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hmjones8
Contributor
Contributor

SRM SQL Database and VC Database

How are the SRM SQL and VC databases replicated between Protected and Recovery sites? Currently our Virtual Center resides on a VM and our SQL Database Instance is pointed to an MS SQL 2005 Server on a VM. I've asked our AD to create an instance in his MS SQL 2005 server for the SRM database and he said it would be no problem. However, he asked how that database would be replicated to the Recovery site? Good question! What would be the best way... recommended best practice for the SRM database? Should that service be replicated by SRM or through clustered MS SQL services between the two sites? Should that service even be on a VM? Please advise?

Thanks in advance!

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gauche
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

The SRM database is not replicated per se.

The VC database, and SRM database, are not replicated / mirrored between sites by some other service, like MSCS, or log shipping, or VM replication.

The important configuration data within the VC and SRM databases are kept in sync by SRM automatically.

So if you add another VM to an SRM protection group, for example, the change is reflected by SRM in both sites databases.

If the databases were simply mirrored then you'd have to deal with all kinds of other issues, like keeping naming and ip addresses identical at each site.

Through SRM you can manage both sites separately, with different architecture, and naming at each, and SRM will keep the two sites infrastructures in sync based on how you decide to map them.

I hope that helps some.

Adam Carter

Technical Product Manager

LeftHand Networks

Adam Carter Product Manager LeftHand Networks, an HP company
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hmjones8
Contributor
Contributor

Hi, Thanks. That helps! But, what if the MS SQL Database resides on a vm in vc on the protected site, that site then fails, how does the sql process work on the recovery site (rs), with rs virtual center vm, and rs MS SQL virtual machines? Won't they be inaccessible because they're powered off? Should I be concerned. Should the MS SQL be physical servers with CS between recovery and protected sites? Thanks for your help!

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Smoggy
VMware Employee
VMware Employee

within a default SRM environment you have no need to replicate any of the VMware databases and by this I mean virtualcenter database and SRM database.

a typical configuration SiteA (Protected), SiteB(Recovery) you would have the following databases:

SiteA:

1 x VC RDBMS instance

1 x SRM RDBMS instance

SiteB:

1 x VC RDBMS instance

1 x SRM RDBMS instance

the above RDBMS instances are ALL independent of each other as they map to their own unique services. We have a dedicated VC Server in SiteA communicating with SiteA VC RDBMS, we also have a dedicated SRM server instance in SiteA communicating with SiteA SRM RDBMS. At SiteB we have a second dedicated VC Server managing SiteB and communicating with SiteB VC RDBMS and finally we also have a dedicated SRM server instance in SiteB communicating with SiteB SRM RDBMS.

When we protect virtual machines at SiteA we do this by creating "Protection Groups" within the SiteA SRM configuration. To recover these protection groups we then create "Recovery Plans". NOTE the recovery plans are created within SiteB's SRM configuration (and hence stored in SiteB's RDBMS) so if SiteA is unavailable (as it would be in the event of site loss) then we are still able to invoke the "Recovery Plans" for SiteA using only the SiteB VC Server and SRM servers.

The opposite of this also applies for Active/Active configurations so if you are replicating Active/Active and wish to protect virtual machines located at SiteB and recover them to SiteA then you simply create their protection groups at within SiteB and the recovery plans for these at SiteA that way if SiteB is lost you run their SiteB recovery plans from within SiteA.

hope that makes sense.

best regards

Lee Dilworth

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hmjones8
Contributor
Contributor

Thank you. That helps greatly! (-:

Heath Jones

Direct: 347-882-1894 or 720-259-2274

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hmjones8
Contributor
Contributor

Thank you. That helps greatly! (-:

Heath Jones

Direct: 347-882-1894 or 720-259-2274

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hmjones8
Contributor
Contributor

Hi Lee,

Thanks for your time. Are there any issues with VirtualCenter being on a VM

on SiteA and SiteB during SRM failover? Should the VC VM on SiteA be in a

protected group? Or, will the (SiteA and SiteB) VCs be independent and not

part of a protected group since SRM replicates the critical data

independently between the SiteA VC and SiteB VC?

Thanks,

Heath Jones

Direct: 347-882-1894 or 720-259-2274

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gauche
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

You can run your SRM or VC in a VM. But I would not replicate it. You don't need either of them at the recover site to use SRM. I'm actually not sure what you might do with them if you did replicate them or their databases.

I'm sure others can come up with interesting scenarios though.

In my test environments I do run VC and SRM on the same server, on a VM, but I don't replicate it at all.

I can power off the entire "production" side and I still have everything at the "recovery" side that I need to perform fail over.

You can try this out without actually failing over. Just disconnect the "recovery" side from the real world, networking wise, and you can run test fail overs without any contact to the "production" VC or SRM.

Adam Carter

Technical Product Manager

LeftHand Networks

Adam Carter Product Manager LeftHand Networks, an HP company
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Smoggy
VMware Employee
VMware Employee

As Adam said there are no issues running VC in a VM at both sites (i do this in my setups).

one unlikely gotcha to be careful of especially if you are "demo'ing" your solution to people, if you decide as part of your recovery plan that you will "suspend" non essential VM's at the recovery site (which you can do via the Recovery Plan wizard) just be sure you don't accidentally select the VM that is running virtual center otherwise the things might suddenly stop in front of you nothing bad happens other than your VC UI will freeze and your colleagues will be unimpressed, but I have seen it done Smiley Happy

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hmjones8
Contributor
Contributor

Adam,

Thanks again. That helps a lot. I'm starting to understand the process.

Cheers,

Heath Jones

Direct: 347-882-1894 or 720-259-2274

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hmjones8
Contributor
Contributor

Nice! (: Makes sense. Thanks for the heads up and for all your help.

Heath Jones

Direct: 347-882-1894 or 720-259-2274

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