Azure Backup Reviews

Customers nowadays are planning to migrate their workloads from on-premises to the cloud, like Azure. Microsoft offers Azure Backup as a service, which allows backup for virtual machines, SQL databases, HANA databases, and even file shares. 

If the customer's workloads are supported by Azure, we recommend Azure Backup as a service. However, for workloads not supported by Azure Backup, we look for third-party investment solutions.

One notable feature is that snapshots are computed in less time, enabling faster system recovery. Even for large systems, we can recover them in less time. For example, if it's a recent backup, it can be done in less than 15 minutes.

Another benefit is that the backup utilization is not high. Comparing the pricing with other technologies, Azure Backup is more affordable for customers.

One feature is VMware backup with replication. Many customers are interested in this. Additionally, Azure Backup allows customers to extend their retention period for more than five or ten years, which is beneficial compared to other enterprise backup solutions. The monitoring capability is also good. 

Moreover, encryption is maintained by Microsoft if we follow the platform team management system. This is crucial as customers want to ensure the security of their data on Azure. The configuration is user-friendly, and we have control over backup storage utilization and VM consumption. 

When it comes to improvements, Microsoft should provide us with an option to explore the logs. So if there's any failure by seeing the error, in some cases, we will be able to resolve it. But 50% of the cases are being handled by Microsoft itself, like getting the logs from the back end. That's the one thing that I've seen that has to be enhanced from Microsoft's end.

Azure Backup is limited to certain workloads. It would be helpful if Microsoft focused on enabling backups for Oracle and other unsupported databases.

We have multiple customers, and we categorize the Commvault infrastructure based on customer mix. We have more than ten Comsources, and we distribute the load accordingly. Based on client utilization, we configure the backup equally across the media agents.

The stability is good. I didn't find any challenges. The installations also work as expected. The customers do not have any concerns about it.

Customer service and support vary based on the issue. I've had personal experiences where some issues took more than fifteen days to resolve while others were resolved in one or two days. Overall, it's good, but there is room for improvement based on my personal experience.

The initial setup is very simple. We have to have an idea of the networking cost structure and the configuration. We also have to get confirmation from the customer about what kind of retention they are looking for.

We can also have the data deployed to other regions, which is a nice feature. If there is any disaster in the primary region, we'll be able to read the data from a secondary region. That's also one of the very good features offered by Azure Backup. 

The deployment process is quite easy in Azure. Enabling backup for any VM takes less than five minutes. We just need to create a vault and discover the VM for backup. So, in terms of deployment, it's straightforward and user-friendly.

I haven't found the need for much maintenance. In comparison to other backup solutions where we maintain our own infrastructure, Azure Backup handles everything. We simply create a library, assign a policy, and associate the VM with the trusted backup vault. Microsoft manages everything, and there are no limitations in terms of storage utilization.

Comparing the pricing with other technologies, Azure Backup is more affordable for customers. It follows a pay-as-you-go model, where we pay according to our consumption.

In terms of Azure Backup, there is no special license required. We only need to pay for the amount of data we consume and the data transferred across the network. The pricing is calculated based on these two factors. There is no explicit license cost. We just need to allocate a budget for storage and related expenses.

When it comes to advice, it's important to understand the specific requirements of the customer. If the customer requires backups for VMs, SQL, and SAP HANA, Microsoft's Azure Backup can be a suitable choice. 

However, if there are other workloads that are not supported by Microsoft, alternative backup solutions should be considered. The decision depends on the specific requirements. Azure Backup offers services related to cost, storage utilization, encryption, and scalability.

Overall, I would rate the solution a seven out of ten.

We have implemented a secondary contingency plan for most clients, where the primary infrastructure is on-premise, and the containers are hosted in the cloud. Some clients are currently migrating their primary solutions to the cloud. In these cases, the servers run on Azure, and Azure Backup provides backup server services. Additionally, we have implemented Azure SQL and Azure Intune for these clients.

The daily backups have become easier since we no longer need to handle large backups. The use of Azure Backup as a service has proven reliable and simplified our daily operations. Previously, we relied on LTO backups for data retention, but after migrating to the cloud and adopting Azure Backup, the delivery process has become smoother.

The simplicity of the whole operation is the most valuable feature of the solution.

I believe more options could be available to understand better what's happening in the system. Additionally, automating the client updates and connector updates would be beneficial. Updating the connector from time to time can be challenging, and it could be made more transparent and straightforward for users. Moreover, another drawback lies in the time it takes to test full data backup recovery. Deploying a full recovery takes longer. We need to allocate a longer period for complete data recovery to establish the environment again.

I have been using the solution for the past four years.

I rate the stability of the solution as a nine out of ten.

In a fully cloud-based solution, scalability is good, and I rate it a ten out of ten. On the other hand, for an on-premise setup, there may be challenges related to recovery and the potential impact on the Internet link's bandwidth. Therefore, I rate it an eight out of ten.

I believe Microsoft could improve its backup support.

Neutral

The initial setup was easy.

The pricing of the solution does not depend on the service itself but rather on the minimum data volume encountered. This pricing approach seems reasonable and is on par with other competitors in the market. It is a good solution for on-premise needs because it is more cost-effective. When evaluating the overall financial expenditure, including operational costs and the impact on the IT team, Azure Backup is a favorable choice.

I recommend it; however, I want to emphasize the importance of thoroughly checking if the cloud backup solution aligns with the required time frame for recovery. Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten. 

We use Azure Backup to backup VMs.

The most valuable feature of Azure Backup is its ease of use and good integration with other Azure services.

The Azure Backup support for on-premises service is limited.

The file-level restore procedure should be more straightforward.

I have been using Azure Backup for approximately three years.

Azure Backup is stable.

Azure Backup can scale and it is easy to do.

The initial setup of Azure Backup is straightforward. It took 15 minutes to do the deployment.

I rate the initial setup of Azure Backup a four out of five.

I did the implementation of the solution.

I rate Azure Backup a seven out of ten.

We use Azure Backup to backup and restore virtual machines as well as SQL Databases.

The only issue we have right now is the amount of time it takes to restore. When we attempt to restore a virtual machine, it can take hours. This is an area that could be improved.

The length of time it takes to restore is our main source of frustration. It would be beneficial to shorten the time it takes.

We had issues with shared storage in the past where it couldn't be included in the backup. Shared storage, or shared disc, wasn't available. I believe Microsoft promised to put it in their pipeline for improvement in order to add this, but I haven't double-checked. This was the issue with shared managed discs, and not being included in this backup scope.

If the shared managed disc could be included with the backup, it would be better.

I have been using Azure Backup for three years.

Azure Backup is very stable.

Azure Backup is a scalable solution.

We work with it all of the time.

Technical support is very helpful. I would rate them a four out of five.

Positive

The initial setup was straightforward. It was something that was easy for us.

It was completed within a few minutes. It can depend on the environment, but usually, it is fast.

The number of staff required for maintenance depends on the automation. We require more staff now, but we are working on the automation. Generally, it is relatively low. For the most part, it works by itself.

We operate in our own environment.

Licensing fees are paid on a monthly basis.

It's not an expensive solution. I am more than happy with the price.

We are working in our own environment, assisting KPMG users and firm members. We also have internal companies.

I am an Azure Architect.

It's useful, it works, and it's fairly reliable. The only issue right now isn't a big one, but our users sometimes need faster recovery, faster restoring of services, and faster restoring of data.

I would rate Azure Backup a nine out of ten.

Our primary use case of Azure Backup is for data on our application servers. We host our ERP systems with SQL for backend software. 

We've been in partnership with Microsoft for more than 15 years. I'm the CEO and the CIO. 

Before we started using Azure we spent a lot of money at our various sites, setting one up as the main physical site and a second for disaster recovery. We had to invest a lot of money to buy hardware that needed replacing every two or three years. Switching to Azure has saved us thousands. The hardware is always updated and we're now able to invest more in our staff which is highly beneficial because it translates to satisfied clients.  

As a security setting, Azure is very detailed. We can add features on retentions and retain the backup for several days. The retention policies are very good. I like the notifications and multiple layers of security that the solution offers. It enables us and our clients to feel secure and you can install and connect your systems wherever you are. 

We're hoping the price of the solution won't increase in the coming months when Azure is due to review all its products. I think that what the product lacks now is an AI system; if we had that, we'd be able to more easily upgrade the hardware system.  

We've been using this solution for about seven years. 

We haven't had any stability issues. If the initial setup is done properly there won't be any issues with stability. 

The scalability is good. We have around 12 users in the department. Some of them provide techno support and others do testing on the system to check its abilities because sometimes it has too much load. 

Customer support is very good. 

The initial setup was straightforward. Deployment time depends on the size of the data.

We pay over $8 million per year in licensing fees for 365 and Azure usage. There is no additional cost for hardware but we train our employees and that is an added cost for us. 

We had a look at Amazon before going with Azure but we decided to go the whole way with Microsoft. These days, I'm not sure there's much difference between the two.   

It's important to know what you'll be getting from whoever provides you with the solution because it's important that support is included. This product has really helped me in scaling up my company. We love this solution and think everyone should have it. 

As a provider and a user, I rate this solution 10 out of 10. 

Our primary use case is for backups.

The solution helped us use R2 RBO to back up frequently and avoid losing data if we had system issues.

The most valuable features are the integrations because we are using Azure Cloud, which backs it up with all the Azure components.

Azure Backup is constantly improving its features. However, it can be further improved by continuously meeting its compliance requirements.

We have been using the solution for three years.

The solution is stable.

I rate the solution an 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.

I use Azure Backup VM backups.

The most valuable feature of Azure Backup is the native backup capabilities.

Azure Backup could improve the backup data copies because they are not immutable.

I have been using Azure Backup for approximately two years.

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

We have two engineers that are using the solution in my organization.

Azure Backup has a medium scalability level.

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

I have not needed to use the support from the vendor.

We previously used Dell Avamar prior to Azure Backup. We switched to Azure Backup because we were having to pull data back down to an on-premise hardware infrastructure and Azure Backup meant we didn't have to pull the data down through our express route.

The initial setup of Azure Backup took a couple of hours to complete. It was quick and straightforward.

We completed the implementation of the solution in-house.

There is a cost per terabyte for using this solution.

I would recommend this solution to others.

I rate Azure Backup a seven out of ten.

My rating was because the absence of immutability, a critical feature in our current backup system, is a limitation of its monitoring and reporting capabilities.