IKtech
asked on
vcenter server appliance replication
Basically i have essentials plus licensing with vdp, replication, and vcenter server appliances running. All are the latest available from vmware. I have three hosts in a cluster and i am using local storage for all three hosts. I am doing nightly backups of all virtual machines and i wanted to do replication of VMs within this cluster to another datastore to provide another layer of protection for disaster recovery.
With that being said i am worried that i will have trouble recovering if vcenter server is unavailable and i wanted to replicate it to another datastore as well. I really can't find any information about doing this. Any experts out there have any thoughts regarding this setup?
With that being said i am worried that i will have trouble recovering if vcenter server is unavailable and i wanted to replicate it to another datastore as well. I really can't find any information about doing this. Any experts out there have any thoughts regarding this setup?
ASKER
i only have licensing for one vcenter server. It sounds like i could do the emergency restore of the vcenter server and then restore using replicas or backups once vcenter is back on line. Does that sound correct to you?
With the potential data loss with in vcenter server, do you have an estimate on the negative effects that might have?
Should i possibly consider VEEAM to do my replication in order to avoid the dependency on vcenter for replication and backups?
With the potential data loss with in vcenter server, do you have an estimate on the negative effects that might have?
Should i possibly consider VEEAM to do my replication in order to avoid the dependency on vcenter for replication and backups?
ASKER CERTIFIED SOLUTION
membership
This solution is only available to members.
To access this solution, you must be a member of Experts Exchange.
ASKER
so i suppose i could replicate the vcenter server and use the unsupported method and if that doesn't work then go for the emergency restore.
Thanks Andrew!
Thanks Andrew!
Yes, write it down, document it, and TEST your PLAN, and then DO and DOCUMENT what works for you, and is easier!
Remember in a DR scenario, and under pressure, simple things can be difficult to do!
Remember in a DR scenario, and under pressure, simple things can be difficult to do!
ASKER
i Just found a little info about VCSA HA. Any thoughts there? It seems like it would be the best way to protect vcenter in a three host cluster.
You could implement VCSA HA, it could be seen as little overkill for three hosts, and DR!
Remember if vCenter Server is unavailable it does not stop hosts or VMs running, it's just a management server.
Remember if vCenter Server is unavailable it does not stop hosts or VMs running, it's just a management server.
ASKER
The fact that i don't have shared storage may be an issue the VCSA HA...
Oh! That could be an issue!
ASKER
Another issue has come up with VCHA... It is not part of the licensing included with essentials plus. DOH! I'm giving you the points for this one. Thanks for helping me step through some of the thought process. On to testing and documenting...
ASKER
thanks again.
If you use VMware Replication with a single vCenter Server and vCenter Server is not available, all you need to do, is use the replicated VMX file (and VMDK) Add to Inventory and Power On.
This method is not supported by VMware, and if it fails, VMware Support are not likely to help you, because ideally you would have two vCenter Servers. This allows you to get back to your VM (based on RPOs)
Otherwise VDP has an Emergency Mode, that allows you to restore a VM without vCenter Server. (but using this method is going back to a backup, so may lose data)