In short: Acronis Microsoft 365 Backup is agentless cloud-to-cloud backup for Exchange Online, OneDrive, SharePoint Online, Microsoft Teams and supported Entra ID data. It is licensed per seat with unlimited Acronis Cloud storage, or per gigabyte when backups are kept in Microsoft 365 Backup Storage with fixed one-year retention. Forever Systems bills it monthly.
Why back up Microsoft 365
Microsoft keeps Microsoft 365 running, but under its shared responsibility model your data is your responsibility. Deleted items and version history are kept only for limited periods, a compromised account can delete or encrypt files that then sync everywhere, and leavers' mailboxes disappear once their licence is removed. An independent backup gives you copies outside your tenant, kept as long as you decide.
Acronis Microsoft 365 Backup is part of Acronis Cyber Platform (formerly Cyber Protect Cloud). It connects to your tenant through Microsoft's APIs, so there is nothing to install on devices.
What is protected
| Service | What is backed up |
|---|---|
| Exchange Online | User, shared and group mailboxes: email, calendars and contacts, with optional in-place archive mailboxes |
| OneDrive | Files and folders, with optional OneNote notebooks |
| SharePoint Online | Sites and their content |
| Microsoft Teams | Teams, channels, channel files, team mailboxes, meetings and sites |
| Entra ID | Supported users, groups, conditional access policies and configuration |
Two limits to know: Teams channel conversations can be downloaded as HTML but not restored back into Teams, and private one-to-one and group chats are not backed up. Acronis also applies AI-assisted anomaly detection to Microsoft 365 backups to help flag unusual changes.
How it is licensed
There are two storage choices, and they drive the licensing:
| Option | Unit | Retention |
|---|---|---|
| Acronis Cloud storage | Per seat, with unlimited Acronis Cloud storage included | Flexible: by age, by number of backups, or indefinitely while the service is active |
| Microsoft 365 Backup Storage (Microsoft-hosted) | Per gigabyte consumed | Fixed at one year, with recovery-point frequency varying by workload and backup age |
Through Forever Systems everything is billed monthly on usage, so leavers drop off the bill once you remove them. Ask us for a quote and we will tell you which option fits your tenant.
Search, recovery and requirements
You can search mailbox backups by sender, recipient, subject or date and find files by name, preview items, and restore a single email, file or folder rather than a whole mailbox or site. Restores can go to the original location, to another user, or to another organisation within the same Acronis tenant. Immutable storage can be added so that deleted backups stay protected for a configured period.
Recovery options and recovery-point frequency differ when you use Microsoft 365 Backup Storage, so we check it fits your needs before recommending it. Connecting the service needs a Microsoft 365 administrator to grant consent to the Acronis application once. If you also need legal hold and eDiscovery, add Acronis Email Archiving.
Who it suits
Any organisation using Microsoft 365 for email and files, which today is most of them. It particularly suits businesses that must keep records for years, schools and charities that need to retain leavers' data, and anyone whose cyber insurer asks for backups held outside the production environment. For a complete Microsoft 365 security stack, see Acronis Protected 365.
How we help
We connect your tenant, choose storage and retention with you, run the first backup and test a restore. Licence counts follow your users automatically. Microsoft licences themselves are handled by Forever Group's Microsoft licensing team. Compare other products in Microsoft 365 backup.
How Forever Systems supplies your software licences
Forever Systems Ltd supplies business software subscriptions to UK organisations from one account, with one monthly invoice and a UK team who know the products.
- The right edition first time: we check what you need before you buy, so you are not paying for features you will never use
- Monthly or annual terms where the vendor offers them, and help timing renewals and commitments
- Licence changes handled for you: add or remove users, upgrade editions and true-up without starting a new contract
- Deployment and support from engineers who run these products every day, not just a reseller account
- Consolidated billing and renewal reminders so nothing lapses unexpectedly
We work with businesses, schools, charities and public sector organisations of all sizes.
Need a licence quote or a second opinion on your renewal?
Tell Forever Systems what you need and we will come back to you by email with options, not a hard sell.
Contact usFrequently asked questions
Does Microsoft back up Microsoft 365?
Microsoft protects its service against failure, but deleted and changed data is only recoverable for limited periods. An independent backup such as Acronis keeps copies outside your tenant for as long as you choose.
Is storage unlimited with Acronis Microsoft 365 Backup?
Yes, on per-seat licences using Acronis Cloud storage. If you use Microsoft 365 Backup Storage instead, you pay per gigabyte and retention is fixed at one year.
Does Acronis back up Teams chats?
It backs up teams, channels, channel files, team mailboxes, meetings and sites. Private one-to-one and group chats are excluded, and channel conversations can be downloaded as HTML but not restored into Teams.
Can I keep backups of leavers' mailboxes?
Yes. Backups are kept according to your retention settings, so you can remove the Microsoft licence and still recover a leaver's mail later.