Top 7 MSP Backup & Disaster Recovery Solutions

One important fact that MSP companies need to appreciate is that most clients don't quite understand what good backup is about. This is mostly common with small to medium businesses. But you should not be surprised to discover that even some of the well established and highly successful organizations have this challenge.

What you'll realize is that for most businesses, what they have is some rough idea about backup and the majority think they are doing it the right way. Until disaster strikes and it dawns on them that they actually had no backup. You don't want this to happen to any of your clients, else they blame you for not guiding them better. Some could even push you to take liability for disasters. So your work, therefore, is to help them understand what proper backup entails and help them set it up. Move them from a backup mentality that is so heavily dependent on already busy employees having to remember to manually backup daily.

Even as you make them understand this, you must already have the right Backup tools for MSPs in hand, so then you can implement them for your clients. This will not only save you a lot of trouble but also contribute to your profits. Our in-depth knowledge and hands-on experience with the best MSP backup solutions allows us to provide expert guidance and recommendations to managed service providers looking for reliable, secure, and easy-to-manage data protection strategies. Let's take a look at these MSP backup tools for effective disaster recovery.

Also Read:

• Types of backups
• Backup as a Service explained

Breaking down the MSP backup challenges

Ever tried asking some of your clients about their backup and recovery strategy and if it's solid enough? A good number will always say «Yes, very good». Unfortunately, what «very good» means to them is often completely different from what it means to you as a professional MSP. For them, something as simple as allocating one employee the role of backing up data to some USB drive daily and keeping it somewhere safe in their bag is their definition of backup. Never mind that this poor guy may forget to backup on some days, and what happens on the days they don't show up for work? What about when the USB gets lost?

You may have discovered as well that many businesses view disaster as something so distant from reality. They somehow imagine that their organization will never be struck by a disaster. Even more worrying, some assume that in the worst case scenario that a disaster happens, you — the MSP, will know what to do.

So it's your responsibility to ensure they've got the right backup in place. Else they're going to come for you when the worst happens.

Top 7 MSP Backup Solutions for Disaster Recovery

There are several MSP backup solutions in the market, but you want to get a good idea of the very best. Let's go.

1. Altaro

Altaro's backup tool for MSPs is a monthly subscription program that enables providers to offer their clients backup services that cover assets such as VMware, Hyper-V as well as physical servers. You can provide these services to all your clients from a single cloud-based console.

Over 2000 businesses already use this solution, which has been ranked as a top MSP backup solution severally in different ratings. DCIG featured it among the top 5 MSP backup solutions while ITPRO has also featured it in EDITOR's CHOICE.

2. Acronis

Acronis focuses on enabling MSPs to be more efficient and make more money while scaling down cybersecurity risks for their clients. The company has been here for more than 20 years, making the solution even more competent.

The tools for disaster recovery allow users to restore their systems in the event of a major data loss. All backups are scanned for malware, guaranteeing that recovery will always be malware-free. Allow lists (both global and local) help to avoid false positives. Management is simplified thanks to a single console to set policies and deploy across several endpoints.

Acronis integrates seamlessly with popular MSP PSA software and RMM tools such as Atera, Kaseya, and ConnectWise.

Also read: How to protect backups from ransomware

3. BackupAssist

Perhaps the greatest advantage of BackupAssist is that it's not sold directly to end users. This means that MSP partners and resellers have exclusive rights to offer this MSP backup solution to their clients. In other words your clients cannot use BackupAssist directly.

More benefits include discounts on MSP backup and disaster recovery software, free training & support, and marketing resources. MSPs who join the program will have access to a dedicated account manager who can help them optimize their MSP backup and disaster recovery strategies. Simply focus on what you do best — providing outstanding service to customers — while knowing that their data is safe and sound.

4. Carbonite

The Carbonite MSP Partnership provides a great avenue for MSPs to deliver effective backup, disaster recovery, and business continuity to their customers.

With privileged access to Carbonite's expertise, free materials across sales, marketing, and training, white label capabilities, NFR licenses for demos, and even funds for marketing development, Carbonite is a convenient solution for any MSP looking to deliver world-class Backup & Disaster Recovery benefits to their customers.

Carbonite's MSP BDR tools are essentially designed to minimize customer downtime, ease migration and protect endpoints. There are three core tools that make this happen:

• Carbonite Recover continuously replicates data to prevent customer downtime.
• Carbonite endpoint protects desktops and laptops.
• Carbonite Migrate enables MSPs to migrate workloads quickly and easily, with near-zero downtime to customers.

Also read:

• What is RPO and RTO in disaster recovery?
• Best Endpoint protection solutions

5. Datto — a Kaseya company!

The Datto BDR tool for MSPs is quite comprehensive. Whether you are looking to provide your clients with continuity for Microsoft Azure or backup critical data in G Suite and Microsoft 365 applications, Datto is equal to the task.

You also get the ability to customize your client's backup and disaster recovery plans. With Datto's MSP backup solution, you can select the specific applications and data your client wants to protect, and then choose the frequency and method of backup. You can also determine how long you want to keep backups stored, and whether you want to replicate them off-site for added protection. In addition, Datto provides you with the ability to continuously monitor your client's backup and disaster recovery plans, so you can be sure that they are being followed correctly.

6. NovaBackup

Novabackup is a centrally monitored Backup & recovery-as-a-Service tool that makes it easy for MSPs and Resellers to offer backup services to their customers. You can quickly set up local or online backups for customers of all sizes. And if you need to scale up, this BDR tool is highly scalable, making it easy to go from a few installations to tens of thousands. Some MSPs are managing clients with over 20,000 installations!

Novabackup comes with a built-in ability to restore VHDx files, which means you can quickly create an image backup in any Hyper-V application.

7. MSP 360

MSP 360 offers a specialized BDR tool for MSPs, enabling them to offer white label data protection services to customers and make additional profit on top of their core services. The pricing is flexible with no contracts. Just pay as you go.

The fact that you can customize the BDR solution and offer it under your MSP's brand name is a huge advantage.

Choosing the right BDR solution for MSP

When you're looking at different options for Backup & Disaster Recovery (BDR) tools for your MSP, it's important to think about all your clients' needs and how these might evolve over time, not forgetting new clients. For example, is there a MSP BDR solution that's flexible enough to work for most, if not all, of your clients?.

Consider these factors carefully as you compare the various MSP backup options above as well as other disaster recovery providers:

1. Ease of Use

The backup and disaster recovery tool you choose for your MSP should be easy for your team and clients to use. Look for a solution that's designed with MSPs in mind. Most importantly, it should be easy to set up and manage from a central console. The last thing you want is to have to spend hours training your team on how to use the tool.

2. Automatic Updates

The tool should automatically update itself so that you always have the latest version. This will help ensure that backups are always up-to-date and that your clients can always recover from any disasters quickly and easily.

3. Scalability

As your clients' businesses grow, they may need to increase storage capacity. Some solutions allow you to easily add more storage, while others require you to purchase a new appliance or upgrade to a higher capacity model.

4. Affordability

Of course, you'll also need to consider the cost of the backup and disaster recovery tool. Look for a tool that offers a competitive price without sacrificing features or quality.

5. Support

Make sure that the company behind the MSP BDR tool offers excellent customer support. You should be able to reach them by phone or email 24/7 in case you have any questions or problems.

Also read: Helpdesk vs. Service Desk: What is the Difference?

6. Base product features

Make sure you understand what's included in the base product and what will cost extra. Some BDR tools offer additional features like backup mirroring and cloud-based backups as an add-on, while others include these features as part of the core product.

7. Pricing model

You want a pricing model that will make it easy to sell the tool to all your clients. Some solutions are offered as «pay as you go», while others require an upfront investment. A pay as you go model could be easier to sell to clients as you'll only need to add the BDR fee to the clients' monthly fees.

Conclusion

All your clients — no matter the size — need to be aware of the value of data backup and disaster recovery (BDR). The high costs associated with downtime will not only disrupt their financial standing but could also destroy their reputation. So it's vital that you convince them to have a plan in place in case of an emergency. By offering BDR as an addon to your normal MSP services, you can help the clients avoid the dire effects of disasters.

When selling the offering, let your clients understand that BDR ensures that their data is securely backed up and that downtime will certainly be minimal in the event of an emergency. For a reasonable monthly fee, your clients can rest assured that their data is safe and that they won't be faced with a significant loss in productivity if servers or critical equipment goes down.

If you're yet to add BDR to your offerings, then you are missing out on some ripe revenue given that many businesses now need these services. Time to act!