4.0

Limitations on Recovery of Snapshots and Linked Clones
Array-based replication supports recovering VMware Virtual Consolidated Backup (VCB) snapshots, but it
does not support recovering other types of snapshots or virtual machines configured as linked clones.
SRM cannot reliably recover virtual machine snapshots that are not created by VCB. A protection group can
include virtual machines that have snapshots, but those virtual machines are not usable when recovered.
Virtual machines configured as linked clones are also not protected. You can include such virtual machines in
protection groups, but only the parent is completely protected. The linked clones are not usable after recovery.
NOTE If you need to support the use of certain types of VCB snapshots at the recovery site (snapshots taken
when the virtual machine is powered on or suspended), the ESX hosts at both sites must have compatible
CPUs, as defined in the VMware knowledge base articles VMotion CPU Compatibility Requirements for Intel
Processors (article 1991) and VMotion CPU Compatibility Requirements for AMD Processors (article 1992). The hosts
must also have the same BIOS features enabled. If the servers’ BIOS configurations do not match, they still
show a compatibility error message even if they are otherwise identical. The two most common features to
check are Non-Execute Memory Protection (NX / XD) and Virtualization Technology (VT / AMD-V).
Create a Recovery Plan
A recovery plan controls how virtual machines in a protection group are recovered. A basic recovery plan
includes a number of prescribed steps that use default values to control how protection group members are
migrated to the protected site. You can customize the plan to meet your needs. The plan is stored in the SRM
database at the recovery site and executed by the SRM server at that site.
A simple recovery plan assigns all virtual machines in a protection group to two networks on the recovery site:
a recovery network and a test network. The recovery network is used in an actual recovery. The test network
is used only for testing the recovery plan and does not typically allow the recovered virtual machines to
communicate on your corporate network or the Internet. SRM can create a test network for you, or you can
create one yourself.
Procedure
1 Open a vSphere Client and connect to the vCenter server at the recovery site.
Log in as a vSphere administrator.
2 On the vSphere Client Home page, click the Site Recovery icon.
3 In the Recovery Setup area of the Summary window, navigate to the Recovery Plans line and click
Create.
4 On the Recovery Plan Information page of the Create Recovery Plan wizard, type a name for the plan in the
Name text box and add an optional description, and then click Next.
5 On the Protection Groups page, select one or more protection groups for the plan to recover, and click
Next.
Chapter 3 Configuring the Protected and Recovery Sites
VMware, Inc. 35