Altaro VM Backup for VMware Unlimited Plus – Virtual Machine Backup, Unlimited VMs, Cloud Copy

What is included in Altaro VM Backup for VMware Unlimited Plus?

Hot VM Backups – Protect running VMware machines without service downtime.
Augmented Inline Deduplication – Cuts backup storage across all jobs automatically.
Immutable Cloud Backup – Ransomware-resilient WORM copies on Azure, S3, Wasabi.
WAN-Optimized Replication – Maintains a remote standby copy for failover.
Performance Metric – CDP backs up VMs as often as every five minutes.
Important – Microsoft 365 mailbox backup needs a separate product.

What are the main benefits of Altaro VM Backup for VMware Unlimited Plus?

Altaro VM Backup Unlimited Plus is the fully featured edition of Hornetsecurity's VM Backup, protecting an unlimited number of VMware machines per licensed host. It adds every capability in the range, including immutable cloud storage, Continuous Data Protection, and WAN-optimized replication for fast disaster recovery.

Unlimited VMs – Protect every VM on each licensed host.
Ransomware Resilience – Immutable offsite copies resist tampering and deletion.
Fast Recovery – Boot VMs directly from backup within minutes.
Lower Storage Cost – Inline deduplication shrinks repository size across jobs.
Central Management – Control all hosts from one cloud console.
Cross-Platform Restore – Recover VMware backups onto Hyper-V hosts.

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What does Altaro VM Backup for VMware Unlimited Plus do?

It backs up and replicates VMware vSphere and ESXi virtual machines, with no limit on the number of VMs per licensed host. Unlimited Plus is the top edition, adding Continuous Data Protection (CDP), WAN-optimized replication, immutable cloud storage, and a central cloud Control Panel on top of the core backup engine. Backups run while VMs stay online, and Augmented Inline Deduplication reduces the storage each job consumes. The same backups can also be restored to a Hyper-V host if you migrate platforms.

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

The three perpetual editions differ by VM count per host and by feature depth. Standard protects up to 5 VMs per host and encrypts offsite copies only; Unlimited removes the VM limit and adds deduplication, GFS archiving, cross-platform restore, and offsite backup locations; Unlimited Plus adds everything else, including CDP, WAN-optimized replication, immutable cloud storage, and the cloud Control Panel. If you need cloud or immutable offsite backups, Unlimited Plus is the only edition that includes them.

Does Unlimited Plus protect against ransomware?

Yes. Unlimited Plus can write offsite backups to immutable cloud storage on Amazon S3, Wasabi, Azure Blob, BackBlaze B2, or Impossible Cloud Storage, using object lock so data cannot be changed or deleted during the retention window. This turns the offsite repository into a write-once, read-many store that survives an attack on the production environment. The Standard and Unlimited editions do not include immutable cloud backup. Pair this with Sandbox Restore verification to confirm a clean recovery point before you depend on it.

Can it back up Microsoft 365 or physical servers?

No, VM Backup only protects virtual machines on VMware, Microsoft Hyper-V, and Proxmox; it does not back up Microsoft 365 mailboxes, SharePoint, or OneDrive. Those workloads require Hornetsecurity's separate 365 Total Backup product. Physical (non-virtual) servers are handled by a separate, dedicated Physical Server Backup tool rather than the VM engine itself. Confirm your workloads are virtualized before choosing this edition, and budget separately if you also need SaaS or physical-server protection.

How quickly can it recover a failed VMware machine?

Recovery speed depends on the method you use. Continuous Data Protection can capture VM changes as often as every five minutes, keeping potential data loss to minutes rather than hours. For the fastest restart, Boot from Backup runs a VM straight from its backup file, while WAN-optimized replication keeps a ready standby copy at a remote site for near-immediate failover. File Level Restore lets you pull back individual files or folders without recovering the whole machine, and all of these options are included in Unlimited Plus.

Frequently asked questions about Altaro VM Backup for VMware Unlimited Plus

Does Unlimited Plus support VMware vCenter and clustered hosts?

Yes. Support for VMware vCenter and Microsoft Hyper-V CSV clusters is included in both the Unlimited and Unlimited Plus editions, but not in Standard. This lets you manage backups across a clustered VMware deployment instead of configuring each host on its own.

Does it back up Proxmox and Hyper-V as well as VMware?

Yes. The same VM Backup engine protects VMware, Microsoft Hyper-V, and Proxmox machines from one console. Because Unlimited Plus includes Cross-Platform Restore, a VMware backup can be recovered onto a Hyper-V host, which is useful during a hypervisor migration.

Are backups encrypted in Unlimited Plus?

Yes. VM Backup uses AES encryption, and in the Unlimited Plus and Unlimited editions it covers both primary and offsite backups, whereas the Standard edition encrypts offsite backups only. This means your local backup repository is protected as well as the copies you send to another site or to the cloud.