VM Backup Packages

VM Backup packages define how CMP bills customers for virtual machine backups (BACKUP). When a customer creates or retains a VM backup, CMP charges based on the backup size in GB and the per-GB hourly rate configured in this package.

Part of orchestrator-native backup

This package applies to CloudStack VM backup integrated with compute — not the standalone Veeam VSPC service. Overview: Backup and Recovery.

VM backup billing uses hourly per-GB pricing only — the same model as Volumes Snapshot, Custom Template, and ISO packages.

Before you begin

Ensure the following are already configured:

• Cloud Provider Setup is connected, with Backups → Virtual Machine Backup enabled in Wizard Step 1
• Zones are mapped in CMP
• You have chosen a backup backend — Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup or CloudStack B&R-Based Backup
• For CloudStack B&R-Based Backup, the backup provider plugin is installed and backup.framework.enabled = true in CloudStack — see CloudStack Backup and Recovery
• You understand physical vs virtual size billing before setting package pricing

CMP path: Settings → Billing Setup → Rate Cards → Default → Packages → VM Backup

Two backup backends

CMP supports two VM backup approaches. You enable one for the entire CloudStack connection via Enable Provider Backup in Cloud Provider Setup — Provider Config:

Mode	Enable Provider Backup	Backend	When to use
Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup	No	CMP automates scheduled root volume snapshots as the VM recovery mechanism	CloudStack versions before 4.20, or environments without a native backup plugin
CloudStack B&R-Based Backup	Yes	CloudStack B&R framework with a 3rd-party provider plugin	CloudStack 4.14+ with Veeam, Networker, or NAS plugin configured

One backup backend per CloudStack setup

Enable Provider Backup in Cloud Provider Setup chooses the backup path application-wide for that CloudStack connection:

Setting	Available in CMP
No	Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup only
Yes	CloudStack B&R-Based Backup only

You cannot use both on the same connection. To switch, change the setting and follow Switching to CloudStack B&R-Based Backup.

Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup

When Enable Provider Backup is No, CMP automates scheduled CloudStack snapshots of the VM root volume and treats them as VM backup in CMP — it does not run a separate backup engine and does not use full VM (instance) snapshots. See Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup for behaviour, retention, and KVM requirements.

Billing is based on backup storage size using the VM Backup package hourly per-GB rate.

CloudStack B&R-Based Backup

When Enable Provider Backup is Yes, VM backups are managed through CloudStack's Backup and Recovery (B&R) framework. Supported provider plugins include:

Hypervisor	Provider	CloudStack version
VMware	Veeam Backup and Recovery	4.14+
KVM	DELL EMC Networker	4.14+
KVM	NAS B&R Plugin	4.20+

Official reference: About Backup And Recovery

CloudStack administrators must:

1. Set backup.framework.enabled = true in CloudStack Global Settings
2. Configure backup.framework.provider.plugin per zone (veeam, networker, or nas)
3. Import backup offerings from the provider into CloudStack (Service Offerings → Backup Offerings → Import Backup Offering)
4. Enable Enable Provider Backup in CMP Cloud Provider Setup

See also CloudStack B&R-Based Backup.

How VM backup billing works

Each VM backup is billed individually on an hourly basis for as long as it is retained.

VM backup cost per hour = backup size (GB) × price per GB per hour

Example: A backup consuming 50 GB at $0.10/GB/hour costs $5.00/hour until it is deleted.

Mandatory hourly billing

VM backups (BACKUP) always use hourly billing only. Monthly, quarterly, and yearly cycles are not supported. See Billing Cycles.

• Run now — one charge per backup copy from creation until deletion
• Scheduled timer — each run creates a billable copy; retention deletes old copies and stops their billing

Customer backup workflows

Customers use backup schedules and Manage backups — Run now, retention, and restore. Concepts: Backup.

Physical vs virtual size billing

When pricing VM backups — especially with CloudStack B&R-Based Backup — the billed size depends on whether the configured backup provider reports physical (actual stored) backup size to CloudStack and how VM Backup Billing is set in CMP Cloud Provider Setup.

In Settings → Orchestrator → Cloud Providers → [setup] → Provider Config, locate VM Backup Billing:

Setting	Description
VM Backup Billing	Determines whether CMP charges use physical (actual backup storage consumed) or virtual (provisioned disk) size

What CloudStack documentation says

The CloudStack Backup and Recovery guide states that adhoc and scheduled backups may be billed on backup storage consumed or protected capacity (the full virtual size of the instance) — indicating the billing model depends on the backup solution, not a single fixed rule.

CloudStack also uses physical used size (falling back to virtual size) for internal resource limits on backups — this is not documentation that a specific backup plugin exposes physical size for customer billing.

The CloudStack docs do not explicitly state that Veeam, Networker, or NAS plugins report physical backup size via API. Do not assume physical size billing is available for a provider without verifying it in your environment.

Physical size billing

Set VM Backup Billing to physical when the backup provider reports actual backup storage consumed to CloudStack and CMP receives that value.

Customers are billed for the actual data stored in the backup, not the provisioned virtual disk size.

Example: A VM with 200 GB provisioned storage but only 30 GB physically stored in the backup is charged for 30 GB only.

Physical size billing is available when the configured backup provider reports actual backup storage consumed to CloudStack. If physical usage information is unavailable, CMP falls back to virtual (provisioned) size according to the configured billing mode.

CMP-supported providers for physical size billing

Verify physical size reporting in your environment before enabling physical billing — provider behaviour can vary by version and configuration.

Fallback to virtual size

If VM Backup Billing is set to physical in Cloud Provider Setup but CMP does not receive physical backup size from CloudStack, billing falls back to virtual (provisioned) size. Customers may be charged for the full provisioned disk capacity even though physical billing is selected. Verify physical size reporting works end-to-end before relying on physical billing in production.

Virtual size billing

Set VM Backup Billing to virtual when you want to charge based on provisioned disk size, or when the backup provider does not report physical backup usage to CloudStack.

Customers are billed for the full provisioned virtual disk size of the backed-up VM volumes.

Example: A VM with 200 GB provisioned storage is charged for 200 GB, regardless of how much data is actually written on disk.

Choosing a billing mode

Mode	When to use
Physical	Provider reports actual backup storage consumed; you want customers charged for real backup footprint
Virtual	Provider does not report physical size, or you prefer charging against provisioned/protected capacity

Pricing guidance

When physical size billing is confirmed for your provider, set your per-GB hourly rate considering that customers will typically be charged for less than the VM's provisioned disk size. When billing uses virtual size, price against the full provisioned capacity customers expect to back up.

Configure VM Backup packages in CMP

Create a VM Backup package for each Cloud Provider + Setup + Zone where you want to charge for VM backups.

The form fields shown depend on your backup backend. When Enable Provider Backup is No (Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup), the Backup Offering ID field is not shown. It appears only when Enable Provider Backup is Yes (CloudStack B&R-Based Backup).

1. Open Settings → Billing Setup → Rate Cards → Default → Packages → VM Backup
2. Click Add Package (form title: Create VM Backup Package)
3. Complete each field below in the order shown on the form
4. Set Status to Active and save

Each field below matches the Create VM Backup Package form.

Cloud Provider

Required. Select the orchestrator type — for example, CloudStack (Nimbo).

Cloud Provider Setup

Required. Select the CloudStack instance this package belongs to — for example, CloudStack-01.

Package Name

Required. Display name for the VM backup service — for example, VM Backup or Instance Backup.

Zone

Required. Select the CMP zone where this backup pricing applies — for example, SC-SIM-ZONE-1.

Tag

Optional. Assign a tag for filtering or promotional labelling in the customer portal.

Important

Tags are CMP-level labels used for representation only. They do not map to CloudStack tags.

Status

Required. Controls package visibility.

Status	Behaviour
Active	Backup package is available when customers create or retain VM backups in this zone
Inactive	Hidden — use while configuring or testing

Backup Offering ID

Required when Enable Provider Backup is Yes. Not shown on the form when using Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup (Enable Provider Backup = No).

Enter the CloudStack backup offering ID that this CMP package maps to.

Obtain the ID after importing a backup offering in CloudStack:

1. Log in to the CloudStack UI as root admin
2. Navigate to Service Offerings → Backup Offerings
3. Import the offering from your backup provider (Import Backup Offering) — see Importing Backup Offerings
4. Copy the offering ID (UUID) and paste it into this field

The Backup Offering ID links the CMP package to the CloudStack backup policy/offering customers are assigned to when using CloudStack B&R-Based Backup.

No billing cycle fields on this form

The Create VM Backup Package form does not include monthly or yearly pricing fields. VM backups (BACKUP) use hourly billing only. CMP calculates charges based on backup size (physical or virtual — per VM Backup Billing) and the hourly per-GB rate defined in your rate card for this package type.

End-to-end example

Goal: Charge for VM backups in zone SC-SIM-ZONE-1 using CloudStack B&R-Based Backup with NAS plugin and physical size billing.

CloudStack

1. Set backup.framework.enabled = true
2. Set backup.framework.provider.plugin to nas for the zone
3. Import backup offerings from the NAS provider
4. Test adhoc backup and restore on a non-production VM

CMP — Cloud Provider Setup

1. Enable Backups → Virtual Machine Backup in Wizard Step 1
2. Set Enable Provider Backup to Yes in Provider Config
3. Set VM Backup Billing to physical in Provider Config (verify NAS plugin reports physical backup size in your environment)

CMP package

1. Open Packages → VM Backup → Add Package
2. Set Cloud Provider CloudStack (Nimbo), Cloud Provider Setup CloudStack-01, Package Name VM Backup, Zone SC-SIM-ZONE-1
3. Set Backup Offering ID to the UUID of the NAS backup offering imported in CloudStack
4. Set Status to Active and save

A customer with a 200 GB VM whose backup physically consumes 30 GB is charged 30 × 0.10 = $3.00/hour when physical size billing is active.

Customer portal view

Customers protect VMs using a backup schedule on each instance:

Action	Where	Result on Backups list
Scheduled backup	Create schedule with frequency, timezone, retention	Type: Schedule
Run now	Lightning icon on schedule	Type: Manual
Take One Immediate	Checkbox when creating schedule	Type: Manual (first copy)

Each retained backup copy is billed at the zone per-GB hourly rate. See Manage backups and Restore backup.

Validation checklist

Before marking a VM Backup package Active, verify:

• Backups → Virtual Machine Backup is enabled in Cloud Provider Setup (Wizard Step 1)
• Enable Provider Backup matches your intended backend (Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup vs CloudStack B&R-Based Backup)
• For native backup: CloudStack B&R framework and provider plugin are configured — see Backup and Recovery
• For CloudStack B&R-Based Backup (Enable Provider Backup = Yes): Backup Offering ID matches a backup offering imported in CloudStack for the target zone
• VM Backup Billing (physical vs virtual) matches your provider's capabilities — verify physical size reporting before enabling physical billing
• For Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup: kvm.snapshot.enabled = true if required on KVM — see Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup
• Global quotas and CloudStack backup limits allow sufficient backup count per account

Related

• CloudStack Packages
• Backup — concepts and backends
• Automated Volume Snapshot as Backup — CloudStack backend for snapshot-as-backup path
• Backup schedules
• Manage backups
• CloudStack B&R-Based Backup
• Volumes Snapshot
• Connecting CMP to CloudStack
• Billing Overview
• Pricing Formulas
• CloudStack — About Backup And Recovery