Plain-English Explainer

What is a recovery window?

How far back can you go — and why does it matter?

The short answer

Your recovery window is how far back in time you can go to restore your data. If something goes wrong today — ransomware, accidental deletion, a corrupted file — you can reach back into your vault and pull out a clean copy from yesterday, last week, or last month.

The longer your recovery window, the further back you can reach.

Think of it like a moving window of time

Imagine a window that slides forward every day. Whatever falls inside that window is available for recovery. Whatever falls outside it is gone. The window doesn't grow forever — it moves. New snapshots come in at one end, old ones expire at the other.

30-Day Recovery Window — Moving Forward in Time
Daily snapshots (last 30 days)
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
NOW
Monthly snapshots (kept silently)
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
Daily snapshot
Monthly snapshot
Today

A real-world example

Here's why the length of your window matters in practice:

✓ Scenario 1: You catch it quickly

Ransomware hits your computer on a Tuesday. You call us Wednesday. With any plan, you can restore from Monday's clean backup — less than 48 hours of data loss at most.

✓ Scenario 2: It sat undetected for weeks

Some ransomware quietly corrupts files for weeks before triggering. With a 90-day window, you can reach back past the corruption to a clean snapshot from before it started. With only 30 days, you might not reach far enough.

✓ Scenario 3: You deleted something months ago

You realized you need a document you deleted six months ago. With a 365-day window and monthly snapshots going back a year, there's a good chance we can find it.

✗ Scenario 4: No backup at all

This is the story from our home page. She paid the ransom. She still lost most of it. There was no window to reach back through.

Comparing the plans

Every VaultShield plan includes daily snapshots for the full retention window, plus monthly snapshots that extend your reach even further.

30
Essentials
30 daily snapshots + 12 monthly snapshots
365
Enterprise
365 daily + 12 monthly + 3 yearly snapshots
Which window is right for you? For most home users, the 30-day Essentials plan is excellent protection. Small businesses that handle client data or have compliance requirements often prefer the 90-day Business plan. The 365-day Enterprise plan is suited for businesses with regulatory retention requirements or high-value data that needs maximum reach. Not sure? Ask us — we'll give you an honest answer.
Ready to choose your window?

Simple pricing.
No surprises.