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Best Data Deduplication Tools 2025

Data Deduplication is, simply the elimination of duplicate copies of repeat data via compression.

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Learn More about Data Deduplication Software

What are Data Deduplication Tools?

Data deduplication tools are used for backup and restore operations where large quantities of data are backed up at regular intervals. Frequent backup always means copying and storing large data sets for recovery purposes. As much of this data is duplicate data, storing it all repeatedly would quickly lead to unmanageably large data storage requirements. It is essential to deduplicate these data streams to optimize data backup storage.

Data deduplication is achieved by means of a deduplication algorithm which is capable of examining an incoming data stream, and comparing data segments to data that has been stored previously. However, there are several things to consider when looking for a product as not all deduplication products work in the same way:

  • Source versus target deduplication: Software running on a server which is the source of data is deduped before it is transmitted to the storage device. The advantages of this approach are that a smaller quantity of data is transmitted to the target storage solution and this method, therefore, uses less bandwidth for data transmission. Source deduplication can increase processing time, which is often an important consideration in virtualized environments where there is a very large quantity of data duplication. The alternative is target deduplication where the data is all transmitted to a storage NAS device or tape library and is deduped once it has been sent. This method reduces the storage capacity required for backup data but does not reduce the amount of data sent across a LAN or WAN during backup.

  • Inline deduplication versus post-processing deduplication: Inline processing means that the deduplication process happens in real-time as the data is being transmitted to storage. In post-processing deduplication, the backup data is all written to a disk cache before it starts the deduplication process.

  • Global deduplication: Global deduplication is an important consideration as most deduplication processes are designed to remove duplicated data from a single storage device. Global deduplication is removing redundant data across the entire data storage infrastructure. Global deduplication allows administrators to efficiently manage the entire backup data storage environment.

The benefits of data deduplication are primarily in reducing data storage requirements and hence costs. Deduplication also makes data restore operations more efficient since there is much less data to restore.

Features & Capabilities

Below are some of the most common features offered by data deduplication tools:

  • Data deduplication

  • Storage use reduction

  • Storage management

  • Data backup

Data Deduplication Comparison

When choosing a data deduplication tool the most important consideration to make is what other data capabilities you need. Data deduplication is often included in data management software. That said, it can be purchased individually. So if you already meet all of your other data management needs, you should find a deduplication tool that doesn’t come with other features tacked on, and ideally, one that integrates with your other data tools. On the flip side, if you need more data management features, choose a tool that includes some of those other features so that you don’t need to worry about integration problems.

Data Deduplication Pricing

Pricing for data deduplication depends on the features offered as many data deduplication tools come packaged in with larger data management or data backup suites. Businesses should expect to pay for their tool or platform monthly with the pricing depending on factors like terabytes stored, or number of servers supported.

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Data Deduplication FAQs

What businesses benefit most from data deduplication tools?

The more data you have, and the more often that data is updated, the more important deduplication is. As your data supply grows and more copies of documents and files end up on your servers, deduplication will help you better manage it all so you can save on storage capacity.

Should I get a specialized data deduplication tool or a larger data platform that includes deduplication?

For most businesses it generally makes more sense to purchase a larger data platform including data deduplication than a dedicated deduplication tool. If you need data deduplication, you probably also need data backup. If you already have all your other data needs covered though, a specialized deduplication tool may be appropriate.

Are there free or open-source data deduplication tools?

There are several open-source data deduplication options, but they only include the basic features of deduplication, whereas most proprietary tools also support data backup.