UrBackup: Open-Source Backup Ledger 2026

Part of the Open-Source Backup Ledger (edition 2026-10-02). How the scores work: methodology.

Snapshot

Kind: Backup platform
Licence: AGPLv3 server; AGPLv3/GPLv3 clients
Backer: Infscape (Martin Raiber, Germany), which sells the UrBackup appliance
Paid edition or support: Infscape appliance (hardware or virtual) with support; adds cloud replication. Community support via forum
Latest release: Server 2.5.38, 2026-08-30
Next signal: 2.5.x maintenance; exploratory 2.6 (Linux snapshot drivers, VSS compatibility)
Archetype: Founder-led niche platform
Evidence grade: B. Several release dates come from news announcements rather than tags (no server tags exist for some versions); 2.5.24 is a client-release date.

Scorecard

Dimension	Score	Direction
Capability today	49.4 / 100	higher is better
Momentum since end of 2022	+0.0 points	higher is better
Credibility	14.0 / 25	higher is better
Sustainability risk	14.0 / 25	lower is better
Technical lock-in	3.5 / 25	lower is better
Support and ecosystem	9.5 / 20	higher is better
AI leverage	1.0 / 20	higher is better
Ledger Index	46.7 / 100	balanced weights

Capability by domain

Scores 0 to 5 against fixed anchors; total is weighted to 100.

Domain (weight)	2016	2019	2022	Today
Virtual and physical servers (12)	2.5	3	3	3
Databases and applications (12)	2	2	2	2
Recovery (14)	3.5	3.5	3.5	3.5
Cyber resilience (14)	1.5	2.5	2.5	2.5
Storage efficiency and targets (10)	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5
Long-term retention and tape (6)	3	3	3	3
Replication and DR (10)	1	1	1	1
Security and compliance (8)	2	2.5	2.5	2.5
New-platform support (VMware exit) (8)	1.5	1.5	1.5	1.5
Management at scale and automation (6)	3	3	3	3
Total / 100	44.6	49.4	49.4	49.4

Year by year: 2016: 44.6 · 2017: 44.6 · 2018: 44.6 · 2019: 49.4 · 2020: 49.4 · 2021: 49.4 · 2022: 49.4 · 2023: 49.4 · 2024: 49.4 · 2025: 49.4 · 2026: 49.4

What moved the score

Year	Domain	Change	Points	Trigger
2019	Cyber resilience	1.5 → 2.5	+2.8	Server-side read-only Btrfs/ZFS snapshots clients cannot alter
2019	Security and compliance	2 → 2.5	+0.8	LDAP login for the web console
2019	Virtual and physical servers	2.5 → 3	+1.2	2.4: Linux image backup with a changed-block driver

Direction, 2023 to 2026

Each item carries one theme and one driver (V vision, C customer need, M market window, U upstream, P portfolio).

Date	Item	Theme	Driver
2023-04	2.5.31: kernel 6.x driver compatibility, OpenSSL 3	D1 Virtual and physical servers	U
2024-03	2.5.33 maintenance release	D12 Packaging and licensing	C
2026-01	2.5.35 memory leak fix	D12 Packaging and licensing	C
2026-08	2.5.38 performance release	D10 Scale and automation	C

Centre of gravity: Packaging and licensing (2), Virtual and physical servers (1), Scale and automation (1)
Driver mix: Vision 0%, Customer need 75%, Market window 0%, Upstream 25%, Portfolio 0%

Credibility: 14.0 / 25

Criterion	Score	Basis
Cadence	2.5	Sporadic: one server release in 2023, none in 2024, several in 2025-2026
Roadmap transparency	2.5	Code on GitHub with issues disabled; announcements on the forum
Say-do	3.5	7 of 7 maintenance items shipped
Velocity	2.5	Mostly maintenance; few new capabilities since 2019
Lifecycle stability	3	2.5.x line maintained since 2022

Say-do record, 2023 to 2026: 7 maintenance items (kernel driver compatibility, OpenSSL 3, memory fixes) all shipped within 1 to 3 months. No feature roadmap to test.

Sustainability risk: 14.0 / 25 (lower is better)

Criterion	Score	Basis
Maintainer concentration	4	Founder plus one main committer (Kazi 2024-2025)
Backer health	3	Small company selling appliances
Licence-change risk	2.5	AGPLv3, single main copyright holder
Abandonment signs	2	Quiet 2022-2023, active again 2024-2026
Security response	2.5	No advisory process found

Project health: Last server release 2026-08-30. 932 stars, 177 forks, 19 open PRs (median 7 days); GitHub issues disabled. Commits dropped to 21 in 2023, then recovered.

Technical lock-in: 3.5 / 25 (lower is better)

Criterion	Score	Basis
Formats	0.5	Plain file trees and VHD/raw images
Export path	0.5	Files readable directly; images import into hypervisors
Stack coupling	1	Self-contained server with embedded SQLite
Hardware / cloud coupling	0.5	Btrfs or ZFS strongly recommended
Skills and tooling coupling	1	Simple to run

Support and ecosystem: 9.5 / 20

Criterion	Score	Basis
Paid support	2.5	Appliance support only
Consultants and partners	1.5	Few partners
Documentation	3	Complete admin manual
Community and packaging	2.5	Vendor packages and forum; little distribution packaging

AI leverage: 1 / 20

Strand	Today	Latest step
AI for protection / protecting AI	0	none
AI platform stack	0	none
AI-assisted operations	0	none
Agent openness	1	2019: JSON/HTTP API

No AI features.

Reading

UrBackup is the simplest way here to get image and file backup of Windows and Linux machines with a web console, and its plain file and VHD formats make leaving easy. It has no tape, no object storage, no replication and no hypervisor integration in the open-source edition, and development has been mostly maintenance since 2019. A good fit for small server fleets and PCs, not for data-centre VM estates.

Open questions and evidence caveats

Several release dates rest on forum announcements because server tags are missing (grade B).
Cloud replication and dedupe extras are appliance-only.