CrashPlan Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services Reviews & Insights

Score7.7 out of 10

151 Reviews and Ratings

Community insights

TrustRadius Insights for CrashPlan are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, third party data sources.

Pros

Easy Deployment and Management: Users have consistently found the product to be easy to deploy and manage, making it convenient for administrators. Several reviewers mentioned that the setup process was straightforward and that they were able to configure the product in less than 30 minutes.

Complete Endpoint Protection: The complete endpoint protection provided by the product has been highly appreciated by users. Many reviewers highlighted how this feature is superior to relying on users to manually back up data, ensuring that important files are always protected.

Cloud Backup with Mobile Access: Users have praised the benefits of cloud backup offered by the product. They appreciate being able to back up their data even when they are out of the office, as well as having the convenience of accessing their files through a mobile app.

CrashPlan Reviews

20 Reviews

Professional, Scientific, and Technical ServicesAccounting1Architecture & Planning3Information Technology & Services8Marketing & Advertising1Research1Computer & Network Security4Photography1Veterinary1

CrashPlan ticks a lot of the boxes but support lets it down.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Incentivized

July 3, 2022

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I use CrashPlan as a budget point solution for small businesses and SOHO clients. This is predominantly to provide backup of critical data for individuals, families, or small businesses. It is not to provide system recovery backup but specifically focuses on the critical/important data an individual, family or small business would want to have backed up, off-site. Invariably it is used as the off-site component of a classic 3-2-1 backup plan.

Pros

Product is pretty easy to configure (Less than 30 minutes for a single computer)
Product generally grinds away without any noticeable issues
Regional cloud storage locations are fairly unique for this kind of product at this price point

Cons

Technical support
Support ticketing and lifecycle
Phone support hours
I think you should have an idea where the beef is by now

Likelihood to Recommend

Individuals (SOHO), families and SMBs, who have a tight budget for offsite critical company data backup are well suited to this product. Especially if you want your data to be hosted locally (Australia in our case). Larger companies, with higher requirements and budgets would be better served elsewhere. Especially when you consider the poor technical support. Although, to be fair, their poor support may just be issues with their Pro/SMB products, as opposed to their enterprise products. However, if that is the case it's a pretty poor show/indicator still.

David Jones

Consultant in Corporate at D & F IT Consultancy Pty Ltd (Computer & Network Security, 1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

8 years of experience

A great and simple cloud backup solution

Rating: 9 out of 10

Incentivized

May 28, 2022

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

CrashPlan was purchased to fill the gap with two file servers, that only backed up weekly. We have added CrashPlan to ensure that business critical data is replicated to the cloud, and has a suitable retention period to ensure that we're able to recover key files for as long as we need them.

Pros

Easy to setup
Clear pricing structure
Secure web management portal

Cons

Backup speeds are a little slow
Recovery of large numbers of files can be a little hard

Likelihood to Recommend

CrashPlan is the perfect solution for small / medium sized businesses that require a cloud backup solution for key files. We have found that it's been great in that scenario, the issues come if you have too larger a selection of data, or any specific security requirements, that aren't built into the product by default.

Verified User

Manager (Architecture & Planning company, 51-200 employees)

Vetted Review

5 years of experience

CrashPlan for the WIN

Rating: 6 out of 10

Incentivized

April 21, 2022

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I use CrashPlan for workstations and server file backups at many of my clients. It solves the issues of lost files and gives peace of mind that files are backed up with a good amount of retention. I manage about 15 different clients, 30 servers, and over 100 workstations.

Pros

Automated backup
Data retention
Ease of installation and management

Cons

Longer retention time- would like a year at least.
Server support-as of now I believe it i really just file backup.
Exchange an SQL backup options.

Likelihood to Recommend

I have pushed out implementation to workstations by just sending an email invitation and no real interaction is required-users just need to follow simple install instructions and default settings are adequate for almost all situations. Server deployment is a bit more involved but I have made it work. Many servers have over 1TB of data and they can have trouble finishing a daily and initial backup due to network and internet restrictions.

Matthew Dunn

Consultant in Information Technology at Silverback Networks Inc. (Information Technology & Services, 11-50 employees)

Vetted Review

5 years of experience

View profile

Cost Effective Flat Fee Backup Solution

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

August 1, 2019

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Code42 for cloud/offsite backups across our firm. It's inexpensive, easy to use and a great way to backup data offsite.

Pros

Cost effective
Easy to implement
Simple to Use

Cons

Does not allow you to backup data to a local file repository.
Backup speed varies.
Depending on how much data there is, it doesn't always complete a backup in one backup session.

Likelihood to Recommend

Code42 really works great if you aren't working with extremely large file sizes and are looking for a cloud backup solution. It's straightforward to implement and is very affordable. For smaller offices, backups are completed in a timely manner and are easier to migrate should you ever need to change servers. Support is available via phone or chat, which I like. For companies dealing with larger amounts of data (100s of GB), you may want to consider partnering Code42 with another product that allows data to be backed up locally. This would also allow flexibility in restoring data back onsite at a faster rate rather than waiting for large data files to be restored via the WAN. This is a consideration for any cloud backup solution, not just specific to Code42.

Verified User

Manager in Information Technology (Architecture & Planning company, 51-200 employees)

Vetted Review

3 years of experience

CrashPlan- secure cost-effective online backup for home and business

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

June 15, 2019

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Code42 provides a secure, cloud-based and on-premises backup solution for workstations, laptops, and servers. I am a user and a reseller with about 100 end users in various organizations. It is a low-profile and low-impact installation, easy to configure, and seamlessly and continuously backs up files, providing secure off-site backup with versioning and increments- allowing you to go back to pristine file versions in the case of ransomware. It protects against unintended deletes and lost or damaged computers, virus or other malware infections, and allows a company administrator access to archives in the case of legal or HR needs.

Pros

Protects against ransomware- in a worst-case scenario, you can retrieve all the files in the condition they were in before the attack.
Good interface- easy for users to restore their own files in case of an inadvertent deletion.
Highly configurable to manage bandwidth and local resources.
Can back up to the Code42 cloud and local storage devices.

Cons

Would like to see a way for company admins to lock a user out of their archive to prevent deletion for HR or legal reasons

Likelihood to Recommend

I use Code42 personally and resell to businesses with as few as two users. One business with 20 users has been a ransomware victim twice and we have recovered everything, files to databases, perfectly. I back up desktops, laptops, and servers, and use it for everything from inadvertent deletes to hardware failures. Backup is important but restores are critical, and the ability to see versions and intact archives and deleted files are well suited to any business that uses a computer. It's offsite and secure and runs in the background without consuming computer or bandwidth resources. I cannot think of any personal or business computer that doesn't need backing up, and off-site, encrypted, and secure archives that run without user intervention that not only allow restores but restoring from earlier versions is important for any scenario.

Michael Bartlett

President in Information Technology at Brandyhill.net, Inc. (Computer & Network Security, 1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

Reseller

5 years of experience

View profile

CrashPlan, the best backup system on the market

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

January 20, 2019

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Code42 is the one and only system I use to backup my entire business in a digital sense. I am a freelance professional photographer, so I backup my images, documents, emails, etc., on a regular basis. Having a good backup system in place is crucial as hard drives fail all the time and my clients count on me to retain their products.

Pros

Code42 is the most affordable backup system offering unlimited storage that I could find. I came from SOS Online Backup, which I ultimately decided to drop after my monthly rate for their unlimited plan increased by 20x.
With Code42's unlimited storage option, I don't have to worry about the fact that my backups are significant in space. As a photographer with thousands of images at stake, I need to run large backups often.
Code42 runs continuously and silently in the background of my desktop computer. It is truly "set and go", so I don't have to think about it when I'm away. It runs until the designated drive has been fully backed up to my cloud storage. It will then automatically email me once the backup is complete (or, it will email me if it encounters any errors).
Customer service is above par. Anytime I need help, a chat agent is available (chat is my communication preference), they are always friendly, and go above and beyond to resolve my needs.

Cons

Code42's desktop client was recently changed; the interface is different and, I feel, it has been simplified too much. I found myself looking for controls that are no longer there. For some, this might be a plus, but I liked to have more control and see more details of my backup.
When recovering files (in my case, this is most frequently images), you see files as files - I am not able to see a preview of an image. So I have to know the exact file name/number I am looking for.
Code42 discontinued their mobile app. In 2019, I can hardly believe this. I used the app on a regular basis, to access files while I was on the go.
The Code42 software is a bit of a memory hog, although this isn't a major complaint from me since I have a computer designated to only sit and run backups, and do nothing else.

Likelihood to Recommend

Code42 is great for individuals or small businesses who want to run large/unlimited backups at a low cost. The price coupled with great customer service make this a company I hope to stick with for a very long time. Be prepared for large backups to take a good deal of time to complete (though this will also vary dependent on your internet connection). If you find the desktop client to be underwhelming or confusing, just chat with an agent to resolve your issue.

Liz Wade

Photographer at Liz Wade Photography (Photography, 1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

View profile

CrashPlan cloud-based backup -- expensive but powerful

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

January 19, 2019

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

CrashPlan is used by a number of my clients to back up workstations, servers and NAS devices to the cloud. Most clients use CrashPlan to backup just mission critical machines, though some use it to back up all workstations. With CrashPlan set up properly, backups occur automatically every 15 min or when a file changes with no user intervention, allowing for peace of mind when it comes to protecting one's data.

Pros

CrashPlan is an extremely powerful and flexible backup program with multiple options of what files to backup, how often to back them up, how much CPU should be used during backup operations (both when a user is present and away), how much bandwidth should be used during backup (again both while a user is present and away), and a multitude of other options.
Unlike a number of other cloud-based backup services, CrashPlan can backup network drives (such as those from a Synology NAS) - this makes setting up a backup system a lot more simple and cost-effective, as you can connect multiple network drives to a single computer - and backup both that computer and the attached network drives.
CrashPlan keeps your backup history indefinitely. This means that if you delete a file, a year goes by, and you need to recover that file, you can use CrashPlan to do that. Most other cloud-based backup services only keep history for around 30 days before deleting them from the backup archive.
Another powerful feature, CrashPlan allows you to not only back up to the CrashPlan Central cloud, but also to an external drive or network drive. Essentially, you can use CrashPlan as an all-in-one backup solution for both local and cloud backups. The local backups are heavily compressed with data deduplication to save space on the backup destination, thus allowing you to keep a long history of backups.
The cloud-based backups can be heavily encrypted with a custom made encryption key that even CrashPlan can't recover.

Cons

The CrashPlan program installed on your computer is Java-based vs. a native application. While this makes development for CrashPlan easier, there are a lot of drawbacks to Java programs including more resources usage, less stability, and overall more clunky interface.
While this was also in the Pros category - CrashPlan is an extremely powerful and flexible program, which adds a great deal of complexity. Setting up CrashPlan isn't always a simple procedure, and depending on the complexity of your backup set, can take a while to tinker around with the settings to get everything to work properly.
The CrashPlan desktop program consists of a Java program front end, as well as a backend service - there are times when the backend service will crash, and the front end Java program will refuse to load. Typically, restarting the service or restarting the computer will resolve the issue, but sometimes more in-depth troubleshooting is required.
Perhaps one of the biggest downsides to CrashPlan is its price - at $10/month/computer CrashPlan is more than double the price of some existing backup services such as Backblaze (priced at $50/year/computer). To add salt to the wound, about a year and a half ago, CrashPlan discontinued their consumer options - which were very reasonably priced at $60/year for a single computer or a family plan priced at $150/year for up to 10 computers. When these options were discontinued, the cost of backing up with CrashPlan was effectively doubled for the same feature set.
Along with the previous example, CrashPlan had the option to back up to a remote machine on a different network with a free Crashplan account. This option was eliminated when the consumer line of services were discontinued.
While the backup service provided by CrashPlan are still first in class, the above two controversial changes have broken some trust between CrashPlan and its clients.

Likelihood to Recommend

CrashPlan is a very powerful and flexible online backup solution. The fact that it can backup network drives and back up to multiple locations is a feature not found in most competing solutions. In addition, CrashPlan's encryption is best in class, with the ability to create long and complex encryption keys that even CrashPlan can't recover. Finally, CrashPlan keeps your backup archives indefinitely, which can be an invaluable resource for businesses large and small. Unfortunately, CrashPlan is priced on the higher end compared to other solutions ($10/month/computer vs $50-$60/year/computer for competing services such as Backblaze). In addition, when CrashPlan discontinued their popular consumer line of backup services, a breach of trust with the company was created that has not been fully healed.

Aaron Pinsker

Owner in Information Technology at Colorado Computer Care (Information Technology and Services, 1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

6 years of experience

View profile

CrashPlan can save your bacon!

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

June 13, 2017

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We are using Crashplan Pro on one device. We backup to several destinations including the Code42 cloud. We are using Crashplan to backup data because we were not satisfied with the speed, versions, and reliability of backing up to tape.

Pros

Crashplan just runs quietly. It doesn't need much attention once configured properly.
I really like that I can go back to virtually any point in time and restore a file or group of files.
Crashplan deduplicates so you can have multiple versions of your files without taking much more disk space.
It is very easy and fast to restore files.

Cons

They are constantly updating Crashplan, They have already addressed areas that I was unhappy with. I don't have any current complaints.

Likelihood to Recommend

Almost anywhere that you want continuous backups. You wouldn't be able to backup a live database like Exchange. If you dump your database, you can back that up. I don't believe you would be able to restore a single email for instance. For backing up non database files, Crashplan is awesome.

Verified User

Employee (Architecture & Planning company, 11-50 employees)

Vetted Review

5 years of experience

Go champions!

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

January 20, 2017

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use CrashPlan for all our managed customers (Mac shops). We use it back up hundreds of users/devices including server or client workstation data, depending on our client needs and budget.

Pros

Continuous incremental backup
Reduplication and compression that really limits the storage needs
File level restore

Cons

Dashboard reliability
Client interface
Easier upgrade process

Likelihood to Recommend

I recommend CrashPlan to my friends, colleagues, customers and pretty much everybody that has data to back up on a computer or server. Their different plans (including free for local backups) are appealing for any scenario.

Cedric BARNET

Lead Technical Consultant in Information Technology (Computer & Network Security, 1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

5 years of experience

View profile

CrashPlan is Insurance Against Crashed Devices

Rating: 9 out of 10

Incentivized

August 31, 2016

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

CrashPlan was selected for our company to support a highly mobile user base. With a fast-growing company and lots of data being accessed, shared, and relied upon to do a job effectively, it is critical that we back up that data - and not by relying on users to understand when and where to save.

CrashPlan took the human error out of our backup plan. It guarantees data integrity, and our ability to service our users for a variety of needs. As an administrator, it gives me peace of mind that lost or stolen devices do not mean a loss of data. CryptoLockers don't scare me - now it's simply a matter of blowing away a machine and re-imaging with our CrashPlan backups. Accidentally deleted files can be restored in seconds, and if a user loses it somewhere in their mess of digital files, I can find it.

Pros

Device Refresh/Restore.
File Recovery.
Non-intrusive backups (no file sync!).

Cons

Administrative Portal.
File search across whole organization - a real loss of potential for expanding as a DLP product.
Deployment. It's doable, but it's not as easy as it should be.

Likelihood to Recommend

CrashPlan is great for any organization that is looking for a lightweight, but not light in feature, backup solution. There is no file sync, and there are lots of opportunity for visibility into what is being stored and where. Device refresh and restore is a breeze, and helpful in a time where Microsoft has left their Windows Easy Transfer tool in the dust for transitioning machines from Windows 7 to 10. CrashPlan is NOT a DLP tool, but has the potential to be. It's a little disappointing to have a tool that gives some insight, but not all of it.

Kayle Day

IT Ops Manager in Information Technology at Vets First Choice (Veterinary, 51-200 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

View profile

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CrashPlan cloud-based backup -- expensive but powerful

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

January 19, 2019

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Pros

CrashPlan is an extremely powerful and flexible backup program with multiple options of what files to backup, how often to back them up, how much CPU should be used during backup operations (both when a user is present and away), how much bandwidth should be used during backup (again both while a user is present and away), and a multitude of other options.
Unlike a number of other cloud-based backup services, CrashPlan can backup network drives (such as those from a Synology NAS) - this makes setting up a backup system a lot more simple and cost-effective, as you can connect multiple network drives to a single computer - and backup both that computer and the attached network drives.
CrashPlan keeps your backup history indefinitely. This means that if you delete a file, a year goes by, and you need to recover that file, you can use CrashPlan to do that. Most other cloud-based backup services only keep history for around 30 days before deleting them from the backup archive.
Another powerful feature, CrashPlan allows you to not only back up to the CrashPlan Central cloud, but also to an external drive or network drive. Essentially, you can use CrashPlan as an all-in-one backup solution for both local and cloud backups. The local backups are heavily compressed with data deduplication to save space on the backup destination, thus allowing you to keep a long history of backups.
The cloud-based backups can be heavily encrypted with a custom made encryption key that even CrashPlan can't recover.

Cons

The CrashPlan program installed on your computer is Java-based vs. a native application. While this makes development for CrashPlan easier, there are a lot of drawbacks to Java programs including more resources usage, less stability, and overall more clunky interface.
While this was also in the Pros category - CrashPlan is an extremely powerful and flexible program, which adds a great deal of complexity. Setting up CrashPlan isn't always a simple procedure, and depending on the complexity of your backup set, can take a while to tinker around with the settings to get everything to work properly.
The CrashPlan desktop program consists of a Java program front end, as well as a backend service - there are times when the backend service will crash, and the front end Java program will refuse to load. Typically, restarting the service or restarting the computer will resolve the issue, but sometimes more in-depth troubleshooting is required.
Perhaps one of the biggest downsides to CrashPlan is its price - at $10/month/computer CrashPlan is more than double the price of some existing backup services such as Backblaze (priced at $50/year/computer). To add salt to the wound, about a year and a half ago, CrashPlan discontinued their consumer options - which were very reasonably priced at $60/year for a single computer or a family plan priced at $150/year for up to 10 computers. When these options were discontinued, the cost of backing up with CrashPlan was effectively doubled for the same feature set.
Along with the previous example, CrashPlan had the option to back up to a remote machine on a different network with a free Crashplan account. This option was eliminated when the consumer line of services were discontinued.
While the backup service provided by CrashPlan are still first in class, the above two controversial changes have broken some trust between CrashPlan and its clients.

Likelihood to Recommend

Aaron Pinsker

Owner in Information Technology at Colorado Computer Care (Information Technology and Services, 1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

6 years of experience

View profile