Reviewed and updated 20 October 2026.
Microsoft 365, previously known as Office 365, needs a recovery plan that matches the way your business uses it. Backing up your data is one of the most simple and effective ways you can support your business recovery, and with more and more businesses moving to Office 365, protecting you and your clients’ information with a well rounded security plan has never seemed so simple. So why is backing up your files so important, and what should you look out for in an Office 365 back up provider?
Why should I regularly back up my data?
In our digitally focused world, it’s easy to assume that technology always has our backs. Microsoft provides built-in recovery and retention features, alongside its dedicated Microsoft 365 Backup service. Review their configured coverage and limits against your own recovery needs. Because of this, backing up your information as part of your data security plan adds another thorough layer of protection to your business, helping you retain recovery options if deletion, corruption or a cyber incident affects covered data. Record the mailboxes, SharePoint sites and OneDrive accounts in scope, the available restore points and who is responsible for recovery.
What should you check in a Microsoft 365 backup product?
Storing within multiple locations
As your business grows, the number of users accessing your files from multiple locations will only get bigger and bigger – this means backing up those files will become a bigger task too. If you assess Veeam or another backup product, check its current supported workloads, deployment and storage options, licences and exclusions. Check coverage when users join or leave and when new sites, applications or teams are added. Do not assume every workload is included automatically.
Set retention and access requirements
Staying on the right side of the GDPR guidelines is crucial for your business on every level. Backing up your files with your compliance in mind, ask for reporting that identifies coverage gaps and helps you monitor storage usage. Granular advanced search and find functionality can help locate covered items for recovery, subject to the product’s scope and retention settings. A backup product alone does not establish compliance.
Recovery flexibility
Your business is unique, so your entire infrastructure should be bespoke to you too. Veeam provides you with multiple ways to restore your data, empowering you with the tools to find and recover the individual files you need. Ask the supplier to demonstrate the restore options and limitations relevant to your business. Whether it’s particular documents, libraries and lists you’re looking for, or you’re searching for a specific business account, backing up with Veeam means you can easily find what you’re looking for in a few simple clicks.
Advanced search capabilities
Time is money, so having the ability to keep your data on hand even when you’re backing up your information is vital for getting the job done in no time. Veeam documents search options for items in Microsoft 365 backups. Check the supported item types, search permissions and recovery workflow against your requirements. This means that rather than sifting through the entirety of folders you’re backing up, granular recovery of individual objects is more easily achievable than ever before.
Plan for growth
Assess scalability using your actual data volumes, growth, backup windows and restore requirements, rather than an unsupported comparison with older products. Backing up Office 365 in this way also lets you and your team be much more flexible about where your files are stored; retrieving your data from your own premises, the public cloud or with a local service provider puts your backing up information access safely in your own hands, wherever you choose to access it from.
Test recovery times
We all know how easy it is to delay pop ups and notifications on your browser when you’re having a busy day. Backup and restore performance varies with the product, configuration, data and service constraints. Measure recovery time in a controlled test before relying on a target. With regular monitoring and restore testing, Veeam allows you to quickly and easily incorporate your data security measures into your working day.
Review Microsoft’s current backup and recovery guidance. For help defining scope, retention and restore testing, explore CIS backup and disaster recovery or Microsoft 365 support.
