The Top 7 Backup Solutions for Microsoft Entra ID
Discover the top Microsoft Entra ID backup solutions. Explore their capabilities and features like storage and retention, encryption, and granular recovery.
Written by Mirren McDade
Technical Review by Laura Iannini
The Top 7 Backup Solutions for Microsoft Entra ID include:
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1.
AvePoint Cloud Backup
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2.
Barracuda Entra ID Backup
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3.
HYCU
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4.
Keepit Backup and Recovery for Microsoft Entra ID
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5.
ManageEngine RecoveryManager Plus
The best way to minimize downtime and avoid continuity issues is to have a comprehensive backup and recovery solution in place. These solutions put organizations in a more secure position when it comes to recovering from a mistake or attack, ensuring as little downtime as possible.
Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory) is Microsoft’s cloud-based Identity and Access Management (IAM) service. Entra ID serves as the user directory for Microsoft 365, Azure, and thousands of third-party applications, going beyond simply storing user data by also underpinning authentication, authorization, and policy enforcement across the organization’s cloud ecosystem. Organizations use Entra ID to manage users, devices, and applications across hybrid and cloud environments.
While it does offer robust security features, organizations are advised not to make the mistake of believing that Microsoft fully backs up and restores all Entra ID data in the event of loss or compromise. Like many providers, Microsoft follows a shared responsibility model, meaning it is up to the organizations themselves to make sure they have a reliable backup and recovery strategy in place for their Entra ID environment.
To help you find the right backup solution to cover Microsoft Entra ID data, we have put together a list of good options to consider.
AvePoint Cloud Backup
AvePoint Cloud Backup is a specialized backup and recovery solution for Microsoft Entra ID, designed to safeguard digital assets and ensure business continuity in the face of outages, data corruption, and unauthorized changes.
Why We Picked AvePoint Cloud Backup: We appreciate its comprehensive backup capabilities, offering automatic backups and the retention of 100% of data for as long as needed. This ensures robust protection and quick recovery of Microsoft Entra ID.
AvePoint Cloud Backup Best Features: Key features include automatic backups, long-term data retention, item-level restore for Entra ID, protection against accidental misconfigurations, and defense against traditional cyber threats like social engineering and credential compromise. It integrates seamlessly with Microsoft Entra ID to enhance identity protection.
What’s great:
- Automatic backups ensure no data loss
- Long-term data retention for extended recovery options
- Enhances Microsoft Entra ID’s identity protection
- Quick restoration of security policies and access configurations
What to consider:
- Focused solely on Microsoft Entra ID, not a broader backup solution
Pricing: For detailed pricing, visit AvePoint directly to request a personalised quote.
Who it’s for: AvePoint Cloud Backup is ideal for businesses reliant on Microsoft Entra ID, particularly those needing robust backup and recovery solutions to maintain business continuity and protect against data loss and cyber threats.
Barracuda Entra ID Backup
Barracuda Entra ID Backup is a specialized cloud backup solution designed to protect and recover Microsoft Entra ID data. It offers cost-effective backup services with unlimited storage and retention, surpassing Microsoft’s 30-day retention limit.
Why We Picked Barracuda Entra ID Backup: We liked its unlimited storage and retention capabilities, allowing organizations to restore data from any point in time. Its seamless integration with Microsoft 365 makes it a great solution for businesses already using Microsoft services.
Barracuda Entra ID Backup Key Features: Features include secure, cloud-based backup and recovery, unlimited storage and retention, AES-256 encryption in transit and at rest, and flexible recovery options. It integrates seamlessly with Microsoft 365 and is included at no extra cost for users of Barracuda Cloud-to-Cloud Backup for Microsoft 365.
What’s great:
- Exceeds Microsoft’s 30-day data retention limit
- Unlimited storage and retention capabilities
- User-friendly, cloud-based UI for easy data management
- AES-256 encryption ensures data security
- Simple, all-inclusive per-user pricing
What to consider:
- Primarily focused on Entra ID data, may not suit broader backup needs
- Stand-alone pricing may be less competitive for some organizations
Pricing: Barracuda Entra ID Backup is available as a stand-alone product or included with Barracuda Cloud-to-Cloud Backup for Microsoft 365. Visit Barracuda’s website to schedule a demo and for detailed pricing.
Who it’s for: Barracuda Entra ID Backup is ideal for businesses using Microsoft Entra ID and seeking a cost-effective, secure backup solution with unlimited retention. It’s particularly valuable for organizations requiring robust data recovery options.
HYCU
HYCU for Microsoft Entra ID provides robust, immutable data protection and swift recovery solutions specifically for Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD), safeguarding organizations against ransomware and data loss.
Why We Picked HYCU for Microsoft Entra ID: We appreciate its ability to offer immutable, ransomware-proof backups and rapid recovery, ensuring minimal downtime and financial loss. The solution’s one-click restore feature simplifies the process of reinstating critical configurations.
HYCU for Microsoft Entra ID Key Features: The solution includes immutable backups, one-click restore for entire tenants or specific elements, protection against third-party risks, and automated backup policies with ‘backup assurance’. It also extends protection to other SaaS applications like Okta, providing a unified view for managing multiple solutions.
What’s great:
- Swift recovery minimizes downtime and financial impact
- Immutable backups protect against ransomware
- One-click restore simplifies data recovery
- Protects multiple SaaS applications from a single interface
- Automated backups reduce manual effort and risk
What to consider:
- May require additional setup for integration with other SaaS applications
- Dependent on the reliability of the public cloud storage used for backups
Pricing: For pricing details or to sign up for their free trial, visit HYCU’s website directly.
Who it’s for: HYCU for Microsoft Entra ID is ideal for businesses relying on Microsoft Entra ID who need robust, automated backup and recovery solutions to protect against data loss and ransomware, particularly those managing multiple SaaS applications.
Keepit Backup and Recovery for Microsoft Entra ID
Keepit Backup and Recovery for Microsoft Entra ID provides robust data protection against outages, compromises, and misconfigurations. Widely praised for its ease-of-use, Keepit ensures secure backups and swift, accurate recovery of Microsoft Entra ID data in a vendor-independent cloud.
Why We Picked Keepit Backup and Recovery for Microsoft Entra ID: We like its unmatched coverage of Microsoft Entra ID objects and policies, including Intune, BitLocker, and LAPS. Its fast recovery capabilities allow for quick rollback of changes, minimizing the impact of data loss.
Keepit Backup and Recovery for Microsoft Entra ID Best Features: Key capabilities include outstanding ease-of-use, rollback of changes, highest security with immutable backups, multiple restore options, unlimited retention up to 99 years, integration with SIEM, and monitoring and analytics for backup integrity.
What’s great:
- Broad coverage of Microsoft Entra ID objects and policies
- Fast recovery and rollback of changes
- High security with immutable backups in a vendor-independent cloud
- Flexible restore options for bulk or granular recovery
- Unlimited retention customizable up to 99 years
What to consider:
- May require additional configuration for advanced SIEM integration
Pricing: Keepit offer three plans, which include Business Essentials for smaller IT organizations and organizations with limited retention requirements, Enterprise Unlimited for companies with larger IT organizations and extended retention requirements, and Governance Plus for organizations in highly regulated sectors with stringent compliance requirements. To request a quote, visit Keepit’s website and contact sales.
Who it’s for: Keepit Backup and Recovery for Microsoft Entra ID is ideal for organizations relying on Microsoft Entra ID who need comprehensive, secure, and flexible data protection and recovery solutions.
ManageEngine RecoveryManager Plus
ManageEngine RecoveryManager Plus is a robust backup and restoration solution specifically designed for Microsoft Entra ID environments. It offers comprehensive backup capabilities, allowing businesses to safeguard all items within their Entra ID and restore them to any previous state with ease.
Why We Picked ManageEngine RecoveryManager Plus: We appreciate its ability to perform both full and incremental backups, ensuring data integrity and efficient storage management. The solution’s attribute and object-level restoration feature allow for precise recovery operations.
ManageEngine RecoveryManager Plus Best Features: Key features include backup of all Entra ID objects, scheduled and incremental backups, attribute and object-level restoration, restore preview, and multiple storage options such as on-premises, NAS, and cloud repositories like Azure Blob Storage, Azure Files, AWS S3, and Wasabi. Integrations include seamless compatibility with Microsoft Entra ID.
What’s great:
- Comprehensive backup of all Entra ID objects
- Flexible scheduling and storage options
- Attribute and object-level restoration for precise recovery
- Easy deployment and user-friendly interface
- Role-based delegation with detailed audit reports
What to consider:
- May require initial setup time for complex environments
- Custom notification profiles could be more intuitive
Pricing: For a Demo or a Quote, contact ManageEngine on their website.
Who it’s for: ManageEngine RecoveryManager Plus is ideal for businesses relying on Microsoft Entra ID who require a reliable, flexible backup and restoration solution to maintain data integrity and operational continuity.
Redstor
Redstor Microsoft Entra ID Backup provides robust, immutable backup and recovery solutions specifically for Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD), ensuring comprehensive protection and rapid recovery from data loss and ransomware attacks.
Why We Picked Redstor Microsoft Entra ID Backup: We appreciate its comprehensive protection across all Entra ID capabilities, including users, groups, roles, admin units, and conditional access policies. Its unlimited retention and granular recovery options stand out for their ability to restore data quickly and efficiently.
Redstor Microsoft Entra ID Backup Best Features: Key features include protection for users, groups, roles, admin units, and conditional access policies. It offers unlimited retention, granular recovery, and automated tracking. Integrations include seamless compatibility with Microsoft 365, Azure Blob, and Intune across various platforms.
What’s great:
- Immutable, ransomware-resistant backups
- Fast recovery with unlimited retention
- Granular recovery for individual accounts and configurations
- Automated tracking of configuration changes
- Multi-tenant console for managing multiple clients
What to consider:
- May require setup time for complex environments
- Advanced features might need additional configuration
Pricing: Redstor offers a ‘pay-as-you-grow’ system that allows organizations to scale up or down in line with their needs. For detailed pricing, contact Redstor directly.
Who it’s for: Redstor Microsoft Entra ID Backup is ideal for businesses relying on Microsoft Entra ID, especially those needing robust, fast recovery solutions to mitigate risks from data loss and ransomware.
Veeam Backup for Microsoft Entra ID
Veeam Data Cloud for Microsoft Entra ID is an all-inclusive backup service designed to protect Microsoft Entra ID data with unlimited storage. It ensures business continuity, security, and compliance through effortless recovery and proactive protection.
Why We Picked Veeam Data Cloud for Microsoft Entra ID: We like the unlimited storage and the seamless interface that simplifies data protection. It offers comprehensive backup for users, groups, application registrations, and other objects.
Veeam Data Cloud for Microsoft Entra ID Best Features: Features include unlimited storage, comprehensive backup for Entra ID objects, proactive protection with visibility and control over changes, and effortless recovery of users, groups, attributes, app registrations, logs, and other objects. It is a fully managed SaaS solution that offloads maintenance, updates, and security fixes to experts.
What’s great:
- Unlimited storage for all your backup needs
- Comprehensive backup for all Entra ID objects
- Proactive protection to ensure business continuity
- Effortless and reliable recovery of data
- Fully managed SaaS solution reduces IT workload
What to consider:
- May require initial setup and configuration
- Dependent on Microsoft Entra ID for functionality
Pricing: Veeam offer three packages, which include Standalone Entra ID for $1 USD/enabled Entra ID member per user/month, Veeam Data Cloud Flex Bundle for $3.33 USD/Microsoft 365 user/month, and Veeam Data Cloud Premium Bundle for $7/Microsoft 365 user/month. You can also request a personalized demo.
Who it’s for: Veeam Data Cloud for Microsoft Entra ID is best suited for businesses relying on Microsoft Entra ID who need a robust, fully managed backup solution to ensure data protection, business continuity, and compliance.
How to Choose the Right Microsoft Entra ID Backup Solution?
Selecting the right backup solution for Microsoft Entra ID involves aligning the platform with your organization’s identity management needs, compliance requirements, and recovery objectives. Consider these key steps to make an informed choice:
- Assess Your Entra ID Environment: Evaluate the scope of your Entra ID data (e.g., users, groups, roles, policies, app registrations) and dependencies (e.g., Microsoft 365, Azure apps) to ensure comprehensive backup coverage.
- Define Recovery and Compliance Goals: Identify Recovery Time Objectives (RTO), retention needs, and regulatory standards (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA) to prioritize granular restores and audit-ready reporting, given Microsoft’s 30-day retention limit for soft-deleted objects.
- Prioritize Scalability and Automation: Choose a solution that scales with your tenant size and automates backups to minimize manual effort, especially for organizations with complex hybrid or cloud-only setups.
Focus on critical features to ensure robust data protection and efficient recovery:
- Comprehensive Object Backup: Look for solutions that back up all Entra ID objects, including users, groups, roles, conditional access policies, and app registrations, to protect against accidental deletions or cyberattacks.
- Granular and Point-in-Time Recovery: Prioritize platforms with item-level restores and point-in-time recovery to quickly reinstate specific objects or configurations without rebuilding from scratch.
- Immutable and Secure Storage: Ensure AES-256 encryption, air-gapped or immutable backups, and role-based access to safeguard data against ransomware and unauthorized changes, with flexible storage options like cloud or BYOS (Bring Your Own Storage).
- Automation and Monitoring: Verify automated daily backups, real-time monitoring, and change tracking to detect misconfigurations or malicious changes, reducing downtime and ensuring data integrity.
Balance functionality with usability to maximize adoption and efficiency:
- User-Friendly Interface: Avoid complex platforms that burden admins, opting for intuitive dashboards and self-service recovery options to simplify management and speed up restores.
- Vendor Support Quality: Select providers with 24/7 support, detailed documentation, and resources like training or forums to assist with setup, recovery, and compliance reporting.
- Testing and Trials: Use demos, free trials, or independent user reviews to validate backup reliability, restore speed, and integration with Microsoft 365 or Azure before committing.
Summary and Key Takeaways
Our guide to the leading Microsoft Entra ID backup solutions provides a comprehensive overview of platforms designed to protect critical identity data and ensure rapid recovery for business continuity. The article evaluates tools based on features like comprehensive object backups, granular recovery, immutable storage, and automation, catering to organizations of all sizes. It emphasizes balancing scalability, security, and usability to address Microsoft’s limited native backup capabilities, safeguard against data loss, and ensure compliance in hybrid or cloud environments where Entra ID is a prime target for cyberattacks.
Key Takeaways:
- Holistic Identity Protection: Top solutions back up all Entra ID objects, including policies and app registrations, to prevent disruptions from deletions or misconfigurations.
- Rapid and Precise Recovery: Choose platforms with granular, point-in-time restores to recover specific settings quickly, minimizing operational downtime.
- Secure and Compliant: Prioritize tools with immutable backups and compliance reporting to meet GDPR or SOC 2 standards, extending beyond Microsoft’s 30-day retention.
What Do You Think?
We’ve explored the leading Microsoft Entra ID backup solutions, highlighting how these tools protect identity data with automated backups, granular recovery, and robust security. Now, we’d love to hear your perspective—what’s your experience with Entra ID backup platforms? Are features like point-in-time recovery, immutable storage, or compliance tools critical for your organization’s identity management strategy?
Selecting the right backup solution can transform how you ensure Entra ID resilience, but challenges like setup complexity or restore performance can arise. Have you found a standout platform that’s simplified your data protection, or encountered hurdles with scalability or usability? Share your insights to help other organizations navigate the Entra ID backup landscape and choose the best tool for their needs.
Let us know which solution you recommend to help us improve our list!
FAQs
Everything You Need To Know About Backups for Microsoft Entra ID (FAQs)
Entra ID is the foundation for user authentication and authorization across the Microsoft ecosystem. A backup ensures that access to applications and data remains available even in the event of a disaster or incident, preventing downtime and productivity loss.
Key Reasons for Backing Up Entra ID:
- Protect Critical Identity Data: Entra ID stores essential identity data, including user accounts, group memberships, application registrations, conditional access policies, role assignments, and device identities. Accidental deletions, malicious alterations, or corruption during system integrations or updates can render this data inaccessible. Without a backup, recovery is often time-consuming, incomplete, or impossible due to limited native restore capabilities in Entra ID.
- Mitigate Downtime Risks: If Entra ID data becomes unavailable, employees may lose access to essential resources, halting business operations. A robust backup ensures rapid recovery, minimizing operational disruptions and maintaining workforce productivity.
- Defend Against Cyberattacks: Attackers target Entra ID because compromising identity data can cripple an organization. Ransomware, data deletion, or unauthorized changes are common threats. Microsoft retains Entra ID data for only 30 days, and native recovery options are limited, making third-party backups essential to avoid paying ransom demands or facing prolonged recovery efforts.
- Shared Responsibility Model: Microsoft emphasizes that while they manage the Entra ID platform, customers are responsible for protecting their data. Microsoft recommends regular backups to ensure organizations can recover from data loss incidents independently.
- Compliance and Governance: Many industries require data retention and recovery capabilities to meet regulatory standards (e.g., GDPR, HIPAA, SOC). Backups help organizations demonstrate compliance by ensuring identity data is recoverable and auditable.
An effective Entra ID backup strategy must encompass all critical components to enable comprehensive recovery. The following elements should be included:
- Users and Groups: User accounts, attributes (e.g., names, email addresses, MFA settings), and group memberships (including dynamic groups).
- Security and Conditional Access Policies: Policies governing authentication, access controls, and risk-based conditions.
- Application Registrations and Configurations: Enterprise applications, service principals, and their permissions, including API and OAuth settings.
- Device Identities: Managed and registered devices, including BitLocker recovery keys and compliance states.
- Directory Role Assignments: Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) assignments, such as Global Administrator or Application Administrator roles.
- Administrative Units: Configurations for scoped administrative access.
- Audit and Sign-In Logs: Logs for tracking user activity and changes (where supported by backup solutions).
- Custom Domains: Domain configurations and DNS settings tied to Entra ID.
Backup frequency depends on the organization’s size, Entra ID usage, and risk profile. As a general rule:
- Daily Backups: Recommended for most organizations to capture frequent changes, such as user updates or policy modifications.
- Multiple Daily Backups: For high-transaction environments (e.g., large enterprises or those with frequent integrations), consider multiple incremental backups per day.
- Retention Periods: Retain backups for at least 30–90 days, aligning with compliance requirements or recovery needs. Long-term retention (e.g., 1–7 years) may be necessary for regulated industries.
Automated backup solutions are ideal for ensuring consistency and reducing administrative overhead. Manual backups are prone to errors and may not scale for complex Entra ID environments.
Microsoft Entra ID provides limited native recovery capabilities, which are insufficient for comprehensive data protection:
- 30-Day Soft Delete: Deleted users, groups, and applications are recoverable within 30 days, but only in specific scenarios and with limited granularity.
- No Full Restore: Native tools do not support point-in-time or granular restoration for all objects, such as conditional access policies or role assignments.
- Manual Recovery Challenges: Restoring data without a third-party solution requires manual reconfiguration, which is error-prone and time-consuming.
- No Protection Against Corruption: Native options do not address data corruption or malicious changes that go unnoticed within the 30-day window.
Third-party backup solutions bridge these gaps by offering automated, granular, and long-term recovery capabilities tailored to Entra ID.
To maximize the effectiveness of Entra ID backups, organizations should adopt the following best practices:
- Audit Backup Coverage: Regularly verify that all critical Entra ID components (users, policies, applications, etc.) are included in backups. Update backup scopes as new features or configurations are added.
- Encrypt Backups: Ensure backups are encrypted both in transit and at rest to protect sensitive identity data from unauthorized access.
- Secure Storage: Store backups in a separate, secure location (e.g., a different cloud tenant or isolated storage account) to prevent compromise during an attack on the primary Entra ID environment.
- Test Recovery Regularly: Conduct simulated recovery exercises to validate backup integrity and ensure recovery processes work as expected. Test both full and granular restores.
- Automate Backups: Use automated tools to schedule and manage backups, reducing the risk of human error and ensuring consistency.
- Integrate with Disaster Recovery Plans: Align Entra ID backups with broader disaster recovery and business continuity strategies, ensuring identity restoration is prioritized during outages.
- Monitor and Alert: Implement monitoring for backup failures or anomalies and set up alerts to address issues promptly.
- Document Recovery Procedures: Maintain clear, up-to-date documentation for recovery processes, including roles and responsibilities, to streamline operations during an incident.
- Stay Compliant: Ensure backup retention and recovery processes meet regulatory requirements, such as data residency or auditability standards.
- Choose a Reputable Backup Solution: Select a third-party backup provider with proven Entra ID expertise, robust security features, and compliance certifications.
Failing to back up Entra ID exposes organizations to significant risks:
- Prolonged Downtime: Without backups, recovering from data loss can take days or weeks, disrupting business operations.
- Financial Losses: Downtime, ransom payments, or regulatory fines can result in substantial costs.
- Data Loss: Permanent loss of critical identity data, such as user accounts or policies, may be unrecoverable after Microsoft’s 30-day retention period.
- Reputation Damage: Inability to restore access quickly can erode customer and employee trust.
Compliance Violations: Lack of recoverable data may lead to non-compliance with industry regulations, risking penalties.
Third-party backup solutions offer advanced features that complement and extend native Entra ID capabilities:
- Granular Recovery: Restore individual objects, such as a single user or policy, without affecting the entire tenant.
- Long-Term Retention: Store backups for months or years to meet compliance or audit requirements.
- Automated Scheduling: Eliminate manual processes with daily or incremental backups.
- Cross-Tenant Recovery: Restore data to a different Entra ID tenant for added flexibility during recovery.
- Enhanced Security: Provide encryption, secure storage, and role-based access controls for backups.
- Simplified Management: Offer user-friendly dashboards and reporting to monitor backup status and recovery operations.
Popular third-party solutions include Veeam, AvePoint, SkyKick, and Spanning, each with tailored features for Entra ID backup and recovery.
Written By
Mirren McDade is a senior writer and journalist at Expert Insights, spending each day researching, writing, editing and publishing content, covering a variety of topics and solutions, and interviewing industry experts. She is an experienced copywriter with a background in a range of industries, including cloud business technologies, cloud security, information security and cyber security, and has conducted interviews with several industry experts. Mirren holds a First Class Honors degree in English from Edinburgh Napier University.
Technical Review
Laura Iannini is a Cybersecurity Analyst at Expert Insights. With deep cybersecurity knowledge and strong research skills, she leads Expert Insights’ product testing team, conducting thorough tests of product features and in-depth industry analysis to ensure that Expert Insights’ product reviews are definitive and insightful. Laura also carries out wider analysis of vendor landscapes and industry trends to inform Expert Insights’ enterprise cybersecurity buyers’ guides, covering topics such as security awareness training, cloud backup and recovery, email security, and network monitoring. Prior to working at Expert Insights, Laura worked as a Senior Information Security Engineer at Constant Edge, where she tested cybersecurity solutions, carried out product demos, and provided high-quality ongoing technical support. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Cybersecurity from the University of West Florida.