Veeam Explorer efficiency considerations for Azure Blob storage.

[HiHoItsOffToWorkWeGo]

Topic: Veeam Explorer efficiency considerations for Azure Blob storage.

Context:
We currently backup an Exchange server using Veeam image backup.
The size of the VM is 38.3TB, the Veeam backup of this VM is around 36.5TB.
When using the Veeam Explorer for Exchange to browse the backup in a local repository, we have no issues performing item-level restores from individual mailboxes directly from this backup.
We're considering copying this into an Azure Blob storage in the cloud, either cold tier or archive tier blob storage.

Questions:
Is it still expected to be feasible to use Veeam Explorer for Exchange to browse the image backups when they are stored in Azure Blob Object Storage using a 250Gbps connection?
How many GB of the Veeam image would typically be recalled from the Blob in the cloud to the local server using Veeam Explorer for Exchange when browsing the mailbox databases before restoring an individual mailbox?
Would choosing the ARCHIVE tier for the blob storage be prohibitively expensive when using Veeam Explorer for Exchange, given it's rather pricy data recall pricing?
Would we be forced to split this single image backup into separate per Mailbox Database jobs so that each mailbox database is in a separate item for Veeam Explorer for Exchange efficiency purposes?
(Especially when choosing Archive tier pricing model?)

[HannesK]

Hello,
I see no problem in using it. Most customers have slower LAN than your 250Gbit/s connection

I don't know, whether anyone tested that, but you can test it on-prem. It would be similar like from object storage / cloud.

From archive tier: correct. the whole restore points first needs to be recalled.

I would not split. that sounds like a lot of complexity for little benefit. I mean, how often do you really need to open backups that are older than half a year? Or I would go for a cheaper cloud provider (Wasabi & Backblaze are popular with Veeam users.

Best regards,
Hannes

[HiHoItsOffToWorkWeGo]

pardon, I meant 250Mbps connection.

HannesK mentioned: From archive tier: correct. the whole restore points first needs to be recalled.

I see, of course, the entire blob needs to be recalled from Archive Tier to Cool Tier using the Azure web interface before it can be accessed at all.

I was kind of imagining that the Veeam Explorer for Exchange could, for example, utilise a guest index to determine only the portions of the backup that needed to be recalled for the specific mailboxes being restored/extracted, so as to minimize the recall costs associated with rehydrating only specific blobs from the archive tier back to the cool tier for only the required subset of data, rather than the whole image. Do I understand correctly that nothing like this exists in the product today?

[HiHoItsOffToWorkWeGo]

This question is open to anyone:
Say you have a backup of a VM, containing a bunch of restore points.
How does one copy or move this backup (including all the restore points) into an Azure blob using Veeam?

[HannesK]

your understanding is correct. we only fetch the data we need. But I don't have exact numbers on how much that would be.

for copy: if you only want to copy one VM, then you can use the backup copy job. If you want to mirror the whole repository, then the scale out backup repository with "copy" mode is the easiest way.