Afi Kubernetes Backup

Afi Kubernetes Backup is a backup and recovery product for distributed Kubernetes applications, aimed at teams that need protection to track changing clusters and support targeted recovery. Its per-node license and separate storage charge suit teams willing to budget around their infrastructure footprint; the free license is a narrower entry point for small environments.

Overview

Afi’s coverage spans etcd, namespace metadata and dependencies, infrastructure configurations, persistent volumes, and databases. Scheduled, application-consistent backups and unlimited retention give teams room to set recovery policies without a fixed retention ceiling. Full-text search helps locate recovery points or individual items, while restores can target a whole cluster or selected components in the same or a different environment.

Auto-discovery adjusts protection settings as resources and applications change, which is useful where a static inventory would quickly fall behind. Afi also describes cyberattack detection, preemptive backups, alerts, and vulnerability detection for cluster configurations and dependencies. These controls and recovery options make it a broad operational protection choice, though its paid plan’s node and storage costs deserve careful budgeting.

Key features

• Changing-cluster coverage: Automatic discovery and adapting protection settings reduce the need to keep backup coverage aligned by hand as Kubernetes resources change.
• Flexible recovery: Restore or replicate a full cluster or selected application components, including across target environments. Cross-cluster recovery and application consistency are useful for teams planning more than a simple in-place restore.
• Search and retention: Full-text search across backups supports finding either a recovery point or an individual item. Unlimited retention avoids a stated time-based cap, but storage charges still matter on Afi storage.
• Deployment and identity: A cloud-hosted dashboard is offered alongside on-premises-only and hybrid options for air-gapped environments. Custom backup roles and cloud IAM or identity-provider access management support tighter access control.
• Integrations: Named options include Terraform, CircleCI, Jenkins, OpenID, Azure AD, GCP, AWS, and Okta, connecting the product with infrastructure, delivery, cloud, and identity environments.
• Storage choice: Customers can connect cloud, off-premise, or local storage, or use Afi storage with selectable regions and residency policies. Afi says its true incremental backups can be up to 2–3 times faster than Velero-based options, particularly in large environments.

Pricing

Afi is paid software with a 14-day trial. The paid offer starts at $140/mo, but the listed license rate is $140 per protected node per month, with backup storage at $60 per one terabyte per month. Using your own storage removes the storage charge, not the node license. Large deployments have custom pricing, so the starting figure should not be treated as a cluster-wide total.

• Free licenses — free: Available by request for environments protecting less than 10 nodes. This gives smaller environments a no-cost route, but the node threshold makes it unsuitable once a cluster reaches 10 protected nodes.
• Afi Kubernetes Backup — $140 a month: The plan licenses protected nodes; storage is separately charged at $60 per one terabyte per month unless customers use their own storage. It fits teams needing scheduled, application-consistent backups, unlimited retention, and cross-cluster restore, provided the per-node recurring cost works for their scale.

Afi invites prospective customers to request a demo or quote, arrange a proof of concept, or use an Afi-hosted test lab. Those options are useful for evaluating fit before committing, especially for large deployments with custom pricing.

Platforms

Afi lists API, self-hosted, and web platforms. Its deployment choices include a cloud-hosted dashboard as well as on-premises-only and hybrid arrangements for air-gapped environments. The latter make it relevant to organizations with restricted network conditions or specific data-residency requirements.

Who it's for

Afi is best suited to Kubernetes teams that need automated coverage as clusters evolve, granular or whole-cluster recovery, and control over where backup data resides. Its selectable storage regions, customer-owned storage option, custom roles, and stated SOC 2 Type II, GDPR, and HIPAA compliance make it worth considering where governance matters. Teams with only a few nodes can request free licenses; larger teams should weigh node licensing and storage charges against their recovery needs.

It is a weaker fit for buyers seeking a generally free tool or a simple flat price regardless of node count. Teams that already rely on Velero may also want to compare its free, open-source route before paying for Afi’s additional managed backup and recovery capabilities.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Automatic resource discovery keeps protection aligned with changing clusters; full-text search, unlimited retention, and component-level or cross-cluster recovery offer practical flexibility; customer-owned storage avoids Afi’s listed storage charge.
• Cons: Paid licensing scales by protected node, and Afi storage adds a per-terabyte monthly charge; the free license is limited to environments protecting fewer than 10 nodes and requires a request; large-deployment pricing is custom.

Alternatives

• Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes is worth considering for teams that want a freemium option: its free plan covers 5 nodes, and an Enterprise Trial covers 500 nodes for 60 days.
• Velero is the alternative to consider if a free, open-source backup tool is the priority; it supports API, Linux, macOS, self-hosted, and Windows platforms.
• Stash is another freemium choice, with a free community edition and API and self-hosted platforms.
• CloudCasa may suit teams seeking a trial with a stated allowance: its free trial covers up to 5 nodes, 30-day retention, and a maximum of 3 users per organization, with community support.
• KubeSphere Backup is a fit to compare for a smaller hosted allowance: its free plan covers 2 protected applications, 3 days of retention, and a 10 GB hosted repository.
• AWS Backup for Amazon EKS is an option for teams comparing usage-based EKS backup; its pay-as-you-go plan has no minimum fee or setup charges.
• HYCU for Kubernetes is an alternative for teams willing to request pricing details, including for Google Kubernetes Engine.
• Retour is another paid, web-based alternative.

For broader comparisons, browse Container Backup Software or Kubernetes Backup Software.

Verdict

Choose Afi if your team needs Kubernetes protection that adapts to changing resources, supports searchable and targeted recovery, and can fit cloud, hybrid, or air-gapped deployments. Its strongest case is the combination of automated discovery, broad backup coverage, and flexible restore targets. Look elsewhere if per-node licensing and storage charges do not fit your budget, or if a free and open-source tool is the priority.