Replacement options for Backup Exec.cloud

It depends on your environment really...do you backup physical servers, or is it a virtual environment?

I cater to SOHO users and very small (micro) businesses - so, in my case, I have been using BE.cloud for desktops.

I like the idea of backing up to a local USB/NAS unit and also putting the essential files in the cloud.

Most clients that I have signed up for the service are using less than the 10GB in the cloud, but significantly more locally.

They are looking at folder/file backup, not computer backup; for that I'd use SSR.

I wouldn't use this product for physical servers, I'd go with Datto.

 

Might be worth your while to check the links below:

http://www.cloudberrylab.com/amazon-s3-cloud-desktop-backup.aspx

http://www.asigra.com/

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9223805/5_online_backup_services_keep_your_data_safe

Thanks!

As an update, I am currently investigating KineticD and eFolder as possible alternative solutions.

One of the key issues for SMBs, as well as home-users, is that most back-up products cannot properly handle open files that are changed during the day.  The prime examples are QuickBooks' QBW and Outlook's PST.

If a client turns on their computer first thing in the morning, and immediately launches Outlook, that PST file is locked until Outlook is closed.  Usually Outlook is closed at the end of the day - right before they turn off the computer.  At which point - and certainly depending on the size of the PST file - there is no (or very limited) opportunity for the back-up agent to upload the file to the cloud.

In terms of what Backup Exec.cloud can do, here is a quote from a Support Center Analyst:

There are two points I would like to highlight.

- .pst files get corrupted very easily. So we cannot say with surety if the file were corrupt before of after the upload.

- Our backup process did have some issues/hick ups that were recently identified and addressed.

These issues combined with some fragile file types and network / synchronization issues could be responsible for some files that cannot be restored.

(Which gives me a very reassuring feeling about a product I use and was incented to re-sell.)

Similarly, when a QuickBooks user opens a company file, the QBW file is opened for update - as are the two associated files (TLG and ND).  Intuit does not offer an API to most back-up products.  They recommend that a QuickBooks user perform a backup (either manually or automated) and create a QBB file in another folder.  That QBB file could be used for a restore if the company file is updated.  The only down-side is whatever data was entered between a crash or loss and the back-up would need to be recreated.

For my clients that are currently using Carbonite and Norton Online Backup, I have issued the challenge of having them restore a file to a different location and checking to see if it can a) be opened and b) contain the data that they expect to see.  I haven't had any takers...

 

 

Further update regarding KineticD.

There are two offering for this software product:  a desktop version that performs continuous cloud backup, and a server version that permits hybrid backup based on a schedule.

You cannot mix the two on one computer, and so this is not a viable substitue for Backup Exec.cloud.