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Carbonite Server vs Dell PowerProtect Data Manager comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 11, 2024

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

Carbonite Server
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
57th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
Cloud Backup (44th)
Dell PowerProtect Data Manager
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
5th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.2
Number of Reviews
30
Ranking in other categories
Deduplication Software (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of Carbonite Server is 0.9%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Dell PowerProtect Data Manager is 2.0%, down from 4.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Backup and Recovery Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Dell PowerProtect Data Manager2.0%
Carbonite Server0.9%
Other97.1%
Backup and Recovery
 

Featured Reviews

CP
Backup, storage and disaster recovery technical specialist at a computer software company with 201-500 employees
A reliable backup product which needs little management
For most technical users the setup and initial deployment are fairly straightforward and once deployed it 99% of the time looks after itself. Installation of the agents is similar to most other products in that it has an install wizard to guide you, the accompanying documentation is also very useful to assist wherever you are in the agent install and policy setup process. Normally our customers' IT team does the deployment of agents, however, this isn't a daunting task unless you are dealing with multiple servers to protect the product. On a server-by-server basis, the deployment doesn't take long. From the MSP side of things, the infrastructure sitting behind the scenes doesn't take too much to install, configure and maintain.
Pranav Telang - PeerSpot reviewer
DGM at Airtel Digital
Centralized backups have simplified hybrid protection and improved ransomware recovery and compliance
The majorly needed improvement is that the product should easily simplify the upgrade and installation process. Sometimes Dell support should be more active. They take time for P1 issues. Sometimes it is not a P1 for Dell, but it is P1 for the customer, and the support needs to be very mature. That is a major drawback I see. Otherwise, the product is quite well. This is an enterprise solution and a bit costlier, but it is a solution where people should be looking into if they want to go into one single umbrella and have the centralized backup solution, which integrates with the cloud and can manage their cloud workload as well as the on-premises workload, and can be managed with one dashboard. In that way, it makes their backup management easier and they can get detected anomalies as soon as possible. This is one of the solutions I would recommend. However, if it is a very small company, they really need to think about the cost, as it is very costlier for them. But as an enterprise solution and a mid-enterprise solution, this is the solution where companies think their data is very critical, in sectors such as financial, banking, and health. This kind of sector should go with that solution because it always gives the compliances of HIPAA, GDPR, and all those things that are really required for them. From management perspectives and consolidation solution perspective, the integration is quite easy. With respect to the backup administrator and everything, it is quite straightforward. There are some layers that need to be improved and should have the internal feature instead of creating the additional VMs for the NAS backup. It should be internal and directly have the agent base or something that can communicate easily with Dell storage. If it is third-party, I would understand, but it should be able to communicate. The benefit of it is that it is easily understood and you can do knowledge transfer with a lot of documents available. The drawback of it is that when it comes to the installation, Dell always takes a lot of time for all these things with third-party involvement in between Dell and the customer. Support is the major part of it. People need to understand that when a customer raises their ticket for P1, they should treat it as a P1. Instead of by their book being P3 or P2, sometimes they only treat it as such when the complete backup server is down. However, for the customer, if it is not happening with the critical system of backup, then it is a P1 for them. From Dell support, they do not treat it as a P1, or they treat it as a P3 or P2. That kind of understanding and some agreements need to be done between the customer and Dell. It is a costlier solution. Comparatively, other backup solutions make this one of the costlier solutions. However, someone who has their enterprise data or needs protection in a good way can go for it. I could say it is a mid-enterprise or enterprise level solution. Otherwise, people do have the same solution but with differentiated features. However, it is costlier compared to the other.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Easy verification of things is the most valuable feature."
"The Granular Restore of SQL feature has been a lifesaver more times than I can count. One of the main reasons for looking at Carbonite was their support for platforms like AIX and AS/400 Series."
"Technical support handled all our issues quickly and effectively."
"I find the BMR/image and the recovery pieces are valuable."
"The advice that I have for people looking into using Carbonite Server is that it seems reliable and easy to use."
"The solution is a free engine to help work with the container."
"This solution is very simple to use and I will recommend it to anybody."
"The efficiency and convenience are excellent."
"The major benefit I have seen from using Dell PowerProtect Data Manager is that the backup window is significantly reduced, resulting in substantially faster backup times than other backup solutions while also providing data reduction and longer retention policies that exceed what standard backup solutions offer."
"Dell PowerProtect Data Manager works only with Data Domain in the backend, and both products work very well together as a very powerful solution."
"One notable feature is its robust backup support for Kubernetes and container environments. Additionally, PPDM stands out for its ease of deployment and management compared to other backup solutions. It is highly user-friendly, allowing users to quickly learn and implement backup and restore processes within a week. PPDM represents the next generation of backup software and is comparable to offerings from other vendors. Furthermore, PPDM prioritizes security with various access controls, such as user and database access controls. Its deployment tool is also known for its simplicity."
"In PPPDM, I find the centralized console for managing all sets of applications the most valuable feature, as it gives us the feasibility to perform backup operations for physical as well as virtual applications, and all of them can be managed through the central GUI console, which is a good thing."
"So far all of the features have been good."
"I would recommend it, as it's stable and you don't have downtimes, even with upgrades."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is its integrated approach."
"Dell innovated significantly in the GUI of the product, making it very easy to use."
 

Cons

"They do not yet have USB recovery but they are adding it in coming releases."
"The Hyper-V backup has room for improvement."
"The stability has room for improvement."
"When you have to restore it, Carbonite takes a lot of time."
"The only thing that I would like to see improved is related to marketing. Currently, it is very difficult to find the right paper and stuff for me. Their marketing department should provide better information because currently, it is very difficult to find information on the internet. It was bought over by OpenText, and you won't be able to find a lot of information about this solution on their site. They should also provide training facilities for commercial purposes. Some of my colleagues recently went for pilot training, and they were technical. If I want to get trained, the training has to be more commercial. Currently, there is no such training for users like me."
"In the next release I would like to see an improvement in the auto failover option."
"I would like to see an improvement on the management user interface, as well as Kellion integrations."
"The support for object storage isn't quite there yet; its public cloud support can be improved."
"In my opinion, what can be improved about PPPDM is that for the reporting perspective, we need to install an additional reporting component."
"Sometimes Dell support should be more active. They take time for P1 issues."
"The support is acceptable but not great. The teams are capable enough and can solve problems, but they take some time to do so."
"PowerProtect Data Manager is missing a feature for takeout, which means I cannot store backup data off-site within the software. This is a limitation for organizations that require off-site solutions."
"Dell PowerProtect Data Manager should add support for Hyper-V and Nutanix VMs, as well as Kubernetes. Additionally, they should support tape library backup capabilities."
"I think Dell PowerProtect can be improved in that I see PowerStore supporting the synchronous and asynchronous replica, similar to PowerMax."
"Management is difficult and it is hard to determine when things aren't working properly."
"Dell right now is not having the best interest or not having the best investment in the development of this particular product."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is open source."
"Its price is reasonable."
"We pay 9,000 dollars per year for our license."
"The pricing is between $120 and $150 per year."
"The solution is not less expensive than competitors but pricing deals are available."
"The price of Dell EMC PowerProtect Data Manager is reasonable."
"The licensing costs and pricing model are based on capacity and the license is easy to upgrade."
"Dell PowerProtect Data Manager is not an expensive solution."
"We offer monthly or yearly subscriptions. The price could be cheaper."
"The product is offered at a very competitive price in the market."
"The solution is more affordable than other vendors."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
Healthcare Company
8%
Construction Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
7%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise3
Large Enterprise1
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business14
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise16
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell PowerProtect Data Manager?
The pricing of Dell PowerProtect Data Manager is acceptable for me.
What needs improvement with Dell PowerProtect Data Manager?
Dell PowerProtect Data Manager can enhance automated backup management, faster backup and recovery, stronger cyber resilience, centralized visibility, and governance. For automated backup managemen...
What is your primary use case for Dell PowerProtect Data Manager?
Dell PowerProtect Data Manager is my primary solution for centralized backup and recovery management, database protection, NAS and file system backup, and cloud integration with Azure. I use Dell P...
 

Also Known As

Carbonite Recover Backup
PowerProtect, Dell EMC PowerProtect
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

INLINE Commercial Construction, Hamilton County
National Bank of Greece, USC Australia, PCS Publishing, Dell Digital IT, Rushmore Electric, Melanson Health, Arrow Electronics
Find out what your peers are saying about Carbonite Server vs. Dell PowerProtect Data Manager and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
909,153 professionals have used our research since 2012.