remote-backups.com vs Hetzner Storage Box for Proxmox Backups

Hetzner Storage Boxes are cheap, well-known, and tempting as a Proxmox Backup Server target. But a Storage Box isn't a PBS instance. Here's what actually works, what doesn't, and what it really costs when you factor in the workarounds.

At a Glance

Why Storage Box Doesn't Work Directly with PBS

A Hetzner Storage Box is remote storage accessible over CIFS, SFTP, or rsync. It is not a Proxmox Backup Server instance. PBS requires a running proxmox-backup-proxy process to handle API calls, chunk management, deduplication, and verification.

You cannot point a PBS sync job at a Storage Box. PBS sync jobs talk the PBS API protocol, and a Storage Box doesn't speak it. You also can't mount a Storage Box via CIFS/NFS and use it as a PBS datastore path. The latency and I/O patterns of a network mount cause performance problems with PBS's chunk-based storage, and the locking semantics don't translate well over network filesystems.

The VPS + Storage Box Workaround

The usual workaround is renting a Hetzner VPS, installing PBS on it, and mounting the Storage Box as the datastore backend via CIFS or using it as local storage after attaching a volume. This works, but you're now managing:

• A VPS (€5-12/month for a CX22 or CX32)
• A Storage Box (€3.81-15.24/month)
• PBS installation and updates
• ZFS or ext4 tuning for the storage backend
• Security hardening (firewall, SSH keys, fail2ban)
• Monitoring and alerting for disk space, PBS health, and sync job failures
• Backup of the backup server itself

You also need to decide how to connect the Storage Box to the VPS. CIFS mounts add latency. Local VPS storage is limited and expensive. Hetzner Volumes are an option but add another cost layer.

Total Cost of Ownership

The sticker price on a Storage Box is attractive. But the real cost of a working PBS offsite setup on Hetzner includes more than just the box.

At small scale, the Hetzner DIY path can be slightly cheaper in raw euros. But factor in an hour of maintenance per month at any reasonable hourly rate, and managed PBS is less expensive overall. At larger scale (5+ TB), managed PBS pricing stays linear while VPS costs scale less predictably.

When Hetzner Storage Box Fits

A Storage Box is a good choice when you're not using it as a PBS target:

• File-level backups via rsync or BorgBackup (Storage Box has native Borg support)
• Storing archives, ISOs, or media files over SFTP
• Syncing non-Proxmox data from multiple sources
• You want the cheapest per-TB storage in Germany and don't need PBS features

For Borg-based backups specifically, a Storage Box is solid. If you're backing up individual Linux servers (not Proxmox VMs via PBS), check out our guide on backing up any Linux server.

When Managed PBS Is Simpler

If your goal is offsite replication for Proxmox Backup Server, managed PBS removes the complexity entirely:

• Native PBS sync jobs with --encrypted-only
• Server-side deduplication and verification at no extra cost
• No VPS to maintain, no network mounts, no security hardening
• Follows the 3-2-1 strategy without building infrastructure
• Estimate your storage needs with the backup storage estimator

Protection a Storage Box Can't Provide

A Storage Box stores files. remote-backups.com adds active protection layers that a raw storage target can't offer.

Frequently Asked Questions