Hornetsecurity VM Backup Unlimited

What is included in Hornetsecurity VM Backup Unlimited?

Hypervisor Coverage – Protects Hyper-V, VMware and Proxmox virtual machines.
Unlimited VMs – Back up every VM per licensed host.
Inline Deduplication – Augmented deduplication shrinks repository storage across all jobs.
Boot From Backup – Run a failed VM straight from backup.
Core Capacity – Unlimited VMs per host, single management console.
Important – Immutable cloud storage and CDP need Unlimited Plus.

What are the main benefits of Hornetsecurity VM Backup Unlimited?

Hornetsecurity VM Backup Unlimited is a host-based backup and replication tool for Microsoft Hyper-V, VMware and Proxmox environments. The Unlimited edition removes the five-VM-per-host cap of the Standard edition and adds deduplication, Exchange item recovery and Boot from Backup.

No VM Limit – Protect every guest on each host.
Fast Recovery – Boot or clone VMs within minutes.
Storage Savings – Inline deduplication reduces backup repository size.
Cross-Platform Restore – Move VMs between Hyper-V and VMware.
Granular Recovery – Restore single files or Exchange mailboxes.
Simple Operation – Drag-and-drop scheduling, running in fifteen minutes.

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What does Hornetsecurity VM Backup Unlimited do?

It creates and stores backups of virtual machines running on Microsoft Hyper-V, VMware and Proxmox hosts, with no limit on the number of VMs per licensed host. You manage every host from one console and assign VMs to schedules by drag and drop. The Unlimited edition includes Augmented Inline Deduplication, which runs across all backup jobs without grouping VMs together, so only changed data is written to the repository. For recovery it offers Boot from Backup, restore as clone, cross-platform restore between Hyper-V and VMware, and Exchange item-level restore. A first backup can typically be running in under 15 minutes without scripting or complex configuration.

What is the difference between the Standard, Unlimited and Unlimited Plus editions?

The Standard edition backs up up to five VMs per host, while the Unlimited edition removes that cap and adds Exchange item-level restore, Boot from Backup, Augmented Inline Deduplication and support for Hyper-V Clusters (CSV) and VMware vCenter. Unlimited Plus sits above both and is the only perpetual edition that adds Continuous Data Protection, WAN-optimized replication, the cloud management console and immutable cloud storage for ransomware protection. In practice, the Standard-to-Unlimited step is about VM count and recovery depth, and the Unlimited-to-Plus step is about cloud and ransomware resilience. If you need reliable scheduled backups of all VMs on a host, Unlimited is enough; if you need near-real-time recovery points or tamper-proof cloud copies, you must move to Unlimited Plus.

Does the Unlimited edition include ransomware protection and immutable cloud storage?

No. Immutable cloud storage, which writes tamper-proof backups to Amazon S3, Wasabi or Azure that cannot be deleted or altered for a defined retention period, is only available in the Unlimited Plus edition and the per-VM subscription. The Unlimited edition still encrypts backups with AES and supports both primary and offsite copies, but those offsite copies are not locked against deletion by an attacker who reaches your storage. If shielding your backup repository against ransomware that targets backups is a priority, you need Unlimited Plus. This is the single most important limitation to confirm before choosing the Unlimited edition.

Can it recover individual files and Exchange items, or only whole VMs?

The Unlimited edition supports both full-VM recovery and granular recovery. Using Granular Recovery Technology, you can restore individual files, folders and on-premises Exchange items such as single mailboxes or emails directly from a VM backup, without restoring the whole machine first. You can also boot a VM straight from its backup file, restore it as a clone, or restore it to a different host, including across hypervisors, so a VMware backup can be restored to Hyper-V and the reverse. Every restore can be validated with the Sandbox & Verification feature, which clones the VM in the background and confirms it boots correctly, so you are not relying on an untested backup during a real outage.

What should I check before choosing Unlimited over Unlimited Plus?

Check whether your recovery plan needs Continuous Data Protection, WAN-optimized replication, the cloud management console, or immutable cloud storage, because all four are exclusive to Unlimited Plus and the per-VM subscription. The Unlimited edition is host-based and covers unlimited VMs with scheduled backups, deduplication and granular recovery, but its offsite copies are not immutable and its lowest recovery point is set by your schedule rather than by near-real-time CDP, which can run as often as every five minutes in Plus. Also confirm your hosts run a supported hypervisor, since the perpetual license is counted per host regardless of socket count. If none of the Plus-only features matter to your environment, Unlimited is the more cost-effective choice.

Frequently asked questions about Hornetsecurity VM Backup Unlimited

Does VM Backup Unlimited back up physical Windows servers?

Yes. Physical server backup is included in the Unlimited edition, so you can protect a physical Windows server from the same console you use for your VMs. This is useful when a domain controller, SQL host or file server still runs on bare metal instead of as a virtual machine, letting you keep one backup workflow for mixed infrastructure.

Is VM Backup the same product as Altaro VM Backup?

Yes. VM Backup was formerly sold as Altaro VM Backup and was rebranded after Hornetsecurity acquired Altaro, keeping the same backup engine and the Standard, Unlimited and Unlimited Plus edition structure. If you used Altaro previously, the drag-and-drop console and per-host licensing model will be familiar, with newer releases adding immutable cloud storage and Proxmox support to the higher tiers.