Software · head to head
Amanda Enterprise vs Bacula Enterprise
Bacula Enterprise
Software
Open-source enterprise backup solution
- From
- $500/year
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Amanda Enterprise has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Amanda Enterprise amanda Community Edition is genuinely open source, released under a mix of BSD, GPLv2, LGPL and Apache licenses with source on GitHub, but the Enterprise edition that adds central management and paid support is a separate proprietary product sold by Zmanda (a Betsol company since its 2018 acquisition); Zmanda's own pricing page returned 403 to direct fetch, so no current per-client or per-agent figure could be confirmed from the vendor directly.; Bacula Enterprise pricing is not published; the vendor asks for a request rather than listing rates
- They diverge on capability: Amanda Enterprise covers Cross-platform backup, Bacula Enterprise covers Modular architecture.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Amanda Enterprise and Bacula Enterprise actually diverge.
| Attribute | Amanda Enterprise | Bacula Enterprise |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | $500/year |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Founded | 2005 | 2009 |
Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), platforms (Windows, Linux, Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Amanda Enterprise
- Cross-platform backup
- Cloud integration
- Disk staging
- Web-based management
- Bare metal recovery
- AWS S3
- Google Cloud
- Windows Server
Only in Bacula Enterprise
- Modular architecture
- Plugin framework
- Deduplication
- Cloud storage
- Automated recovery testing
- VMware
- Hyper-V
- AWS
Both cover
- Encryption
- Azure
- Windows support
- Linux support
- Web support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Amanda Enterprise
- Data protectionnot Bacula Enterprise
- Disaster recoverynot Bacula Enterprise
- Business continuitynot Bacula Enterprise
- Ransomware protectionnot Bacula Enterprise
- Compliancenot Bacula Enterprise
Bacula Enterprise
- Enterprise backup across virtual machines, databases and containersnot Amanda Enterprise
- Multi-cloud and hybrid backup from one systemnot Amanda Enterprise
- Backup where licensing by data volume would be prohibitive, since Bacula does not charge by capacitynot Amanda Enterprise
- Long-retention archival for regulated environmentsnot Amanda Enterprise
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Amanda Enterprise
- Amanda Community Edition is genuinely open source, released under a mix of BSD, GPLv2, LGPL and Apache licenses with source on GitHub, but the Enterprise edition that adds central management and paid support is a separate proprietary product sold by Zmanda (a Betsol company since its 2018 acquisition); Zmanda's own pricing page returned 403 to direct fetch, so no current per-client or per-agent figure could be confirmed from the vendor directly.
Bacula Enterprise
- Pricing is not published; the vendor asks for a request rather than listing rates
- The differences between Enterprise and the open source Community edition are not set out on the product pages, so what the licence buys is unclear until you talk to sales
- Aimed at data centre and enterprise environments rather than small deployments
Pricing, plan by plan
Amanda Enterprise
Free- Amanda Enterprise$30/month
- Cross-platform
- Cloud backup
- Web console
Bacula Enterprise
$500/year- Bacula Enterprise$500/year
- Unlimited data
- Plugin support
- Enterprise support
Which should you pick?
Choose Amanda Enterprise if
- You need cross-platform backup.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Windows, Linux, Web.
- You also want cloud integration.
Choose Bacula Enterprise if
- You need modular architecture.
- You work on Windows, Linux, Web.
- You also want plugin framework.
Questions people ask
- Is Amanda Enterprise or Bacula Enterprise better?
- Neither clearly leads. Amanda Enterprise starts at Free and Bacula Enterprise at $500/year, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Amanda Enterprise or Bacula Enterprise?
- Amanda Enterprise has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Amanda Enterprise and $500/year for Bacula Enterprise.
- Does Amanda Enterprise or Bacula Enterprise run on more platforms?
- Both run on Windows, Linux, Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use Amanda Enterprise for free?
- Yes. Amanda Enterprise has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Bacula Enterprise starts at $500/year.
- What is Amanda Enterprise best used for?
- Amanda Enterprise is most often used for data protection, disaster recovery, business continuity, ransomware protection. Of those, data protection and disaster recovery are not what Bacula Enterprise is typically brought in for.
- What can Amanda Enterprise do that Bacula Enterprise cannot?
- Amanda Enterprise covers Cross-platform backup, Cloud integration, Disk staging, Web-based management. Bacula Enterprise covers Modular architecture, Plugin framework, Deduplication, Cloud storage. Both handle Encryption, Azure, Windows support, Linux support.