Syncro Backups is a complete backup solution offering file-level backups to both local, network, and cloud storage destinations across any number of Windows assets. There are no minimums to meet and no startup costs.
Table of Contents
- Pricing
- Enabling Backups
- Adding Backups to a Policy
- Backups Overview per Asset
- Backups Dashboard
- Protected Items Templates
- Backup Permissions
- Backup Notifications
- Restoring a Backup
- Backups + Billing Clients
- Paying for Syncro Backups
- Backup Reporting
- FAQs
Pricing
Introductory Promotional Pricing
Syncro users can get introductory pricing of $4 USD per license, which includes 50 GB of pooled cloud storage. This will encompass as many licenses as you wish to purchase during the promotional period. Licenses purchased during the introductory period will remain discounted at $4 USD per license for the life of your Syncro account, so long as you actively maintain them.
Terms and Conditions
We'll provide at least six weeks advanced notice prior to the expiration of the promotional period. Promotional pricing applies to all backup licenses purchased within the Promotional Period. Backup licenses purchased during the Promotional Period will remain fixed at the promotional price, while all backup licenses purchased after the Promotional Period will be billed at the standard rate. If, at any time after the Promotional Period, your backup license quantity falls below the quantity purchased during the promotional period, you will have forfeited the promotional pricing on those licenses which were not renewed and any new licenses purchased will be at the standard rate.
Pricing After the Promotional Period Ends
Backups are priced at $5 USD per backup license per month. Each license includes 50GB of pooled cloud storage. Pooled storage means you can allocate that storage in any way you see fit across any number of assets. When you exceed your included allotment of cloud storage, you will be billed at a rate of $.05 cents per GB (monthly). There will be no minimum amount of storage you need to purchase and you will be billed for your exact consumption.
Billing will start as soon as Backups is enabled on a policy
Example: If Syncro Backups is enabled on a policy with 100 online assets, 100 installs will be triggered and this will provision 100 licenses. The licenses will be provisioned and billed for at this time instead of when the first backup action takes place.
If you want to deploy backups to a smaller number of assets, please clone your policy, enable backups, and assign that to the assets in question.
Enabling Backups
To get started using Backups, you will need to head to Admin > Syncro Backup > Preferences and select the checkbox to 'Enable Syncro Backups':
Once this has been checked, Syncro will begin preparing the backup. Once it is ready, the page will refresh and you will see that Backups are ready to use with an option to reorder the layout of the Backup Dashboard:
Branding
You can add an icon and Program Name and Company Name for Syncro Backups and how they will appear on the end-user's device:
The branding will appear in these areas of the end-user's device:
- Add remove programs (name and icon)
- Service name(s)
- Process name(s)
- Folder structure
- Registry entries
The icon must be a .ico file with dimensions 48x48, 64x64, or 128x128. Instructions on how to make a .ico file can be found here.
Once the Backup is successfully enabled, you can now enable it on assets through the Policies module.
Adding Backups to a Policy
After Backups have been enabled, you will need to head to an asset's appropriate policy to enable it on that device. Head to the Policy and you will see the option to 'Enable Syncro Backups' toward the bottom of the page:
Once enabled, select 'Save Changes.' Now you can head to the individual assets to start applying specific backup settings. You will see this message until the agent is installed which can take up to 15 minutes to complete: 
Backups Overview per Asset
When the backup agent has finished installing, you can navigate to the Backup tab on the asset to view all the backup information for the asset.
Backup Now: Will trigger a one-off backup of the selected Protected Items Set attached to the specific asset. Only Protected Item Sets with at least one schedule enabled will appear here:
Restore: Allows you to choose a backup destination and snapshot of an asset to restore data from.
Manage Your Backups: View, manage or delete existing individual snapshots.
Please Note: There is a 30-day retention minimum on Syncro Backup snapshots. That means if you backup a terabyte on Syncro backups on accident and try to delete the snapshot, you can’t and you are indeed going to be charged for it.
Protected Item Sets: Shows the files and folders that will be included and excluded from backups, what storage destination(s) to use, as well as on what schedule(s). You can also add new protected items as well as import a template and manage backup destinations. More detailed information below.
Backup History: Lists all the backup jobs and the status of that job as well as the item, type, files, size, etc. as well as the option to view more detailed information.
Note: If a backup job doesn't appear in the jobs list immediately, it is possible that the Backup software is updating itself. This can take a few minutes and then jobs will resume. Backup software checks for and deploys updates at the end of each backup job.
Protected Item Sets
Protected Items consist of what files and folders will be included and excluded from backups, what storage destination(s) to use, as well as on what schedule(s).
New Protected Item
To add a new protected item, select 'New Protected Item' from the Backups tab on the asset.
Here you will be able to add the inclusions and exclusions as well as exclusion regex. You can also choose to take a snapshot of the filesystem as well as always re-scanning unchanged files. Once you are done hit 'Create Protected Item':
Please Note: There is a 30-day retention minimum on Syncro Backup snapshots. That means if you backup a terabyte on Syncro backups on accident and try to delete the snapshot, you can’t and you are indeed going to be charged for it.
Creating a Schedule
Once the Protected Item Set has been added, you will need to add a schedule for the set to run off. Select 'Add Schedule' to create a new schedule:
Schedule Name: Friendly name for the backup schedule
Start Time: Time when the backup should begin
Frequency: Choose to run the backup daily, weekly, or monthly
Destination: Select which Backup Destination to use for the schedule
Skip if running: If a backup schedule happens to fire when another backup is occurring, this will skip the scheduled backup entirely
If missed, run next time asset is booted up: If the asset is offline, the scheduled backup will occur immediately once the asset comes back online
Allow backup of zero files to succeed: If enabled and zero files are backed up, the backup would show as successful. If disabled and zero files are backed up it will register as a failed backup.
Note: Zero backed up files can occur if a small subset of files is being backed up that hasn’t changed at all since the last backup.
Throttle backup speed: This allows you to throttle the speed of your backups to properly manage excessive LAN and WAN bandwidth.
Alert when no successful backups in: This will alert you when no successful backups were detected in X number of days for the particular schedule. The alert will only fire once for each asset, so you will be alerted after X days, but if the device remains without a successful backup for any number of days after the initial alert, no additional alerts will fire.
Do not keep backups forever: When enabled, allows you to choose how to manage saved backups
-Last Number of Backups: X backups
-All Backups in the Last: X days/weeks/months
-One backup each day for the last: X days
-One backup each week for the last: X weeks
-One backup each month for the last: X months
Note: If you would like to enable a "hybrid" backup by saving data locally and to the cloud (Storage by Syncro), you will need to create multiple schedules for the Protected Items.
You can edit, pause, or delete any existing schedule by navigating to the Protected Item Sets and selecting the name to view the Protected Item:
Customer-Specific Backup Destinations
Backup destinations allow you to create customer-specific backup destinations that can include local network drives including NAS and file servers, as well as local HDD paths as well. By default or cloud-based storage, 'Storage by Syncro' will be added and cannot be edited or removed.
Backup destinations can be configured by selecting 'Manage Backup Destinations' from the asset:
And heading to the 'Backup Destinations' tab on the customer details page and selecting 'New Backup Destination':
From here you can enter the information for the destination including the name, quota (GB), the drive type and the UNC Path:
Please Note: UNC paths cannot be changed on Destinations once they are created!
Once saved, the new destination will show up under the Backup Destinations tab and can be used in managing backups for that customer. All user-created backup destinations can also be deleted from this page: 
Backups Dashboard
The Backups Dashboard will give you a full overview of your backup data that can be configured in Admin > Syncro Backup > Preferences. From the Backups dashboard, you can view a full history of all backups, view Protected Item Templates and Destination Templates, and go to the Backup admin settings. 
The Backups page will also show a list of all assets with backups currently installed. This will give you a quick view of the backup version, the last backup, and the status of the backup. You can use the search bar to search for a specific asset, filter by customer, or filter by backup version, last backup status, and last backup.
Backup History
The Backup History will show you a detailed history of all backups that have run on your assets. The history can be filtered by backup status (running, completed, failed, missed) and the columns can be sorted by customer, asset, type, status, or started:
Note: If a backup job doesn't appear in the jobs list immediately, it is possible that the Backup software is updating itself. This can take a few minutes and then jobs will resume. Backup software checks for and deploys updates at the end of each backup job.
Selecting 'Details' on any of the backups will give you more information on the specific backup and information on the status: 
Protected Item Templates
If you are using the same Protected Item set across multiple assets, you can save time by saving the Protected Item as a template that can be imported to your various assets.
Creating a New Protected Item Template
To create a new template, navigate to the Protected Item Templates page and select 'New Protected Item Template':
Then give the template a name to create and continue:
Now you can add all the inclusions and exclusions to the protected item template as well as add a schedule:
Once the template has been created it will be listed on the Protected Item Templates page where you can edit, clone, or delete the templates:
Importing a Protected Item Template
Once a Protected Item Template has been created, it can be imported to all your assets with backups enabled.
To import a Protected Item Template, go to the Backup tab on the desired asset and select 'Import Protected Item Template':
Select the template to import from the dropdown and then 'Import Template':
The template will now appear as a Protected Item on the asset. You can also select the three-dot icon to edit, clone, delete, or turn any existing Protected Item on an asset into a template:
Backup Permissions
Global admins can choose who has access to various permissions using backups by heading to Admin > Security Groups and enabling/disabling the following settings:
Backup Notifications
You can also enable notifications for various backup jobs as well. To turn on notifications head to Admin > Notification Center > Edit and enable/disable the following options:
Restoring a Backup
Recovering is quick and easy. Data can be restored from any point in time that a backup had previously been created. The restore can then be sent to any other asset under the same customer.
From the Asset's Backup tab, click the Restore button to begin a restore.
Select a date from the snapshot list, this will be the date you restore your customer's data from.
You can then select to restore the entire backup or just specific folders.
After completing the wizard and processing the restore, the Backup History will display the completed job.
Backups + Billing Clients
Billing your customers for their backup usage is extremely simple and streamlined. You can choose to bill your customers per backup license or after they have hit a certain amount of cloud storage. You can even set up your billing to charge customers after X amount of licenses or storage has been used. All Syncro Backup billing is dynamic and will automatically charge your customers based on their usage when the invoice runs. To learn how to set up billing, check out this article.
We'll briefly cover the Backup focused aspects here though as well. On the Recurring Template, you can add a line item type called Syncro Backups.
After selecting the Syncro Backup Line Item Type additional fields will display
Recurring Type: This is the line item Type
Description: This will be the line item description that shows on the invoice the client sees.
Billing Type: There are 2 Billing Types you can choose from
1. License Count: Bill the client per Asset that has Backups enabled.
- When License Count is select a Check box field called "Bill for All Licenses" will show. By default, this will be checked and would count all Assets with Backup Enabled.
- If you uncheck "Bill for All Licenses" a new field will appear called "Only bill for licenses after this amount." You enter a number in the field and then the client would be billed for any Assets that have Backup enabled AFTER the specified amount.
- Example: if you enter 5 in the field and the client has 15 Assets, they would be billed for 10 Assets on the invoice.
2. Cloud Storage Usage: Bill the client by how much storage they are using
- When Cloud Storage Usage is selected there will be a check box called "Bill For All Cloud Storage" automatically checked by default. This means that you are billing your client for all of the cloud storage they are using up.
- If you uncheck "Bill For All Cloud Storage" two new fields appear. The first is called "Credit Type" which has 2 options.
- Global Credit: This will "Only bill for cloud storage after this amount of storage (GB) is consumed" and you would enter the number of GB's in the text field.
- Per Asset Credit: This will "Only bill for cloud storage over this amount per asset (this is multiplied by each backup license)" and you would enter the number of GB's in the text field.
- Cost (per GB): This is YOUR cost per GB
- Price (per GB): This is the amount your client will pay by GB.
- Taxable: Checked makes the item taxable, unchecked means no tax applied.
- One Time Charge: This created Line Item will be applied to the next generated invoice ONLY and none after.
Paying for Syncro Backups in your Subscription
We provide an estimate of the total cost that can be viewed at any time on the Backups Dashboard. Then when the subscription comes time to renew another check is performed to make sure the most up-to-date usage is captured and you are billed for that. This is similar behavior to how MAV billing works.
Backup Reporting
The Executive Summary Report Builder can be used to build reports and display information about your Backups. Visual Blocks show details regarding storage space, the number of backups, failed jobs, successful jobs, and more.
FAQs
Q: Do you support image-based or application-specific backups?
A: Currently, we support file and folder backups only, so no system state, images, SQL, etc.
Q: Can data be recovered to another PC?
A: Yes, as long as the asset the data is being recovered to is associated with the same customer as the asset the data was backed up from.
- To recover to a new computer, the computer must be in the same customer as the original PC, then you need to make sure the new PC is in a Policy with Backups installed. Head to that PC and hit the Recovery button and follow the prompts for cloud or local storage.
Q: Are backups encrypted?
A: Yes, data is end-to-end encrypted by default.
Q: Can I pick one file or specific files to restore from a backup?
A: Yes, you can choose what to restore. It isn't an all-or-nothing situation.
Q: Can I restore backups outside of Syncro?
A: No, backups will need to be restored through Syncro.
Q: Are the backups incremental?
A: After the files are backed up, only changes made to those files will be saved. This produces versions of files that can restored when needed. It also saves space because whole files aren't saved repeatedly if no or little changes are made.
Q: Can I bring in my own cloud storage?
A: We only support the cloud storage that is included with the integration. There isn't a way to bring your own.
Q: Can I backup to a local or network-connected drive without the need for a license?
A: No, every asset on which Backups are enabled will require a license. However, the data saved to these drives won't count toward your cloud storage usage.
Q: Is Syncro Backups HIPAA compliant?
A: If your account has finalized the process to be HIPAA compliant (more info here), Syncro Backups will also be HIPAA compliant.
Q: Can you use wildcards to include and exclude files and folders?
A: Syncro Backups can exclude files based on a glob pattern. Any files matching the glob pattern will be excluded from the backup job. Wildcards can be used on exclusions but not inclusions; this is something we hope to support in the future. In the same way, you must specify a subdirectory for each inclusion; you cannot specify an entire partition such as D:\.
The expression is tested against the full disk path to the file. Your glob expression can be a partial match (e.g. *.txt) or a fully anchored match (e.g. C:\path\to\file.docx).
Some special characters and wildcards are allowed:
- A star (*) skips zero or more characters within a filename
- A double-star (/**/) skips any number of directory components
- A question-mark (?) skips a single character within a filename
Square brackets denote a character class (e.g. [0-9]) within a directory or file name
Example: C:\Users\**\AppData\Local\Microsoft\WindowsApps
This will exclude the automatically re-downloaded non-critical and normally non-accessible windows-app files.