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IBM Spectrum Protect vs Rubrik 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

IBM Spectrum Protect
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
17th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
149
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Rubrik
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
4th
Average Rating
9.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
92
Ranking in other categories
Cloud Backup (4th), Disaster Recovery (DR) Software (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of IBM Spectrum Protect is 2.2%, up from 2.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Rubrik is 7.7%, up from 7.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Backup and Recovery
 

Featured Reviews

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.
CarlosCastells - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy to do backup, easy to deploy and scalable
I have experience with different solutions like Oracle, Veeam, andCommvault Cloud. Right now, we are testing a solution for Kubernetes. We are trying to replace it, so we just don't know yet. I don't really know if Rubrik is a good solution for this. We are testing Velero (Open Source) or Kasten K10, and I don't know Rubrik's view for this type of technology.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The product is always stable and reliable."
"It is a very stable solution."
"IBM support is friendly, knowledgeable, and they always respond quickly. They've always been able to find the cause of my problem."
"It seems very scalable and robust. It can do what we require it to do."
"The D2D2T archive of my PACS data improved after I put Spectrum Protect 8.1.4 into production."
"It has increased our security, scalability, and high availability."
"We can freeze and start databases for consistent backups."
"The platform’s most valuable feature is its ability to verify the recoverability of backups."
"Rubrik has made the process to manage backup and recovery painless. This frees up more time to work on other projects."
"Rubrik is a faster unit from a hardware perspective. Things, like Live Mount, mean we can bring services back straightaway, then have them transition back into the live storage in the background. Because we can use Live Mount to do instant restores, a restore is now a five-minute job. Then, the rest of it is done in the background, rather than doing something for an hour before you actually get the restore back."
"Rubrik, when compared to Cohesity, Dell, and Veritas, was the best of the four."
"Instant recovery is a good feature."
"Time dedicated to backup was drastically reduced."
"Rubrik can also serve as a secondary host for emergency recoveries."
"Rubrik is an easy and automatic solution that needs no manual intervention."
"When it comes to saving time managing our backups, Rubrik has saved us a lot of time compared to what we were using. It feels like it has saved us lifetimes of time because the process used to be difficult. It's not just the day to time savings. When something goes wrong, that's where the real time savings comes into play. We are able to get back to where we need to be more confidently and with much fewer steps."
 

Cons

"I need two separate solutions for virtual and physical systems. I need IBM Spectrum Protect Plus for virtual systems and Spectrum Protect for physical systems and that's a pain. It would be an improvement if they were combined."
"For the database side, it does not have object level recovery."
"Software-wise, IBM Spectrum Protect didn't handle virtual machines that well. The license cost is mainly the area for improvement in IBM Spectrum Protect."
"I would like to see integration with Copy Data Management, which is an IBM product. Right now, these two products are siloed, so if these two become integrated, the product would become a bit of a powerhouse."
"They should have a proper technical support team serving the customers and get issues resolved earlier."
"We did not see any drawbacks to IBM Spectrum Protect before assisting a customer using Windows that wanted to migrate to using UNIX. IBM Spectrum Protect does not offer an option to migrate from other operating systems."
"We cannot take VMware backups for our banking data center environment."
"We need everything cloud. Strong support for cloud services. S3 connectivity, which is mandatory for us in the future along with this integration of Spectrum Copy Data Management or Spectrum Protect services together with these Spectrum Protect Plus functionalities, e.g., hardware, snapshots, and Copy Data Management. They should come together in one solution."
"Troubleshooting failed backups is difficult, and deciphering the logs without the help of support is usually almost impossible."
"Improving PowerShell integration would greatly simplify Rubrik management."
"Rubrik is expensive."
"The price of Rubrik is too high, especially when you are considering a change in the total backup solution."
"The reporting, in particular the customization of reports, needs to be improved."
"Initially, we encountered compatibility challenges with some of our technologies."
"The Polaris piece could use improvement. When you get a report and you have events that are suspicious, you cannot drill down and find out why it's suspicious. You only know it's suspicious, but you don't know the root cause. Other than that, everything works well."
"It is a lot more expensive than other solutions, but you get what you pay for."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Going to IBM Tech University Conference saved me from making a major purchase of the wrong thing, which was very helpful."
"Spectrum Protect is not a cheap option."
"The pricing is a little expensive for our current employer, so they want to move to a cheaper solution."
"We are paying for support and maintenance on a monthly basis."
"We chose IBM Spectrum Protect, because they actually have something called MSP pricing, which means managed services provider pricing. The pricing was attractive, and it seems to be a platform that IBM is totally investing on in terms of new functions and new capabilities."
"The license model that they have at IBM, which is due to volume, from a certain volume onward is not the right license model."
"At scale, the consumption license (per TB) is very expensive."
"It can be perceived as expensive since it is designed for enterprise use."
"The pricing has been quite good from our perspective, in terms of being able to negotiate with the Rubrik team to get the product that we want and be able to sell that out to our end customers."
"Rubrik is expensive, but due to its data management capabilities, customers can save a lot by reducing hardware and storage."
"Rubrik is a little bit expensive, but it's worth the price."
"We are on an annual license to use Rubrik and it is priced well."
"Rubrik was probably the most expensive solution but in the long run, it's justified by the value of the data that it protects."
"The solution is expensive for small businesses."
"It is a great value, but its cost is still a bit high."
"The pricing and licensing of Rubrik is better than products that we've had in the past. It was quite a bit cheaper than Commvault and NetBackup."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
13%
Government
9%
University
7%
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Government
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with IBM Spectrum Protect?
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 dash...
Which would you choose - Rubrik or Veeam Backup & Replication?
Veeam Backup & Replication provides an easy-to-set-up solution to the issue of data storage and recovery. Setting it up is a relatively simple affair. For the most part it prompts you from scre...
What do you like most about Rubrik?
It's easy to manage and has an innovated solution.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Rubrik?
Rubrik is considered expensive, with a price rating of three out of ten. Improvements in pricing and licensing would be beneficial.
 

Also Known As

IBM TSM, IBM Tivoli Storage Manager
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

CERN, Einstein Healthcare, Nyherji, Allianz Australia, TZM, ABT Online, NCT, Kindred Healthcare Inc., Cobalt Iron, TransGrid, Baptist Health of Northeast Florida, Cash America, Piedmont Healthcare, RWGV, Arkansas Tech University, British Columbia Institute of Technology
Driscoll's, Red Hawk Casino, Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP, Wabash National, Chateau Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, Galliker Transport & Logistics
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Spectrum Protect vs. Rubrik and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
849,686 professionals have used our research since 2012.