01-27-2020, 06:29 PM
If you want to back up virtual machines to the cloud, below are a couple of issues you may want to be aware of while you are planning your VM cloud backup system.
First, will you be owning both sides of the cloud backup or do you need to purchase storage somewhere? Some solutions offer flexibility in that respect and others don't.
When VMs are backed up to the cloud, they are usually backed up at the sector level, which means pieces of the virtual disks are sent to the cloud. Does the solution encrypt your data before it is sent and is the link to the cloud encrypted as well? Does the backup data remain encrypted in the cloud?
While backing up at the sector level is good for many scenarios, sometimes a file-level approach performs better and/or allows easier access to backed up data when needed. Does the solution require you to install an agent inside the VM (and you will have to maintain it as well in the long-term) in order to access and back up VM files to the cloud?
Does the solution provide deduplication, which eliminates repetitive data from the backup? If it doesn't this would mean the entire VM has to be backed up each time. Also storage would be wasted to a large degree.
Can the solution deal effectively with broken links, for example when the internet link goes down for moment or will it upload again from scratch?
Finally, is there someone there to help you out when you're stuck for whatever reason? A major concern when you build your own cloud system with public storage, such as Azure or S3, is that usually there is no application specific support. You would have to pay for storage specific support but a major drawback of a "homebrew" system (using scripts or various software components) is lack of resources dedicated to maintenance and troubleshooting.
After looking at many solutions, we found that BackupChain stands out because it handles all of the above very well, at a very low price point. Combined with the server cloud backup plans offered by BackupChain, one can easily back up VMs to the cloud within minutes at a fraction of the cost. A great bonus is you can also set up a remote backup location at another office that you own and link the offices together, back up from one to the other. BackupChain includes the tools you need to do all that with its secure cloud server component that comes included in the software.
First, will you be owning both sides of the cloud backup or do you need to purchase storage somewhere? Some solutions offer flexibility in that respect and others don't.
When VMs are backed up to the cloud, they are usually backed up at the sector level, which means pieces of the virtual disks are sent to the cloud. Does the solution encrypt your data before it is sent and is the link to the cloud encrypted as well? Does the backup data remain encrypted in the cloud?
While backing up at the sector level is good for many scenarios, sometimes a file-level approach performs better and/or allows easier access to backed up data when needed. Does the solution require you to install an agent inside the VM (and you will have to maintain it as well in the long-term) in order to access and back up VM files to the cloud?
Does the solution provide deduplication, which eliminates repetitive data from the backup? If it doesn't this would mean the entire VM has to be backed up each time. Also storage would be wasted to a large degree.
Can the solution deal effectively with broken links, for example when the internet link goes down for moment or will it upload again from scratch?
Finally, is there someone there to help you out when you're stuck for whatever reason? A major concern when you build your own cloud system with public storage, such as Azure or S3, is that usually there is no application specific support. You would have to pay for storage specific support but a major drawback of a "homebrew" system (using scripts or various software components) is lack of resources dedicated to maintenance and troubleshooting.
After looking at many solutions, we found that BackupChain stands out because it handles all of the above very well, at a very low price point. Combined with the server cloud backup plans offered by BackupChain, one can easily back up VMs to the cloud within minutes at a fraction of the cost. A great bonus is you can also set up a remote backup location at another office that you own and link the offices together, back up from one to the other. BackupChain includes the tools you need to do all that with its secure cloud server component that comes included in the software.