Windows Server Backup
Outgrown the built-in tool? Managed, offsite, verified backup for your Windows Servers.
Windows Server ships with a free, built-in Windows Server Backup feature. It writes a copy to local or attached storage and that's about it. We pick up where it stops: an encrypted offsite copy in our UK ISO 27001 data centre, set up by our engineers, monitored every day, with verified test restores so you know recovery actually works.
Built-in Windows Server Backup vs managed backup
The built-in feature is fine for a quick local copy. For protection you can rely on after ransomware, hardware failure or a site incident, here is the difference.
| Built-in Windows Server Backup | Managed backup from HA Hosting | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the copy lives | Local or attached storage only | Offsite, in our UK ISO 27001 data centre |
| Setup and configuration | You configure and maintain it | Set up and tuned to your SLA by our engineers |
| Monitoring | No alerting, fails quietly | Watched daily, failures chased and fixed |
| Restore testing | Manual, if you remember | Regular verified test restores with a report |
| Ransomware resilience | On the same network, can be encrypted too | Offsite and encrypted, with immutable options |
| Retention and versioning | Limited | Flexible retention to match your policy |
| Who manages it | You | Us, reported back to you |
What our Windows Server backup adds
Managed backup
Hand it off entirely. We choose the best software for your environment, install it, set the schedules, watch every job and run verified restores.
- Done for you by UK-based engineers
- Veeam or Acronis, chosen to fit
- Daily monitoring and reporting
- Verified test restores
Self-service backup
Prefer to run it yourself? Use our easy Acronis backup software pointed at our UK storage, and keep full control.
- Simple Acronis console
- Back up from anywhere
- UK offsite storage included
- Encryption and flexible scheduling
Both options protect your Windows Server from accidental deletion, malicious or departing staff, ransomware and malware, and help meet legal and compliance requirements, whether you run a single server or a hybrid estate mid-migration.
Which versions of Windows Server we back up
We back up every currently supported version of Windows Server, including 2016, 2019, 2022 and 2025, and we can still protect legacy 2012 / 2012 R2 estates while you plan an upgrade. Every backup includes a System State backup, which captures the operating system and boot files. You need the system state plus your data to perform a full server recovery.
How it works
- Short discovery call to size your data, pick the software and agree the SLA.
- We provision your encrypted repository in our UK data centre and configure the jobs.
- We run the first backup, seeding over the wire or by seed drive for larger datasets.
- We verify with a test restore and hand you the first report. From there it is managed by us and reported to you.
The 3-2-1 rule for Windows Server data
To keep your server data safe and hit your RTO and RPO targets, the standard advice is the 3-2-1 rule.
3 copies of your data
Keep three copies of your server data: the live data you use, a local backup copy for fast recovery, and an offsite copy to guarantee recovery. Three copies make total loss far less likely.
2 different media
Store the copies on two different media types so a single hardware fault cannot take out every copy at once. Our storage gives you a second, independent location for that offsite copy.
1 kept offsite
Keep at least one copy in a different physical location. If theft, fire or flood hits your main site, your offsite copy in our UK data centre is untouched and ready to restore from.
How can I be confident my server is protected?
A backup is no use if you cannot restore from it. We make sure every backup has worked and that current data is available for recovery: accurate reporting on your schedule, automated emails flagging any issue or confirming success, and test restores run against your own data so your Recovery Point and Recovery Time Objectives are proven, not assumed.
Windows Server Backup FAQs
What is Windows Server Backup?
Windows Server Backup is a free feature built into Windows Server that writes a copy of your data and system state to local or attached storage. It is useful for a basic local copy, but it has no offsite destination of its own, no monitoring or alerting, and no managed restore testing. Our service uses proven backup software to add the offsite copy, monitoring and verified restores that the built-in feature leaves to you.
Is the built-in Windows Server Backup enough on its own?
For a quick local copy, it does the job. For protection you can rely on, usually not: the copy sits on the same network, so ransomware can reach it; jobs can fail silently; and most people never test a restore until they badly need one. Adding an offsite, monitored, restore-tested copy is what turns a backup into a recovery plan.
Can you back up a Windows Server to an offsite location?
Yes. That is the core of the service. We hold an encrypted offsite copy of your Windows Server in our UK ISO 27001 data centre, with immutable options for ransomware resilience, and we can replicate to a second UK data centre if your risk profile needs it.
Which versions of Windows Server do you support?
Every currently supported version, including Windows Server 2016, 2019, 2022 and 2025, with a System State backup included for full server recovery. We can still back up legacy 2012 and 2012 R2 servers while you plan an upgrade, though those versions no longer receive Microsoft security updates.
How is managed Windows Server backup different from doing it myself?
You keep control of what is protected; we do the work. We install and configure the software, watch every job, fix failures, manage storage and licences, and run verified test restores. Doing it yourself with the built-in tool means configuring it, remembering to check it, and discovering whether a restore works at the worst possible moment.
Do you back up the system state and allow bare-metal recovery?
Yes. Every backup includes the system state, which captures the operating system and boot files. Combined with your data, that allows a full server recovery rather than just file-level restores.
How much does Windows Server backup cost?
Pricing is per environment, because data volume and retention vary. Tell us how much data you have, how often it changes and how long you need to keep restore points, and we will quote a fixed monthly fee covering the software, UK storage, monitoring and test restores. You can start self-service or managed from the buttons above.
How quickly can you restore a Windows Server?
It depends on data volume and your network speed to our data centre. For typical workloads we deliver file-level restores in minutes and full server recovery within a few hours, and we can build in replication and warm standby for the most critical servers to bring recovery time down to minutes.