Offsite Backup Provider BitLeap Adds VMWare Environments

Offsite backup provider BitLeap has extended LeapServ software to customer provided VMware environments.

The new LeapServVM product will consist of a custom built VM system file supplied to the customer by BitLeap, which can be loaded into existing VMware environments to perform all of the services typically provided by a dedicated LeapServ network appliance. The LeapServVM will be a licensed copy of BitLeap’s LeapServ technology when bundled with data backup or e-mail archiving services. While active, the software and its performance will be fully managed by BitLeap just like any traditional physical LeapServ appliance.

BitLeap’s CEO Guy Suter comments: "The ability to setup a LeapServ on virtual machines will greatly expand the implementation and deployment options available to our customers. We have created a system to custom build LeapServ software to specific customer needs, which will enable us to support a wide range of VMware environments. We are excited to offer this new option and to see the innovative ways it will be put to use."

Recommended Uses
BitLeap recommends that businesses consider the LeapServVM product in environments where server space or power is limited or expensive, such as data co-location centers, and the volume of data to backup is less than one terabyte.

Like all LeapServ products, one of the major benefits to the LeapServVM is that its core backup methodology is agent-less, allowing users to backup data from virtually all systems through standard network protocols.

The LeapServVM product can also be beneficial when customers would like to phase in or evaluate offsite data backup technology from BitLeap. Depending on the nature of the VMware environment, dedicated LeapServ appliances are generally recommended when the amount of data being backed up exceeds a few hundred gigabytes so that the LeapServVM instance will not need to use a large volume of storage or system resources to process the backups and offsite replication.

Pricing
The LeapServVM software license and file creation fee for up to 500 gigabytes of backup storage is $500 and for up to 1 terabyte of backup storage is $750.