Design Question: VCSA 6.5 High Avaliability

[mamoth100]

I am looking for some guidance from vCenter experts for design considerations with regard to High Availability in vCenter 6.5.

Site 1 - Main Site

1500 VMs

35 Hosts

1 External PSC

1 vCenter

Site 2 - DR and some Sandbox

300 VMs

1000 SRM Placeholders

35 Hosts

1 External PSC

1 vCenter

It is a 6.0 environment. Using Enhanced Linked Mode between sites at this time.

Now, for the 6.5 environment that I would like to stand up for the above. VMware seems to recommend that to leverage Enhanced Linked Mode you need an external PSC. However, if I embed the PSC, then I get 2-in-1 HA by way of vCenter HA. If I embed the PSC, I also do not have to bring up multiple PSCs and in turn, multiple load balancers for the PSCs (at least 2 load balancers as it doesn't seem to make sense to have multiple PSCs with one load balancer where that introduces a single point of failure).

With a smaller environment like this, does it make sense to just do the embedded PSC and do Enhanced Linked Mode with that... and then do vCenter HA on top? Or must I deploy multiple external PSCs for some reason I am not seeing?

Thank you for reading!

[bayupw · Accepted solution]

It make sense but I don't think it is supported by VMware.

Back in vSphere 6.0, I used to rely on vSphere HA and repoint to the other site's PSC if required.

Unfortunately this procedure is no longer supported in vSphere 6.5

Repointing vCenter Server 6.0 between sites in a vSphere Domain (2131191) | VMware KB

Caution: This operation is no longer supported in vSphere 6.5 and running these steps can cause permanent damage.

VMware vSphere 6.5 Documentation Library-Deployment Topologies with External Platform Services Contr...

Important

Repointing vCenter Server between sites and domains is unsupported. If no functional Platform Services Controller instance is available in the site, you must deploy or install a new Platform Services Controller instance in this site as a replication partner of a functional Platform Services Controller instance from another site.

One of the reason the PSC + enhanced linked mode is not supported/deprecated in vSphere 6.0 is there is no supported backup/restore process.

But no information on why this is not supported/deprecated in 6.5 Supported and deprecated topologies for VMware vSphere 6.5 (2147672) | VMware KB

May need to check with VMware folks/VMware support GSS.

If this is not supported then depends on requirements, for simplicity I would deploy single external PSC, no load balancer, rely on vSphere HA

But if there's a requirement to go for PSC HA, then no choice other than to deploy two external PSCs + two load balancers

[mamoth100]

Bayu,

Thank you for taking the time to respond. I think you see where I'm going with this. I did read the links you provided prior to posting, and all I see are the words "recommended" and not "do not do this" like it does now for 6.5 PSC re-point. However, the last picture depicted in your response does say deprecated. I might hit up our SE as well. But I assume he'll say the same: deprecated.

All this "recommended" talk surrounding vCenter HA puts a bit of frustration into the solution.

Thank you again for providing all the information in your response.