AOMEI Cyber Backup 4.6.2

AOMEI Cyber Backup is a centralized backup and recovery program for business systems. It protects VMware ESXi and Hyper-V virtual machines, Windows PCs and servers, and Microsoft SQL Server databases from one web console. The console runs on Windows or on Ubuntu Linux, though a Linux installation can only back up virtual machines. There is a Free edition with device limits and a paid Premium edition.

One web console for all backup jobs

You run AOMEI Cyber Backup entirely from a browser. How you add a protected system depends on its type:

• VMware: enter the IP address and login of a vCenter Server or a standalone ESXi host. AOMEI Cyber Backup installs no agent on the host, which makes VMware backup agentless.
• Hyper-V: add the host with a Windows login, then run a configuration file on it.
• Windows: install the AOMEI Cyber Backup Agent. The computer then appears automatically. Alternatively, add it remotely with its IP address and credentials.
• SQL Server: install a small proxy program on the database computer, then verify each instance with Windows or SQL authentication.

Virtual machine backup

A VM backup task starts with a choice of VMware ESXi or Hyper-V, then a host and one or more of its virtual machines. AOMEI Cyber Backup captures each VM as a disk image. It processes machines in the same task one after another. A VM can belong to only one backup task at a time.

Windows computers and servers

On machines running the agent, AOMEI Cyber Backup offers four kinds of backup:

• System backup copies the partitions Windows needs to start.
• Disk backup copies a whole disk, and partition backup a single data partition.
• File backup copies chosen files and folders, with include and exclude filters by extension, such as keeping only *.doc files or skipping *.tmp files.

SQL Server databases

A database task can cover one or more verified instances on a computer and runs as full or incremental backups. Each run writes standard SQL Server .bak files.

Backup targets and S3 archiving

Backups go to a local folder or a network share, which needs a username and password.

For an off-site copy, Backup Archive uploads backup versions to Amazon S3. It uploads them after AOMEI Cyber Backup writes them locally or to a NAS. Archiving can start from the first version, the latest full backup or the next one. You can restore archived copies straight from S3.

Schedules and backup methods

New tasks come with a schedule already on: a full backup once a week and incremental backups on the other weekdays. You can edit this schedule or turn it off.

Three methods can be combined on a schedule:

• Full copies all selected data and is the base for the other two.
• Incremental copies only changes since the previous backup. It is the fastest and smallest, but each version depends on the ones before it.
• Differential copies everything changed since the last full backup. It is not available for Hyper-V.

Schedules can run daily, at intervals within a time window, on chosen weekdays or on set days of the month. Each day can use a different method. Email alerts can report each result.

Automatic cleanup

Backup cleanup deletes old versions by age. By default, AOMEI Cyber Backup keeps full backups for 60 days and incremental or differential backups for 7. You can change each period. AOMEI Cyber Backup removes an incremental chain only when its last version expires. No remaining version therefore loses the files it depends on.

Restore options

Any saved version can be restored to its original location or a new one.

• Virtual machines can overwrite the original or be created as a new VM with its own name, datastore, memory and processors.
• Instant Restore brings a backed-up VMware ESXi machine back on a host within moments, to cut downtime after a failure.
• Granular recovery mounts a VM backup, lets you pick individual files and downloads them as a zip archive.
• Databases can replace a database with the same name or be restored under a new name and storage location.
• Files can be restored with their NTFS permissions.
• Windows systems and disks are restored by restarting the agent computer into a WinPE environment. You can also restore them from bootable USB, CD/DVD or ISO media made with the built-in tool.

You can restore backups from deleted tasks or another computer by selecting their files manually.

Monitoring and user roles

The dashboard shows recent backup results, upcoming scheduled tasks, data volume, devices, free space on each target and error records. The administrator can add users with fixed roles: Viewer, Monitor, Backup Operator and Restore Operator. Each role limits what a person can see and run.

Free and Premium editions

The two editions of AOMEI Cyber Backup differ mainly in how many systems they protect. Premium is licensed per device: