Cloud backup copies your business data (servers, laptops, Microsoft 365 email and files) to a separate provider's data centre on a schedule, so you can restore it after deletion, hardware failure or ransomware. Pricing is usually per device or mailbox plus the storage you use, so cost depends on how much data you keep and for how long. ERS IT Solutions, in Blanchardstown, Dublin 15 since 1983, designs and manages cloud backup for Irish businesses and tests that restores work.
How does cloud backup work?
A small agent or a direct connection reads your data, encrypts it and sends it over the internet to the backup provider. The first backup copies everything. After that, only changes are sent, so nightly or hourly backups are quick. Each run creates a restore point, and the service keeps restore points for the retention period you choose, for example 30 days of daily points and 12 months of monthly ones.
When you need to restore, you pick the file, mailbox, folder or whole server and the point in time, and the service copies it back. Some services can also start a server directly in the cloud, which is how cloud backup becomes disaster recovery.
Cloud storage vs cloud backup: what is the difference?
Cloud storage, such as OneDrive, SharePoint or Dropbox, is where you work on files. If a file is deleted, encrypted by ransomware or overwritten, the change syncs everywhere. Cloud backup is a separate copy, held by a separate system, with history you can go back to.
| Cloud storage (OneDrive, SharePoint) | Cloud backup | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Working copy, sharing, sync | Recovery copy |
| Deletes and ransomware | Synced to every device | Older restore points unaffected |
| History | Version history and recycle bin, time-limited | Retention you set, often a year or more |
| Separate from your main account | No | Yes, ideally a separate provider and login |
SharePoint and OneDrive deleted items are kept for 93 days in total, then permanently deleted (Microsoft Support). If nobody notices a deleted folder for four months, the recycle bin will not save you. Microsoft's shared responsibility model also says that for every cloud service, "you own your data and identities" (Microsoft Learn).
How much does cloud backup cost?
Cloud backup pricing is built from a few parts. Most providers charge:
- Per protected item: per server, virtual machine, laptop or Microsoft 365 user.
- Per GB stored: the total size of your backups, including all restore points kept.
- Extras: higher redundancy (copies in two regions), immutable storage, longer retention, and sometimes charges to download large restores.
Two Microsoft examples show how list prices are built. Microsoft 365 Backup, Microsoft's own service for Exchange, OneDrive and SharePoint, is pay-as-you-go at a list price of "$0.15/GB/month of protected content", billed through an Azure subscription (Microsoft Learn). Azure Backup for servers charges a fee per protected instance in size bands (up to 50 GB, 50 to 500 GB, then each extra 500 GB) plus the storage consumed, priced by storage tier and redundancy (Azure Backup pricing).
Ireland's NCSC notes that most backup services "require a monthly subscription fee, which can vary depending on the features and storage capacity you choose" (NCSC SME guidance).
What changes the cost of cloud backup for a business?
- How much data you protect, and how fast it grows.
- Retention: keeping 7 years of monthly points costs far more than 30 days of daily points.
- Number of servers, devices and users protected.
- Recovery speed: being able to run a server in the cloud costs more than restoring files.
- Redundancy and immutability: copies that cannot be changed or deleted, even by an admin, cost more and are worth it against ransomware.
- Management: whether someone checks the reports every day and tests restores, or nobody does.
A cloud backup pricing comparison between providers only makes sense when these are the same. A cheap price with 14 days of retention and no restore testing is not comparable to a managed service with a year of retention and quarterly tests.
What should a business back up to the cloud?
Back up everything you would need to rebuild the business: Microsoft 365 email, OneDrive and SharePoint; servers and their databases; accounts and payroll data; line-of-business application data; laptops if staff save locally; and configurations such as firewall settings. The NCSC advises backing up "all critical data, including documents, databases, and configurations" and keeping the backup "separate to the original data" (NCSC SME guidance).
Cloud server backup
For servers, image-based backup captures the whole machine, so you can restore a single file or the full server to new hardware or a cloud virtual machine. This is what cloud server backup services sell. Check how long a full server restore takes over your internet connection; for large servers a local copy plus a cloud copy is faster.
Cloud backup vs on-site backup vs both: what should a small Dublin office use?
Both. A local backup (a backup appliance or NAS) restores quickly because it is on your network. A cloud copy protects you if the office is lost or the local backup is encrypted along with everything else. The NCSC's ransomware guidance is to follow the 3-2-1 rule: three copies, on two separate systems, with one of them offline (NCSC Ransomware Quick Guide).
For an office that has moved fully to Microsoft 365 with no server, a third-party or Microsoft 365 backup service plus protected laptops is usually enough.
Backup as a service (BaaS) in cloud computing
Backup as a service means the provider runs the backup platform, storage and often the monitoring, and you pay monthly. You avoid buying backup hardware and software licences. With a managed BaaS, the provider also watches for failed jobs and tests restores. Disaster recovery as a service (DRaaS) goes a step further and can run your systems in the cloud during an outage.
How to choose a cloud backup provider in Ireland
The best cloud backup for a small business is the one that is restored successfully when it matters. Ask every cloud backup company these questions:
- Where is the data stored? The NCSC asks SMEs to check "is it in the EU?"
- Who can access the backups, and is MFA enforced on the backup console?
- Is there an immutable or offline copy that an attacker with admin rights cannot delete?
- What retention do we get, and what does more cost?
- How long does a full restore of our largest server take?
- Who checks backup reports every day?
- How often are restores tested, and do we get the test report?
- Are there fees to restore or download data?
- Does it back up Microsoft 365, not only servers?
- What happens to our backups if we leave?
Enterprise cloud backup services
Larger organisations add requirements: central management of many sites, role-based access, legal hold, long-term archive tiers, integration with security monitoring and recovery testing at scale. The questions above still apply.
Cloud backup and restore: test it
A backup you have never restored is a hope, not a backup. Restore a few files and a mailbox every quarter, restore a whole server at least once a year, and time it. Write the result down. Our disaster recovery plan template includes a testing checklist and test report layout.