IBM Storage Protect vs OpenText Data Protector comparison

IBM and OpenText are both solutions in the Backup and Recovery category. IBM is ranked #12 with an average rating of 7.6, while OpenText is ranked #23 with an average rating of 9.0. IBM holds a 1.8% mindshare in BRS, compared to OpenText’s 1.0% mindshare. Additionally, 87% of IBM users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 80% of OpenText users who would recommend it.

IBM Storage Protect

Read 4 IBM Storage Protect reviews

5,686 Views
4,776 Comparison Views

87% willing to recommend

OpenText Data Protector

Read 102 OpenText Data Protector reviews

2,912 Views
2,650 Comparison Views

80% willing to recommend

IBM Storage Protect

OpenText Data Protector

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 16, 2025

OpenText Data Protector and IBM Storage Protect compete in the data protection and backup solutions category. While both offer comprehensive features, IBM appears to have the upper hand with advanced deduplication and scalability, which are critical for large-scale enterprise environments.

Features: OpenText Data Protector offers seamless integration with applications such as SAP and Oracle, along with virtual and physical backup capabilities, benefiting from a comprehensive feature set. IBM Storage Protect supports advanced deduplication, compression, and robust database integrations, focusing on scalability and reliability for large enterprises.

Room for Improvement: OpenText Data Protector users seek enhancements in GUI, reporting functions, and better management for virtual environments, alongside improved support documentation. IBM Storage Protect needs simplification of configuration, better cloud integration, enhanced VM backup capabilities, and a more user-friendly command-line interface.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Both solutions are favored for on-premises and hybrid deployments. OpenText Data Protector's customer service could improve in response times and localized expertise, while IBM offers professional service with room for quicker issue escalation.

Pricing and ROI: OpenText Data Protector provides flexible licensing options but can be costly if all features are used, yet remains cost-effective for comprehensive backup needs. IBM Storage Protect's pricing is seen as high; however, the enterprise-level capabilities, offering scalability, often justify this cost, ensuring a good ROI for large organizations.

To learn more, read our detailed IBM Storage Protect vs. OpenText Data Protector Report (Updated: February 2026).

Buyer's Guide

IBM Storage Protect vs. OpenText Data Protector

February 2026

Download the complete report

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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 Storage Protect

Ranking in Backup and Recovery

12th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

OpenText Data Protector

Ranking in Backup and Recovery

23rd

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 February 2026, in the Backup and Recovery category, the mindshare of IBM Storage Protect is 1.8%, down from 2.3% 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 Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
IBM Storage Protect	1.8%
OpenText Data Protector	1.0%
Other	97.2%

Backup and Recovery

Featured Reviews

reviewer2787573

Interim Head of Infrastructure at a real estate/law firm with 1,001-5,000 employees

Backup coverage has supported immutable protection and now needs a more modern, intuitive interface

IBM Storage Protect is from a previous generation of backup software. In those days, backup software was complex in setting up and complex to manage. The new software, such as Rubrik, is very easy to use and more relatable to younger engineers because its interface design is more similar to Office 365 and the newer controls and labels that we are accustomed to. The difficulty that we now have with IBM Storage Protect is that for this day and age, compared to other products that are out there, it seems complex. If we look back 15 years ago, all enterprise class backup software was complex, so IBM was not any different. However, many of these older systems, such as Commvault, still have the same complaint that they are very complex because they have tried to keep that same interface and the same way it works. This suits them, but it probably needed a complete overhaul to bring it into the ease of use that we have with modern software. However, that upgrade has not been done. IBM Storage Protect has not been upgraded into a modern platform. It still looks a legacy platform.

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reviewer1751496

Project Manager and Technical Consultant at a computer software company with 201-500 employees

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,…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The archiving feature is the most valuable aspect of the solution."

"The D2D2T archive of my PACS data improved after I put Spectrum Protect 8.1.4 into production."

"A robust tool which allows us to backup pretty much any environment, virtual or physical."

"The interface is easy to use."

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

"Because of the flexible parameters, everything can be fine-tuned to the customers’ needs in their environment."

"The product is very stable."

"The customization and the ability to backup across all platforms are the most valuable features."

More IBM Storage Protect pros

"The most valuable features of this solution were the features we worked most with which were telemetry, and the scheduler."

"The most valuable feature is the capability to back up our SQL server."

"It works excellently only with Oracle."

"It is very easy to use and the interaction with various systems is very handy."

"In one of the projects involving a database and UCMDB integration, we needed to manage a large database. We used the scheduling feature in Data Protector to automate backups."

"The initial setup is straightforward if you understand Data Protector."

"Data Protector is very good at automation. From the time of the backup, verification, and copy to tape, it is very good. I don't need to touch it, it will do it by itself."

"The initial setup was relatively easy."

More OpenText Data Protector pros

Cons

"There have been some sizing issues now, and we are dealing with those."

"Integration with some applications in the healthcare field could be added, as that is a big part of our business."

"For the database side, it does not have object level recovery."

"Its price can be better. It is very expensive. Its interface is very old and not user friendly. They can improve its interface. Their support can also be better. My clients are not very satisfied with the support because they are not really quick."

"The features should be a little bit closer together."

"Software-wise, IBM Spectrum Protect didn't handle virtual machines that well. The license cost is mainly the area for improvement in IBM Spectrum Protect."

"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."

"Our customers would like to see metadata replication, tearing to tape, and more cloud capabilities."

More IBM Storage Protect cons

"I'm uncertain if it supports virtual machine backup and restoration. If they could enhance this aspect, they could gain more support from end users."

"We have a lot of requests for the Micro Focus team, particularly in terms of the Japanese data pattern, as it's not as good now. The Japanese data pattern accuracy of the Micro Focus Data Protector needs to be improved because there are a lot of false negatives and false positives. We are currently testing this and our product team has been communicating with the Micro Focus team."

"I do not think that this solution is relevant in the current IT market. They have not upgraded their features and functionalities which makes it difficult for them to remain competitive."

"The GUI could be updated. The GUI hasn't changed since version 6. It's on version 10 now. The reporting could also be better. Also, while Data Protector is excellent for backing up physical hardware, it needs more features for backing up VM images because many environments use hypervisor."

"The downside of the flexibility on offer is if you over-configure it, it may fail to function as some configurations may not match."

"The new backup systems are using new mechanisms for the recovery phases; for example, VM, recovery and testing the backup before recovering it. These features are not available in Data Protector."

"OpenText Data Protector is more difficult to use and configure than OpenText VIM. The user-friendliness of OpenText Data Protector has to be increased, and the complexity of the tool needs to be reduced."

"It can occasionally be inaccurate in its backup/recovery time estimates."

More OpenText Data Protector cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"That's no longer my department, but I have some past experience with licensing. It is not cheap. I would rate it a three out of five in terms of licensing. In terms of additional costs, there is management overhead. It is a complex solution and a lot of work goes into managing clients. It has gotten better over the years, but compared to its competitor, it is still heavy on management overhead."

"Use capacity licensing. It's easier and cheaper."

"It is expensive."

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

"Some of the new advanced features are definitely more into cost savings, e.g., dedupe compression, so doing more with less."

"Customers need to pay for licensing in order to use IBM Spectrum Protect. The customers that have been using it for a long time are okay and happy with it. From a cost point of view, it's better for them to renew their licenses than to go through the difficult process of changing a backup product in their environment, and migrate from one product to another."

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

"The solution's pricing is fair. Price-wise, I rate the solution an eight out of ten."

More IBM Storage Protect pricing and cost advice

"The pricing is around $3,000 to $5,000. The charge additionally for support and to scale."

"Our licensing is on a capacity basis."

"Data Protector's pricing is very competitive and we have no issues in this regard. I would give it an eight out of ten in terms of pricing."

"They have two types of licensing, one is for storage capacity and the other is client licensing. The capacity licensing here is a bit expensive."

"Avoid using many LTO drives; when using fewer drives, the price will be extremely good."

"It is fast, reliable, and its licensing policy is great."

"The solution requires paying for a license."

"The licensing cost is too high."

More OpenText Data Protector pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

13%

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Educational Organization

Marketing Services Firm

13%

Performing Arts

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	53
Midsize Enterprise	25
Large Enterprise	95

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	28
Midsize Enterprise	22
Large Enterprise	61

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about IBM Storage Protect?

The best point about IBM Storage Protect is that it can use IBM tape environments, which we still use and will continue to use in the future.

See all answers

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

I do not know the current licensing cost for IBM Storage Protect and how we get our support because our licensing model is not quite standard. We do not buy IBM Storage Protect direct from IBM. We ...

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What needs improvement with IBM Storage Protect?

See all answers

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.

See all answers

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...

See all answers

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.

See all answers

Comparisons

IBM Spectrum Protect Plus vs IBM Storage Protect

Compared 8% of the time

Dell PowerProtect Data Domain vs IBM Storage Protect

Compared 8% of the time

HPE StoreOnce vs IBM Storage Protect

Compared 7% of the time

Veeam Data Platform vs IBM Storage Protect

Compared 6% of the time

Commvault Cloud vs IBM Storage Protect

Compared 6% of the time

More IBM Storage Protect Competitors

Veeam Data Platform vs OpenText Data Protector

Compared 14% of the time

Commvault Cloud vs OpenText Data Protector

Compared 6% of the time

Symantec Data Loss Prevention vs OpenText Data Protector

Compared 5% of the time

Dell Avamar vs OpenText Data Protector

Compared 4% of the time

Veritas NetBackup vs OpenText Data Protector

Compared 4% of the time

More OpenText Data Protector Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IBM Storage Protect

January 2026

Download IBM Storage Protect product report

Buyer's Guide

OpenText Data Protector

January 2026

Download OpenText Data Protector product report

Also Known As

IBM Spectrum Discover

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

Overview

IBM Storage Protect offers data protection and management to secure critical business information efficiently. It's designed to be a scalable and flexible solution for data backup, recovery, and archive needs in complex IT environments.

IBM Storage Protect delivers comprehensive data protection by integrating backup, recovery, and archiving functionalities. It supports a range of workloads and infrastructures, from on-premises to cloud environments, facilitating efficient data management. Its platform provides seamless scalability to meet evolving business needs, underpinned by reliable security measures. Organizations leverage its capabilities to ensure business continuity and minimize data loss risks, making it vital in a data-driven world.

What are the key features of IBM Storage Protect?

Advanced Data Protection: Offers robust encryption and data integrity for secure backup processes.
Scalability: Grows with your data demands, supporting large data volumes without compromising performance.
Cloud Integration: Seamlessly integrates with cloud platforms, enhancing backup strategies with hybrid options.
Automated Operations: Simplifies management tasks with automation, reducing manual intervention and errors.

What benefits should users expect when evaluating IBM Storage Protect?

Cost Efficiency: Reduces storage costs by optimizing backup processes and data retention strategies.
Data Safety: Ensures data accessibility and integrity during recovery efforts, building trust in data protection strategies.
Operational Efficiency: Boosts productivity through streamlined and automated backup management workflows.
Compliance Readiness: Helps maintain compliance with data protection regulations by providing thorough reporting and audit trails.

Industries like finance and healthcare implement IBM Storage Protect to safeguard sensitive information against threats. In financial services, it's crucial for maintaining client data confidentiality, while healthcare institutions use it to protect patient records, ensuring both accessibility and compliance with regulations.

IBM

OpenText Data Protector standardizes and consolidates backups across multiple platforms. It provides secure, comprehensive backup protection for business-critical data and applications whether virtual, physical, or online in the cloud.

OpenText

Sample Customers

CEMEX

GSK Vaccines, Repsol, Vodafone Group, Siemens AG, Medium Enterprise Transportation Services Company

Buyer's Guide

IBM Storage Protect vs. OpenText Data Protector

February 2026

Free Report: IBM Storage Protect vs. OpenText Data Protector

Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Storage Protect vs. OpenText Data Protector and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.

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