Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Macrium Reflect VS rsync

Compare Macrium Reflect VS rsync and see what are their differences

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Macrium Reflect logo Macrium Reflect

Macrium Software - the creators of Macrium Reflect backup, imaging and cloning software.

rsync logo rsync

rsync is a file transfer program for Unix systems. rsync uses the "rsync algorithm" which provides a very fast method for bringing remote files into sync.
  • Macrium Reflect Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-16
  • rsync Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-07-31

Macrium Reflect features and specs

  • User-Friendly Interface
    Macrium Reflect Free offers an intuitive and user-friendly interface that makes it easy for both novice and experienced users to backup and restore their data.
  • Fast Backup and Restoration
    The software is optimized for speed, enabling quick backups and restorations, which saves significant time, especially with large data sets.
  • Comprehensive Image Backup
    Macrium Reflect Free allows users to create detailed image backups of disks and partitions, ensuring that entire system states can be restored.
  • Incremental and Differential Backups
    The software supports incremental and differential backups, enabling users to save space and time by only backing up changes made since the last backup.
  • Free Version
    A fully functional free version is available, providing robust features without any initial cost, making it accessible for personal use.
  • Bootable Rescue Media
    Users can create bootable rescue media to restore their systems even when the OS is not bootable, offering an extra layer of reliability.

Possible disadvantages of Macrium Reflect

  • Limited Features for Free Version
    Some advanced features such as incremental backups, email notifications, and rapid delta cloning are only available in the paid versions.
  • Steep Learning Curve for Advanced Features
    While basic functions are straightforward, some of the more advanced features can be complex to understand and require a steeper learning curve.
  • Resource Intensive
    The software can be resource-intensive, potentially impacting system performance during backup and restore operations, especially on older hardware.
  • Limited Cloud Integration
    Compared to some competitors, Macrium Reflect Free has limited cloud storage integration options, which may be a downside for users looking for seamless cloud backups.
  • Support Options Limited for Free Users
    Free version users have limited access to customer support, primarily relying on community forums and documentation, which may not be sufficient for all users.

rsync features and specs

  • Efficient Data Transfer
    Rsync uses a delta-transfer algorithm which allows it to update files by only sending the differences between the source and destination, greatly reducing the amount of data transferred.
  • Bandwidth Throttling
    Rsync provides an option to limit the bandwidth used during the transfer, helping to manage network resources and avoid congestion.
  • Compression
    Rsync supports compression of data during transfer, which can further reduce the amount of data sent over the network.
  • Secure Transfer
    Rsync can utilize SSH for secure data transfer, adding a layer of encryption to protect data as it moves between systems.
  • Versatile
    Rsync can be used for a variety of tasks such as backups, mirroring, and synchronization, making it a versatile tool for different data management needs.
  • Preserves File Attributes
    Rsync preserves file permissions, timestamps, ownerships, and symbolic links during the transfer, ensuring that all file attributes remain intact.
  • Widely Supported
    Rsync is available on most Unix-like operating systems and there are ports available for Windows, making it accessible across different platforms.
  • Open Source
    Rsync is free and open-source software, allowing anyone to use, modify, and distribute it without licensing fees.

Possible disadvantages of rsync

  • Complex Syntax
    The rsync command line options can be complex and difficult to master, especially for users who are not familiar with command-line interfaces.
  • Initial Setup
    Setting up rsync for the first time can be cumbersome, particularly when dealing with SSH keys, excluding files, and setting up cron jobs for automation.
  • Resource Intensive
    During large data transfers, rsync can be resource-intensive, consuming a considerable amount of CPU and RAM, which might affect system performance.
  • Limited Incremental Backup Support
    Rsync's incremental backup feature is somewhat limited and less sophisticated compared to dedicated backup solutions, requiring additional scripting for effective implementation.
  • Remote File System Compatibility
    Rsync may encounter issues with certain remote file systems that have different characteristics or limitations, such as differing maximum file path lengths or unsupported special characters.
  • No Native GUI
    Rsync does not have a native graphical user interface (GUI), which may make it less accessible to users who prefer or require a visual interaction.
  • No Built-in Scheduling
    Rsync lacks built-in scheduling capabilities, necessitating the use of external tools like cron (Linux/Unix) or Task Scheduler (Windows) to automate scheduled tasks.

Analysis of Macrium Reflect

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Macrium Reflect is a good choice for those seeking robust and reliable backup software. It is particularly praised for its efficiency in data recovery and system migration tasks.

Why this product is good

  • Macrium Reflect is generally considered a good backup solution due to its reliability and comprehensive feature set. It offers features such as disk imaging, cloning, and scheduled backups, providing users with a flexible approach to managing their data. It supports a wide range of file systems and storage options, ensuring broad compatibility. Moreover, its user-friendly interface and detailed documentation make it accessible for both beginners and advanced users.

Recommended for

  • Individuals and businesses looking for a reliable backup solution.
  • Users in need of disk imaging and cloning capabilities.
  • Those who require scheduled and automated backup processes.
  • Tech-savvy users who appreciate detailed control over backup parameters.

Macrium Reflect videos

Product Review - Macrium Reflect 7

More videos:

  • Tutorial - How to Clone Windows With Macrium Reflect 7 Free | 2020 Working Tutorial
  • Tutorial - Webinar: How to image a disk with Macrium Reflect - Part 1 The Basics
  • Review - Macrium Reflect Review

rsync videos

Rsync Backup on Linux

More videos:

  • Tutorial - How to Properly Use Cloud Storage | Rsync Encrypt Tutorial
  • Review - Setup OpenMediaVault 5.0 beta NAS on Raspberry Pi 4: RPi4 NAS + Configure RSync with x2 shares OMV5

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Macrium Reflect and rsync)
Backup & Restore
100 100%
0% 0
File Sharing And Backup
0 0%
100% 100
Cyber Security
100 100%
0% 0
File Sharing
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Macrium Reflect and rsync

Macrium Reflect Reviews

Non-Subscription Alternatives to Acronis Cyber Protect Home Office
Macrium Reflect is a leading piece of disk imaging software which features many of the image-based backup and recovery functionalities found within Acronis Cyber Protect Home Office, minus the need to buy the software on a subscription basis. This excellent set of imaging features includes tools for both backup and cloning of disks as well as tools for more specialist tasks...
The Best Free Backup Software and Why it is Difficult to Find One
Macrium Reflect 8 and its free version are not the most conventional backup solutions out there, with the ability of imaging and cloning being the main capability of the software and the inability to backup anything smaller than a disk partition. However, it is still considered a personal backup solution that offer backup scheduling, different backup storage locations, and...
Source: www.bacula.org
15 Best Acronis Alternatives 2022
With Macrium, you also get several scheduling settings and retention preferences (about how long you’d like to keep some files and what to remove when the space is insufficient). With the paid version, you also get notifications for email and password protection.
Windows 11 Recovery USB Software - Create Recovery USB in Easy Way
Rescue Media Builder is a part of Macrium Reflect free, a top-notch disk backup and restore software. This feature allows you to create a Windows recovery USB for data backup and restore. This could be an ideal solution if there were very important data sitting on the problematic device.
Source: www.uubyte.com

rsync Reviews

Linux File Backup - 5 Best Softeware for Linux Desktop and Server
Rsync(secured URL: https://linux.die.net/man/1/rsync) is a famous software among Linux desktop users since it offers command-line system backup services. Besides featuring incremental backups, you can update the complete file directory tree inside the system. Even it is possible to protect file ownership, permissions, links, etc.
Source: www.easeus.com
The Best Free Backup Software and Why it is Difficult to Find One
Rsync is the very definition of bare-bones backup software. It is a backup tool that is made for Unix systems with the ability to operate it both via the graphic interface and the command line. It allows for its users to perform local and remote backups on multiple devices, including incremental backups. Rsync also has the capability to sync systems across the internet with...
Source: www.bacula.org
The Top 17 Free and Open Source Backup Solutions
Rsync is a command line Linux backup tool, but it also offers a graphical user interface. With this software, IT administrators are able to perform incremental backups, as well as local and remote backups. Rsync enables users to update their whole directory tree and file system. The solution is built for UNIX-like systems, and is recommended to users looking to locally back...
11 Best Linux Backup Solutions
Rsync is another feature-rich backup solution available for Linux. It allows for incremental backups, update whole directory tree and file system, both local and remote backups, preserve file permissions, ownership, links, privileges, automated scripts and much more. Rsync is a command-line tool but there GUI or frontends such as Grsync available. Rsync is very popular in...
25 Outstanding Backup Utilities for Linux Systems in 2020
It also has a graphical user interface called Grsync but one advantage with the rsync is that backups can be automated using scripts and cron jobs when used by experienced System Administrators on the command line.
Source: www.tecmint.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, rsync seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 15 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Macrium Reflect mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Macrium Reflect yet. Tracking of Macrium Reflect recommendations started around Mar 2021.

rsync mentions (15)

  • Down the Rabbit Hole of creating a Home Lab
    Rsync - Fast file copying and syncing. - Source: dev.to / about 1 month ago
  • Researchers have identified a total of 6 vulnerabilities in rsync
    Does this apply to the GPL or BSD codebase? There are (now) two rsync codebases. GPL: https://rsync.samba.org/ BSD: https://www.openrsync.org/. - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
  • Which synchronization tool are you using together with the pCloud Crypto Folder?
    Rsync can be used to synchronize a local disk to the pCloud drive p. Works similarly as the Sync option of the pCloud Drive app. May be useful if one prefers a bulk upload once a day over a continuous synchronization. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Advanced Backup and Disaster Recovery Strategies
    Tools that can be used to handle this include Rsync, Duplicati, Cohesity. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Use rsync to Sync a Node Project to Dropbox and Ignore the node modules Folder
    To overcome this issue, you can use rsync, a powerful command-line tool for synchronizing files and directories, along with a bash script that excludes the node_modules folder and also filter out anything in a .gitignore file that you specify. In this article, I'll guide you through the process of setting up and using this bash script to sync your Node.js project while ignoring the node_modules folder. - Source: dev.to / almost 2 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Macrium Reflect and rsync, you can also consider the following products

Acronis True Image - (Formerly Acronis True Image) Complete protection for your digital life

FreeFileSync - FreeFileSync is a free open source data backup software that helps you synchronize files and folders on Windows, Linux and macOS.

Clonezilla - Clonezilla is a suite of software that's designed to allow you to back-up and image new hard drives with your data.

Duplicati - Free backup software to store backups online with strong encryption. Works with FTP, SSH, WebDAV, OneDrive, Amazon S3, Google Drive and many others.

AOMEI Backupper - AOMEI Backupper is a software created to help a person backup, restore, clone, and sync their entire Windows system.

GoodSync - GoodSync provides highly reliable file backup and synchronization for both individuals and businesses.