Cloud-PBS vs Nimbus
Two French-speaking managed Proxmox Backup Server providers with different positioning. This page lays out the comparison in factual terms so you can decide on what really matters.
Cloud-PBS is the official Proxmox Authorized Reseller of the two, with datastores in France, Germany and the United States. Nimbus operates its own autonomous system (AS206014) with tape LTO and bank-vault offline storage options available today. Entry pricing on shared datastores is identical at 6 EUR per month for 250 GB. The decision usually comes down to whether you need multi-region coverage plus a formal Proxmox partnership, or a pure French sovereignty stack with tape archival in production today.
Quick verdict
Three common profile types, each with the honest recommendation. Both providers run upstream Proxmox Backup Server, the data format is identical and migration between them is straightforward, with no vendor lock-in.
Multi-country organisation or one that might expand outside France
Cloud-PBS
Managed datastores in France, Germany and the United States on day one. Nimbus serves France only. If you want a single operator across regions, Cloud-PBS is the fit.
French public sector or regulated buyer needing tape backup now
Nimbus
Nimbus has tape LTO and bank-vault tiers in production with public pricing. Cloud-PBS ships an offline datastore today and tape LTO on its own equipment in Q3 2026. If you cannot wait, Nimbus is the pragmatic answer.
Team that values official Proxmox backing and long operational track record
Cloud-PBS
Cloud-PBS is the official Proxmox Authorized Reseller, combined with 12 years of Proxmox production experience on the team. That is the strongest signal for most B2B evaluation committees.
Detailed comparison
Fifteen axes that come up in B2B evaluations of managed PBS services. Entries are factual and dated 2026-04; re-verify before signing any long-term contract.
| Dimension | Cloud-PBS | Nimbus |
|---|---|---|
| Proxmox Authorized Reseller | Yes, since 2025 | No (per their own comparison page) |
| Entry price (shared, 250 GB) | 6 EUR/mo | 6 EUR/mo |
| Entry price (shared, 1 TB) | 12 EUR/mo | 12 EUR/mo |
| Entry price (shared, 5 TB) | 60 EUR/mo | 60 EUR/mo |
| Regions served | France, Germany, United States | France only |
| Dedicated PBS instance | Yes, from 19 EUR/mo (1 TB) | On quote |
| Pay-as-you-go billing | Yes, per-hour, 100 GB increments | Not advertised publicly |
| Offline backup option | Offline datastore in a separate zone, brought online only during sync. Tape LTO in build-out for Q3 2026 on own equipment in Paris and regional sites. | AirGapped LTO 119 EUR/TB, Magnetic 89 EUR/TB, Magnetic Bank 149 EUR/TB (bank vault), live today |
| Tape LTO in production | Q3 2026 (fabrication in progress; early-access on request) | Yes, today |
| Datastore format | Upstream Proxmox Backup Server, no wrapper | Upstream Proxmox Backup Server, no wrapper |
| Free trial | 7 days | 7 days |
| Client-side AES-256 encryption | Yes | Yes |
| Support commitments | Acknowledgement within 1 hour, technical response within 4 hours | 80% of requests in 4 business hours, 95% in 8 business hours |
| Network | Multi-carrier transit; partnership coming for direct peering with the main French carriers. | Own autonomous system AS206014, direct peering with French carriers |
| Primary datacenter | Paris and regional sites, plus DE and US partner DCs | Equinix Paris (described as Tier IV equivalent) |
Pricing alignment on shared tiers
Cloud-PBS Shared plans and Nimbus Single Drive plans are priced identically from 250 GB up to 5 TB. Above 5 TB, Cloud-PBS continues the Shared ladder to 15 TB and beyond and offers an Instance dedicated plan; Nimbus layers three tape-backed tiers at 89, 119 and 149 EUR per TB per month. The decision at mid-to-high volumes is therefore about service shape, not headline price.
Prices are net, taxes may apply. Re-verify on each provider's live pricing page.
When Nimbus is a better fit
Three legitimate use cases where Nimbus wins on present-day catalogue:
- You need tape storage in production today with public pricing on LTO and bank-vault tiers. Cloud-PBS will offer the equivalent from Q3 2026.
- Your constraints force a France-only perimeter, ideally with a single operator.
- You are a telecom operator or ISP and direct peering with the provider is a hard requirement.
When Cloud-PBS is a better fit
Four cases where Cloud-PBS wins on present-day catalogue and positioning:
- You need managed PBS in Europe. France, Germany and United States regions are available today on both Shared and Instance plans.
- The official Proxmox partnership matters. Cloud-PBS is an Authorized Proxmox Reseller and can provide official support as well as Proxmox subscriptions.
- Your team values the experience and network of the people operating the service. Cloud-PBS is run by engineers with twelve years of Proxmox production experience, 80+ PBS instances in operation, 300+ customers served, for deployments ranging from 250 GB to 75 TB.
- You want clear commitments: acknowledgement of any support request within one hour, response within four hours, on business days, in English or French.
On tape LTO and on-premise infrastructure
We stay transparent on what is live now and what is coming. Nimbus positions itself as a tape-backup provider with product in production today, which is why we recommend them above for clients who need LTO now. Here is what we offer while our own LTO product lands:
- We can provide an offline datastore on a secondary site. The datastore lives in a separate zone and is only brought online during scheduled synchronisation windows.
- The tape LTO offering is in implementation. Clients or prospects who want an early access are invited to contact us for a status update and to join the early adopters programme.
- From Q3 2026, tape LTO will be backed by our own equipment in Paris and regional sites.
- A partnership with an infrastructure provider is being finalised. It will give Cloud-PBS the ability to peer directly with carriers, favour specific network paths, and provide bespoke infrastructure.
Migrating between Cloud-PBS and Nimbus
Both providers run Proxmox Backup Server. The backup format is portable in either direction:
Native PBS remote sync
Configure the target provider as a remote on your source PBS and schedule a push or pull sync. Once the target is verified, cut over your Proxmox VE backup jobs.
Physical sync
For data volumes above what your network can transfer in a reasonable window, we ingest a physical drive directly. Deduplication is preserved, so day-one incrementals target the existing chunk set.
Cloud-PBS vs Nimbus: frequently asked questions
Do Cloud-PBS and Nimbus run the same backup software?
Why is the shared pricing identical?
How important is the Proxmox Authorized Reseller status?
Cloud-PBS does not yet offer tape LTO. Is that a deal-breaker?
Compare based on your own needs
Create a Cloud-PBS datastore in minutes, point a backup job at it, and see the numbers on your infrastructure. The trial is free for 7 days and the format is standard PBS, no risk, no vendor lock-in.