AirGapped LTO PBS

Your backups are first stored on an online disk (included), then automatically archived to LTO tape. The tapes are then placed in the datacenter's secure safe, physically disconnected from the network.

Each tape goes into the vault with the backup of month M and is reused for the backup of month M+3: you always have three months of tapes. Longer retention, for regulatory archival, is available on quote. The medium itself is rated by manufacturers for up to 30 years of archival life, under suitable storage conditions.

Yes, the AirGapped LTO PBS offer always includes an online disk for receiving backups and fast restores. The LTO archival in the DC safe is provided as a complement.

Recent backups are available immediately from the online disk. For archives on LTO tapes in the safe, the tape retrieval and loading time is specified in the quote.

AirGapped LTO places tapes in the datacenter safe (offline, anti-ransomware), while Magnetic PBS keeps tapes in the tape library: offline once unmounted, but the robot can load them on demand. In the vault, no command can mount the tape. AirGapped LTO offers better attack protection but with a longer restore time for archives.

By default, we deliver the account without delete permission: it can back up and restore, but cannot erase anything. An attacker or ransomware that takes over your Proxmox VE or servers therefore cannot delete the backups already sent, which limits the impact of a breach on your side. Limits: deletion remains possible if you asked for a datastore administrator account, if we ourselves are breached, or through a security flaw in PBS. Your LTO tapes, stored in the datacenter safe, are also physically disconnected: ransomware cannot reach them. The one limit: if the infection stayed dormant longer than the oldest offline copy, that copy already contains compromised data. Additionally, PBS snapshots allow you to restore from a point before the attack from the online disk.

RDEM Systems keeps your managed PBS and LTO archival infrastructure operational 24/7. Our team handles planned maintenance for your managed PBS, automatic LTO tape archival, datacenter safe storage, and emergency interventions — including tape retrieval and mounting for disaster recovery.

Client-side encryption is not on by default, you decide — and we always recommend it. Once enabled, your backups are encrypted with AES-256 by proxmox-backup-client before they leave your infrastructure, with a key that stays with you. The option is set in Proxmox VE (Encryption tab of the PBS storage). Tapes in cold storage are then unreadable without your encryption key. Keep that key outside the infrastructure you back up: without it, nobody can restore.

The online disk and the LTO drives are in our own infrastructure, at Equinix Paris. Air-gapped LTO tapes are stored in the datacenter's secure safe, physically disconnected from the network. The technical building blocks GDPR requires.

Yes, proxmox-backup-client can be installed on any Linux server, not just Proxmox VE. You can back up your physical servers, VMs, and containers to your managed PBS in the cloud with air-gapped LTO archival.