Which version of the review is this?
There are two versions of the review in circulation. A search snapshot of the PCWorld page shows the review dated June 26, 2024. The current page, which carries a 2026 date, reads as a revisit. Jacobi says it had been 10 years since he last looked at NTI's flagship backup program. The updated text says glitches were present "first in 2024, and now in 2026." It also gives updated pricing. So the 2026 page seems to be a refresh of the 2024 review, not a brand-new test of a new release. The test details come from PCWorld's stated bench, and I haven't independently verified how much was retested.
What Backup Now Pro 7 does
PCWorld calls it "the whole enchilada": file backup, imaging/drive backup, continuous backup and online backup to NTI Cloud, which is powered by Microsoft Azure. It backs up to and from networks, and it is one of the rare backup programs that supports optical discs.
The storage formats matter in practice, and the review lays them out:
- File/folder, image and online backups are kept in proprietary container files, meaning single large files holding all the data.
- Continuous backup is a browsable plain-file copy, as if you'd copied the files in File Explorer. Older revisions go in a separate folder.
- Other features include granular scheduling, incremental backups, and automatic purging of older files from the destination. Encryption and password protection are also provided.
- Multiple local destinations for one job (a second internal drive plus an external drive, for example) was the reviewer's favourite feature. He wished local, network and cloud destinations could be combined in one job.
The interface is a wizard-style workflow. The reviewer calls it straightforward but less friendly than the cheaper EZ edition at picking data to protect.
NTI's own materials claim more. They list migration, file filtering, email notification, remote backup of other PCs on a LAN, and drive-based backup that creates a bootable image. The product page also lists NVMe image restore with an Intel VMD controller driver, and RAID 0, 1, recovery and RAID 5 support in Windows and Windows Server environments. Those are manufacturer claims, and the review doesn't test them.
The headline problem: imaging over Remote Desktop
After more than a week of back and forth and hours of troubleshooting, NTI described the behaviour as a security "feature." The behaviour in question is that image jobs were cancelled less than five seconds after starting. This happened because the test beds are controlled over Microsoft Remote Desktop.
Jacobi couldn't see the logic and noted that other tools had no such problem. R-Drive Image, Acronis Cyber Protect Home Office, Aomei Backupper and Macrium Reflect Home all backed up without fuss in the same setup.
The caveats matter:
- This is one reviewer's experience on one test setup, not proof that imaging fails on every PC.
- The EZ edition behaved partially the same way. It failed on the first try, then imaged a partition correctly on the second.
- Imaging eventually worked. A recovery disc was created and booted on both test beds, and the image the reviewer finally made restored successfully.
For admins, the takeaway is simple. If you reach machines over RDP, test image creation in that exact configuration before you trust it.
Smaller annoyances
- Display scaling: one test bed still needed High DPI overrides to render properly. The reviewer says the program is slow to enumerate the storage tree and "less than sprightly". NTI's own FAQ says its software expects a 96 DPI (100%) display setting. That fits the scaling complaints.
- Cloud cancel: stopping a 7 GB cloud job at 30 percent didn't work after a 10-minute wait, so the reviewer killed the process. He allows that he may have been impatient, or that the stop request waits for the current 7 GB container file to finish. A smaller cloud backup of Documents, Desktop and Downloads ran fine.
- Local backups: file/folder and continuous backups to local media were free of unusual glitches.
Pricing and cloud costs
Treat prices as a snapshot. The 2026 text of the review says Pro 7 was on sale for $50, against $40 two years earlier and a $60 normal retail price. The same page's price widget showed NTI at $64.99 when I looked at the captured text. The EZ edition was listed at $35 in the review, which is $15 off list. Prices shift across pages and promotions, so check the store before buying.
The NTI Cloud tiers are where the review is harshest:
| Plan | Monthly price |
|---|---|
| 16 GB | Free for one month |
| 32 GB | $5 |
| 64 GB | $10 |
| 128 GB | $20 |
| 256 GB | $40 |
| 640 GB | $100 |
| 2 TB | $200 |
Jacobi calls it extremely expensive and notes it is the only online service the program supports. His workaround is to use a cloud storage manager, which lets almost any backup program work with nearly any online storage service.
Test bench and its limits
The review's bench is a Ryzen 7 3700X system with an MSI MEG X570 board, 64 GB of RAM and several PCIe 4 NVMe SSDs. It runs Windows 11 21H2 with only security updates applied, to keep comparisons level over time. That is good for consistency. It also means the results say little about newer Windows 11 builds, so run your own tests.
Verdict and practical advice
Jacobi's conclusion is that it "worked as advertised" but he is less than enthusiastic. He suggests EZ Backup Now 7.5 is likely a better fit for most users. He also points to Easeus Todo Backup, Aomei Backupper, the free Macrium Reflect and Windows' own File History as comparable, less buggy options. NTI reportedly hinted at big changes, including a better development platform, for the next version.
A fair reading: the feature list is real, and the local backup and recovery-disc results are encouraging. But the RDP imaging restriction and the slow, fiddly interface count against a tool you may need under pressure.
If you're considering it:
- Install the trial and create a drive image the way you will actually run it, including over RDP if that's how you manage the PC.
- Create the recovery media and boot from it.
- Restore an image to a spare drive or test machine.
- Run a scheduled job. NTI's FAQ says scheduled backups may not run unless the machine is left logged in with administrator rights.
- Skip NTI Cloud unless the price suits you, and consider a separate cloud storage tool.
The old rule applies: a backup is only as good as its restore.