How to Find the Right VMware Backup Solution for Your Business

As a VMware user looking for a backup solution you are in a good position. Many companies today offer VMware backup. But, of course, you shouldn’t rush into things and take the first available option. You should select the best VMware backup software for your business. But how would you approach this task? Read this blog and learn how to find the right backup solution for your VMware vSphere in three simple steps.

# 1 Define the Perfect Backup Solution for Your VMware

 First, and before you choose your VMware backup vendor, explore the general characteristics of a great backup solution:

• You should be looking to enjoy broad-scale data protection with multiple back-ups and instant recovery features.
• It feels great when your backup performance is fast, and your network load is brought to a minimum.
• You should be able to verify the quality of your backups instantly. Then, you can store your backups offsite or in a public cloud for extra security.
• Cost-effectiveness. Look for a backup solution that is a combination of enterprise-grade features and affordable price.
• User-Friendliness. Your backup solution should be simple to use and have a pleasant user interface for creating and managing backup and recovery jobs. If you can quickly understand how to navigate your backup solution without reading long manuals or going through training, you’ve got a good deal!
• If you expect your business to grow, you might need to back up more VMs. Find out if your potential backup solution will be able to accommodate the change. At the same time, if your business becomes smaller, your backup solution should scale down to lessen your expenses.
• An effective backup solution enables you to automate most backup jobs and workflows. Just set it up once and concentrate on your other tasks. Your backup solution can do the rest.

Next, try to understand if the backup software is the best choice for backing up your VMware VMs. Ask these questions:

• Does this backup software use innovative techniques that can simplify my business workflow?
• What features does the backup solution have to ensure comprehensive backup and recovery of my VMware environment?

Innovative VMware backup solution incorporates:

• Image-based virtualization
• Changed Block Tracking (CBT) technology
• App-aware backups

Image-based virtualization — creates a point-in-time copy of a VM without affecting the performance of a source VM

Changed Block Tracking technology — only copies blocks of data that has changed since the previous backup

App-aware backups — ensure consistency of data across applications and databases during a backup

An innovative backup solution is agentless. It uses snapshots to leverage backups. It can back up VMs with all types of OSs together with their virtual disk files and configuration files. Your backup solution should be easily integrated into your VMware environment and support the latest versions of vSphere. You should be able to install your backup software instantly on Windows/Linux/NAS or deploy it as a VMware virtual appliance. And, you should be able to set up your policy rules to 1) automatically add new VMs to the backup jobs, 2) automatically exclude VMs from backup jobs (based on the VM’s name, tag or size).

Now let’s discuss the top features you must have to backup and recover your VMware VMs:

• VM Backup. Backup single, multiple and fault-tolerant VMs without the need to install additional software on each host.
• Full VM recovery. Recover full VMs to the original or different location along with configuration and virtual disk data.
• Granular recovery. Restore individual folders, files and objects without performing a full recovery (MS Exchange, Active Directory or SQL).
• Instant backup verification. Receive reports of verified backups along with screenshots of test-recovered VMs.
• Instant VM boot. Directly boot your VMs from a backup to avoid downtime in case of a cyber attack, disaster or system failure.
• Multiple storage destinations. Keep your backups in different locations – locally, in a public cloud or on tape.
• LAN-free data transfer. Increase your network bandwidth and backup speed by using LAN-free data transfer with Direct SAN access or HotAdd.

# 2 Explore the Current Market

Now you know what kind of backup solution you need for your VMware vSphere. Yet, there are multiple companies that offer similar backup services. And, you still ask a question – how can I choose the best backup service provider for my VMware VMs? To answer this question you need to research the market:

• Read user reviews
• Go to the company website: explore the rates and read the success stories
• Ask your business partner about a backup solution they use 

# 3 Test Several Solutions and Make a Choice

Finally, try a free trial to make an educated decision about your final purchase! A free trial gives you real-life exposure to the product. Compare your options and decide which one can better serve your needs. When you compare two or more products, pay attention to:

• The overall look and feel of the user interface
• How fast and easy you can organize and schedule tasks
• The availability of technical support

Good luck with choosing the best backup solution for your business! To learn more about VMware backups, read here.

This article has been published in accordance with Socialnomics’ disclosure policy.