Hello Veeam Community,
I would like to share some insights regarding the use of Google Cloud Platform (GCP) storage as a backup target for Veeam Backup & Replication, particularly in scenarios involving GFS retention policies with yearly backups.
As we all know, Veeam supports object storage integration with multiple cloud providers, and GCP is one of the key platforms many organizations are exploring due to its flexibility, pricing models, and deep integration with Veeam.
Before diving into the impact of GFS retention, let’s quickly review the main types of GCP Cloud Storage that can be used for backup purposes:
- Standard Storage:
- Best for frequently accessed data.
- Ideal for short-term storage or backups with high change rates.
- Nearline Storage:
- Cost-effective for data accessed less than once a month.
- Suitable for monthly or quarterly backups.
- Coldline Storage:
- Optimised for data accessed less than once a quarter.
- Good choice for longer-term retention (yearly GFS points).
- Archive Storage:
- Lowest cost option for long-term storage.
- Best suited for yearly or legal/compliance-driven backups.
Using Veeam GFS with GCP Yearly Backup Considerations: When implementing GFS with yearly retention keeping backups for 5–7 years, storage type and cost become critical design factors. Here are a few key points to consider:
Storage Cost Impact: For long-term yearly retention, Coldline and Archive storage offer cost-effective options compared to Standard or Nearline, but they come with retrieval costs and minimum storage duration (90 days for Coldline, 365 days for Archive).
Performance & Access Time: Archive Storage has high retrieval latency (~15 hours), making it unsuitable for urgent restores, but acceptable for infrequent yearly GFS backups.
Veeam Integration with GCP Storage: Veeam Backup enables seamless backup tiering to GCP via SOBR, supporting GFS policies for long-term retention and leveraging Object Lock for immutability, creating a secure, scalable, and cost-effective backup strategy.
Best Practices: Choose Archive Storage for yearly backups to reduce long-term storage costs and restore scenarios from long-term backups to validate your SLA and recovery time objectives.