Arcserve's Unified Data Protection 9.0 adds better recovery for Microsoft SQL and Oracle databases and a multi-tenancy console, and paves the way for future cloud integrations.
The latest update for Arcserve's flagship data protection software adds a new management console for data security and privacy controls alongside a handful of improvements but draws the company deeper into a crowded cloud market.
Arcserve released Unified Data Protection (UDP) 9.0 today to general availability, adding a management console to the product that enables multi-tenancy capabilities and identity management tools.
New features include more granular restore options for Microsoft SQL databases and improved recovery speeds for Oracle databases, building off features introduced in prior updates. Backups can now be stored on several cloud object storage services through Arcserve, including AWS S3, Wasabi and Google Cloud Storage.
These additions continue to fit the needs of smaller enterprise customers and the managed server providers already using Arcserve, said Jerome Wendt, president and founder of DCIG LLC, a technology analyst firm in Omaha, Neb.
They're not trying to hit a home run, but they're hitting a single or double every time they step up to the plate.
Jerome WendtPresident and founder, DCIG
"It's a natural evolution to meet their current client demands," Wendt said. "They're not trying to hit a home run, but they're hitting a single or double every time they step up to the plate."
Arcserve sells its data protection product through a variety of methods but hasn't moved too heavily into the SaaS delivery model like some of its competitors, such as Commvault's Metallic, Wendt said. Instead, the company meets the needs of smaller customers through a variety of software and hardware purchasing options with a focus on price, compared with hyperscalers and larger vendors.
"As [a data protection need] starts to gain momentum, Arcserve is usually pretty quick [to adapt it]," he said.
Zoned for multi-business
The new management console, available in both cloud and isolated on-premises varieties, enables users to create a multi-tenancy environment. Such a feature is useful for customers who work with clients that require privacy and separation, such as MSPs.
Previously, Arcserve customers needed to create their own multi-tenancy capabilities, but the new console streamlines this process, according to Arcserve.
All UDP customers can take advantage of endpoint security features provided by Arcserve partner Sophos, provided as part of the UDP purchase, to protect backups from ransomware.
The management console is a first step in connecting Arcserve's products into a larger SaaS store from the vendor, enabling on-demand purchases and automatic vendor updates and patches, according to Ahsan Siddiqui, director of product management at Arcserve.
The company has already begun to expand its cloud services outside of UDP. In the past year, it has added support for Microsoft 365 and Dynamics 365, Google Workspace, Salesforce and Azure Active Directory to its Arcserve SaaS Backup. The company has provided similar standalone cloud services in the past, such as the Business Continuity Cloud.
The 9.0 update also enables Microsoft SQL data recovery to any transaction point between two recovery points, while ensuring data integrity. Oracle Databases benefit from recovery with Oracle pluggable databases backed up through Oracle Database Recovery Manager.
More the merrier?
More and more applications created and maintained natively in the cloud are entering the production workflows of SMBs, Arcserve's target customer, according to Ray Lucchesi, founder and president of Silverton Consulting in Broomfield, Colo.
The new console and focus on SaaS services are a direct response to this customer demand, but they're unlikely to attract larger enterprises, which already use other vendor or native hyperscaler services, he said.
"They see their small to medium-sized businesses moving to the cloud," Lucchesi said. "It becomes something they can use to maintain their base. It's unlikely they'll add new customers."
Arcserve isn't only playing catchup in the backup space, Wendt noted. The partnership with Sophos adds security features to UDP without Arcserve having to develop a product in-house to add onto data protection.
"It's not that they don't know security, but they don't know the way Sophos knows it. It makes both products better," Wendt said.
The company also merged with StorageCraft in 2021 to add additional data protection software and capabilities to UDP and had previously acquired Zetta, a cloud DR and backup company.
Tim McCarthy is a journalist living on the North Shore of Massachusetts. He covers cloud storage, data backup and disaster recovery news.
