VM stands for "Virtual Machine," which translates to "虚拟机" in Chinese. It is a software implementation of a computer system that simulates a complete hardware environment on a physical computer (known as the host machine). This allows operating systems and applications to be installed and run on the VM as if they were running on a separate physical machine. Virtual machines provide isolation and resource management, enabling multiple operating systems and applications to run efficiently on a single physical device.

A virtual machine (VM) is a virtual environment created within a physical hardware system that functions as a virtual computer system. It emulates a complete set of hardware components, including CPUs, memory, network interfaces, and storage, and provides an isolated environment from the rest of the system.

What is VM

A VM runs on a hypervisor, which is firmware, hardware, or computer software designed to create and run virtual machines. The VM hypervisor separates machine resources from the hardware and prepares them appropriately for use by the virtual machine. Currently, the most popular hypervisors in the virtualization market are Hyper-V and VMware, which allow users to build IT infrastructures of any complexity.

Virtualization helps cut massive work costs and improves efficiency for individuals or businesses. Because of its significance, you need to back up and protect your VM data regularly with VM backup software to maintain the flexibility you need for work.

"Criteria for Selecting the Best Virtual Machine Backup Software"

These days, many businesses rely on virtualization and virtual machines to run their databases, applications, and other enterprise workloads. Traditional backup solutions fail to provide adequate data protection because of the unique demands and large amounts of data in virtual environments. That's where software that can back up virtual machines comes in.

There are many backup solutions out there, so when selecting the top choices for the best free VM backup software, we considered the following criteria to ensure that each one is reliable.

    • Non-malicious: The best software must be free from viruses to pose no risk to users' systems.
    • Security: A reliable backup tool should encrypt backup data to protect against ransomware attacks.
    • Compatibility: A powerful backup software should support access to multiple platforms.
    • Compression: It's crucial for users to avoid running out of storage space, and compression helps with that.
    • Functionality: Professional backup software should cater to the diverse needs of different users.

Top 6 Free Virtual Machine Backup Software

Based on these criteria, we chose the best free backup software. Read on for the details and pick the one that suits you most!

Todo Backup Enterprise [Recommended]

Todo Backup Enterprise is the most recommended software for enterprise and server virtual machine backup. It can easily and quickly back up your system and virtual machine files. It also backs up the entire physical server or virtual server to a compressed image file, ensuring quick recovery in any data disaster scenario.

It provides all the support needed for system image recovery or system restore, and offers customizable enterprise backup solutions, including local, offsite data backup, and cloud backup. All in all, if you're looking for a comprehensive yet affordable VM backup software for your business, Todo Backup Enterprise is an excellent choice.

Tool: Todo Backup Advanced Server

Supported Systems:

    This text lists the supported operating system versions: - Windows XP®/Vista®/7/8/8.1/10/11 - Windows Server® 2003/2008/2008 R2/2012/2012 R2/2016/2019 - Windows Small Business Server 2003/2008/2011
Key Features Cons
  • Requires email login

Todo Backup Enterprise offers a free trial, and a 30-day money-back guarantee when you purchase the full version, helping businesses reduce costs effectively.

Now let's see how to back up a virtual machine with Todo Backup Enterprise, which only takes a few simple steps.

Step 1: Launch Todo Backup Enterprise and click "Create Task" to set up a new backup.

Click "Create New Task" to create a backup.

Step 2. In the top options, choose Disks/Volumes as the destination. Then select the disk you want to back up.

Select the system to back up

Step 3: Then click on "Browse" and choose the location where you want to save the backup file.

Select destination

4. Click on "Schedule: Off" to set up a backup schedule. Here you will see the "Schedule", "Backup Clean-up", and "Advanced Settings" tabs. Under the "Schedule" tab, click "New".

Set up scheduled backup step 1

Then set the backup frequency to suit your needs.

Set scheduled backup step 2

5. Click the "Backup Options" button in the bottom-left corner of the window.

Backup Options

Here, you can change options for performance, encryption, email notifications, and more, as needed. When you're done, click Save to return to the main screen.

Step 6: Once all settings are configured, click "Start Backup" to begin backing up your disk.

Click “Start Backup” to initiate the system backup.

Acronis Cyber Protect

Acronis Cyber Protect is an excellent virtual machine backup software. It allows you to back up and restore individual physical or virtual files, applications, or entire systems. Acronis is geared towards small businesses and comes with robust security features that help protect against other malware intrusions.

Acronis Cyber Protect

Supported systems:

    • Windows, Linux, macOS
    • Windows Server® 2003 SP1/2003 R2/2008/2012/2016/2019/2022
    • Windows Small Business Server 2002/2003 R2/2008/2011
Key Features Drawbacks
  • Support for multiple VM platforms
  • Works with various operating systems
  • Unique data protection solutions
  • Strong protection for businesses
  • Advanced features can be difficult to master
  • Pricing can be high

Acronis Cyber Protect offers a 30-day free trial, but registration is required to access it.

Vembu BDR Suite Backup and Replication

Vembu BDR Suite Backup and Replication is an advanced backup software from Vembu that offers backup solutions for various scenarios, including virtual machines, physical servers, cloud, and SaaS applications, along with support for both full backups and incremental backups. It also features built-in encryption and compression, and offers multiple editions tailored to different user needs.

Vembu BDR Suite Backup & Replication

Supported Systems:

    • Windows 10/11, Linux, macOS
    • Windows Server® 2012/2016/2019/2022
Key Features Cons
  • Live Migration Capabilities
  • Full Suite of BDR Tools
  • Automated Backup Validation
  • Supports Hyper-V Standalone Hosts
  • Not Suited for Large Enterprises

Vembu offers flexible licensing options and a 30-day free trial.

As a backup software, Veeam Backup and Replication (VBR) stands high in the market with features like file system indexing, various backup types, convenient file recovery, and recovery validation. It supports backing up multiple systems and offers extra VMware vSphere support. With it, you can easily address data issues with VM files.

Veeam Backup and Replication

Supported Systems:

    • Windows, Linux, macOS, UNIX, NAS

Key Features Cons
  • Single platform for all workloads
  • Unlimited storage
  • Integration with Synology NAS
  • RTO and RPO support
  • Suitable only for small businesses and individuals

VBR offers a 30-day free trial. Also, since VBR doesn't require any additional software or agents, it's more cost-effective than other backup tools.

Altaro VM Backup is a virtual machine backup software designed to protect and back up data within virtual environments. It supports various virtualization platforms such as Microsoft Hyper-V and VMware vSphere. The software offers a comprehensive backup solution, featuring scheduled backups, incremental backups, instant recovery, and cloud backup options, ensuring the safety of critical business data.

Altaro VM Backup is a user-friendly and intuitive virtual machine backup software that allows you to set everything up in just 15 minutes, greatly enhancing your backup efficiency. It focuses on VMware VMs and Microsoft Hyper-V, providing excellent solutions for both.

Altaro VM Backup

Supported Systems:

    This text is a list of operating system versions, translated into English: - Windows Server 2008 R2 - Windows Server 2012 - Windows Server 2012 R2 - Windows Server 2016 - Windows Server 2019 - Windows Server 2022
Key Features Cons
  • User-friendly
  • Monitored/managed from a single console
  • Has multiple versions
  • Backup job progress tracking
  • No support for other hypervisors

Altaro VM Backup offers a free version and has an official 30-day free trial for its paid software.

Title

Rubrik is an excellent backup software that provides secure protection for virtual machines, simplifies data management, and enables the recovery of VM data. It leverages powerful APIs to automate many tasks, such as automatic cloning and creation, thus alleviating your workload.

rubrik

Supported systems:

    • Windows, Linux
    • Windows Server 2008 R2/2012/2012 R2/2016/2019
Key Features Drawbacks
  • BDR alternative
  • Instant recovery capabilities
  • Intelligent policy engine
  • Strong security
  • Requires consultation before purchasing

Rubrik offers a free demo for you to try before you buy.

Conclusions

An excellent virtual machine backup software can protect your personal or company's virtual data. We've introduced 6 of the best VM backup software, among which Todo Backup Enterprise is highly recommended. It offers a simple yet powerful VM backup solution at an affordable price. Click the download button below to start backing up your VM data right away!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best backup solution for VMware?

The best backup solution for VMware is to use the Todo Backup Enterprise tool. It possesses professional capabilities and can handle various backup tasks. It can be customized to suit the needs of users based on different business sizes and usage scenarios, fulfilling all your requirements for VMware backups.

How do I back up my virtual machine files?

You can use the Todo Backup Enterprise tool to back up virtual machine files. Here are some simple steps you can follow:

Step 1: Download and run Todo Backup Enterprise.

Step 2: Click the "New Task" button to set up a new backup.

Step 3: Select Disk/Volume, and then choose the disk where your VM files are stored.

Step 4: Set up your own backup options and click the “Start” button to initiate the VM backup immediately.