Are there tools that help users migrate from one backup product to another?

There are backup application vendors that offer tools designed to assist customers with migrating from a competing backup product. The best known example is probably CommVault.

CommVault's migration tool is the External Data Connector. It is designed to assist with migrations from Symantec NetBackup, EMC NetWorker and IBM TSM. As such, the tool doesn't support migrations from every competing product, but it does work with backup products from some of the major vendors.

The External Data Connector works by establishing connectivity to a Symantec NetBackup, EMC NetWorker or IBM TSM master server. Once connectivity has been established, the software extracts data such as job histories, client attributes and policies. The data collected by the tool can then be imported into CommVault Simpana software.

In addition to providing the External Data Connector, CommVault has other ways it can help customers migrate from competing backup products. For example, it provides a utility called EDC cloud (part of the External Data Connector toolkit) that allows users to run Simpana in a cloud-based, sandboxed environment. The component ensures that the imported configuration and policies are working correctly before CommVault Simpana is implemented in a production environment.

CommVault also provides migration assistance beyond the tool. According to the company website, a team can assist users with the steps involved in the migration process, including risk identification and planning.