Item: Zerto
Rating: 8
Author: Rodney Carlson

Overall Satisfaction with Zerto

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Zerto for [the] replication of our VMs across the whole organization. Replication is made to a DR site 3 hours away with an RTO of 4 to 8 seconds. There is currently 48Tb being replicated. We hold normal copies for 3 days. We use Zerto's long-term retention and hold daily copies for 7 days, weekly copies for 1 month, monthly copies for 12 months, and yearly for 7 years. It fulfills our company [backup] policy for a financial institution.

Pros and Cons

Pros

A single web interface is nice
Alerting is good for offline machines not being replicated
Able to use a mobile application to view status in real time
Support is responsive and excellent
Works on all hardware

Cons

Not all tools work with Hyper-V, it is based on VMware

Return on Investment

Compared to previous method of server restoration, the time needed is significantly less and much quicker.

Support Rating

Support is responsive and stays with it until issues are resolved. Wish they had a better knowledge of Hyper-V.

Key Insights

Do you think Zerto delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Zerto's feature set?

Yes

Did Zerto live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Zerto go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Zerto again?

Yes

Usability

Works great. Some features are not available for Hyper-V; reason for my rating of 8.

Likelihood to Recommend

Works really well when test restorations are needed and have to be reported for audits. I wish there was more support/knowledge on dealing with a MS Hyper-V environment. Support personnel do the best they can knowing little about Hyper-V; most know VMWare. Seemed a little expensive, but over time it is well worth the price.

Using Zerto

Users and Roles

4 - Mainly monitoring if backups are being done reliably. Also generating reports on backups for auditing purposes.

Support Headcount Required

2 - I and one other person are all that is needed to maintain the system. It simply works.

Business Processes Supported

Reports for auditing needs
Real time status on a mobile application
Not a complicated web interface

Innovative Uses

For testing we have used alternative backup machines and locations, all worked
Recovered files for others using Zerto
Tested new network circuits with a recovered test machine

Future Planned Uses

Backup to the cloud are anticipated in the future

Likelihood to Renew

It solves problems and works as designed. Easy to manage and support is excellent.

Other Software Used

Veeam Backup & Replication, Commvault Activate, Rubrik

Evaluating Zerto and Competitors

Products Replaced

Yes - Microsoft DPM

Key Differentiators

Product Features
Product Usability

A key feature is the reporting ability.

Evaluation Lessons Learned

Originally started using the product through an acquisition of another company. We gave it a try and it really worked well. So we purchased more licenses and integrated [them] into our backup policy.

Alternatives Considered

Veeam Backup & Replication, Commvault Activate and Rubrik

Selected Zerto because it met our needs. Plus it was hardware agnostic. Definitely a good product with very good support.

Zerto Implementation

Implementation Rating

Make sure the end goal is in mind before implementing. That way results meet expectations.

Implementation Details / Implementation Partner

Implemented in-house

Crosslinking data and accounts between our management server and Zerto

Zerto Support

Zerto Customer Support Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Quick Resolution Good followup Knowledgeable team Problems get solved Kept well informed No escalation required Immediate help available Support understands my problem Quick Initial Response	None

Using Zerto

Usability Pros and Cons

Pros	Cons
Like to use Relatively simple Easy to use Technical support not required Well integrated Consistent Quick to learn Convenient Feel confident using Familiar	None