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Dell NetWorker vs OpenText Data Protector comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 11, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Dell NetWorker
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
10th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
86
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
OpenText Data Protector
Ranking in Backup and Recovery
21st
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
5.8
Number of Reviews
102
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of Dell NetWorker is 1.3%, down from 3.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of OpenText Data Protector is 1.0%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Backup and Recovery Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Dell NetWorker1.3%
OpenText Data Protector1.0%
Other97.7%
Backup and Recovery
 

Featured Reviews

RaedHassan - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Specialist Backup/Storage at National Bank of Kuwait
Has supported flexible multi-platform backups and improved over time
Regarding the effectiveness of Dell NetWorker in terms of role-based access controls, I have experience with it, but I find it somewhat lacking in flexibility as it offers limited features, and I would rate it around seven out of ten. It is not that there is something wrong with the role-based access controls in Dell NetWorker, but it lacks many permissions or roles to assign, providing options only for administrator or user. To improve Dell NetWorker for the next release, I recommend enhancing flexibility in the policy, allowing selection of multiple options within the same policy, and addressing issues like the DNS lookup dependency to make it more controllable from Dell NetWorker itself rather than relying on other applications. Looking forward, I would like to see improved policy features and a more enhanced GUI, as it is still slow.
Ahmad-Hassan - PeerSpot reviewer
Project Manager And Technical Consultant at EEMC
Provides effective backup for physical servers and needs improvements for cloud compatibility
We use OpenText Data Protector for Oracle database backup and some applications that run for database security OpenText Data Protector is good for physical backup, specifically for physical servers. It is effective for direct backups to EMC library or storage without using a repository. However,…

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"I feel that it is a good product."
"The best feature of Dell EMC NetWorker is its wide spectrum of available plugins for each and every software that you can back up, such as SAP HANA, Oracle, AXI-based machines, or Dell-based machines. Whatever you want to back up, you can do it with Dell EMC NetWorker. It is a very solid backup software. It is the oldest backup software from EMC, and it comes from Dell EMC's legacy."
"The response time of the tech support is swift. The support is fantastic."
"The solution has a longer lifespan."
"If it's set up the right way, it's a stable product."
"NetWorker is fast and reliable."
"When it was required that data had to be restored for our customer, it was accomplished successfully and this has kept our end users satisfied."
"The best feature of Dell EMC NetWorker is its wide spectrum of available plugins for each and every software that you can back up, such as SAP HANA, Oracle, AXI-based machines, or Dell-based machines, and whatever you want to back up, you can do it with Dell EMC NetWorker."
"The best and biggest improvement for us is that we can rely on the backups it provides."
"The reliability of HP Data Protector is the most valuable feature for us."
"Data Protector is a very mature product that allows custom backups, scheduling, and copying in a manner that reduces the amount of time spent with backups from an administrative point of view."
"I haven't experienced any crashes while using the solution...Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"Data Protector is very good at automation; from the time of the backup, verification, and copy to tape, it is very good, and I don't need to touch it because it will do it by itself."
"Data Protector's GUI is the most useful feature."
"It is a very good application that does the job and provides everything any basic backup application should do."
"The most valuable feature of Data Protector is its integration with VMware."
 

Cons

"The tool should be more streamlined and simplified to create a backup to receive objects."
"There should be total integration of the replication and cloud logistic back up on cloud."
"NetWorker isn't scalable - you can't add more nodes to it, although you can add some data zones."
"The stability of the NMC could use some attention, as it tends to be a bit shaky during jobs and other operations."
"The implementation was difficult and, due to some reason, it was not done properly and we had to suffer a lot."
"It could be more user-friendly."
"There should be more vendors incorporated into the solution."
"Ports are not visible to the network, which requires a dedicated physical server."
"Micro Focus are improving Data Protector with every new version and since we began undergoing training with the latest version we have not faced any real challenges yet. However, their support does need to be improved, in my opinion. In certain critical cases that we've had, they did not provide a satisfactory level of support."
"The online backups of Office 365 have room for improvement. This is now available for the Exchange Online part of Office 365, but we're still waiting for SharePoint Online, Teams, etc. We know that it's coming, but it takes time."
"We have so many specific technological cracks in Micro Focus, but we are not getting the features, facilities, or coordination between the global delivery centers and the R&D team that we need to express our ideas."
"The product could be better in a policy assignment. Each job requires you to have your own device selection, and it takes a lot of setup work in a large environment."
"People prefer Veeam because the interface is easier, and Data Protector is difficult in comparison."
"The license structure for advanced features, such as backing up to disk or compression, can make the license pretty costly."
"With scalability, there are a few limitations. It's limited to certain platforms."
"When it comes to hardware support, HPE will help you in a minimal amount time. When in comes to software problems, you do not know when they will close your issues."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is excellent from the pricing point of view. It is free with Data Protection Suite. Similarly, when you purchase Avamar, Dell EMC NetWorker is free with one terabyte license capacity. Its price is very competitive."
"The price of the license could be cheaper and it would be a benefit if they came up with a new pricing model. The competitors here in Oman sell universal licensing where a number of virtual machines are hosted at the customer place which can be licensed, or you can license the CPU sockets in those servers. However, NetWorker offers only CPU sockets or overall storage capacity to backup, but there is no universal licensing where you can provide a number of VMs. They should offer more options to stay competitive with other solutions, such as Veeam."
"Pricing is cheaper for this product, compared to its competitors."
"The solution follows a subscription model for licensing. We pay annually to use the solution and the price is high."
"You have to buy the deduplication software separately from the license."
"It is inexpensive compared to new products."
"It is not very expensive and not very cheap."
"Dell EMC NetWorker is very expensive."
"Avoid using many LTO drives; when using fewer drives, the price will be extremely good."
"Our licensing is on a capacity basis."
"The licensing structure provides cost savings to business."
"It is fast, reliable, and its licensing policy is great."
"It is more affordable compared to other vendors."
"The licensing cost was not annual. We didn't pay any license. We paid when we deployed and we didn't pay for anything after that. There were no additional fees after the initial payment."
"Pricing for Micro Focus Data Protector is reasonable."
"We have many competitors who are pricing better, and we believe that our pricing is higher."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
15%
Comms Service Provider
12%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
20%
Marketing Services Firm
9%
Construction Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business24
Midsize Enterprise33
Large Enterprise38
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business28
Midsize Enterprise22
Large Enterprise61
 

Questions from the Community

What's the difference between Dell EMC Avamar and Dell EMC NetWorker?
From the very beginning, Dell EMC NetWorker considers users and those who might potentially become users. In terms of both pricing and setup, this product offers an experience that is significantly...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell NetWorker?
Regarding the pricing of Dell NetWorker, it depends on the deal or negotiation we have with the vendor, making it reasonable, although I cannot make a definitive decision without knowing the specif...
What needs improvement with Dell NetWorker?
Regarding the effectiveness of Dell NetWorker in terms of role-based access controls, I have experience with it, but I find it somewhat lacking in flexibility as it offers limited features, and I w...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Micro Focus Data Protector?
The solution is expensive as it requires purchasing all features without the option to negotiate based on client numbers, unlike Veeam which offers flexibility in pricing.
What needs improvement with Micro Focus Data Protector?
OpenText Data Protector is not user-friendly, especially for cloud backup. It lacks functions and facilities compared to Veeam, which offers more user-friendliness for virtual machine backups. Ther...
What is your primary use case for Micro Focus Data Protector?
We use OpenText Data Protector ( /products/opentext-data-protector-reviews ) for Oracle database backup and some applications that run for database security.
 

Also Known As

NetWorker
Micro Focus Data Protector, Data Protector, OmniBack, HPE Data Protector
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Republic Bank, Westgate Resorts, Macquire Cloud Services, Shriners, Panatonni, Qatar Islamic Bank, Eurosport
GSK Vaccines, Repsol, Vodafone Group, Siemens AG, Medium Enterprise Transportation Services Company
Find out what your peers are saying about Dell NetWorker vs. OpenText Data Protector and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
896,387 professionals have used our research since 2012.