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Arkame or Zextras: keep Zimbra with a backup, or switch platforms

Zextras Suite has ended, and Zextras points to Carbonio, a different mail platform, with backup in the paid editions. Arkame backs up the Zimbra you already run, while you decide whether to migrate, and when.

Which one is your case

Choose Arkame if Zimbra stays for a while

  • You are staying on Zimbra 8.8.15, 9 or 10.1 and need a backup now, without switching platforms first.
  • You want to pay per server, not per mailbox: US$ 5 per server per month (R$ 25 in Brazil), with 20 accounts or 2,000.
  • You want to install and configure it yourself, in minutes, without depending on a partner.
  • You want the backup in your own bucket, readable without Arkame, and to restore an account from the panel without overwriting anything.
  • You want the Zimbra backup and your other servers (files and databases) in the same panel.

Choose Carbonio if you are switching platforms

  • You are leaving Zimbra anyway and want a platform backed by its vendor: Zextras names Carbonio as the official replacement for Zimbra Open Source with Zextras Suite (zextras.com, Oct 19).
  • You want real-time backup and restoring the whole mailbox server, which are in Carbonio's paid editions (zextras.com, Oct 19) (docs.zextras.com, Oct 19). Arkame restores one account at a time.
  • You want a partner to handle deployment, migration and support: that is how Carbonio works, and the migration is not a tool you run on your own (community.zextras.com, Oct 19).
  • You have more than one mailbox server: Arkame was tested with one.

Smart Retention

You do not write rules. The tiers come ready: one copy per day for the last 6 months, one per week up to 1 year, one per month up to 3 years and, after that, quarterly, half-yearly and yearly copies, up to 10 years. The screen shows the timeline and answers the question that matters: "what if I need a file from 8 months ago?". By default, the current version of every file is always kept, and the cleanup stops and asks for a review if it is about to delete more than half of the versions.

Retention is set per storage (bucket), not per backup plan. If your bucket uses Object Lock, Arkame deletes nothing: what expires the old versions is the rule you set on the bucket itself.

In practice: the day you need a file back

With Arkame

You open the panel in the browser, go to Restore and find the file in three ways: searching by name, browsing the folders or going back to a date on the timeline. You choose which server and which folder it goes to, and what to do if a file with the same name already exists (keep both, overwrite or skip). The file leaves your bucket and goes straight to the server, checked on arrival; progress shows up in History. Two limits: the destination server has to be on, with the agent running, and sending to a server or folder other than the original takes an owner or administrator with two-step verification.

In Carbonio

Restoring is an administrator's task, on the command line or in the backup area of Carbonio's admin panel: items, accounts or the whole mailbox server (docs.zextras.com, Oct 19).

Side by side

Sources checked between October 4, 2026 and October 19, 2026; each one shows its day next to it. Other products’ prices in the currency of the official page. - : the checked source does not say.

How to replace Zextras Suite with Arkame

Both can run on the same server until Arkame’s first export finishes.

  1. Create a bucket for Arkame, with versioning. The storage guide shows how.

  2. Install the agent on the Zimbra server and create a plan with the Zimbra recipe, as in the Zimbra guide.

  3. Wait for the first export to finish (a few nights on a large server) and restore a test account into a new account.

  4. Only then turn the old backup off, and keep its copies for as long as you need them.

FAQ

Does Zextras Suite still work?

Zextras says it is no longer available and should not be used going forward, and that Zimbra Open Source no longer gets security updates (zextras.com, Oct 19). If it still runs on your server, do not count on updates.

Does Arkame replace Carbonio?

No. Carbonio is a mail platform; Arkame is only the backup. It protects the Zimbra you already run, while you decide whether to migrate, and when.

How much does backup cost in Carbonio?

Zextras does not publish prices: they depend on the edition, region, reseller and size of the install (community.zextras.com, Oct 19). Backup is in the Email and Workspace editions, not in Community (zextras.com, Oct 19).

Try it on your server

14 days free, no card. Backups go to your bucket, with your keys.

Start your 14-day trialSee Arkame pricing