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It seems that in-place backups (backing up just data not a Windows OS) is extremely popular. Where I work, it is recommended for AD backups amnd servers where non-trivial apps have been installed, meaning that if the machine goes down a complex app has to be installed and then all the data restored etc.

This is not worth the work, even if the space footprint is lower. Why are in-place backups so popular? I would not want to do them.

Thanks

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Your question would be a lot better if you could separate out your arguments or problems with this from the question. Perhaps your opinions should be posted as an answer, or at least as a separate paragraph following the question. – Zoredache Sep 8 '10 at 23:44
I think virtualization with SAN snapshots makes in-place backups less and less useful while still not using too much space. – PHLiGHT Sep 9 '10 at 0:17
If it takes that much to install your application, it sounds like your build standards might need some improvement. – Warner Sep 9 '10 at 0:46
Because the data is what is valuable. – tomjedrz Sep 9 '10 at 5:13
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closed as not constructive by Zoredache, squillman, Dennis Williamson, Warner, ErikA Sep 9 '10 at 1:49

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Firstly, nothing is 100% foolproof.

It all depends on what you want/need out of your DR procedure. And of course, the budget to accomplish those targets. If part of your requirements are to be able to restore an application, possibly to different OS/hardware, then it makes sense to have those backups separate from the system that is currently running them.

I can't accurately comment on the popularity of either choice, but here we use both.

System imaging with ShadowProtect for all servers, and we also backup data for other applications like finance software, Exchange etc. as a secondary option should there be issues with the system images.

I think it is worth having a backup of data that is separate from the server it runs on, if only for my own piece of mind, but I also like being able to restore key servers in minutes rather than days.

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