System information

Using vSphere Replication with Site Recovery Manager
Site Recovery Manager can use vSphere Replication to replicate data to servers at the recovery site.
Previous versions of Site Recovery Manager included the vSphere Replication appliance. In previous
releases you could configure vSphere Replication in the Site Recovery Manager interface. In this release, you
deploy the vSphere Replication appliance and configure vSphere Replication on virtual machines
independently of Site Recovery Manager. See the vSphere Replication documentation at
https://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vsphere-replication-pubs.html for information about deploying
and configuring vSphere Replication.
vSphere Replication does not require storage arrays. The vSphere Replication storage replication source and
target can be any storage device, including, but not limited to, storage arrays.
You can configure vSphere Replication to regularly create and retain snapshots of protected virtual
machines on the recovery site. Taking multiple point-in-time (PIT) snapshots of virtual machines allows you
to retain more than one replica of a virtual machine on the recovery site. Each snapshot reflects the state of
the virtual machine at a certain point in time. You can select which snapshot to recover when you use
vSphere Replication to perform a recovery.
Figure 2‑2. Site Recovery Manager Architecture with vSphere Replication
Protected Site
SRM plug-in
vSphere Web Client
SRM plug-in
vSphere Web Client
Recovery Site
ESXi
Server
VR Agent
ESXi
Server
VR Agent
vCenter Server
VMFS
VMFS
Storage
VMFS
VMFS
Storage
ESXi
Server
VR Agent
SRM Server
VR Appliance
Network
File Copy
ESXi
SRM Server
Additional
VR Server
Network
File Copy
ESXi
VR Appliance
vSphere replication
vCenter Server
Using vSphere Replication and Site Recovery Manager with vSphere Storage
vMotion and vSphere Storage DRS
vSphere Replication is compatible with vSphere Storage vMotion and vSphere Storage DRS on the protected
site. You can use Storage vMotion and Storage DRS to move the disk files of a virtual machine that
vSphere Replication protects, with no impact on replication.
Site Recovery Manager Administration
26 VMware, Inc.