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It is true for Backup & Security 2010, but I don't think it is true for ATI 2010 stand-alone. If it is, I'll never ever do business with this company again.

I'm pretty sure as Marc says, that the Support Person was referring to the integrated Backup and Security 10 where by at this moment the whole package does require renewing each year. Standalone TI 2010 is exactly the same as 2009 - it *runs forever, with the exception it won't be updated once the next version is released.

* runs forever - copyrighted bodgy enterprises! :-)

How do you know for sure who is right and who is wrong? Acronis itself can't seem to get the message straight.

Subscription products (online storage, AV definitions) and software products (backup software) are distinct and well-established in the market. There is no evidence that Acronis' downloadable products are time-limited. Their website asserts that they "provide recent enhancements and minor fixes to Acronis products" and "upates are free of charge".

Did you read Acronis' own statement?

forum.acronis.com/forum/8464

When you purchase Acronis Backup and Security 2010 you get the following:
- Acronis True Image Home 2010 subscription for 1 year for 3 physical machines
- Acronis Internet Security Suite 2010 subscription for 1 year for 3 physical machines

Do you not see the mention of "subscription" for ATI 2010?

Read the statement carefully:
When you buy Acronis Backup and Security you get two things for three machines for one year: TIHome and Internet Security.
When you buy TIHome as an individual item, you have it forever. Some individuals are still using TI 8 which is about five years old.

I know the distinction. But that's not what Martin is saying in other threads:

http://forum.acronis.com/forum/8464

Hello all,

jehosophat, I've checked your conversation with our Support and found that the answer is correct. Your question was about Acronis True Image part of Acronis Backup and Security Suite. This component is subscription based and you should renew the subscription to continue to use both backup and security tools. The good feature is that you can use this software on 3 computers at the same time and it can really reduce cost for protecting several computers.

Standalone version of Acronis True Image Home 2010 is not subscription based and you can keep and use it as long as you want. As far as I can see - you was suggested to use the standalone version if you do not like the subscription based model.

Thanks,

Consider the ABS2010 Plus Pack that is dedicated to the Backup component of ABS2010 (meaning you can't use the TIH2010 Plus Pack - I know, I've tried). It is not being sold as a subscription product. So the Backup component of ABS2010 also must not be a subscription product, because Plus Pack becomes useless without the ABS2010 Backup component.

Consider also the marketing of ABS2010 as an upgrade to TIH2010 that is non-subscription. Given that there is no facility to downgrade back to TIH2010 after the ABS2010 subscription period, Acronis has to support the ABS2010 Backup component as non-subscription.

By the way, I have a transcript of a Chat with Acronis that corroborates this. Any other interpretation is impractical.

Martin,

If you have registered your TI 2010 purchase under your Acronis account, it is available for you to download and re-install at any time (currently).

That doesn't mean of course that ABS2010 might not leave traces in registry that might need to be removed - but that happens occasionally to other upgrades of TI.

I believe, but am not sure, that the two Plus Packs are actually different the one for standalone TI won't work with ABS2010, so I suspect that the Plus Pack for ABS2010 might not work with TI 2010 - in which case the ABS PP would be part of the subscription package whereas TI2010 PP wouldn't.

Hi Colin,

I did an install of ABS2010 as an upgrade to TIH2010, and subsequently uninstalled ABS2010 in the approved manner. There were a lot of legacy issues evident in the resultant TIH2010 installation - eg startup screen still said ABS, CPU demands per ABS not TIH - and I don't consider this to be an acceptable way of reinstating TIH2010. In my case, I had to completely uninstall TIH2010 using Acronis' cleanup utility, but even then I had to run Revo Uninstaller for a thorough uninstall. I then did a from-scratch install of TIH, that is now running very nicely.

Actually, I abandoned ABS2010 and received a rebate because I don't like the behaviour of the AV component. So, I no longer have skin in this game. But I just thought I'd pass-on my pre-purchase findings to the forum, because I specifically queried what was subscription and what wasn't before I bought the ABS2010 upgrade.

Happy Acronising!

PS Back to the original topic, there is no reason to fear that TIH2010 will require future subscription payments to keep it running.

And other people chatting with Acronis support (plus Acronis reps posting on the forums) saying otherwise. So who is right? How do you know that the one person you spoke to is correct over all others who said otherwise? Because you're the only one reporting differently...

This is the sort of confusion with will work against Acronis. It will hurt them in the long run and it is quite an idiotic situation. You really can't trust them to do anything right lately.

The core product that I buy from Acronis is TIH, and I see no evidence that this, packaged within TIH2010 or ABS2010, has become a subscription product. If Acronis think otherwise, then they need to say so in their contractual T&C's.

You are correct that I was initially asking about Acronis Backup and Security. However it clearly states in the later part of the conversation that ATI2010 is subscription see email dated 24 Feb 2010.

I am not allowed to quote conversations from support on this forum. So other users can make their own minds up about what was said.

I now believe that ATI2010 is probably not subscription but that I was advised wrongly by Acronis support that it was.

I believe based on this and other contact with Support that Support staff dont know the products well enough.
When a reply from support says "yes" what this really means is "No".

I am able to stick with ATI2009 so I will.

In my experience, Acronis support staff are well-informed and well-intentioned. I am not able to stick with ATI2009 (which worked very well for me) because of my decision to use Windows7, and whereas the roll-out of ATI2010 has caused me a few problems, my experience is that Acronis get things fixed.

LOL
I have a support call that took over 6 months to fix.
I have have another record where Acronis Support said that FULL Daily backups using ATI2009 were not possible. We now know that they are possible. So the track record of Acronis Support is DIRE.

So when do you think Acronis will fix Continuous Backup issue? ATI 2011? Issues like this should be tested BEFORE release.

When I move to W7 with new hardware I wont be using Acronis. I have had enough of Acronis. I want purchased software to work out of the box first time, NOT several months later after new builds.

I think it was the 8th or 9th build of ATI2009 that finally worked for me.

IF it works for you then that is great. You cant ask for more.

Respect. The longest that I've managed sustain a support request is 14 days.

Hello all,

We're really sorry for the inconvenience.

jehosophat, our development team is working with the top priority on Non-stop Backup issue. And we'll surely include the fix to the issue in the next official build of the software. Unfortunately, I can't tell you the estimated time frame of the new release.

Please reply to this thread if you have any further questions.

Thank you.

And that next build will probably be ATI2011 which you'll have to pay for. I'm not hopeful for any fixes for ATI2010.

Are you reading my mind? ;-)

Actually we will release another update of ATIH 2010 soon.
Thanks
A.

The tech support person I contacted assured me that the ATI2010 part of ABS2010 will continue to work after the rest of it expires. See: http://forum.acronis.com/forum/8464#comment-23745

Then what do you say about this post from Acronis support? http://forum.acronis.com/forum/8982#comment-23477

When your license for Acronis Backup & Security expires, all its components will just stop working, so firewall will leave your PC opened.

I can only report what I received. I think it is a little much for you to demand that I, as an individual who hasn't even bought the software yet, account for every contradictory thing that some vendor's tech support may or may not have said.

It is pretty obvious that there have been lots of contradictory information coming out of Acronis' tech support. At this point, nothing short of a press conference by the company president will settle the matter. At least until a year has passed.

I believe that beyond 12-months the ATI part of ABS will stop working. I have planned for this, and on that day I shall shut-down my PC and backup drives, and bury them in the garden. It is better that I do this than leave them to face a terrible future unprotected by Acronis' backup software. Will you join me?

Be strong and join me! We are the chosen ones! We will survive whereas other won't. Yay, Acronis!

Hello all,

Let me clarify the situation: restore function of Acronis Backup and Security Suite 2010 will work even after the subscription expires, but all other functions (backup, firewall, parental control, etc.) will stop working.

When/If you renew the subscription all components will be available again.

Please let me know if you have any further questions

Thank you.

So if I buy this product the backup part will only work for one year.

This is not what I want. So I will buy a competitor product.
Al that will happen if I buy Acronis every year is I will get is Bloatware.

It is a great business model for Acronis but not for consumers.

I dont buy my Operating system or word processing package EVERY year so I wont buy my backup software every year.

You can not save yourself by buying a competitor's product. You must buy the Acronis product. Acronis knows what is best for us, and that we face a terrible future unprotected by their backup software. Tell your family! Tell your friends! Their new self-serving business model has to work! If not, we are all doomed.

(Message courtesy of Toyota Floormats and Accelarator-Pedals Inc.)

Why not buy TI2010 and then ISS10 - the ISS10 will allow the 3 computer use.

In my voyage of discovery, I've discovered there are other software companies that sell a Firewall and A/V software with a built in very basic imaging utility, and guess what? They only last as long as the licence lasts which is yearly.

Having said that, I think Acronis would have been more clever in their marketing if they had thought of a way of either providing a discount on 3 TI licences or, sold ISS + TI2010 at a bundle price - seeing as how people think of Acronis as an imaging company rather than an AV one.

ABS2010 is not an operating system, a word processing system, or just backup software.
Unlike Symantec, Mcaffee, or even BitDefender, it is advertised as 'Backup & Security'. And that is precisely what it is.

I agree that Acronis have diversed in an approach with this product that no one else has and that this has caused a great deal of confusion and more. I myself purchased ABS2010 after receiving a promotional email and trialing it and I too was surprised that the product would not work if not subscribed to again. Without doubt this something Acronis have not done before.

However, what I did is test the security side, especially the firewall which to me is most important. Nothing whatsover, inward or outward, could get through it. You can find very good tests to do at the Windows Secrets site without naming them all here. The AV also picked up every 'test' programs I have for this purpose and ignored them no problem when I told it to.

So, having said and done that, I was quite happy to put my trust in a company that has not only provided me with software such as Disk Director that saved and restored my whole system a few years ago, with software that has made me trust many times to put my system and/or data back to the state I expected it too, but also to protect my system from unwanted malware.

I don't mind if people complain and I'm sure Acronis want to hear when things do not work. I have worked for software houses for many years and they want to get things working correctly and as best as possible. I do not work for Acronis, I am retired now anyway, but I can assure you that constructive and deconstructive comments will be welcomed so that they can try to put things right ASAP and in the future.

Colin, didn't see your post as I was writing mine.
Quite agree.

Thankfully I had not installed the 'upgrade' yet.

Upgrade? I don't think so!!!!!!!!

I plan on purchasing Acronis but hesitate since I found out that I would have to purchase 2 copies for my 2 laptops.
Also, I don't quite understand the licensing policy. Do I have to purchase a new license every year, or not?
As to some info on this forum that Acronis can be installed on 3 machines..see the not I received from Acronis on
11/16/2010 below.
" Thank you for contacting Acronis Customer Central. My name is Vishal.

I understand that you wish to know if you can use 1 license of Acronis True Image Home software on two machines.

I have completely understood your query and will resolve it to your complete satisfaction.

Steven, with 1 license of Acronis True Image Home 2011, you can use it on 1 machine at a time. If you wish to use Acronis software on another machine, then you will need to purchase a separate license for it. If you are going to discard the old machine, then only you can use the same license on second / new machine.

You may refer to the link given below for information about Acronis Products Licensing Table :-"

I'm still trying out the software and have 24 days to go. I like it very much, but am a frugal guy and don't want to keep on paying for
software again and again.
Steve

If you can work with TI 2010 then one option for you would be to purchase the Acronis Backup and Security package. This will give you three licences for one year.

The biggest drawback here is that as things stand, the TIH 2010 component in this package will stop working 1 year after the purchase period even if you uninstall the firewall/antivirus component.

You can remove the security component if you wish to use your existing firewall/AV software.

Other than that it will be 3 licences that you'll need to purchase. These will of course last until you decide to purchase a new version.

It is a shame that Acronis don't offer 3 and 5 pack licence options with their standard products.