Lots of backup apps are produced by software companies that also churn out loads of other apps in different categories, but that’s not the case with FBackup 9.9 – its creators at Softland concentrate on backup tools, and this app has been in continuous development since 2006.
That’s plenty of time to create a great bit of software, so we’ve got high hopes for this freeware tool, even up against impressive zero-cost rivals like Hasleo Backup Suite and free tools from other larger competitors.
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FBackup: Plans & pricing
FBackup is an entirely free backup tool – but that doesn’t tell the whole story.
While we’ve no doubt that FBackup is an impressive app for home users, sole traders and the smallest businesses, it also exists as a shop window for Softland Backup4all, which is the firm’s professional product.
It’s one of the more affordable options out there, at least, with a current price of $48 for a single perpetual licence – an amount which undercuts many other paid pro-level apps, like EaseUS ToDo Backup Workstation Edition and Paragon’s pricier tools.
Elsewhere, it’s possible to purchase OEM bundles for hardware manufacturers and a companion app called Backup4all Monitor, allowing system administrators to monitor their operations. It costs $4.99 per licence.
Features
The free FBackup tool has a good range of features before you delve into the paid versions. Users can back up their hard drives, external drives, operating systems, configurations, and settings from browsers like Chrome, Edge, and Firefox, as well as their Document and Picture folders and even material from Google Drive and Dropbox destinations.
Impressively, hundreds of other plugins to support backups from different apps are also available for optional installation.
Users can back up their files to Google Drive and Dropbox, too, alongside more conventional local and network sources and removable media. When it comes to core backup functionality, this is a good start.
FBackup has options for filtering backup files, running full or mirrored backups, and basic encryption and file-splitting tools.
Varying levels of processing speed are supported, and there’s a scheduling and command tool that gives users a tremendous amount of control over when their data is backed up and if any conditions need to be met for processes to begin.
Some high-end features are reserved for Backup4all customers, though. Only in that app can you use more cloud sources or FTP destinations, manage multiple backup configurations and get access to some drag-and-drop and typing features that make it easier to build backups.
The paid version of the app has a Microsoft Outlook plugin, stronger encryption, the option to pause backups, and settings to let you send email notifications. You can also only access differential and incremental backups in the paid version.
Ultimately, then, FBackup is a solid preservation tool for home users and sole traders, but those missing features – especially when it comes to security, network access and incremental backups – mean that we prefer Backup4all if you’re handling backups in a business of any size.
Interface & use
The interface makes it easy to upgrade, at least, because if you click on a restricted feature, you’ll get a popup asking you to try the Backup4all free trial or pay for an upgrade.
There’s a tab at the top of the window that’s entirely devoted to an advert for the paid product, and the home screen – which has icons for managing the app – also includes upgrade links.
Get beyond the adverts and it’s a straightforward and conventional backup app, with options to start a backup on the left-hand side and a useful wizard that guides you through the process of creating a backup. There’s a separate Jobs window that allows you to go into more depth when it comes to backup management, too.
It’s easy enough to use, but FBackup fell behind in our benchmarking. We tested our latest slate of backup apps with a 42GB document folder, a 2.5GB spreadsheet folder, a 162GB folder of media and an 82GB file that mixes all of those file types. We backed them up to three different SSDs to weed out any inconsistency.
FBackup’s Document and Excel averages of 19 minutes and five minutes, respectively, are moderate results that sit right in the middle of our results tables, but FBackup let itself down when working with media files and more complex jobs.
In our Media test, it averaged a whopping 104 minutes to complete our backup, with those times consistent across three drives – its results ranged between fifty-seven minutes and 107 minutes. And when we tasked FBackup with preserving a mixed folder, which included media files, it took nearly an hour.
It’s a poor slate of results, all things considered. Hasleo Backup Suite, another free rival, is far faster, and free backup software from Paragon and EaseUS are much faster too.
Support
If you need help with FBackup, the main support option is using a form on Softland’s website, but there’s no indication of how long replies will take. There’s an FAQ and a forum online, too.
It’s a standard slate of support options for a free backup tool, and you’ll have to buy a premium product if you want phone or live chat support.
Competition
FBackup does a reasonable job of competing against Hasleo Backup Suite in the free backup tools market: it may not offer incremental or differential file backups, for instance, but it does include cloud support and loads of plugins.
Elsewhere, there isn’t much to choose between this tool and the free versions of apps from EaseUS and Paragon, and if you’re running backup operations for a business of any size then we highly recommend you invest in a more capable tool with stronger encryption and management options.
Verdict
FBackup gets off to a good start, with its plugins, impressive array of backup sources and destinations and decent commands and filtering, and it certainly does the job if you want a free backup tool.
However, its feature set is uneven – with high-end additions rubbing up alongside glaring omissions – and its lack of speed is a huge problem.
If you’re a home user not fussed about speed, then FBackup is a reasonable free option. But with so many better options, both free and at modest prices, it’s hard to recommend.
