Idea how to improve Replication performances between VSphere vCenter 7.0.1 and vSphere Replication 8.3 using different Networks

[OrgInf01]

Hi,

I need a Help to improve performances replication procedure.

This is scenario of my infrastructure:

two ESXi 7.0.1 with 2 NIC 1Gb 2 NIC 10Gb

Two NAS Storage with 2 NIC 1Gb, 2 NIC 10Gb

Two Switch with 8 port 1 Gb, 4 port 10Gb

My idea was to have:

1Gb network for Management and VM network

10Gb network for Vmotion, Storage and Replication

I have connected, all devices, one port 1Gb to Switch A and other 1Gb port to switch B, the same has been done for port 10Gb to create ridondances.

vSphere Server is connected to 1 Gb Networks.

With this configuration the Replication working but I have poor performances.

I have verified that we have a bottleneck with the Gateway because all traffic pass from network 1 Gb to network 10 Gb Utilized for write.

I have verified that vSphere Server can have a second NIC but it’s only for HA and doesn’t works as management and I can't use this to connect Replication Server to vSphere Server on the 10Gb networks.

The question is: to have good replications performances is I need to move all the management networks on 10Gb Networks or There are other configuration can I apply and I can  keep the management on 1Gb Networks?

Thanks for your support

Attached

[ashilkrishnan]

Hi @OrgInf01,

If you are trying to isolate vSphere replication through a dedicated NIC, you can create a vmkernel using 10 GB NICs and let the management vmkernel run on 1 Gb NICs.

Isolating the Network Traffic of vSphere Replication 

https://docs.vmware.com/en/vSphere-Replication/8.3/com.vmware.vsphere.replication-admin.doc/GUID-166...

[OrgInf01]

Hi,

Thanks for your help.

If I dedicate a NIC only for replication, I lost redundancy.

I have done mistake during the project planning, because I need more NICs, but the budget was very limited.

in following link you can see my configuration

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1prm_gt-HaoI4bKS-g6KI7NszbpqMq6XC/view?usp=sharing

[ashilkrishnan]

I have gone through the configuration and it looks good. Here you have 1Gb nics for vmk0 (vmnic0 & 1) for management and the 10Gb nics(vmnic2 & 3) for VR and other traffic

[OrgInf01]

Hi,

in the attached file you can see my networking schema.

On the VM I have two NIC one on 1Gb network and the second on 10 Gb Network.

Unfortunally without gateway and routing doesn't works the replication, I suppose that all traffic is managed by vSphere Server that is on 1Gb Network and this is a bottleneck.

I have tried to add a NIC to vSphere Server and connect it to 10 Gb networks but it doesn't works, works only in stand-by mode.

Do you have any other idea?

Thanks for your support.

[OrgInf01]

Hi,

in the attached file you can see my networking schema.

On the VM I have two NIC one on 1Gb network and the second on 10 Gb Network.

Unfortunally without gateway and routing doesn't works the replication, I suppose that all traffic is managed by vSphere Server that is on 1Gb Network and this is a bottleneck.

I have tried to add a NIC to vSphere Server and connect it to 10 Gb networks but it doesn't works, works only in stand-by mode.

Do you have any other idea?

Thanks for your support.

[OrgInf01]

Hi,

A question for you, do you know if is possible to create an internal vmware virtual switch with routing?

In this case, I can connect the virtual switch for management and the virtual switch for Vmotion, Storage and Replication with internal routing of all traffic and i can bypass the NIC bottleneck.

( I don't have found documentation about this)

Thanks

[nachogonzalez]

Let me check if i got this right:

for MGMT Traffic everything is 1 GBPS (could be better but it's fine)
For replication everything is 10GBPs except the gateway.
Is everything on the same subnet/network?
Do you have the ability to separate the gateway or add a new 10GBPS gateway?

Warm regards

[OrgInf01]

Hi,

Yes, you have undertand right.

I have two different network the first 192.168.0.x/24 on 1Gb network and other on 192.168.11.x/24 10Gb network

All works fine, if I connect the two network using a router that enable the routing traffic.

I expected better performance from this configuration using 10Gb networks.

Unfortunally, for budget problems, I can't have more NIC and gateway 10 Gb and I am invetigating to found a solution to have better performances.

My idea was to have a 10Gb network isolated and dedicated for storage, vmotion and Replication.

Probably I need to change my configuration moving all management to 10 Gb network and interconnect it with to the network 1Gb for management (don't like me but I supsect that is the best solution can be have).

I don' know if is possibile to move the vSphere Server to other network without problems.

The best practice, at current state, can be for Management networks to use the highest speed networks that you have avalaible in your configuration to have better performances.

Thanks for your support

[nachogonzalez]

If you use 1GB networks for management there won't be an issue BUT
if you are using the same 1GBPS gateway for management and 10GBPS replication there you have your bottleneck.

Honestly I don't think you NEED 10GBPS management (Ideally you could use it) 1GBPS management will do.
You will need 10GBPS across all the network for replication, that includes NICs, Switches, and routers. 

[OrgInf01]

I agree with you, I also thought that I would not find any problems dividing the network in two, one for management (networks 192.198.0.0/24) and other for Vmotion, storage and replication (networks 192.168.11.0/24).

Probably I don't have problems if I put all in one networks, example 192.168.0.0/24, but in this case I have problems to specify that all management need to works on 1Gb NIC and other must be use on 10 Gb NIC.

For these reason I have decided to divide all in two networks.

In Replication you can decide which network as you want use (defined as incoming networks) in vSphere server you have only one networks.

For your information I have put two NIC every VM 1 at 1Gb et 1 at 10Gb, I have supposed that in this case the replication can be works on Networks 10 Gb without gateway, router and routing traffic rules, unfortunally is not true.

I suppose that vSphere Server Manage all traffic and for this reason we need of routing and routing traffics rules.

Thanks for you support