Turn Your QNAP, Synology, ASUSTOR, WD, or Netgear NAS into a VM Backup Appliance, claiming to improve backup performance by up to 2X and offload your IT infrastructure
It's no secret that I appreciate the simplicity of installing the NAKIVO Backup & Replication appliance in my home's personal datacenter. To get your most precious VMs protected easily and effectively, it takes only about 10 minutes to install and configure the appliance then kick off your first VM backup job, with the simple process demonstrated in my video and NAKIVO's video below.
Some folks may prefer to install NAKIVO on an existing Linux or Windows physical system or VM. Some might instead choose to back up their VMware VMs to a more distant NAS, to lessen the chance of flood or fire taking both out the cluster and the backups in an unfortunate event in home or in a business.
Note that I'm not talking about using the backup appliance to back up to an iSCSI or NFS attached NAS (which is an option). Instead, I'm talking about installing the NAKIVO software (with integrated web server) right onto your Linux-based NAS itself, a unique differentiator that NAKIVO offers over competitors.
Regardless of the topology chosen, it's still best to do an off-site backup as well, which NAKIVO also supports, calling the feature Backup Copy Offsite and to Cloud.
Recently, NAKIVO contacted me with the news that announcement, with the elements of the announcement most likely to be of interest to the home lab in the quoted excerpts below:
There's quite a lot that is news-worthy in 8.5 that I haven’t yet mentioned at TinkerTry. They've slimmed and optimized the code so much so that it can run on Raspberry Pi! Also glad for easier updates, and many more new features:
Replication From Backup
NAKIVO Backup & Replication v8.5.2 allows you to replicate your VMs directly from backups. This allows you to decrease the use of system resources required for replication as no additional snapshots of the production VM are created. The whole process can be automated with Job Chaining, meaning that a successful backup job can trigger the replication job with a backup as the source.
Software-Defined Backup Appliance Based on FreeNAS
Install NAKIVO Backup & Replication v8.5.2 on FreeNAS operating system to turn your PC or server into a powerful backup appliance. With the introduction of NAKIVO’s backup appliance based on FreeNAS, you can use the hardware of your choice (or even repurpose your existing hardware) to run and store backups in an efficient and cost-effective manner.
Windows Server 2019 Support
NAKIVO Backup & Replication v8.5.2 can be installed on Microsoft Windows Server 2019. If you decide to upgrade your environment, you can be certain that NAKIVO Backup & Replication is fully compatible and ready to protect your critical business data.
Automated Update
NAKIVO Backup & Replication v8.5.2 automates the update process letting you stay up-to-date with frequent software releases. Install updates in a few clicks right from the web interface and get access to all the latest features and improvements as soon as they are available.
Ransomware-Proof Mini Backup Appliance Based on Raspberry Pi
Having a small footprint, NAKIVO Backup & Replication v8.5.2 can be installed on Raspberry Pi, which allows you to create a portable, ransomware-proof backup appliance. With modest pricing and compact size, Raspberry Pi is the perfect means to protect your data securely and affordably.
Note that NAKIVO offers NFR (Not For Resale) downloads to many IT Professionals, which I explain here:
If you are a VMUG member, VMware vExpert, VCP, VSP, VTSP, or VCI you can receive a FREE two-socket Not For Resale (NFR) license of NAKIVO Backup & Replication for one year and use it in your home or work lab.
The NFR licenses are available for non-production use only, including educational, lab testing, evaluation, training, and demonstration purposes.
Apply here.
The file is currently named: NAKIVO_Backup_Replication_VA_v8.5.2_Full_Solution_NFR.ova
I have successfully completed my initial testing by doing a full backup using NAKIVO 8.5.2 OVA with VMware vSphere 6.7 Update 1 and a restore, and both worked flawlessly. I used a local 4GB SATA SSD for those tests, using the OVA appliance version of NAKIVO. I haven't had a chance to test on my loaner Synology DiskStation DS1618+ NAS yet.
It works! NAKIVO Backup & Replication 8.5.2It works! VMware vSphere 6.7 Update 2VMware vSphere 6.7 Update 2 view of my test server, 6.7.0 Build 13006603 is 6.7 Update 2
NAKIVO - Feb 11 2019 - NAKIVO Backup & Replication – Installation, Configuration, and Backup
Admittedly, the refreshed UI means my somewhat dated v5.7 deep dive video below looks a little different, but the install and initial backup functionality still works much the same.
Full Disclosure: "TinkerTry.com, LLC" is registered as a NAKIVO Bronze Partner, mostly to help get notified of latest news and code releases. I get no special early-access, anybody can sign up for the betas. All TinkerTry site advertising goes through middle-man BuySellAds, and NAKIVO has run ads on TinkerTry through BuySellAds off and on the past few years. NAKIVO does know if you found their affiliate link from my site, which means the possibility of reseller commissions if you eventually upgrade to one of their paid offerings. Here's their pricing.
TinkerTry - PCs, EVs, home tech, efficiency and more, including virtualization. My opinions here. IT Professional offering part-time consulting.
These systems still work great for many even 9+ years later, mine included, even with (unsupported) vSphere 8 and Windows 11 Version 21H2. But unless you added the optional TPM module, it may be the end of the line as far as repurposing them for running the latest Windows 11 Version 24H2 and beyond.
After 6 successful years testing then shipping well over 1,000 Xeon D Bundles, Wiredzone had to stop SuperServer bundles in mid-2021 due to cost, supply, and logistics challenges. Bare bones system sales continued for years longer.
What's next in 2025? I don't yet have my answer for my home lab, especially now that VCF certification is required to keep non-production home lab licenses going, even as a vExpert and VMUG Advantage EVALExperience customer.
As for a SuperServer follow-on, the Xeon D-1700/2700 (Ice Lake D) was a minor refresh for 2023, with Xeon D-1800/2800 (Granite Rapids D) refresh slightly better in 2024, and hopefully Xeon 6 (Granite Rapids-D) much better in 2025 featuring PCIe Gen5, MCRDIMMs, and 100GbE networking, wow! Feb. 27 2025 update update looks promising, but pricey. Infortunately, it's become clear to me that Supermicro is less focuses on the mini-tower form factor these days.
As for the CPU industry, it's unfortunate that Pat Gelsinger was apparently ousted from Intel's helm in these challenging times, but I'm also grateful to have had the honor of working at VMware when he was the CIO there. I'll leave it at that, given the whole Broadcom thing.
These systems still work great for many even 9+ years later, mine included, even with (unsupported) vSphere 8 and Windows 11 Version 21H2. But unless you added the optional TPM module, it may be the end of the line as far as repurposing them for running the latest Windows 11 Version 24H2 and beyond.