BackupAssist overview
BackupAssist Classic is a Windows Server and Workstation backup and recovery solution. It includes support for Hyper-V, Exchange and SQL backups and has add-ons for cloud destinations, granular restores and advanced VM protection.
BackupAssist Classic and BackupAssist Desktop
BackupAssist Classic is a full featured business grade backup solution for Windows Servers and Windows Workstations that run server applications.
BackupAssist Desktop is a lite version of BackupAssist Classic built for Windows Desktops and Laptops with server functionality disabled. The Desktop edition is enabled when a Desktop license key or subscription registration is applied
Backup your data
With BackupAssist, you can protect your data simply and securely using our replication, imaging and cloud backup solutions. These backup types supports encryption and a large range of backup destinations.
To learn how to best protect your data, see Best Practice Backups with BackupAssist Classic
Like everything in BackupAssist, we offer tools for both basic and advanced users.
General and specialized protection
Here are the backup jobs you can run:
- System Protection: Create image backups to a local storage to protect your data and systems.
- Cloud Backup : Back up data (including entire disk image) to remote data centers across the internet.
- File Protection: Speedily copy and store files for future retrieval.
- File Archiving: Create long-term archival backups with high-level encryption.
- Hyper-V: Perform Hyper-V host and guest backups and perform granular guest restores.
- Exchange: Save your Exchange servers and granularly restore different types of mail items.
- SQL: Generate near-continuous backups of your SQL databases for point-in-time restores.
Pick your preferred media
After you select a backup job, you’re presented with your backup media options. Store data locally, on a network or on the cloud. It’s as easy as clicking what you want: Hard Drive, USB Drive, Network Location, NAS, Tape, Cloud or iSCSI.
Automated backups and reporting
We know you’ve got better things to do with your time than manually managing backup jobs. So we’ve provided you with the means to automate them. Choose one of our best practice schedules or custom-make your own.
Make things even easier by setting up backup report e-mails and alerts to keep you in the loop. Don’t fuss about how back up jobs are going ever again.
Instant business continuity
With the Advanced System Protection, you can achieve instant business continuity by using your backup to boot into a virtual machine using the VM Instant boot feature.
Restore your data
BackupAssist has a set of powerful features that can restore files and applications using a guided restore process. You can also purchase add-ons that allow you to restore files into VMs, mail items into mailboxes and perform point-in-time restore of SQL databases.
Searching for folders and files is easy
First, select the backup your data is in, narrowing things down by date.
If you’re not sure where your files are, use our handy search tool to scour through your backups. It even accepts wildcard searches!
Select the data you want
Once you’ve opened your chosen backup, just tick what you want to restore and leave what you don’t. Then, choose if you want to restore it to the original location or an alternate path.
Works with all types of data
BackupAssist empowers you to restore nearly anything. You name it, our software can restore it.
Bring back files, folders, archives and volumes. Restore and inject Exchange e-mail items back into live servers. Point-in-time restore your SQL backups.
For users of Hyper-V, you can even restore items from inside your guests!
To learn more, see Files / Apps tab
Recover your data
BackupAssist can swiftly recover a server to a previous operating state. The recovery process can be initiated using a Bootable Media, and there are also specialized recovery features for VMs.
How do I protect my systems with BackupAssist?
Firstly, you need to create a bootable media and image backup before the disaster event. Don’t worry, it’s an easy process—and if you are using with the Advanced System Protection, you can build the bootable media using any Windows system.
Making a bootable media
A bootable media is used to start a system and load a recovery environment, from which you can access a System Protection bare-metal backup and recover your system. To make a bootable media, simply open the System tab and select if you want to make a bootable media with your installed version of Windows or a Windows Install Disk. You will be prompted to select any drivers, files or applications to add to your bootable media and then what type of Bootable Media you want to make.
To learn more, see RecoverAssist builder
Making a bootable backup
A bootable backup is a bootable, removable drive that has a System Protection bare-metal backup on it. This means once you have loaded the recovery environment, the backup is right there to start the recovery process. To create a bootable backup, just follow the normal process of making a System Protection backup to an External disk, and when you get to the Set up destination step, select Make Media bootable with RecoverAssist.
To learn more, see Legacy System Protection
How do I use my bootable media?
Simply connect your Bootable media to the system you want to recover, and power on the system. You will then follow the prompts onscreen during the BIOS stage to boot from the media. The recovery environment will load and you will be presented with several recovery options.
To learn more, see System Recovery
Hyper-V Protection
BackupAssist's support for Hyper-V includes a dedicated Hyper-V tab where you can view all of your VMs, the ability to spin up crashed VMs in seconds and granular restores of data using a single backup of multiple VMs.
View and monitor your guest's backups
From the Hyper-V Tab, you can view a list of all of your guests on the Hyper-V Server and monitor:
- Whether a successful backup has been created for each guest
- When the last successful backup of each guest was
- The size of the guest
- Whether any error or caution messages are associated with each guest’s backup job
- Whether each guest is part of a CSV configuration, acting as an Exchange Server, or both
Restore Hyper-V guests, hyper fast
From the Recovery Tab, you can easily select individual guests on your Hyper-V Server and rapidly recover them. This means if a vital guest is damaged or corrupted, you can get them back online and functioning in seconds.
While you’re running your guest off your backup media, you can perform a Full VM Recovery of that guest, experiencing minimal downtime for your business-critical systems.
You can fully recover individual guests to their original hosts or newly configured ones.
To learn more, see Hyper-V Overview
Remote Management
For MSPs that join BackupAssist MSP program, you would enjoy the benefit our web hosted Managed Backup Console (MBC) for cnetral and remote management of your subscription and monitoring of your all your clients' backup activities.
In addition, there is also the BackupAssist MultiSite Manager (BAMM). BAMM is a web application that allows you to remotely administer BackupAssist computers over the internet. MultiSite Manager is installed onto the computer that will manage your BackupAssist computers.
Manage everything remotely
Over WAN or LAN and from a single screen, administer backup and restore jobs for physical and virtual machines. It doesn’t matter if it’s on a smartphone, tablet or desktop.
View all your deployed versions of BackupAssist to make sure they’re the latest version and properly licensed. If they’re not, use MultiSite Manager to quickly fix it from afar.
Total visibility
Multisite Manager gives you instant access to detailed reports on each and every one of your machines, and any backup or restorations they’re running.
You can customize these reports to learn exactly what you want to know about your physical, virtual or hybrid environments.
Keep in the loop with instant success, failure, and warning alerts. Set up custom times to receive current status reports, whether it’s daily, weekly, or a specific time each month.
Shared reporting and user accounts
You can set up user accounts so select individuals can manage their own sites, without giving over Admin control.
Use a managed recipients list to send detailed reports to those who need it, making sure more than one person is in the know.
To learn more, see MultiSite Manager overview