Test Restore overview¶
Backups are your last line of defense. However, they can be corrupted over time or targeted by ransomware. Follow best practice and increase your business’s cyber-resilience by regularly testing the integrity of your backups. With the Test Restore feature available in BackupAssist Classic v12 and later, you can fully automate regular testing of your backups
What Test Restore can check¶
Tests by backup type¶
| File reading test | File integrity test | |
|---|---|---|
| File Protection | Yes | Yes |
| Cloud Protection | Yes | Yes |
| Advanced System Protection | Yes | Yes |
| Legacy System Protection | Yes | No |
| File Archiving and Rsync | No | No |
Compatibility¶
| Backups created with v11 or earlier | Backups created with v12 and later, using a v11 backup job | |
|---|---|---|
| File Protection | Supports file reading test only | File hashes will be calculated on new and changed files. These files will support integrity testing, while other files will support reading tests only. |
| Cloud Protection | Supports file reading and file integrity tests | Supports file reading and integrity tests |
| Advanced System Protection (v12 and later) | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| Legacy System Protection | Supports file reading test only | Supports file reading test only |
| File Archiving and Rsync | Not applicable | Not applicable |
Key features¶
Fully automated backup testing¶
Save time and money by supplementing your business continuity testing with fully automated backup testing.
Select the backup job to test and schedule. Simply choose which backup job you want to create the test restore job for, and select which day of the week and at what time to run the test restore.
If you want to run it weekly, edit the job and select just 1 day (e.g. Saturday).
Multi-layered testing¶
Get assurance that your backups are recoverable with 2 layers of testing. Control how long and how many files you want to have tested each time.
Comprehensive coverage and control of your test restore. Two layers of testing are applied: a file reading test and a file integrity test. Together they provide high confidence that your files are present and unchanged.
You can choose to test all files in the backup or limit how long the test should run. If you choose the latter, randomized files in the backup will be tested to ensure as much coverage as possible over time.
Are your files in the backup?¶
Ensure that the files are indeed in the backup and that you can access them.
File reading test. The file reading test opens the backup and checks that files can be accessed and read in full from the backup location. It confirms that the backup can be extracted from storage and there are no permission or file system issues preventing access.
Are your files corrupted?¶
Check if the file is exactly as it was when it was backed up. This will detect if any disk errors or malicious editing have occurred.
File integrity test. When the backup is run, a hash is generated for each file and saved with the backup. When running the test restore, the file is extracted from the backup, and the hash is calculated again and then compared with the hash that was saved with the backup. If they do not match, then the file has been corrupted.
Easy-to-read report¶
Simple report telling you if your backups are reliable or if there are issues that need to be addressed.
Test restore report. A report is created after each test restore execution. You can use this report as evidence of your backup testing.
The report includes a simple listing of the number of files tested, how many passed and how many failed, along with the failure type.
Backwards compatible¶
Backups created with BA Classic v11 can be tested once you have upgraded to v12 or later.
Pre-v12 backups can be tested. Test restore jobs can be created for backups that were created and run with v11. If file hashes are not available in old backups, only the file reading tests are performed. See Test Restore Backwards Compatibility Table.
Frequently asked questions¶
How often should I run Test Restore?¶
We recommend that you run Test Restore at least once a week, e.g. during the weekend.
Can I test existing backups created before the v12 upgrade?¶
Yes, you can test backups created with v11 and earlier – see Test Restore Backwards Compatibility Table.
Which backup engines can run a file integrity test?¶
See Backup Engine Support Matrix.
Do I need a separate license to run Test Restore?¶
No, the Test Restore feature is included with every BackupAssist core license.
Does running Test Restore successfully mean that my backups are guaranteed to be uncorrupted?¶
If you run a successful full test restore, backups are guaranteed to be uncorrupted at the time the test was completed.
Does Test Restore require any additional disk space to temporarily store the files into?¶
No, the Test Restore feature does not need any disk space to store any temporary files.