Replication Job Scenario inquiries

[ChevUribe]

Hi All!

I would like to raise a few replication job inquries:

PROD site: PROD_VSAN, SAN_STORAGE_PROD

DR site: DR_VSAN, SAN_STORAGE_DR

VM_PROD

VM_PROD_Replicated

From what I know, vSphere Replication can be used together with Array Based Replication.

1. Can VM_PROD be included in 2 replication jobs? VM_PROD is stored in SAN_STORAGE_PROD.

    vSphere Replication to DR_VSAN and an array based replication from SAN_STORAGE_PROD to SAN_STORAGE_DR.

2. VM_PROD is stored in SAN_STORAGE_PROD.

    vSphere Replication and array based replication all pointing to SAN_STORAGE_DR

3. VM_PROD is stored in PROD_VSAN. Replicating via vSphere Replication.DR_VSAN

    VM_PROD is svmotioned to SAN_STORAGE_PROD and VM_PROD_Replicated is svmotioned to SAN_STORAGE_DR.

    Would changing to array based replication still see the seeded files in the storage or would it result to corruption.

4. VM_PROD is stored in SAN_STORAGE_PROD. Array based Replication SAN_STORAGE_DR.

    VM_PROD is svmotioned to PROD_VSAN and VM_PROD_Replicated is svmotioned to DR_VSAN.

    Would changing to host based replication still see the seeded files in the VSAN or would it result to corruption.

[admin]

vSphere Replication can be used with Array-based replication - i.e. SRM can use both ABR and VR in the same environment.

But - you cannot protect the same VM twice. You must either use ABR or VR to protect any given VM.

[hussainbte]

I will not mention the datastore names you have provided.

vSphere Replication of a VM is not dependent on whether the underlying LUN is replicating or not.

So if LUNA is replicating to LUNB in the DR and there is a VM1 which is running on LUNA, it can still be configured for vSphere replication.

Coming to SRM.

Once a protection group is created selecting LUNA it will automatically protect VM1.

Now you cannot create another protection group by selecting vSphere replication type and select VM1, SRM will say VM is already protected.

That is where the limitation of not being able to configure SAN & vSphere replication for a single VM comes in SRM.

[ChevUribe]

how about scenario 3 and 4?

[hussainbte]

vSphere replication is 6 is completely compatible with storage vMotion.. both at source and destination.

So if you storage vMotion source or destination the job continues. you will not even have to reconfigure the job.. the replication job continues.

in versions earlier to vSphere 6, you would be required to reconfigure the replication job and use the already replicated files as seeds.

with version 6 it is even better

[ChevUribe]

but in both cases, my replication should be stopped so I can configure it to either host based or array based replication?

[hussainbte]

replication and configuring protection in SRM are different things.

All SRM protected machines have to be replicated(Either SAN or vSphere), but all replicated VMs need not necessarily be protected in SRM.

In SRM if you want to switch the replication mode between vrep and SAN you have to remove protection and configure it again.

but this does not actually impact the data replication going underneath

[ChevUribe]

Im talking about replication on the VM. Not yet on the SRM side.

Initial setup is vSphere Replication is doing the replication.

But later on, they would want that the replication is array based.

SO VM will be replicated first and later to array based replication to improve RPO.

[hussainbte]

yes it would help, as the SAN based replication will only have the changes to replicate. because the destination LUN already has the VM data on it coming from vSphere replication.

This exercise is good to be performed when you have VMs replicating from LUNA to LUNB through vSphere replication and then you can configure SAN based replication with LUNA as source and LUNB as destination.

will definitely be helpful.