Restore Time Estimate Calculator

Work out restore time estimate instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.

About Restore Time Estimate Calculator

Restore time is data transfer plus log replay plus verification, and it is the number your recovery time objective is actually measured against — not backup duration. Transfer dominates for large datasets, so throughput from the backup store is the main lever, followed by taking more frequent base backups so less log has to be replayed.

Formula

Restore time

copy minutes = size in MB / (throughput x 60); total = copy + log replay + verification

Worked example

With the default values below, Restore Time Estimate Calculator returns Total restore time of 119.1. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Backup sizeminimum 0.01 GB: 800 GB
Restore throughputminimum 0.1 MB/s: 180 MB/s
Log replay timeminimum 0 min: 25 min
Verification and smoke testingminimum 0 min: 20 min

Results

Total restore time: 119.1 min
Data copy time: 74.1 min
Restore time in hours: 1.98 h
Share spent copying data: 62.2%

Step by step

1Values used
2Restore time
3Total restore time= 119.1 min
4Data copy time= 74.1 min
5Restore time in hours= 1.98 h
6Share spent copying data= 62.2

Assumptions and limits

The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.
Figures are rounded for display to 2 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is restore slower than backup?

Backups are often incremental and compressed while restore must write the full dataset, rebuild indexes and replay logs. A 30-minute backup can take hours to restore.

How is restore time reduced?

More frequent base backups to shorten replay, parallel restore streams, and snapshot-based recovery where the storage layer can clone a volume in seconds.