Amanda Enterprise FAQs
Amanda Enterprise
Zmanda is one of the most popular open-source backup and recovery software for hybrid cloud environments. It protects more than one million servers, workstations, and desktops running various versions of Linux, UNIX, BSD, Mac OS-X, and Microsoft Windows operating systems in 45+ nations. Zmanda provides the following:
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Zmanda Management Console that simplifies & automates day-to-day activities of backup administrators, such as configuring backup policies and schedules, adding new clients, clicking and restoring files from backup media, and generating standard or custom reports
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Flexible media options give you choices like the backup to disk, tape, optical devices, and backup over the Internet to Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3), Wasabi, GCP, and Azure.
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Wide platform, database, and application support
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Backup of System State for Windows clients to ensure system and registry database referential integrity in case of disaster recovery
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Hot backup of MS SQL Server and Oracle databases
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New functionality and security updates, product alerts, knowledgebase access, and 24x7 support from Zmanda team worldwide
You can sign up for the free trial, request a demo, or contact sales to get started with Zmanda. If you are looking for help with the installation process, the documentation can help you get started.
There are various points that make Zmanda different from other backup software.
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Zmanda is the only open source data protection software certified by the US Department of Homeland Security
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Provides intelligent scheduling that calculates optimal full and incremental backup levels for all of your clients so that your backup windows are consistent every day and your resource usage is optimized without having to purchase additional storage and network capacity to accommodate peak backup data volumes
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Supports Open Source along with user-configurable encryption and data compression
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Simplifies & automates all day-to-day activities of backup administrators, such as configuring backup policies and schedules, adding new clients, clicking-and-restoring files from backup archives, and generating standard or custom reports
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Flexible media options give you choices like the backup to disk, tape, optical devices, and backup over the Internet to Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3), Wasabi, GCP, and Azure.
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Wide platform, database, and application support
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Easy and dependable cross-platform recovery
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Functionality and security software updates
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Support for virtualization environments such as VMware and Hyper-V
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Quarterly release cycles with major customer-driven features and enhancements
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Free community backup edition with Amanda and ZRM community
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Three levels of technical support with complete knowledge base access, email, and phone support, along with case management with guaranteed response time
At Zmanda, you decide the storage destination of your backup data. It can be tapes, disks, and cloud storage.
Amanda Enterprise provides many layers of security to ensure that backed-up data, communications, and access to the backup process are all secured. Amanda Enterprise provides the following when it comes to security:
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Secure authentication
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Role-based access control for administrators and operators
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Choice of encryption either on a client to secure data in transit or on the server to secure data at rest
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Option to lock the backed up data using immutable backup option
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Isolated copies of backup using Vault feature
Every module in Zmanda is independently tested and scrutinized by our QA team to meet its breaking point. This helps in delivering a product that works flawlessly in any backup environment.
You can use local storage like tapes and disks at locations where bandwidth is a challenge. Zmanda provides flexible media options for target storage needs; you can choose tapes, disks, and cloud storage based on your enterprise requirements.
You can install Zmanda Backup Server in any of the following ways:
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Booting a VM from a .ova file
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Docker image
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AWS cloud marketplace
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Linux install
For more information on the installation process, please refer to our documentation.
Yes, Zmanda does support the backup of sparse files.
Yes, Zmanda does support the backup of hard links.
Yes, Zmanda supports incremental backups with levels 0 (full) to 9.
For Backup Server, we support Linux operating system. For Backup Clients, we support Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows operating systems. For specific versions and distributions, please check the Amanda Enterprise Software Compatibility Matrix
Zmanda can back up Microsoft Windows 11, 10, 8, and 7, and Windows Server 2022, 2019, 2016, 2012, and 2008. For specific versions and distributions, please check the Amanda Enterprise Software Compatibility Matrix.
Yes, the 64-bit Zmanda Linux client is available for 64-bit RHEL, CentOS, Debian, Ubuntu, OEL, and Fedora.
Yes, we provide hot backup of Oracle on Windows, Solaris, and Linux via Microsoft´s VSS (Volume Shadow Copy Service) and VSS-awareness of Oracle. When a Zmanda client starts a backup, it coordinates communication between the Zmanda Client Requestor, the Oracle Writer, and Windows Providers that create the snapshots (shadow copies) of Oracle.
Yes, we provide a hot backup of MS SQL via VSS. When a Zmanda client starts a backup for MS SQL, it coordinates communication between Zmanda Client Requestor, the MS SQL Writer, and Windows VSS Providers that create the snapshots (shadow copies) of MS SQL.
Amanda Enterprise fully supports a VM environment. In fact, we utilize virtualization extensively in developing, testing, and QA of our software.
Trial Period
Free trials are issued automatically as soon as you sign up for a free trial form. You can get started with the Zmanda setup immediately using the provided documentation. Meanwhile, one of our customer specialists will reach out to you to understand your requirements.
At the start of the trial period, we will provide you with a trial license, that includes each of the features of the product. You can implement your backup architecture as per your requirements. For help during implementation, one of our specialists will get in touch with you for a free 30 minutes call.
Zmanda’s free trial includes access to all of the features and entire software. Each feature will have a count of one unit (one backup server, one backup agent for each of the supported endpoints). The leads can work with the sales team to change the license quantities if required. You can explore all the features of Zmanda for 14 days to test its flexibility in your environment.
Yes, you will receive 24*7 Premium Support during your trial. We provide support over the phone, by email, and through tickets. You can email your query to us at support@zmanda.com or call us at 888-496-2632 (US) and 408-732-3208 (INTL). The support team is also reachable via this form.
Yes, it is possible to modify the trial period and feature count if required. You can reach our sales team at sales@zmanda.com and let them know the required modification.
The backed-up data will remain available just as it was backed up, even after the trial period ends. Data protected by Zmanda is always recoverable without active licenses.
Yes, all you have to do is replace the trial license in Zmanda with the paid license.
Security and Compliance
Zmanda protects data at rest using encryption and data at motion using Transport Layer Security TLS 1.2.
Yes, Zmanda does comply with GDPR. It is configured and implemented as a part of a fully GDPR-compliant solution, making it the most secure and seamless backup and recovery solution.
Zmanda meets the public sector’s unique security and compliance requirements with its features. The air-gapped configurations, tape storage for archival and backup, and open source background of Zmanda make it a robust solution for critical backup & recovery requirements of Government organizations. For more information, please visit here.
Zmanda’s full and incremental data backups, 3-2-1 backup rule-related features and immutable backups can provide you security against data loss.
Licensing and Pricing
We have two types of licensing for Zmanda, one is the open-source license which is for Amanda Community, and another one is for Zmanda (Amanda Enterprise).
Yes, Zmanda licensing model is flexible, allowing you to change your server or client license midway if there is any change in your backup environment. All you need to do is pay the difference caused by the change in licenses.
Amanda Enterprise is sold as an annual or multi-year subscription per protected system and per protected application. For example, if you have 12 Linux clients, 1 Exchange, 1 Oracle on Solaris, and 25 Windows desktops, you need the following subscriptions:
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1 backup server
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12 Linux clients
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1 Solaris client and 1 Oracle agent
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1 Windows client and 1 Exchange agent
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3 Windows desktop/laptop packs (each pack provides support for 10 desktops)
Yes, we do provide a discount for non-profits and educational institutions. For more details, please get in touch with Zmanda Sales.
Each Zmanda client subscription allows up to 5 virtual machines (VMs). All VMs must have the same operating system as the client subscription purchased. For example, if you have 2 physical machines running 3 Linux and 3 Windows VMs on the first machine and 5 Linux VMs on the second machine, you need to purchase a subscription to 1 Zmanda Client for Linux, 1 Zmanda Client for Windows for the first machine and 1 Zmanda Client for Linux for the second machine.
First, buy subscriptions for the backup server and all clients you want to protect. If you want to back up to Amazon S3, you simply buy a separate Backup to Amazon S3 option. You would buy your S3 certificate directly from Amazon and pay Amazon monthly for actual usage of storage and bandwidth.
The pricing model for Hypervisors is based on the number of Tier1 Hypervisors backed up and not on the number of VMs each Hypervisor runs. This allows you to use one Hypervisor or VMWare License, even when 100+ VMs are running on top of that one Hypervisor.
We don't bill you based on the data being backed up. You can have terabytes and petabytes of data for backup without worrying about any additional charges. The billing for Zmanda is based on the number of endpoints to protect. This can help you save money in the long run.
You can get in touch with Zmanda Sales Team to make any changes to your license
Zmanda team will contact you via email before the license expiration date. You can also get in touch with Zmanda Sales Team for any help with license renewal.
Data protected by Zmanda is always recoverable without active licenses.
Amanda Community Edition
Amanda Community Edition is a free, open-source network backup solution that can help you back up several servers and workstations to tapes, drives, and other optical media.
You can find all the details along with the most recent version of Amanda on Amanda Network Backup: Open Source Backup for Linux, Windows, UNIX and OS X
You can mix Amanda Enterprise and Amanda Community Edition only through Professional Services engagement.
Amanda Community Edition is a free and stable version of the world's most popular open-source Data recovery Software Zmanda. To download Amanda Community Edition, please visit our Amanda Community downloads. The Zmanda Wiki page will provide you with all the required details to install and run Amanda in your backup environment.
To read the documentation and get more details on Amanda Community, please visit our Zmanda Wiki page or Amanda.org.
Still can’t find what you need?
Refer to technical documentation for more details here
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