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Backup · head to head

StorageCraft ShadowProtect vs Trilio

StorageCraft ShadowProtect logo

StorageCraft ShadowProtect

Backup

Fast and reliable image-based backup

From
$15/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Trilio logo

Trilio

Backup

Backup and recovery for OpenStack, Kubernetes and Red Hat Virtualization

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Trilio has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: StorageCraft ShadowProtect host-based backup requires Windows Server 2016 or above on the Hyper-V host, and desktop, client and Pro editions are not supported; Trilio coverage is deliberately narrow, so a mixed estate with VMware and physical servers needs a second backup product and two sets of restore procedures.
  • They diverge on capability: StorageCraft ShadowProtect covers Image-based backup, Trilio covers OpenStack backup.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which StorageCraft ShadowProtect and Trilio actually diverge.

Attributes where StorageCraft ShadowProtect and Trilio differ
AttributeStorageCraft ShadowProtectTrilio
Starting price$15/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer node per year
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindows, Linux, WebLinux, Web
Founded2003Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Backup).

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 StorageCraft ShadowProtect

  • Image-based backup
  • VirtualBoot
  • Bare metal recovery
  • Hardware-independent restore
  • Incremental imaging
  • ShadowStream replication
  • VMware
  • Hyper-V

Only in Trilio

  • OpenStack backup
  • Kubernetes backup
  • OpenShift Virtualization
  • Open format backups
  • Incremental forever
  • Self-service restore
  • Free basic edition

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

StorageCraft ShadowProtect

  • Backup and disaster recovery (legacy)not Trilio
  • System image backup and recoverynot Trilio

Trilio

  • A telco running an OpenStack cloud whose incumbent backup vendor supports it only through generic agentsnot StorageCraft ShadowProtect
  • An organisation migrating virtual machines from VMware to OpenShift Virtualization and needing protection on the new platform from day onenot StorageCraft ShadowProtect
  • A research institution protecting tenant workloads where each tenant should restore its own data without a ticketnot StorageCraft ShadowProtect
  • A platform team wanting to evaluate Kubernetes backup properly on ten nodes before committing budgetnot StorageCraft ShadowProtect

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

StorageCraft ShadowProtect

  • Host-based backup requires Windows Server 2016 or above on the Hyper-V host, and desktop, client and Pro editions are not supported
  • Host-based and agent-based backup are mutually exclusive installation modes in ShadowProtect 8.0; one machine cannot run both
  • Switching from agent-based to host-based requires a clean reinstall rather than an in-place upgrade
  • Host-based backups are not compatible with VirtualBoot
  • Granular file and folder recovery is not available for host-based backups; the whole backup must be restored to a .vhd or .vhdx first
  • Host-based backup jobs do not report status to ShadowControl
  • Advanced Verification in ImageManager 8.1 is not supported for host-based backups
  • All host-based backups go into a single folder by default, so separating them per VM means creating a separate backup job for each
  • Host-based licence keys are generated only through the Arcserve MSP portal

Trilio

  • Coverage is deliberately narrow, so a mixed estate with VMware and physical servers needs a second backup product and two sets of restore procedures.
  • Trilio is a small vendor next to the backup incumbents, and buyers with ten year retention obligations should assess the risk of the company being acquired or wound down.
  • Enterprise pricing is per node or per virtual machine and is not published, which makes it hard to compare against per-terabyte competitors without going through sales.
  • The free basic edition stops at ten nodes with community support only, so the step from evaluation to production is a full commercial negotiation rather than a tier upgrade.
  • Restore performance depends on the object storage or NFS target you supply, and egress charges from a cloud object store during a large recovery sit outside the vendor quote entirely.

Pricing, plan by plan

StorageCraft ShadowProtect

$15/month
  • ShadowProtect SPX$15/month
    • Image-based backup
    • VirtualBoot
    • Bare metal recovery

Trilio

Free
  • Basic EditionFree
    • Up to ten nodes
    • No time limit
    • Community support only
  • Enterprise Edition$undefined/year
    • Priced per node or per virtual machine annually
    • No scale limits
    • OpenStack, Kubernetes, OpenShift and Red Hat Virtualization

Which should you pick?

Choose StorageCraft ShadowProtect if

  • You need image-based backup.
  • You work on Windows, Linux, Web.
  • You also want virtualboot.
StorageCraft ShadowProtect review

Choose Trilio if

  • You need openstack backup.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Web.
  • You also want kubernetes backup.
Trilio review

Questions people ask

Is StorageCraft ShadowProtect or Trilio better?
Neither clearly leads. StorageCraft ShadowProtect starts at $15/month and Trilio at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, StorageCraft ShadowProtect or Trilio?
Trilio has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $15/month for StorageCraft ShadowProtect and Free for Trilio.
Does StorageCraft ShadowProtect or Trilio run on more platforms?
StorageCraft ShadowProtect runs on Windows, Linux, Web. Trilio runs on Linux, Web.
Can I use Trilio for free?
Yes. Trilio has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. StorageCraft ShadowProtect starts at $15/month.
What is StorageCraft ShadowProtect best used for?
StorageCraft ShadowProtect is most often used for backup and disaster recovery (legacy), system image backup and recovery. Of those, backup and disaster recovery (legacy) and system image backup and recovery are not what Trilio is typically brought in for.
What can StorageCraft ShadowProtect do that Trilio cannot?
StorageCraft ShadowProtect covers Image-based backup, VirtualBoot, Bare metal recovery, Hardware-independent restore. Trilio covers OpenStack backup, Kubernetes backup, OpenShift Virtualization, Open format backups.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

StorageCraft ShadowProtect: How much does StorageCraft ShadowProtect cost?

StorageCraft no longer maintains independent product pricing. The domain redirects to ArcServe, and ArcServe does not publish specific pricing on its homepage. Prospective customers must request a trial, demo, or contact sales.

Source
Trilio: Is the free edition production usable?

It is functionally complete up to ten nodes with community support only. Use it to evaluate, but understand that production incidents have no vendor behind them at that tier.

StorageCraft ShadowProtect: Where can I find StorageCraft pricing?

StorageCraft's website (storagecraft.com) now redirects to ArcServe.com. ArcServe does not publish pricing publicly. To obtain pricing information, users can start a trial, request a demo, or contact ArcServe's sales team.

Source
Trilio: Does it support OpenShift Virtualization?

Yes, which is the main reason it appears on shortlists for organisations moving virtual machines off VMware.

Trilio: Where are backups stored?

On NFS or S3-compatible object storage you provide, in an open format rather than a proprietary vendor container.

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