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    Cloud Backup:Feature overview

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    Cloud Backup:Feature overview

    Last Updated:Jun 20, 2026

    Cloud Backup provides ECS file backup to protect file systems on ECS instances. Back up data to backup vaults with automatic client deployment, deduplication, compression, and cross-region disaster recovery.

    Introduction

    The ECS file backup feature is a data protection solution provided by Cloud Backup for file systems on ECS instances. This feature backs up ECS file data to backup vaults in a simple, secure, and reliable way. If data in your production system is accidentally deleted or encrypted by ransomware, recover the data from backup vaults.

    Important

    This feature has specific limitations. For more information, see Compatible system list and limits.

    Key advantages

    • Automatic client installation

      After you select the ECS instance to back up, Cloud Backup automatically installs the backup client.

    • Cross-account backup

      After you grant the required permissions, use Account A to back up data from Account B. This facilitates centralized data protection management for enterprises.

    • Deduplication and compression

      The Cloud Backup client compresses and deduplicates the source ECS data before backup. This reduces storage consumption and accelerates backups.

    • Backup lock to prevent accidental or malicious deletion

      Cloud Backup provides a backup lock feature for backup vaults. No account or method can delete backup data before the configured retention period expires.

    • Cross-region or cross-account backup

      You can use the cross-region backup or cross-account backup vault replication feature to quickly copy critical data to different regions or accounts for multi-layered disaster recovery protection.

    How it works

    Backup principle

    Cloud Backup backs up data by automatically deploying a client on an ECS instance. The client uses Cloud Assistant for installation and management. Make sure the Cloud Assistant Agent is installed on the ECS instance. The client then backs up specified folders based on the backup plan configuration.

    The backup process uses an incremental-forever mechanism. The first backup performs a full backup. Subsequent backups are incremental and upload only changed data. A complete full backup is then synthesized in the cloud. The client scans specified folders to identify files to back up, and then deduplicates and compresses data to reduce network traffic.

    Client O&M

    Cloud Backup uses Cloud Assistant to install or uninstall the backup client and check the client status. If the client status is abnormal, Cloud Backup attempts to repair the client through Cloud Assistant. These operations and maintenance (O&M) tasks run through scripts. The following list describes each script:

    • Installation: The installation script prechecks file system permissions, network connectivity, and software dependencies. If the precheck succeeds, the script downloads the installation package to a local disk and installs the package.

      After installation, two new services are added.

      • Windows: Alibaba Cloud Backup Service and Alibaba Cloud Backup Update Service

        Open services.msc and verify that the status of these two services is Running and the startup type is Automatic (Delayed Start).

      • Linux: hbrclient.service and hbrupdater.service. The process names are hbrclient and updater.

        # Get information about all services and processes that contain "hbr".
systemctl list-units | grep hbr | awk '{print $1}' | xargs -I {} sh -c 'echo Service: {}; systemctl show {} -p MainPID | grep MainPID=; ps -p $(systemctl show {} -p MainPID | grep MainPID= | cut -d "=" -f2) -o pid,comm,cmd'
# The following result is returned:
Service: hbrclient.service
MainPID=2170
    PID COMMAND         CMD
   2170 hbrclient       /opt/alibabacloud/hbrclient/client/hbrclient run
Service: hbrclientupdater.service
MainPID=2246
    PID COMMAND         CMD
   2246 updater         /opt/alibabacloud/hbrclient/update/updater

    • Uninstallation: The uninstallation script uses the installed uninstaller to remove the client.

      After uninstallation, the hbrclient and hbrupdater services are removed, and the hbrclient and updater processes are stopped.

    • Restart: The restart script uses system services to restart the hbrclient and hbrupdater services. If system services fail to restart the services, the script terminates the processes to force a restart.

    • Diagnostics: The diagnostic script checks the client version, error logs, network reachability, disk space, mount information, and system time.

    Procedure

    The following procedure shows how to back up ECS files in the Cloud Backup console.

    image

    1. Activate Cloud Backup

      You are not charged for activating Cloud Backup. You are charged for the Cloud Backup client that you use to back up files and the storage usage of backup vaults. For more information, see Billing methods and billable items.

    2. Back up ECS files

      When you create a backup plan, configure the backup vault, data source, backup cycle, and retention period. After you create the backup plan, Cloud Backup installs a backup client on the source ECS instance. Cloud Backup starts the backup plan and continuously backs up files from the ECS instance.

      Important

      • If the region that you select supports backup policies, you can set a backup plan only by associating it with a backup policy. Cloud Backup periodically backs up ECS files based on the backup policy.

      • To view the regions that support backup policies, click Policy Center in the left-side navigation pane of the Cloud Backup console. For more information about how to create a backup policy, see Create a backup policy.

      • Backup plans are upgraded to backup policies. If you are using a backup plan of the previous version, you can create a backup policy or bind a backup policy to the backup plan when you edit the backup plan. After the upgrade, the backup history of the previous backup plan still exists. To ensure that you are able to view the backup history, we recommend that you use the same backup vault for the old backup plan and the new backup policy.

    3. Restore files to an ECS instance

      If a file is lost or abnormal in the ECS instance, you can restore the file based on historical backup points. You can restore the file to the original ECS instance, a new ECS instance, or an on-premises server.

      Important

      • If you restore data to a new ECS instance, you are charged for using a file backup client.

      • If you restore data to an on-premises server, you are charged for using a file backup client and the outbound Internet traffic.

    Billing

    ECS file backup incurs the following two types of fees:

    • File backup software fees: Charged based on the number of ECS instances with a backup client installed.

    • Storage capacity fees: Charged based on the actual storage capacity consumed by backup data in a backup vault.

      View the backup vault details on the Overview page of the Cloud Backup console.

    Additional fees may apply for specific Cloud Backup configurations or operations. For example, if a backup directory contains a mounted file system such as an OSS bucket mounted through ossfs, additional request fees may apply. These fees are charged by the corresponding service provider, such as OSS. For more information, see Billing methods and billable items.

    Important

    To avoid unexpected fees, understand the billing rules of the relevant service provider before using a mounted file system.

    For more information about the pricing of billable items, see Pricing.

    References