An Introduction to VMware Site Recovery for Google Cloud VMware Engine

Overview

VMware Site Recovery Manager (SRM) is a business continuity and disaster recovery solution that helps you plan, test, and run the recovery of virtual machines between sites. These site pairings can either be designed with unidirectional or bidirectional replication.

Google Cloud VMware Engine (GCVE) integrates VMware’s flagship compute, storage, and network virtualization products — VMware vSphere, VMware vSAN, and VMware NSX®—along with VMware vCenter Server® management. VMware SRM is an certified addon which is a customer installed, configured and managed solution. SRM works in conjunction with VMware vSphere Replication to automate the process of migrating, recovering, testing, re-protecting, and failing-back virtual machine workloads.

SRM vSphere replication appliances coordinate the operations of the VMware vCenter Server™ at two sites. Virtual machines are configured to be replicated to the other site which can be used later in starting copies of protected virtual machines on the second site during planned maintenance or when a disaster strikes.

Site Recovery can be configured in two modes:

  • Customer’s data center and an SDDC deployed on private cloud in Google Cloud VMware Engine
  • Between two SDDCs deployed to different GCVE availability zones or regions

VMware Site Recovery Manager contains two appliances on each site.  The SRM replication manager and vSphere Replication appliance. These appliances are deployed, configured, and managed by customer.

VMware Site Recovery Manager leverages vSphere Replication technology for transferring data between sites. The following requirements must be met on the customer site for installation:

  • VMware vCenter
  • One or more vSphere ESXi hosts
  • Infrastructure services like DNS, DHCP and Active Directory, must be in place at both the protected and recovery sites.

See the compatibility matrix for detailed requirements and version compatibility.

Features and Benefits

  • Lower Total Cost of Ownership on recovery site datacenter with a private cloud on Google Cloud VMware Engine
  • Protect your most sensitive workloads
  • Recover fast and minimize downtime
  • Eliminate manual process with automated orchestration of site failover and failback with a single-click
  • Application-agnostic protection eliminates the need for app-specific point solutions
  • Frequent, non-disruptive testing of recovery plans ensures highly predictable recovery objectives
  • Enhanced, easy to use, consolidated protection workflow simplifies replicating and protecting virtual machines
  • Recovery plans are available on the HTML-based UI
  • vSphere Replication integration delivers VM-centric, replication that eliminates dependence on a particular type of storage
  • Flexible versioning allows for easier upgrades and ongoing management
  • Google Managed vSphere-based recovery site

 


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