Server virtualization is a widespread practice all around the world . In 2020, VMware is still the market leader in this sector and many Veeam customers use VMware vSphere as their preferred virtualization platform . The backup of virtual machines (VMs) on vSphere is only one part of service availability . Backup is the foundation for restores, so it is essential to have backups always available with the required speed . The most important rule as a general best practice in the field of backup is the 3-2-1 Rule . 

This means having at least three copies of your data: Production data, a first line of backup and a second line of backup . It also recommends storing the backup copies on at least two independent types of media . The “independent” cannot be overemphasized . Independent means that there is no dependency from a technology perspective . And finally, another copy should be off site and offline, out of reach of natural disasters, malicious software and unauthorized people . For example, Veeam added support for S3 Object Lock in Veeam Backup & Replication v10 . Of course, tape is still an option for off-site storage for backups .