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Barracuda Backup vs IBM Storage Protect comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 12, 2025

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

Barracuda Backup
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
51st
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
Cloud Backup (40th)
IBM Storage Protect
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
13th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of Barracuda Backup is 0.4%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Storage Protect is 2.1%, down from 2.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Backup and Recovery Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
IBM Storage Protect2.1%
Barracuda Backup0.4%
Other97.5%
Backup and Recovery
 

Featured Reviews

GANESAN K - PeerSpot reviewer
Rating shows fast restoration and reliable support with scope for improved integration and database backup options
The product needs improvement to become better. For example, we attempted to integrate with Postgres SQL server to backup the database alone, which was not supported. For this reason, we required a separate solution for database backups. While other SQL servers are supported, Barracuda Backup has limitations with database backups. The main area for improvement is integration and support for databases.
Syed Habib - PeerSpot reviewer
Manageable and comprehensive and integrates robust backup features for core banking
It's adequate for my core banking, however, I am looking for another solution for all systems. It is not compatible with other operating systems like Windows or Linux, and lacks a consolidated dashboard from Browser Spectrum. This is why I am searching for another solution. The product also lacks any centralized graphical user interface (GUI), such as Jarek Pod, and I am limited to using a console-based text user interface, which my local partner handles completely.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature of Barracuda Backup is that it's on the cloud, so there is no need for hardware."
"Barracuda email security works effectively with O365, and we have been able to achieve many use cases that other competitive products such as Micro, Fortinet, Trellix, or Forcepoint could not accomplish."
"One valuable feature of Barracuda Backup is that it can be used as thin VMware storage."
"Barracuda Backup is cost-effective because there is no licensing cost per server or VM."
"The solution’s scalability is good because its space is unlimited. We can start in Office365 with one terabyte bit of information and leverage through an enterprise solution of 1000 users."
"The addition of the retention set feature provides a reduction in storage costs. It also reduces RTO and RPO so that you can respond quickly to your clients and services in case of data loss."
"We can use it with any storage for the back-end to save data."
"Good user interface."
"We've found the product to be quite stable and the performance is very good."
"It is very stable. A plus is to use POWERAge for the SNR copy of the Spectrum Protect, then it is more reliable."
"The backup on real-time, especially for the virtual machine, archiving, and retrieving the reader from the backup repository and getting it online, getting it validated, then performing the data consistency check over the backup."
"Our customers have come to trust IBM."
"Once it is completed properly, it is low maintenance. Most of the functions do not require much deliberation. It is all the blueprints and technologies laid out, and it is straight forward."
 

Cons

"Barracuda Backup's user interface needs to be renewed as it appears outdated."
"In using Barracuda Backup, sometimes the VM has issues and becomes non-functional, requiring support tickets to resolve."
"The product needs improvement to become better. For example, we attempted to integrate with Postgres SQL server to backup the database alone, which was not supported."
"An improvement is required in reports and backups for sharing on Linux and Unix."
"Barracuda Backup's support could be improved because sometimes the support team is situated outside the country, leading to time zone issues."
"I need to have more than two instances working together. I need a worldwide grid able to have replication between three, four, or five instances."
"We should be talking about the capacity of the tape drives. That's the only problem."
"The licensing isn't very clear. They should work to simply or clarify the cost structure."
"The software is very complicated. You have to do a lot of configurations to build a server, and you would need to backup and restore."
"The product should improve its GUI. It should also support Windows clustering."
"In terms of features, they've got it all covered. The features they have are quite good. The only downside to it is that it is for an enterprise or big organization. In my opinion, it is not for a small business."
"There have been some sizing issues now, and we are dealing with those."
"In a future release, it would be a benefit to have the ability to add an application as a storage target, as a storage pool. Additionally, they should add more functionality to the administration for the Operation Center."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"The licensing fees are on a yearly basis, which for us it is about R400,000 (approximately $27,000 USD)."
"We have been at our size for a few years. We are not really looking to battle the licensing costs, as this is our primary system."
"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."
"That's no longer my department, but I have some past experience with licensing. It is not cheap. I would rate it a three out of five in terms of licensing. In terms of additional costs, there is management overhead. It is a complex solution and a lot of work goes into managing clients. It has gotten better over the years, but compared to its competitor, it is still heavy on management overhead."
"The price of IBM Spectrum Protect is expensive. However, there are a few packages and it is unclear because, for the entry suite they have both options, which are the back-end storage capacity and the front-end storage capacity."
"The platform is neither highly priced nor inexpensive. I rate the pricing a seven out of ten."
"It is fairly reasonable as compared to other solutions in the market."
"Going to IBM Tech University Conference saved me from making a major purchase of the wrong thing, which was very helpful."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Educational Organization
7%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business53
Midsize Enterprise25
Large Enterprise94
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Barracuda Backup?
The pricing is very competitive. Licensing is on a yearly basis, and Barracuda even provides replacements after three years if a device reaches end of life, without any extra charges.
What needs improvement with Barracuda Backup?
The product needs improvement to become better. For example, we attempted to integrate with Postgres SQL server to backup the database alone, which was not supported. For this reason, we required a...
What is your primary use case for Barracuda Backup?
We are partners with Trellix Move Antivirus and we have sold it previously. That particular bundle has changed as Trellix has moved to Complete Protection and the DLP comes under another bundle. We...
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?
IBM Storage Protect is generally an expensive tool. However, with good contracts with IBM or its partners, the cost might not be so high. New customers can expect very high prices.
What needs improvement with IBM Storage Protect?
One point for improvement for IBM Spectrum Protect is security, as IBM has not been investing as much as in the past. There is a need for additional layers of security to fill the gaps, which is wh...
 

Also Known As

LiveVault
IBM Spectrum Discover
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Ochsner Health System
CEMEX
Find out what your peers are saying about Barracuda Backup vs. IBM Storage Protect and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
870,701 professionals have used our research since 2012.