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OTuma
Contributor
Contributor

SRM quiescing method

Hallo,

what is the best or recommended "quiescing method" in Site Recovery - configuring replication dialog (wizard)? Pls. see screenshot.

We usually use "MS volume shadow copy VSS" but on frequently replicated VM's it is in collision with traditional backup tasks (Symantec BE).

It works fine with quiescing method "none" but I am not sure if the replicated VM is 100% OK and consistent.

Thank you for opinion / reaction.

Ondrej

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11 Replies
memaad
Virtuoso
Virtuoso

Hi,

You have to re-schedule your backup task and use  "VSS" with vSphere replication ( SRM )

Regards

Mohammed Emaad

Mohammed | Mark it as helpful or correct if my suggestion is useful.
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OTuma
Contributor
Contributor

Hi,

It means that VM replicated without "VSS" will not start or work properly?

The problem is that backup window is longer than replication period.

One solution which is acceptable is to "pause replication" before backup and "resume replication" after backup for this VM.

But unfortunatelly I can't find CLI/power shell command for pause/resume replication to use in script or batch.

Just buttons in SRM GUI ... but it must run automatically as 'pre' and 'post' command of the backup job.

Thank you very much for your help.

Ondrej

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memaad
Virtuoso
Virtuoso

Hi,

It means that VM replicated without "VSS" will not start or work properly?  I would say that if VSS is disabled than it will not be application consistent.

Your  solution of pausing replication should be good.


Regards

Mohammed Emaad

Mohammed | Mark it as helpful or correct if my suggestion is useful.
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OTuma
Contributor
Contributor

Hi,

thanks, I think so. Thai is why I am looking for solution How to PAUSE and RESUME replication AUTOMATICALLY or scheduled (not manually through graphics interface console).

Regards, Ondrej

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memaad
Virtuoso
Virtuoso

Hi,

I dont have any expertise with scripting , if you need more help,  you can contact VMware SDK support they might help you in this situation.

Here is link VMware API and SDK Documentation

Regards

Mohammed

Mohammed | Mark it as helpful or correct if my suggestion is useful.
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OTuma
Contributor
Contributor

yes, I already read through SRM API developers guide, but I found just pause and recovery for whole recovery plan. I need pause/resume one VM replication.

There must be this command - something what start after clicking the pause/resume button in the GUI. But I can't find it.

Ondrej

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mvalkanov
VMware Employee
VMware Employee

Hi,

Currently the vSphere Replication API is not public.

Pausing/resuming a replication not from the SRM/VR UI, though technically possible via internal commands / APIs, is not officially supported.

Regards,

Martin

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OTuma
Contributor
Contributor

Hi,

thanks for reaction. Are commands "RecoveryPlanPause" and "RecoveryPlanResume" suitable for this issue?

Ondrej

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mvalkanov
VMware Employee
VMware Employee

Hi,

Pausing/resuming the recovery plan does not pause/resume the vSphere replication.

The vSphere Replication iSCSI filter in the source host is the one to be paused/resumed for the described issue. The API for it is internal, same goes for the CLI.

Regards,

Martin

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OTuma
Contributor
Contributor

Well, replication is one thing, backup the second. Both must run. It is not possible manually pause and resume replication every night.

Also it is not acceptable to replicate application inconsistent state of VM without VSS.

What is the solution, is vmware data protect fully compatible with SRM replication?

Or should I go this way : virtuallyGhetto: HBR (Host Based Replication) CLI for SRM 5

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Gourdo
Contributor
Contributor


The VSS functionality in SRM needs to be modified.  It should check to see if a volume shadow copy is already in progress.  If one is in progress it should log a warning event and skip using VSS for that period.  Pausing replication on a large VM that takes several hours to backup probably isn't a good solution.  A pause is equal to an RPO violation.  I'd rather handle a crash consistent VM then one missing multiple hours of data.

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