Which backup strategy is known for minimizing downtime when restoring a VM?

The strategy known for minimizing downtime when restoring a virtual machine is Continuous Data Protection (CDP). CDP continuously captures changes to the data in real-time, allowing for almost immediate recovery. This method ensures that the most recent state of the VM is available for restoration, significantly reducing the amount of data that could be lost during an outage and minimizing downtime.

In contrast to CDP, a full backup involves taking a complete snapshot of the VM at a single point in time, which can lead to longer restoration times as all of the data must be restored, regardless of how much has changed since the last backup. Incremental backups only capture changes made since the last backup, which can speed up the process somewhat but still may require multiple steps to restore to the latest state, thereby not minimizing downtime as effectively as CDP. Differential backups also capture changes but are based on the last full backup; they can be quicker to restore than full backups but still require the last full backup and potentially some older differential backups, leading to longer downtime compared to CDP.

Therefore, CDP stands out as the most efficient strategy for quick restoration with minimal downtime, making it the best choice in scenarios where rapid recovery is critical.