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IBM ProtectTIER vs Microsoft DPM comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 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 ProtectTIER
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
66th
Average Rating
7.2
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
Deduplication Software (12th)
Microsoft DPM
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
41st
Average Rating
7.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
21
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2026, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of IBM ProtectTIER is 0.7%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft DPM is 0.9%, down from 1.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Backup and Recovery Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft DPM0.9%
IBM ProtectTIER0.7%
Other98.4%
Backup and Recovery
 

Featured Reviews

AG
Technical Lead at a manufacturing company with 10,001+ employees
Provides a short-term backup, archive, and cataloging for 20,000 people in our organization
The backup for a large amount of data is slow. When there's a large amount of data, sometimes the backup isn't completed in time. I have a 24 hour cycle, so it doesn't get completed in 24 hours with the large amount of data. With Veritas NetBackup, I can take 20 terabytes of backup in a day.
Andrei Kolmogortsev - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Administrator at a comms service provider with 51-200 employees
Efficiently manages backups with long-standing reliability and ease of integration
We use Microsoft DPM for backup servers. ManageEngine is used to manage workstations and servers, and Operation Manager is used for monitoring The two-layer backup system is a particularly valuable feature in Microsoft DPM. The short layer and long layer backups are features I appreciate.…

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I will highly recommend this product for excellent and quick backup solution in small and large IBM I Series environment."
"The command-line interface is good."
"If you are looking for a reliable and scalable enterprise-class solution, you should consider this solution."
"The most valuable features are the self-service features and the ability to search the data."
"In terms of stability, I've found it to be very stable."
"Overall IBM ProtectTIER is a great solution. It is easy to use."
"The cataloging is the best feature, as it takes millions of frames for the backup and, because it's incremental, it takes less time to complete."
"The solution is highly stable."
"I found Microsoft DPM pretty useful as it satisfied most of my requirements and seems to be fulfilling all the requirements for our backup strategy."
"Microsoft DPM provides enhanced security and streamlines processes through automation, which results in better security for users."
"The most valuable feature is that DPM has an index so individual files can be searched."
"It is almost perfect for Microsoft products. It is not a very powerful tool, but it is okay for small sites and small businesses with Microsoft products. It is easy to use for backup and restore. It is good for backing up Microsoft servers such as Exchange and SharePoint servers."
"One of the most effective features of Microsoft DPM is its integration with the entire Microsoft ecosystem."
"Microsoft DPM's is easy to set up."
"It has an application backup, a file backup, a system backup and a hypervisor."
"Overall, I really like the product, it's very user-friendly, and I can do everything I need to do."
 

Cons

"The backup for a large amount of data is slow. When there's a large amount of data, sometimes the backup isn't completed in time."
"These days, we are thinking about pushing another solution because of the poor support from IBM."
"I would like the possibility to back up the infrastructure and then replicate it upon on restart, without having to orchestrate the starting of the VM."
"IBM ProtectTIER could improve by being more user-friendly."
"My advice to anybody who is considering this solution is to conduct a proof of concept first because everybody's needs are different, and this product is not suitable for every kind of backup."
"The configuration wizards are still complex and hard to navigate. These should be easier to manage."
"It is unmanageable. Support would be good."
"Setting up the system to work with legacy equipment is a bit complex at times."
"Setting up the solution can be complex."
"It would be better if it integrated seamlessly with open source and competitor products. In the next release, I would like to see some data governance frameworks. It should have support features for data integration and data replication like Veeam. Right now, we are also using Veeam for certain scenarios."
"Microsoft DPM could improve if it was available in a public or private cloud."
"Overall, I wouldn't describe the solution as user-friendly. It's not very intuitive."
"The stability in Microsoft DPM 2015 was better than the 2019 version; we have had some problems."
"Additional Hyper-V knowledge would be great."
"We can't take a snapshot and take it outside, which is a problem."
"Management reporting could be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The customer can decide how they want to purchase a license. However, the price of the solution is expensive."
"This solution is very expensive."
"IBM ProtectTIER is an expensive solution."
"We have a capacity-based license, which is managed centrally for all the sites of my company."
"Microsoft DPM can be considered as an expensive solution for smaller or medium enterprises, but we have been satisfied with the price structure as it is fixed and it offers a variety of useful features"
"I think Microsoft DPM pricing is reasonable. The additional costs are related to storage and technical support."
"Microsoft DPM is a free solution. However, we pay approximately $3,000 annually for support."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Construction Company
22%
Manufacturing Company
15%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
10%
Government
7%
Construction Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business3
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise3
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise7
Large Enterprise7
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft DPM?
The pricing of Microsoft solutions rates in the middle range at five out of ten.
What needs improvement with Microsoft DPM?
Microsoft DPM could improve by adding S3 backup to S3 storage capabilities. AI integration is not necessary for backups as this is not a security solution.
What is your primary use case for Microsoft DPM?
We use Microsoft DPM for backup servers. ManageEngine is used to manage workstations and servers, and Operation Manager is used for monitoring.
 

Also Known As

No data available
DPM, Data Protection Manager, MS DPM
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Durham Police Department, Re-Store LLC, CenterGrid, pixx.io GmbH, Australian Government Department of Defence, QD, Refresco Gerber
Medical Park, Centropol Energy, a.s., NCFE, D & H Distributing, Metalor, Colosseum, a.s., Sanitas S.A., Icebreaker
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM ProtectTIER vs. Microsoft DPM and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
907,731 professionals have used our research since 2012.