How to create a disaster recovery clone using remote replication

Ops Center Protector VMware Application Guide
Version
7.6.x
Audience
anonymous
Part Number
MK-99PRT004-07
It is assumed that the following tasks have been performed:
  • The Protector Master software has been installed and licensed on a dedicated node.
  • The Protector Client software has been installed on the node that will act as the proxy for the vCenter.
  • The Protector Client software has been installed on the nodes that will act as proxies for the Hitachi Block storage devices at the production where the VMware datastore is located and at the disaster recovery site.
  • The production and disaster recovery block storage devices have been set up as per the Protector requirements and prerequisites. Refer to Hitachi Block prerequisites.
  • Permissions have been granted to enable the Protector UI, required activities and participating nodes to be accessed. In this example all nodes will be left in the default resource group, so there is no need to allocate nodes to user defined resource groups.
  • A VMware user has been created that provides the required privileges as detailed in VMware user privileges. This user will be required when creating the VMware proxy node in the steps that follow.
This task describes the steps to follow when replicating VMs that reside on a datastore located on a Hitachi Block storage device. A TrueCopy hardware replication of the PVOL(s) is created as an SVOL(s) residing on a remote storage device. Other synchronous and asynchronous remote replication technologies can also be used. The data flow and policy are as follows:
Figure. TrueCopy Replication Data Flow
Table. VMware Replication Policy
Classification Type Parameters Value
VMware VMware Node myvCenter
Included Items Refer to About VMware policy classifications for details on how to specify VMs that are to be included in a backup.
Operation Type Parameter Value Assigned Nodes
Replicate Run Options N/A

(TrueCopy is a continuous replication, so the Run option is ignored)

 VMware,

Remote Hitachi Block Device
  1. Locate the source OS Host node in the Nodes Inventory and check that it is authorized and online.
    This node will be used as the proxy for the VMware source node. It is identified as the Proxy Node when creating the VMware node in the next step.
  2. Create a new VMware node (unless a suitable one already exists) using the VMware Node Wizard.
    The VMware node type is grouped under Hypervisor in the Node Type Wizard.
    1. Specify the Host name or IP Address of vCenter.
    2. Specify the Username and Password of a user having the required privileges as detailed in VMware user privileges.
    3. Check that this node is shown as authorized and online.
  3. Locate the node in the Nodes Inventory that will control the production Hitachi Block Device (via a CMD) where the VMware datastore is located. Check that the node is authorized and online.
    This node is used by Protector to orchestrate replications on the production site. This node is known as an ISM (Intelligent Storage Manager) node. The ISM node does not appear in the data flow.
  4. Locate the node in the Nodes Inventory that will control the remote Hitachi Block Device (via a CMD) where the VMware datastore will be replicated to. Check that the node is authorized and online.
    This node is used by Protector to orchestrate replications on the remote site and is identified as the Proxy Node when creating the remote Hitachi Block Device node in the next step. The ISM node does not appear in the data flow.
  5. Create a new remote Hitachi Block Device node (unless one already exists) using the Block Storage Node Wizard and check that it is authorized and online.
    The Hitachi Block Device node type is grouped under Storage in the Node Type Wizard. The remote Hitachi Block Device node appears in the replication data flow as the destination node. The production site Hitachi Block Device is represented in the data flow by the VMware Server node.
  6. Define a policy as shown in the table above using the Policy Wizard, VMware Classification Wizard and Replicate Operation Wizard.
    The VMware classification is grouped under Hypervisor in the Policy Wizard.
  7. Draw a data flow as shown in the figure above using the Data Flow Wizard, that shows the VMware source node connected to the remote Hitachi Block Device via a Continuous mover.
  8. Assign the VMware-Replicate policy to the VMware source node.
  9. Assign the Replicate operation to the remote Hitachi Block Device node.
    The Block Replication Configuration Wizard is displayed.
  10. Set the replication type to Synchronous Remote Clone, then choose a Pool from one of the available Dynamic Pools. Leave the Advanced Configuration options at their default settings and click OK.
  11. Compile and activate the data flow, checking carefully that there are no errors.
  12. Locate the active data flow in the Monitor Inventory and open its Monitor Details.
    The policy will be invoked automatically to create a continuous replication as specified in the policy.
  13. Watch the active data flow via the Monitor Details to ensure the policy is operating as expected.
    You should see:
    • An initial replication job appearing in the Jobs area below the data flow that cycle through stages and ending in Progress - Completed.
    • Information messages appearing in the Logs area below the data flow indicating rules activation, storage handler and sequencer events.
  14. Review the status of the Hitachi Block Device to ensure an active replication has been created.
    A new replication record will appear in the Block Replication Inventory.