.

I have used Azure Backup for about four years.

Azure Backup is cloud-based, so it's scalable.

Our support is good because we have a support agreement with Microsoft. 

I rate Azure Backup nine out of 10. You should plan what you want to back up so you can implement the solution quicker. 

I utilized Azure Backup for the purpose of backing up and restoring data. Specifically, I performed a recovery operation by transferring data from a single location to one of several designated locations. Our objective is to replicate the data from the original location to a secondary location, ensuring that we can restore it from the alternate site in the event of any unforeseen disruptions.

Azure Backup provides support for virtual machines. To get started, we must install the agent on the VM, allowing us to initiate backups and store the data in our designated storage. By leveraging the backup data, we can then enable the site recovery feature. Initially, we must create the site recovery configuration, where we identify the purpose and requirements of our setup. Additionally, we need to create an account and subscription to facilitate this process. Within the subscription, we gain the ability to migrate or replicate our backups from one location to another, ensuring data loss prevention measures are in place which has improved our organization's functionality.

The most valuable feature of Azure Backup is the file recovery and file vault.

Azure lacks sufficient solutions for a particular scenario, we may need to resort to using third-party applications. In such cases, these applications can be employed to facilitate backup, replication, and the efficient utilization of internet connectivity and bandwidth. They enable us to effectively manage and transfer data while ensuring optimal utilization of network resources. However, it would be a benefit if we did not have to use third-party applications for these operations.

As an additional solution for prospective clients, we can implement Digital Rights Management (DRM) or high availability measures. By setting up DRM or establishing high availability configurations, we can ensure that services remain operational even in the event of downtime. This approach guarantees uninterrupted production and minimizes any negative impact. To deliver this type of solution to clients, the vendor will need to create and provide an architecture and solution that ensures zero downtime.

I have been using Azure Backup for approximately seven years.

I rate the stability of Azure Backup a seven out of ten.

We have engineers using this solution who report to me.

We use the solution regularly and we plan to increase usage.

I rate the scalability of Azure Backup a seven out of ten.

I rate the support of Azure Backup an eight out of ten.

Positive

I have used Veeam Backup and Veritas Backup previously. I switched to Azure Backup because we are able to have flexible deployment methods.

The initial setup required some assistance. The deployment depends on the company's size and environment. 

The first stage of our deployment is accessing the client's information, such as environment size, the reason for use, and what deployment model we are interested in.

I rate the initial setup of Veeam Backup & Replication a seven out of ten.

I am able to the deployment of this solution in some cases. However, if it is a large environment I will need assistance. We need approximately two to three engineers for the deployment, but it depends on the requirements. We could need more people to assist. The engineers will have to have knowledge regarding Azure and hybrid integration. We use a third party for deployment.

We evaluated other options before choosing Azure Backup, such as Veeam Backup.

Maintenance does not necessarily require any additional review. We can calculate and plan where everything based on the scheduled downtime. If the codebase is extensive, requiring a hundred or more hours of work, it would be advisable to allocate a team of three to five engineers to handle the maintenance tasks efficiently.

I would recommend this solution to others.

I rate Azure Backup an eight out of ten.

We can implement Azure Backup for any customer who wants to back up their servers, whether on-premises, AWS, or any other cloud. We can implement the solution in such scenarios if the customer doesn't have an existing backup in place.

Azure Backup is easy to manage from a single dashboard.

The solution should involve more redundancy types in the backup storage and support open-source OS.

I rate the solution’s stability an eight out of ten.

Azure Backup is a highly scalable solution that can support a large amount of volume but lacks horizontal scaling. Ideally, we need to either push the MARS agent via SCCM or use some kind of tool to deploy the MARS agent in all the VMs. Although the solution's vertical scaling is pretty good, its horizontal scaling could be improved. Around 80% to 90% of our customers use Azure Backup in some way or another.

The solution's technical support is okay, but even the support team cannot do anything if the feature lacks something.

We have customers using other backup tools like Veritas Backup or Commvault Backup. Azure Backup is easy to manage from a single dashboard. If it is on-premises, customers can still take a backup of the on-premises environment if they don't want to increase the on-premises storage. Ultimately, it's an upfront cost for them. In that way, they won't use Azure Backup but will use Azure Storage to save one more copy on the cloud.

The solution’s initial setup is straightforward.

The solution's deployment time depends on the size of the environment. If there are fewer VMs, it will take less time to deploy. If we consider only one VM where we need to deploy a backup, then it will hardly take an hour or so to deploy it along with the recovery point. The deployment time also depends on the data.

If it is an Azure environment, the solution can be deployed in just a few clicks, and it will start taking a backup. If it is any third-party environment, users need to spend some more time on the deployment.

The solution's return on investment depends on the size of the environment.

Customers choose their backup tool based on its flexibility and cost-effectiveness. Customers prefer Azure Backup because it has a pay-as-you-go model, and they won't have to pay an upfront amount at the initial level. The solution's pricing and licensing depend on the environment.

We use the solution to protect specific data types or environments, such as an SQL database, a normal VM, or a file share. I suggest Azure Backup for a small or medium environment with 30 to 40 VMs. For a big environment, I suggest third-party backup tools, which are more flexible and manageable because they come with single dashboards.

Overall, I rate Azure Backup an eight out of ten.

Azure Backup is a mandatory service. We have recommended every client to use Azure Backup. Many resources and databases are being backed up on Azure in different zones and regions.

We have multiple clients. Some of them have data centers. They have 100 to 200 virtual machines. We have set backups, snapshots, and replication for every machine in different zones.

Our client’s infrastructure is protected by the tool.

The product must improve on a database level. It should be made more application-aware.

I have been using the solution for one year.

If we have zone-redundant architecture, the stability is ten out of ten. If not, then it will be an eight out of ten. Overall, I rate the solution’s stability a nine out of ten.

I rate the solution’s scalability a ten out of ten. Our clients are small, medium, and enterprise-level businesses.

Sometimes, we meet technically sound people. Sometimes, we don’t. The support team calls within 30 minutes if we launch a ticket. The support team should contain more highly technical people. Overall, the support is good.

Positive

The tool is very easy to deploy and configure. A person who understands networks can deploy and configure the product very easily. If a person has a clear concept of networks, they can work on any cloud solution. I rate the ease of setup a nine out of ten. We have many clients.

We have replicated our clients’ resources from on-premise to cloud and from cloud to cloud. The time taken for deployment varies for every client. If a company has 100 VMs, the tool can be deployed in two days. We can configure the tool with Azure CLI.

It is a very cheap cloud solution.

The solution is improving day by day. New features are introduced, and existing features are updated regularly. Oracle and Azure have some partnerships. They have signed an agreement. Some of our clients have data centers, and we configure their applications on Azure cloud. Azure clients also want to configure their applications in different zones and regions. Azure Backup is good. It can protect the resources of a company. Overall, I rate the product a seven out of ten.

The product is cost-effective compared to other vendors.

Azure Backup must include features similar to enterprise solutions, such as Veeam.

I have been using Azure Backup for five years. We are using the latest version.

The product is stable. I rate its stability a ten out of ten.

We cater this product to small, medium, and enterprise businesses. I rate its scalability a five out of ten.

The initial setup has medium complexity. I rate the process a five or six out of ten.

The product's pricing is a three or four out of ten, where one is inexpensive, and ten is costly.

Overall, I rate Azure Backup an eight out of ten.

The product is a part of our cloud infrastructure strategy.

All of the core features are valuable to us.

The product satisfies the need for backups within Azure. However, it is not very flexible in the world of technology. I can’t use the solution to restore another native cloud solution. Azure must add this new feature.

I have been using the solution for five to six years.

We have had very little downtime. I rate the tool’s stability an eight out of ten.

The solution has decent scalability. I rate it an eight out of ten.

We reached out to the technical support team for some minor issues. Microsoft’s technical support is not the greatest. Our experience has been the same across all the services.

Neutral

We used Commvault. It is quite diverse in its capabilities and provides flexible options for backup across multi-cloud platforms.

The initial setup was straightforward. The product is deployed on the cloud.

We have enterprise-level pricing. I rate the pricing a five out of ten.

We can use the solution if we don't plan to work in a multi-cloud environment. It meets our requirements. Azure Backup might not be the right product for us if we want a higher disaster recovery capability. Overall, I rate the tool a seven out of ten.

Azure Backup is very simple to use and user-friendly. From the technical side, features like the tenant and the restoration part are much better. It's a Microsoft tool, and all the info we have based on the VMs will be built on the Azure platform. It's easy for us to do the backup in its OEM tool.

Azure Backup has some drawbacks. We can't have the granular level restoration, particularly for the Azure files. Sometimes, indexing doesn't happen in the Azure files. That's why we are keen to have a solution that can consider all the applications, all the OS, and the legacy applications.

One of the disadvantages of Azure Backup is that it doesn't have a MAC backup. In Azure, we cannot take the MAC backup for Mac devices.

Azure Backup's licensing model is very challenging because it doesn't give a clear picture. Whenever we go to the vendor or the OEM to buy some of the workloads, we have to take everything. We have to pay for the VMs and the storage in the Azure platform. Hence, the licensing model should be very simple for the end user to get things easily.

I have been working with Azure Backup for three years.

I rate Azure Backup a nine out of ten for stability.

I rate Azure Backup an eight and a half out of ten for scalability. Two thousand five hundred users use the solution in my company.

We have partner support from Azure Backup. Usually, we can see support in the stipulated time. We get the support based on the SLA timeline.

Positive

Since Azure Backup is a very user-friendly solution, its initial setup is very simple and shouldn't be a challenge for anyone.

We implemented the solution through our technical team.

We do not have any additional costs for Azure Backup.

Sometimes the solution has a huge bandwidth. However, it lags and does not completely perform when it has low bandwidth.

We have around 11 people involved in the maintenance of Azure Backup. Out of these 11 people, five people are from the solution architecture, and the rest are tech support partners.

Overall, I rate Azure Backup an eight out of ten.

We use this solution for across-the-board data protection. That includes VMs, and storage pools for basically any level of recoverability whether for files, storage pools or transactional data. I'm an enterprise architect. 

Backup helps quite a bit in terms of immediate recovery and immediate restoration. It's very helpful when it comes to data corruption, file damage, or inadvertent deletions. The other component is the relatively broad data protection we get across the entire Azure landing zone. It backs up efficiently and reports better than a lot of traditional tools. 

I think the extensibility onto hybrid environments needs a bit of tweaking. It's great in the cloud but when you're on-prem it requires quite a bit of infrastructure in terms of Azure ARC and bringing it back. 

I've been using this solution for around four years. 

The solution is quite stable and reliable. We've had a few little nominal outages, but nothing terrible. It's much more reliable than any of the traditional on-premise kind of private cloud environments. 

The solution is very scalable for us but scalability depends on your location.There are no problems accessing Azure in Europe or North America but if you're looking at the newer regions, they're slower in adding the same capability. I used Azure in Dublin because there was no Azure in Africa. When they turned on Azure in South Africa we had to switch to that but we only got 50% of the functionality. South Africa should have been brought to the same level before we had to make the move from Dublin. It's taken us backward. 

The initial setup is fairly standard and not too complex. Deployment generally takes a few days depending on the size. Anything to do with data retention takes more time as we have to define the backup schedules and retention and those kinds of things. Validating the backups is quick and efficient but determining which data we need to keep and for how long, takes time. Those are all issues related to the customer.

Deployment steps are basically about carrying out an inventory of the workloads. You want to guard the types of protection you're applying specifically to databases versus different systems and services, and then how that ties into full recoverability. That would take a week maximum in the worst case and we do that internally. 

We usually have two systems engineers involved in maintenance. Different projects require different capacities.

ROI is very good as long as you modernize your solutions and then it brings quite a saving. If you don't upgrade to cloud, and you just do a lift and shift, it'll kill you with the cost.

Licensing costs are consumption-based so the more storage we eat, the more data we protect, the greater the cost.

It's important to ensure that the capabilities you require are available in your region. Feature availability per region is the most important thing. You can't do a design for Azure in North America and then think that it's going to work everywhere. Azure is not consistent so you may be forced to buy third-party products that you didn't budget for.

I rate this solution nine out of 10.