Best VM Backup Software: VMware, Hyper-V & Proxmox

What is the best VM backup software? The answer depends on your infrastructure and requirements: protecting VMware ESXi virtual machines, performing incremental Hyper-V backups, securing Proxmox environments, or ensuring fast recovery of business servers after hardware failures or ransomware attacks.

Among the professional solutions worth considering, Iperius Backup stands out for its ability to protect VMware ESXi, Microsoft Hyper-V and Proxmox VE virtual machines, combining automated backups, incremental technologies, recovery tools and perpetual licenses for unlimited VMs.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to choose the best virtual machine backup software, which features to compare, and why Iperius Backup is an interesting option for businesses, IT professionals and Managed Service Providers (MSPs).

What is the best virtual machine backup software?

The best VM backup software is a solution that automatically protects virtual machines, performs backups without interrupting services and enables reliable recovery of systems and data when problems occur.

For businesses using multiple virtualization technologies, Iperius Backup is particularly interesting because it supports VMware ESXi, Hyper-V and Proxmox VE within a single software solution.

Key considerations include:

• For VMware ESXi: incremental CBT backups, vCenter support and VM replication capabilities.
• For Microsoft Hyper-V: hot backups, RCT technology and Failover Cluster compatibility.
• For Proxmox VE: automated backups and virtual machine recovery without installing agents.
• For mixed infrastructures: support for multiple hypervisors simplifies backup management.
• For disaster recovery: reliable restoration tools and multiple recovery points.
• For MSPs and IT professionals: automation, notifications, monitoring and predictable licensing costs.

What is virtual machine backup software and how does it work?

Virtual machine backup software creates backup copies of virtualized systems, including virtual disks, data and the information required to restore virtual machines.

Unlike a simple file copy, specialized software can communicate directly with the hypervisor to perform consistent, automated and optimized backups.

Professional VM backup software can protect:

• Virtualized Windows and Linux servers.
• VMDK, VHD and VHDX virtual disks.
• Business applications hosted on virtual machines.
• Virtualized web servers, file servers and databases.
• VMware ESXi and vCenter infrastructures.
• Microsoft Hyper-V and Proxmox VE environments.

Backups can be performed while virtual machines are running (hot backup), provided the virtualization platform and configuration support this functionality.

Backup copies can be stored on local disks, NAS devices, network storage or other compatible destinations for recovery after failures or cybersecurity incidents.

Full vs incremental vs differential VM backup: what’s the difference?

When searching for the best software for backing up virtual machines, understanding the difference between full, incremental and differential backups is essential.

Which should you choose? For environments with numerous virtual machines, combining full and incremental backups usually helps optimize backup duration and storage consumption.

Iperius Backup supports incremental and differential VMware backups using CBT and Hyper-V backups using RCT, reducing the data processed during subsequent backup operations.

Why choose Iperius Backup for virtual machine backup?

1. VMware ESXi, vSphere and vCenter backup

One of the main strengths of Iperius Backup is its professional support for VMware infrastructures.

The software performs hot backups of VMware ESXi and vSphere virtual machines, including compatible ESXi Free environments.

Available features include:

• VMware ESXi, vSphere and vCenter backup.
• Incremental and differential backups using CBT/VDDK.
• Support for compatible VMware ESXi Free installations.
• Backup of VMs managed by vCenter and ESXi clusters.
• Full virtual machine recovery, including to different hosts.
• Individual file recovery from VMware backups.
• Agentless backup without installing software inside VMs.

Changed Block Tracking (CBT) identifies modified blocks on virtual disks, helping make subsequent backups more efficient.

2. Microsoft Hyper-V backup with RCT

Iperius Backup includes dedicated features for Microsoft Hyper-V virtual machine backup, including professional environments with multiple hosts.

• Hot backup of Hyper-V virtual machines.
• Incremental and differential backups using RCT.
• Remote Hyper-V backup over the network.
• Hyper-V Failover Cluster support.
• Backup of VMs on Cluster Shared Volumes (CSV).
• VM restoration to different hosts.
• Individual file recovery from Hyper-V backups.

Resilient Change Tracking (RCT) detects changed blocks on virtual disks and optimizes incremental backup operations.

3. Proxmox VE backup and recovery

With the growing adoption of open-source virtualization, support for Proxmox VE is becoming increasingly important.

Iperius Backup offers dedicated Proxmox backup and recovery features, allowing organizations to include this platform in their data protection strategies.

• Backup of Proxmox VE virtual machines.
• Direct connections to Proxmox nodes.
• Automated backup scheduling.
• Hot backups in compatible configurations.
• Agentless protection of supported VMs.
• Virtual machine restoration.
• Unlimited VMs with eligible commercial licenses.

This compatibility is particularly useful for organizations using Proxmox alongside VMware or Hyper-V.

4. Incremental VMware virtual machine replication

In addition to traditional backups, Iperius provides incremental VMware ESXi VM replication.

Replication creates a copy of a virtual machine on an alternative host or datastore, which can be started if the primary system becomes unavailable.

Iperius also supports incremental replication in compatible ESXi Free environments.

Backup and replication are not interchangeable: replication supports operational continuity, while backups preserve recovery points and historical versions of data.

5. Full VM restoration and individual file recovery

Reliable backup software must also provide practical recovery capabilities.

Iperius Backup supports full virtual machine restoration and individual file recovery for supported VMware and Hyper-V environments.

These features are useful for:

• Restoring a VM following a failure.
• Recovering accidentally deleted data.
• Returning a VM to a previous recovery point.
• Restoring virtual machines to another host.
• Extracting files without restoring the entire VM.

6. Backup to NAS, external disks, cloud and LTO tape

A complete data protection strategy should not depend on a single storage destination.

Iperius Backup supports different storage systems, including local disks, NAS, network shares, compatible cloud storage and LTO tape drives.

This flexibility helps organizations implement the 3-2-1 backup rule: three copies of data, on two different types of media, with at least one copy stored offsite.

How to back up virtual machines with Iperius Backup

Step 1. Install Iperius Backup

Download and install Iperius Backup on a compatible Windows computer. To protect VMware, Hyper-V and Proxmox virtual machines, choose an edition that includes VM backup features, such as Iperius Backup Advanced VM.

Step 2. Configure the hypervisor connection

Create a new backup job and configure access to your virtualization environment:

• VMware ESXi: enter the ESXi or vCenter server address and authorized credentials.
• Microsoft Hyper-V: select the local host, remote server or supported cluster.
• Proxmox VE: configure the Proxmox node and access credentials.

Step 3. Select the virtual machines

Select the VMs you want to protect and configure the available backup options. For VMware and Hyper-V, incremental and differential methods can optimize subsequent backups.

Step 4. Choose the backup destination

Choose a compatible local disk, NAS or network location. For critical environments, consider storing an additional copy outside the primary infrastructure.

Step 5. Schedule automatic backups

Set your backup schedule according to business requirements:

• Daily backups for critical virtual servers.
• More frequent backups for rapidly changing systems, where supported.
• Weekly backups for less critical VMs.
• Multiple recovery points based on your retention policy.

Step 6. Verify backups and test recovery

Run the initial backup, review the logs and verify that backup copies are accessible.

A successful backup job alone does not guarantee recoverability: regular restore tests are essential for a reliable disaster recovery strategy.

What features should the best VM backup software include?

Advanced features depend on the Iperius Backup edition and virtualization platform. Check compatibility and license terms before purchasing.

VM backup vs VM replication: which should you choose?

Backup and replication are complementary technologies that serve different purposes.

Which is better? Backups are essential for protecting data and maintaining recovery points. Replication can help reduce downtime by making an alternative VM available.

Iperius Backup supports both technologies in compatible VMware environments.

Free or professional VM backup software?

Free tools may be sufficient for test environments, home labs or occasional manual backups.

Professional backup software becomes more important when protecting business servers, scheduling automated jobs, managing multiple hypervisors and ensuring reliable recovery.

Iperius Backup offers commercial editions designed for professional VM protection, with advanced capabilities and perpetual licensing.

Is Iperius Backup suitable for small businesses and MSPs?

Yes. Iperius Backup is particularly interesting for businesses, system administrators, IT professionals and Managed Service Providers managing virtualized environments.

Typical scenarios include:

• Small and medium businesses: automatic protection of virtual servers.
• Mixed infrastructures: VMware, Hyper-V and Proxmox backup.
• MSPs: management of backup operations across customer environments, subject to license conditions.
• IT professionals: backup, recovery and data protection.
• Disaster recovery: preparation of recoverable backup copies.
• Growing infrastructures: unlimited VMs with eligible licenses.

How much does professional VM backup software cost?

Pricing depends on features, licensing models and infrastructure size.

Some products use subscriptions or per-workload licensing, while others offer perpetual licenses.

Iperius Backup Advanced VM offers perpetual licensing covering VMware ESXi, Microsoft Hyper-V and Proxmox VE, with unlimited virtual machines under the applicable terms.

This approach is attractive to organizations looking for predictable software licensing costs. Additional services, cloud storage, support and updates may have separate terms.

How can you protect virtual machines against ransomware?

VM backups are an essential part of cybersecurity, but they should not be the only protection measure.

• Schedule regular backups: match backup frequency to system criticality.
• Maintain multiple recovery points: preserve earlier versions of your data.
• Use separate destinations: avoid storing every copy in the production environment.
• Consider immutable backups: help prevent unauthorized modification or deletion.
• Monitor backup jobs: review notifications and errors.
• Test restoration: verify that systems can actually be recovered.

Iperius Backup supports multiple storage destinations, including compatible S3 cloud services and storage configurations that can be used for offsite and immutable backup strategies.

How to choose the best VM backup software for your business

Before purchasing a backup solution, define your recovery requirements using two essential indicators:

• RPO (Recovery Point Objective): the maximum amount of data loss your business can tolerate.
• RTO (Recovery Time Objective): the maximum acceptable time to restore a service.

These values help determine backup frequency, retention policies and disaster recovery procedures.

Conclusion: what is the best VM backup software?

There is no single backup solution that is best for every virtualization infrastructure. The right choice depends on your hypervisors, recovery requirements, number of VMs and budget.

Iperius Backup is a particularly comprehensive option for professional virtual machine backup, supporting VMware ESXi, Microsoft Hyper-V and Proxmox VE.

Incremental CBT and RCT backups, VMware replication, individual file recovery and perpetual licensing make it an interesting solution for businesses managing virtual infrastructures.

For organizations and MSPs looking for the best VM backup software with a strong balance of functionality, ease of use and predictable costs, Iperius Backup is well worth evaluating.

Frequently asked questions about VM backup software