Macrium vs. Acronis – Comparison review

Paramount Software UK Limited, trading as Macrium Software, is the Company designing easy-to-use solutions for creating and managing backups; protecting PCs from malware, ransomware, and hardware failure.

They were founded in 2006 in Manchester (United Kingdom) and since then have developed trustable solutions for individuals and small and large businesses around the world. The most popular and famous product is Macrium Reflect – a backup utility for Windows owners.

Macrium Reflect proposes solutions for disaster recovery, ransomware protection, and scalable backup. It has an unsupported free version and the commercial one, translated into 15 languages. Macrium Reflect has numerous satisfied reviews for its fast recovery, safe disk imaging, and constant updates with new functionality. It was already installed 2.5 million times worldwide.

Acronis is an IT company headquartered in Singapore and Switzerland that protects data from cyberattacks, hardware failure, human mistakes, and other disasters. Acronis was founded in 2003 and has expanded to 20.000 service providers in more than 150 countries.

Its award-winning solutions are already translated into 26 languages. Acronis has products for businesses, individuals, and service providers, free and commercial packages.

The Acronis Cyber Protect Home Office (formerly Acronis True Image) is a backup, quick recovery, and anti-malware protection solution. For business, there is Acronis Cyber Protect, which offers disaster recovery and endpoint management in addition to backup and cybersecurity tools. There are some other tools available from Acronis that will be highlighted later.

Macrium Reflect is a complete backup solution available already in version 8, but only for several versions of the Windows OS. It works in the background, making snapshots of the data and automatically backing up computer data daily. It makes super-fast data imaging, file, and folder backups as they are or into a single compressed archive file.

The backup files can be consolidated using Synthetic Full backup support. Storage in one file is beneficial as data can be compressed and encrypted for storage on any other device. All files can be manually selected if you wish to back up specific documents, music, and photos. The backup is performed for working open or locked files using Microsoft Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS).

Other used technologies – Macrium Super-Fast Imaging and Rapid Delta Cloning – are responsible for increased speed of backup by automatically resizing the target disc. To restore images, the Macrium ReDeploy is used and helps mount images in Windows Explorer. Also, you can make predefined plan templates for your files and images, so your backup process can be quickly scheduled. The backup is available for hard drives, flash media, and USB drives.

In addition, to backup, Macrium Reflect can perform disk imaging or disc cloning, which is useful when you are upgrading or moving to a larger and faster hard drive. During disc imaging, the content is saved with reference to an original physical location. Typically image files are stored on local or removable drives. It is recommended to create images of your system regularly. For the first time, you need to create a complete image; later on, you can make a differential image for backing up all changed data after the whole image, or an incremental image for backing up all changed data after the last image.

For business purposes of centralized backup management Macrium proposes a Site Manager; in this tool, you can add all required computers using DNS, NetBIOS, or IP address.

Acronis proposes a solution – Acronis Cyber Protect Home Office helps to recover your computer with backup software. It automatically captures all changes on your PC, including hidden files; the backup process is easy and much more efficient than manual copying. You can back up with Acronis files, folders, applications, OS, and full system images to a local hard disk or Acronis cloud.

Acronis cloud is located in Acronis data centers with the highest security level. You can select individual files or folders for a replica to speed up the backup process. All backups are available in Microsoft 365 accounts, including Outlook and OneDrive backups.

All backup files are automatically synchronized on the computer and cloud to receive up-to-date versions on all devices. You can store the backup files on several storage devices and in the cloud with enhanced speed, stability, and reliability following the 3-2-1 backup rule. The Acronis controls all up to 999 file versions and manages replicas. All backups can be scheduled.

All incremental or differential backups with Change-Block Tracker are performed every five minutes in the background without slowing down the PC performance (the same idea as for Macrium). You can set an automatic backup process when you insert a USB device into your computer. If the backup process is interrupted, it will automatically resume when the files and storage device become available. You can make images of the system as a virtual machine.

The Acronis solution allows making a disc clone of a Windows or macOS system to a larger and faster disk while it is still in use without unnecessary reboots.

Macrium Reflect 8 proposes a disaster recovery option for Customers. Reflect 8 has a feature of image virtualization via Oracle VirtualBox and Microsoft Hyper-V. You can restore the data from a single USB stick. You can always come back with regular imaging.

You can start your PC with Macrium rescue media on removable drives if you lose your Windows OS. This device also contains a lightweight version of Windows and a full version of Macrium. The Windows Preinstallation Environment (Windows XP, Vista) or Windows Recovery Environment (Windows 7 and later) will be opened during the recovery process. So, that is why it is essential to schedule regular backups.

You can explore all backups and file images in Windows Explorer, which allows you to extract individual files or folders.

Acronis has an all-in-one recovery tool to recover any data from backups: Survival Kit. This tool includes a full backup of the whole system and boot media. All recovered data should be stored on an external hard drive with the option “Make bootable option.” During the recovery process, you need to adjust your BIOS or UEFI so that the rescue disk is the first option for the computer to check. After proper backup on the external disk, in case of disaster, this tool will analyze and troubleshoot the system issues and restore files and the system from backup using the latest image.

You can also create WinPE boot media to recover when the system doesn’t boot. You can select compatible drivers in the Acronis WinPE media builder for flawless recovery.

If individual files are stored in the cloud, the enhanced stable speed of restoring is ensured. In addition, you can download a copy anytime if you have a local file on your computer, even though your Internet connection is compromised.

Macrium has Macrium Image Guardian (MIG) for ransomware protection – the most familiar threat to PCs today. The backup files created to recover from all threats and losses can also be attacked. Macrium-specific file types are protected from unauthorized access and modification. The Image Guardian is a lightweight program that defends your data with minimal downtime during recovery.

All existing local backup files (.mrimg, .mrbak, .mrex, .mysql) are protected by MIG, and all activities by other programs except Macrium Reflect will give an error of storage policy block.

Password protection, encryption, and Image Guardian are available in all tariffs except the free version (Home, Workstation, Server, and Server Plus). It is an optional component and can be installed for Windows 7 and higher. After installation, it automatically starts to protect the backup, as mentioned above, files.

Acronis cybersecurity protection is not only for backup files but also can be used for the whole device. It proposes special attention to backup files and must be used in addition to the antivirus, firewall, and other PC protection software.

The device and files are protected in real-time from known and unknown malicious activities, including ransomware, Trojans, worms, crypto jackers, and other attacks. You can start a full or quick antivirus scan whenever you want. If files are affected by some threat, they will automatically recover from backup.

Acronis protection is compatible with the most common anti-malware solutions. The additional features of advanced cybersecurity are vulnerability assessment for your computer or mobile weakness, filtration of malicious URLs, protection of data during most popular video conference platforms (Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Cisco), encryption of backups (AES-256 encryption), checking of threat database updates.

Macrium Reflect is available in several tariff plans for backup of home PCs or business PCs: a free version with limited functionality, a trial version for 30 days, and a complete paid package with a lifetime license. The trial version lasts for 30 days and within this time you will receive tips and guidance on how to use the program the best. The paid and trial versions of PC plans have MBR, GPT disk support, and 12 months of Essential Support.

The business tariff plans include one-year free support and maintenance; after that, this should be purchased separately. The standard support includes access to the knowledge base, upgrade protection, and remote support by ticket. In addition, you can purchase premium support to receive a response within 12 hours 24/7 (standard 24 hours) by phone with a dedicated case manager; all premium cases are prioritized.

Acronis is also available in several tariff plans for individuals and businesses. The subscriptions differ by functionality and number of licenses inside one subscription. The individual basic (essential) subscription includes only backup, cloning, quick recovery, and ransomware protection tools. The advanced package (the most popular option) adds antivirus protection for backups, cloud backup (50 GB included in the plan), automatic replication into the plan, and Microsoft 365 automatic backup. Finally, the premium package provides 1 TB of cloud storage for backup, blockchain file certification, and electronic signatures.

The license upgrade is executed under a special fee. All subscriptions have phone, email, and chat support; a premium plan in addition to having a priority phone line.

Acronis can protect any business workload: workstation, server, virtual host, or Microsoft 365. Google workspace, Windows Server Essentials. All plans include 50 GB and more of Acronis Cloud Storage.

Macrium can be easily installed from the website as a free limited version or after purchase as a complete package. To correctly install Macrium Reflect, you need to download and run Macrium Reflect Download Manager. You need to indicate your license key in the list or choose a 30-day trial period in the dropdown list. During installation, the program will ask the place for file downloads; all other activities will be performed automatically and quickly.

The update of Macrium Reflect is performed via Status Wizard and costs money. For that, you need to send your license number or key to the Macrium specialists, who will calculate the price and provide information about the retailer or other purchase options. If you do not want to upgrade your Reflect, the purchased license will last forever.

To install the Acronis Cyber Protect Home Office, you need to download the installation file (500 MB) from your Acronis account or from a confirmation email about your purchase. The installation should be performed in the account with administrative privileges. On Windows, the program is installed on the system disk without options. The installation process is easy and guided by the wizard.

If you have installed Acronis True Image 2020/2021(the former product name until 2021), the software will be upgraded automatically with a new subscription that you have purchased. You do not need to delete the old version. However, for older versions, please remove the program.