Does AvePoint Back Up Smartsheet?

Yes, AvePoint backs up Smartsheet. AvePoint provides automated, full-fidelity backup for sheets, workspaces, folders, reports, templates, formulas, cell links, and comments, with sheet-level restore that reconstructs formulas and attachments intact. This closes gaps in Smartsheet's native backup, which excludes formulas, workflows, and custom configurations, and runs on a weekly cycle at best.

Key Takeaways

• AvePoint backs up Smartsheet. It protects sheets, workspaces, folders, reports, templates, formulas, cell links, and comments, with full-fidelity, non-destructive restore.
• Native Smartsheet backup is real but limited. It does not capture formulas, workflows, or configs. It also has file size limitations, runs on a weekly backup cycle at best, and only on Business and Enterprise plans.
• Some critical data cannot be backed up natively. Users, groups, and sharing permissions can't be backed up natively at all.
• AvePoint extends retention flexibility. It provides a default seven- year retention period that can be adjusted to meet compliance needs.
• Smartsheet rarely runs alone. AvePoint backs it up alongside Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace under one platform.
• Automations and AI depend on Smartsheet data. AI-generated reports run on Smartsheet's formulas and structure, so a backup gap becomes a reliability gap for every downstream process.
• Restore readiness matters. Test your restore process before an incident forces you to test it live.

Why Does Smartsheet Need Independent Backup?

Smartsheet needs independent backup because its native backup tool excludes reports, dashboards, formulas, workflows, and custom configurations, runs on a weekly cycle at best, and caps backup file size, so an accidental deletion or overwrite can permanently erase exactly the operational logic a team depends on.

Smartsheet's own documentation on data backups confirms the scope of what's covered and what isn't: Smartsheet's backup and recovery guidance describes native sheet backups as covering data, comments, and attachments, but not reports, dashboards, formulas, workflows, cross-sheet references, formatting, or custom configurations.

• File size limit. Native Smartsheet backups are capped at 4GB, a limit that larger workspaces can exceed.
• Excluded content. Reports, dashboards, formulas, workflows, cross-sheet references, formatting, and custom configurations aren't included in native backups.
• No access data. Users, groups, workspace shares, sheet shares, and access permissions can't be backed up natively at all.
• Limited scheduling. Recurring backups are only available weekly, and only on Business and Enterprise plans; there's no continuous or automated protection.

How Does AvePoint Back Up Smartsheet?

AvePoint backs up Smartsheet with full-fidelity, automated protection covering sheets, workspaces, folders, reports, templates, formulas, cell links, and comments and threads tied to rows, restoring an entire sheet with formulas and attachments correctly reconstructed.

• What's protected: sheets, workspaces, folders, reports, templates, formulas, cell links, and comments/threads associated with rows, beyond what native backup covers (sheet data, comments, and attachments only)
• Restore: full fidelity and non-destructive; restores an entire sheet to a new sheet, fully reconstructing formulas and attachments, plus comments, threads, and essential metadata
• Backup frequency: automated, running up to four times a day for a low recovery point objective (RPO), rather than a weekly cycle available only on higher-tier plans
• Retention: defaults to seven years and can be adjusted up or down to match compliance needs
• Granularity: sheet-level restore with 100% fidelity, formulas correctly applied, and attachments relinked

How Does AvePoint's Smartsheet Backup Compare to Native Recovery?

AvePoint's Smartsheet backup differs from native recovery most in what's actually protected and how often it runs: Native backup excludes formulas, workflows, and configurations, and runs weekly at best, while AvePoint protects full sheet logic automatically, multiple times a day.

What Does This Mean for Smartsheet Alongside Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace?

Smartsheet rarely runs alone. Teams pair it with Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace for communication and document storage, and both carry native-recovery gaps of their own. AvePoint backs up Smartsheet alongside Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and other SaaS applications under a single platform, instead of one retention policy and restore process per tool.

Treating Smartsheet backup as a standalone project misses the point. A team managing recovery for Smartsheet, SharePoint, and Google Drive under separate native recovery windows is carrying separate sets of retention rules and restore limitations for every platform, not one.

How Does AI and Automation Change the Stakes of Smartsheet Data Loss?

As teams build automations and connect AI tools to Smartsheet for reporting and resource planning, losing a sheet's formulas or workflow logic doesn't just erase a file; it silently breaks whatever automation or AI-generated report depended on that structure.

A backup gap in Smartsheet used to be an operational-reporting problem. Once automations and AI summaries run on top of that same sheet logic, it's also a reliability problem for every downstream process built on it.

Smartsheet Backup Maturity Tiers

AvePoint backs up Smartsheet alongside Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and Salesforce under one platform, with sheet-level restore and retention set by your organization, not a native default.  

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Smartsheet back up my data automatically?

Smartsheet offers recurring backups only on a weekly schedule, and only on Business and Enterprise plans; there is no continuous or fully automated native backup.

What does Smartsheet's native backup exclude?

Smartsheet's native backup excludes reports, dashboards, formulas, workflows, cross-sheet references, formatting, and custom configurations, along with users, groups, and sharing permissions.

Can Smartsheet's native backup restore formulas and cross-sheet references?

Native Smartsheet exports lose formulas, cross-sheet references, and formatting. AvePoint's restore reconstructs formulas and relinks attachments as part of a full-fidelity sheet restore.

How long does AvePoint retain Smartsheet backups?

AvePoint's Smartsheet backup defaults to seven years of retention and can be adjusted up or down to match an organization's compliance requirements.

Does AvePoint's Smartsheet backup replace Smartsheet's native backup or work alongside it?

AvePoint's Smartsheet backup works alongside Smartsheet's native backup, closing the formula, workflow, and configuration gaps native backup leaves open rather than replacing it outright.

What does Smartsheet backup mean for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace recovery?

Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace carry native-recovery limitations of their own. AvePoint backs up all three under one platform, so recovery isn't managed separately per application.

How often should I test a Smartsheet restore?

Test a Smartsheet restore at least quarterly and align the schedule with an organization's audit or compliance review cycle so recovery evidence stays current.

Related Questions

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