IBM Spectrum Protect vs IBM Tivoli CDP for Files comparison

IBM Spectrum Protect and IBM Tivoli CDP for Files are both solutions in the Backup and Recovery category. IBM Spectrum Protect is ranked #17 with an average rating of 7.2, while IBM Tivoli CDP for Files is ranked #76. IBM Spectrum Protect holds a 2.2% mindshare in BRS, compared to IBM Tivoli CDP for Files’s 0.2% mindshare. Additionally, 86% of IBM Spectrum Protect users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of IBM Tivoli CDP for Files users who would recommend it.

IBM Spectrum Protect

Read 149 IBM Spectrum Protect reviews

4,073 Views
3,133 Comparison Views

86% willing to recommend

IBM Tivoli CDP for Files

Read 1 IBM Tivoli CDP for Files review

269 Views
227 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

IBM Spectrum Protect

IBM Tivoli CDP for Files

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between IBM Spectrum Protect and IBM Tivoli CDP for Files based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

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Buyer's Guide

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March 2025

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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

IBM Spectrum Protect

Ranking in Backup and Recovery

17th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

149

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

IBM Tivoli CDP for Files

Ranking in Backup and Recovery

76th

Average Rating

9.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of IBM Spectrum Protect is 2.2%, down from 2.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Tivoli CDP for Files is 0.2%, up from 0.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Backup and Recovery

Featured Reviews

Syed Habib

Head of Infrastructure Security (S.A.V.P) at EXIM Bank Ltd

Manageable and comprehensive and integrates robust backup features for core banking

It's adequate for my core banking, however, I am looking for another solution for all systems. It is not compatible with other operating systems like Windows or Linux, and lacks a consolidated dashboard from Browser Spectrum. This is why I am searching for another solution. The product also lacks any centralized graphical user interface (GUI), such as Jarek Pod, and I am limited to using a console-based text user interface, which my local partner handles completely.

Read full review

reviewer1035033

Sr. Aix Admin at a manufacturing company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Restoration and infrastructure are extremely reliable

We are currently using Tivoli to backup 15 terabytes within our Oracle Database using a RMAN backup script. The RMAN's utility and restoration has been perfect, we have yet to experience any issues. It's very reliable The restoration and infrastructure are extremely reliable. We would like to…

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The technical support for Spectrum Protect is very mature. It is very committed to giving a top-notch support experience."

"It is good in terms of functionality. My clients are very satisfied with this solution."

"The amount of data that it protects with very little storage by doing incremental forever is one of its most valuable features."

"Our performance is better."

"It has a lot more capabilities and functions than a lot of other products. Even though it is more complex, the reason is because it gives you a lot more features. This is what I prefer, especially for a long retention."

"Traditional storage works perfectly with it."

"When I have to do disaster recoveries, I can do it with this tool."

"The platform has valuable stability."

More IBM Spectrum Protect pros

"The restoration and infrastructure is extremely reliable."

Cons

"The Hyper-V and SQL Server backup could be improved. In the 2016 version there was a significant improvement, but I think IBM has a big challenge with these technologies."

"The reporting could be better."

"The only thing that I would like to have a little more of is insight in reporting. I find that Spectrum Protect needs a lot of monitoring, and I have to actually log into the servers."

"The solution could be more user-friendly and provide better monitoring. The monitoring should be improved first since it is a higher priority."

"The main admin console from the UI cannot do anything in the product. It just allows us to maintain, maybe, 30% to 40%. For the rest, we have to use the command line."

"It is not compatible with other operating systems like Windows or Linux, and lacks a consolidated dashboard from Browser Spectrum."

"I think Spectrum Protect's interface is not so user-friendly, but the interface is not so friendly. Some of the functions are too complicated. I prefer a simpler solution."

"They can include more cloud-enriching features. I would like IBM Spectrum Protect to have the functionality for backing up a VM directly in Azure. I would like to be able to back up a VM directly in Azure without spinning up a Hyper-V cluster and backing up the virtual server."

More IBM Spectrum Protect cons

"We would like to have the opportunity to omit data from being backed up. For example, we have three virtual machines, each with three disks. When running the backup, it will automatically take each disk rather than allowing us to select what data we want backed."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We chose IBM Spectrum Protect, because they actually have something called MSP pricing, which means managed services provider pricing. The pricing was attractive, and it seems to be a platform that IBM is totally investing on in terms of new functions and new capabilities."

"Spectrum Protect is not a cheap option."

"We pay for a terabyte license to support our backend usage."

"The pricing of the solution is high in comparison to other products on the market. For example, IBM and Symantec have less costly options."

"Its licensing is complicated. It goes by CPUs, and it is pretty expensive as well."

"The solution has a capacity based licensing, front and back-end license."

"License-wise regarding IBM, it's licensed per terabyte. And that is after compression and deduplication."

"There may be an advantage to going with IBM in terms of pricing. They have a pay-as-you-grow policy, so there is no need to take one license for the entire datacenter. You can start with small licenses and then grow, and pay, as you use more."

More IBM Spectrum Protect pricing and cost advice

"It's expensive, but it's worth for it due to the volume of critical information within our database. We are currently paying about $22,000 per year."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

16%

Computer Software Company

13%

Government

Manufacturing Company

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Spectrum Protect?

IBM Spectrum Protect is stable.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Spectrum Protect?

It's expensive. I acknowledge the cost associated with it.

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What needs improvement with IBM Spectrum Protect?

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Comparisons

Veeam Data Platform vs IBM Spectrum Protect

Compared 19% of the time

IBM Spectrum Protect Plus vs IBM Spectrum Protect

Compared 18% of the time

Dell PowerProtect DD (Data Domain) vs IBM Spectrum Protect

Compared 11% of the time

Commvault Cloud vs IBM Spectrum Protect

Compared 11% of the time

Iron Mountain Connect vs IBM Spectrum Protect

Compared 1% of the time

More IBM Spectrum Protect Competitors

Veeam Data Platform vs IBM Tivoli CDP for Files

Compared 52% of the time

More IBM Tivoli CDP for Files Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IBM Spectrum Protect

March 2025

Download IBM Spectrum Protect product report

Buyer's Guide

Backup and Recovery

March 2025

Download IBM Tivoli CDP for Files product report

Also Known As

IBM TSM, IBM Tivoli Storage Manager

Tivoli CDP for Files

Overview

IBM Spectrum Protect (Tivoli Storage Manager) is a data protection platform that gives enterprises a single point of control and administration for backup and recovery. It is the flagship product in the IBM Spectrum Protect (Tivoli Storage Manager) family. It enables reliable, cost effective backups and fast recovery for virtual, physical and cloud environments of all sizes.

IBM

IBM Tivoli Continuous Data Protection for Files is a continuous backup software that protects your most important files. This real-time, continuous data protection solution for file servers and user endpoints automatically backs up your most critical files the moment they are saved.

IBM

Sample Customers

CERN, Einstein Healthcare, Nyherji, Allianz Australia, TZM, ABT Online, NCT, Kindred Healthcare Inc., Cobalt Iron, TransGrid, Baptist Health of Northeast Florida, Cash America, Piedmont Healthcare, RWGV, Arkansas Tech University, British Columbia Institute of Technology

Cyberian Data Protection

Find out what your peers are saying about Veeam Software, Zerto, Commvault and others in Backup and Recovery. Updated: March 2025.

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