Synthetic backup refers to a class of backup methods where the backup software constructs a complete recovery image from existing backup data rather than reading from source systems again. The most common implementation is the synthetic full backup, which assembles a new full backup from a prior full and its incremental chain.

Why Synthetic Backup Matters

Traditional full backup jobs impose heavy read loads on production servers and consume significant network bandwidth. In large environments, weekly full backup windows can stretch for hours, impacting application performance during business-critical periods. Synthetic backup eliminates this by doing the heavy lifting on the backup server itself, with no production system involvement.

Faster Recovery Without Storage Overhead

Despite the efficiency gains, synthetic backup produces recovery images identical in format to traditional full backups. This means recovery speed is the same as restoring from a conventional full backup, with no penalty for the synthesis process. Storage consumption is also similar, since old incrementals are deleted once they are merged into the synthetic full.

Supported Platforms

Synthetic backup is supported natively by Veeam Backup and Replication, Commvault, Veritas NetBackup, and most enterprise backup platforms. The specific term used varies, with Veeam calling it synthetic full and others using terms like virtual full or incremental-forever with consolidation.

For a detailed breakdown of how synthetic backup compares to traditional full backup and incremental approaches, StoneFly’s technical documentation covers each method’s storage and performance profile.