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Site Recovery Manager Administration
Guide
vCenter Site Recovery Manager 5.0

This document supports the version of each product listed and
supports all subsequent versions until the document is replaced
by a new edition. To check for more recent editions of this
document, see http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.

EN-000706-01

Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

You can find the most up-to-date technical documentation on the VMware Web site at:
http://www.vmware.com/support/
The VMware Web site also provides the latest product updates.
If you have comments about this documentation, submit your feedback to:
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Copyright © 2008–2012 VMware, Inc. All rights reserved. This product is protected by U.S. and international copyright and
intellectual property laws. VMware products are covered by one or more patents listed at
http://www.vmware.com/go/patents.
VMware is a registered trademark or trademark of VMware, Inc. in the United States and/or other jurisdictions. All other marks
and names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies.

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Contents

About This Book 7

1 Administering VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager 9
SRM Deployment 10
Protected Sites and Recovery Sites 11
Array-Based Replication 11
vSphere Replication 12
About Protection Groups and Recovery Plans 13
Testing and Running a Recovery Plan 14
About Reprotect 16
About Failback 16
About the Site Recovery Manager Database 16
SRM and VMware vCenter Server 17
SRM Licensing 18
SRM Authentication 18
Requirements When Using Public Key Certificates
Understanding Roles and Permissions 20
Assign Roles and Permissions 21
SRM Roles Reference 21
SRM Network Ports 23
Connecting to SRM 24
Operational Limits of Site Recovery Manager 24

2 Installing and Updating Site Recovery Manager 27

Configuring the SRM Database 28
Microsoft SQL Server Configuration 28
Oracle Server Configuration 28
DB2 Server Configuration 29
About the vSphere Replication Management Database 29
Configure the VRM Database 29
Install the SRM Server 31
Upgrading SRM 33
Prepare for SRM Upgrade 34
Update the SRM Server 35
Upgrade the SRM Client Plug-In 36
Configure the Upgraded SRM Installation 36
SRM Migration Utility 37
Install Storage Replication Adapters 38
Install the SRM Client Plug-In 38
Connect the Sites 39
Revert to a Previous Release 40
Repair or Modify the Installation of a Site Recovery Manager Server 40

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Install the SRM License Key 42

3 Establishing Inventory Mappings and Placeholder Datastores 43
Understanding Placeholder Datastores 43
Configure a Placeholder Datastore 44
Configure Datastore Mappings for vSphere Replication Management
Select Inventory Mappings 44

4 Configuring Array-Based Protection 47

Configure Array Managers 47
Rescan Arrays to Detect Configuration Changes
Edit Array Managers 48

5 Installing vSphere Replication Servers 51

Deploy a vSphere Replication Management Server 52
Configure vSphere Replication Management Server Settings 52
Configure VRMS Security Settings 53
Configure VRMS Network Settings 54
Configure VRMS System Settings 54
Configure vSphere Replication Management Connections 55
Deploy a vSphere Replication Server 55
Configure vSphere Replication Server Settings 56
Register a vSphere Replication Server 57

6 Creating Protection Groups and Replicating Virtual Machines 59
Limitations to Protection and Recovery of Virtual Machines 59
Create Array-Based Protection Groups 60
Edit Array-Based Protection Groups 61
Create vSphere Replication Protection Groups 61
Edit vSphere Replication Protection Groups 62
Configure Replication for a Single Virtual Machine 62
Configure Replication for Multiple Virtual Machines 63
Replicate Virtual Machines Using Physical Couriering 64
Move a Virtual Machine to a New vSphere Replication Server 66
Apply Inventory Mappings to All Members of a Protection Group 66

7 Recovery Plans and Reprotection 67
Create a Recovery Plan 67
Edit a Recovery Plan 68
Remove a Recovery Plan 68
Test a Recovery Plan 68
Cancel a Test or Recovery 69
Run a Recovery Plan 70
Understanding Reprotection 71
Reprotection Process 72
Reprotection State Reference 73

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Contents

8 Customizing Site Recovery Manager 75

Customizing a Recovery Plan 75
Recovery Plan Steps 75
Customize Recovery Plan Steps 77
Customize the Recovery of an Individual Virtual Machine 80
Customize IP Properties For an Individual Virtual Machine 80
Report IP Address Mappings for a Protection Group 82
Understanding Customizing IP Properties for Multiple Virtual Machines 82
Configure Protection for a Virtual Machine or Template 86
Configure Resource Mappings for a Virtual Machine 87
Configure SRM Alarms 88
Working with Advanced Settings 88
Guest Customization Settings 88
Change Recovery Site Settings 89
Change Array-Based Storage Provider Settings 89
Change Local Site Settings 90
Change Remote Site Settings 91
Change Storage Settings 91
Change Replication Setting 92
Change vSphere Replication Settings 92

9 Troubleshooting SRM 93

Events and Alarms 93
Site Status Events 94
Protection Group Events 94
Recovery Events 96
SNMP Traps 97
Storage and Storage Provider Events 98
Licensing Events 101
Permissions Events 101
Collecting SRM Log Files 102
Collect SRM Log Files Using the vSphere Client 102
Collect SRM Server Log Files 102
Features Are Unavailable When Deploying VRMS 103
OVF Package is Invalid and Cannot be Deployed 103
Connection Errors Between VRMS and SQL Cannot be Resolved 103
Configuration of the VRMS Database Fails with DB2 Databases 104

Index 105

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

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About This Book
®

VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager (SRM) is an extension to VMware vCenter that delivers a business
continuity and disaster recovery solution that helps you plan, test, and execute the recovery of vCenter virtual
machines. SRM can discover and manage replicated datastores, and automate migration of inventory from
one vCenter to another.

Intended Audience
This book is intended for Site Recovery Manager administrators who are familiar with vSphere and it
replication technologies such as host based replication and replicated datastores. This solution serves the needs
of administrators who want to configure protection for vSphere inventory. It may also be appropriate for other
users who need to add virtual machines to protected inventory or verify that existing inventory is properly
configured for use with SRM.

VMware Technical Publications Glossary
VMware Technical Publications provides a glossary of terms that might be unfamiliar to you. For definitions
of terms as they are used in VMware technical documentation, go to http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.

Document Feedback
VMware welcomes your suggestions for improving our documentation. If you have comments, send your
feedback to docfeedback@vmware.com.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Technical Support and Education Resources
The following technical support resources are available to you. To access the current version of this book and
other books, go to http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.
Online and Telephone
Support

To use online support to submit technical support requests, view your product
and contract information, and register your products, go to
http://www.vmware.com/support.
Customers with appropriate support contracts should use telephone support
for the fastest response on priority 1 issues. Go to
http://www.vmware.com/support/phone_support.html.

Support Offerings

To find out how VMware support offerings can help meet your business needs,
go to http://www.vmware.com/support/services.

VMware Professional
Services

VMware Education Services courses offer extensive hands-on labs, case study
examples, and course materials designed to be used as on-the-job reference
tools. Courses are available onsite, in the classroom, and live online. For onsite
pilot programs and implementation best practices, VMware Consulting
Services provides offerings to help you assess, plan, build, and manage your
virtual environment. To access information about education classes,
certification programs, and consulting services, go to
http://www.vmware.com/services.

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Administering VMware vCenter Site
Recovery Manager

VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager (SRM) is a business continuity and disaster recovery solution that
helps you plan, test, and execute the recovery of vCenter virtual machines between one site (the protected site)
and another site (the recovery site).
You can configure SRM to work with several third-party disk replication mechanisms (array based replication)
or with VMware vSphere Replication.
Two types of recovery are available.
Planned Migration

Planned migration is the orderly decommissioning of virtual machines at the
protected site and commissioning of equivalent machines at recovery site. For
planned migration to succeed, both sites must be up and fully functioning.

Disaster Recovery

Disaster recovery is similar to planned migration except it does not require that
both sites be up. During a disaster recovery operation, failure of operations on
the protected site are reported but otherwise ignored.

SRM coordinates the recovery process with the underlying replication mechanisms that the virtual machines
at the protected site are shut down cleanly (in the event that the protected site virtual machines are still
available) and the replicated virtual machines can be powered up. Recovery of protected virtual machines to
the recovery site is guided by a recovery plan that specifies the order in which virtual machines are started up.
The recovery plan also specifies network parameters, such as IP addresses, and can contain user-specified
scripts that can be executed to perform custom recovery actions.
After a recovery has been performed, the running virtual machines are no longer protected. To address this
reduced protection, SRM supports a reprotect operation for virtual machines protected on array-based storage.
The reprotect operation reverses the roles of the two sites after the original protected site is back up. The site
that was formerly the recovery site becomes the protected site and the site that was formerly the protected site
becomes the recovery site.
SRM lets you test recovery plans. You can conduct tests using a temporary copy of the replicated data in a way
that does not disrupt ongoing operations at either site. You can conduct tests after a reprotect has been done
to confirm that the new protected/recovery site configuration is valid.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n

“SRM Deployment,” on page 10

“Protected Sites and Recovery Sites,” on page 11

“About the Site Recovery Manager Database,” on page 16

“SRM and VMware vCenter Server,” on page 17

“SRM Licensing,” on page 18

“SRM Authentication,” on page 18

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

“Understanding Roles and Permissions,” on page 20

“SRM Network Ports,” on page 23

“Connecting to SRM,” on page 24

“Operational Limits of Site Recovery Manager,” on page 24

SRM Deployment
You must complete several groups of tasks to configure SRM. You complete some tasks in all cases, and you
complete some tasks only for vSphere Replication (VR) or for array based replication. If your environment will
use both types of replication, consider all tasks, but if not, you might need to complete only a subset of the
total possible set of tasks.
The set includes the following tasks:
1

Obtain the latest SRM software and any required patches.

Configure the SRM databases at each site.

Install SRM at the protected site.

Install SRM at the recovery site.

Pair sites.

In the case of using VR, complete the following tasks:
1

Deploy a vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS) at the protected site.

Deploy VRMS at the recovery site.

Configure a database for VRMS at both sites.

Configure both VRMS servers using the Virtual Appliance Management Interface (VAMI).

Deploy a vSphere Replication Server (VRS) at the recovery site.

If bi-directional replication is required, deploy a VR server at the protected site.

Connect the two VRMS appliances between sites.

In the case of using array based replication, complete the following tasks at both sites:
1

Install Storage Replication Adapters (SRAs).

Configure array managers.

After you establish the required infrastructure for VR, arrays, or both, complete the following steps:

Configure inventory mappings.

Configure placeholder datastores.

If you are using VR, configure datastore mappings.

Create protection groups.

Protect virtual machines.

Create recovery plans.

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Chapter 1 Administering VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager

Protected Sites and Recovery Sites
In a typical SRM installation, the protected site provides business-critical datacenter services. The recovery site
is an alternative facility to which these services can be migrated.
The protected site can be any site where vCenter supports a critical business need. The recovery site can be
located thousands of miles away. Conversely, the recovery site can be in the same room as a way of establishing
redundancy. The recovery site is usually located in a facility that is unlikely to be affected by environmental,
infrastructure, or other disturbances that affect the protected site.
®

SRM has the following requirements for the VMware vSphere configurations at each site:
n

Each site must have at least one datacenter.

If you are using array-based replication, identical replication technologies must be available at both sites.

The recovery site must have hardware, network, and storage resources that can support the same virtual
machines and workloads as the protected site.

The sites should be connected by a reliable IP network. If you are using array-based replication, ensure
your network connectivity meets the arrays' network requirements.

The recovery site should have access to comparable networks (public and private) as the protected site,
although not necessarily the same range of network addresses.

Site Pairing
The protected and recovery sites must be paired before you can use SRM. SRM includes a wizard that guides
you through the site-pairing process. You must establish a connection between the sites and you must provide
authentication information for the two sites so they can exchange information. Site pairing requires vSphere
administrative privileges at both sites. To initiate the site-pairing process, you must know the user name and
password of a vSphere administrator at each site. If you are using vSphere Replication, pair vSphere Replication
Management Servers similarly to how SRM sites are paired.

Array-Based Replication
When using array-based replication, one or more storage arrays at the protected site replicate data to peer
arrays at the recovery site. Storage replication adapters (SRAs) enable integration of SRM with a wide variety
of arrays.
If you plan to use array-based replication with SRM, establish replication before you install and configure SRM.

Storage Replication Adapters
Storage replication adapters are not part of an SRM release. They are developed and supported by your array
vendor. You can download storage replication adapters and their documentation from
http://www.vmware.com/download/srm/. VMware does not support storage replication adapters
downloaded from other sites. You must install an SRA specific to each array that you use with SRM on the
SRM server host. SRM supports using multiple SRAs.

About Bidirectional Operation
You can use a single set of paired SRM sites to protect in both directions. Each site can simultaneously be both
a protected site and recovery site but for a different set of virtual machines. This feature is not limited to arraybased replication but when you are using array-based replication, any given one of the array’s LUNs is only
ever replicating in one direction. Two different LUNs in the same array can each be replicating in different
directions from each other.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

How Site Recovery Manager Computes Datastore Groups
The composition of a datastore group is determined by the set of virtual machines that have files on the
datastores in the group, and by the devices on which those datastores are stored.
When you use array-based replication, each storage array supports a set of replicated devices. On Storage Area
Network (SAN) arrays that use connection protocols such as Fibre Channel and iSCSI, these devices are called
LUNs (logical storage units comprising one or more physical devices). On NFS arrays, they are typically
referred to as volumes. In every pair of replicated storage devices, one device is the replication source and the
other is the replication target. Data written to the source device is replicated to the target device on a schedule
controlled by the arrays' replication software. When you configure SRM to work with an SRA, the replication
source is at the protected site and the replication target is at the recovery site.
A datastore provides storage for virtual machine files. By hiding the details of physical storage devices,
datastores simplify the allocation of storage capacity and provide a uniform model for meeting the storage
needs of virtual machines. Because any datastore can span multiple devices, SRM must ensure that all devices
backing the datastore are replicated before it can protect the virtual machines that use that datastore. SRM
must ensure that all devices containing protected virtual machine files are replicated. During a recovery or
test, SRM must handle all such devices together. To achieve this goal, SRM aggregates datastores into datastore
groups to accommodate virtual machines that span multiple datastores. SRM regularly checks that datastore
groups contain all necessary datastores to provide protection for appropriate virtual machines. When
necessary, datastore groups are recalculated. For example, this may occur when new devices are added to a
virtual machine, and those devices are stored on a datastore that was not previously a part of the datastore
group.
A datastore group consists of the smallest set of devices required to ensure that if any of a virtual machine's
files is stored on a device in the group, all of the virtual machine's files are stored on devices that are part of
the same group. For example, if a virtual machine has disks on two different datastores, then both datastores
must be combined into a datastore group. Conditions that can cause datastores to be combined into a datastore
group include:
n

A virtual machine has files on two different datastores.

Two virtual machines share an RDM device on a SAN array, such as in the case of an MSCS cluster.

Two datastores span extents corresponding to different partitions of the same device.

A single datastore spans two extents corresponding to partitions of two different devices.

Multiple devices belong to a consistency group. A consistency group is a collection of replicated devices
where every state of the target set of devices existed at some point in time as the state of the source set of
devices. Informally, the devices are replicated together such that when recovery happens using those
devices, software accessing the targets do not see the data in a state it is not prepared to deal with.

vSphere Replication
In vSphere Replication (VR), SRM uses vSphere replication technologies to replicate data to servers at the
recovery site.
vSphere Replication uses vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS) to manage the VR infrastructure.
VR requires installing the VR Server (VRS) virtual appliance and VRMS virtual appliance, both of which can
be installed with SRM during the installation process. While VR does not require storage arrays, an VR storage
replication source and target can be any regular storage device, including, but not limited to, storage arrays.

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Chapter 1 Administering VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager

About Protection Groups and Recovery Plans
A protection group is a collection of virtual machines and templates. A recovery plan specifies how the virtual
machines in a specified set of protection groups are recovered. In the case of virtual machines replicated using
array-based replication, protection groups are composed of virtual machines that use the same replicated
datastore group.
When you create a protection group for array-based replication, you specify array information and SRM
computes the set of virtual machines. When you create a protection group for virtual machines that are
replicated with vSphere Replication, you can add any virtual machines to the protection group.
With array-based replication, all of the virtual machines and templates on the datastores in the protection
group's datastore group are recovered together. When you create a protection group, it initially contains only
those virtual machines that store all of their files on one of the datastore groups associated with the protection
group. You can add virtual machines to the protection group by creating them on one of the datastores that
belong to the datastore groups associated with the protection group. You can also add virtual machines to the
protection group by using Storage vMotion to move their storage onto one of the datastores that belong to the
datastore groups associated with the protection group. You can remove a member from a protection group by
moving the virtual machine's files to another datastore. A protection group can contain one or more datastore
groups. However, a datastore group can belong to only one protection group.

Multiple Recovery Plans for the Same Protection Group
A recovery plan is like an automated runbook. It controls every step of the recovery process, including the
order in which virtual machines are powered off or powered on, the network addresses that recovered virtual
machines use, and so on. Recovery plans are flexible and easy to customize.
A recovery plan references one or more protection groups. A protection group can be specified in more than
one recovery plan. For example, you can create one recovery plan to handle a planned migration of services
from the protected site to the recovery site, and another plan to handle an unplanned event such as a power
failure or natural disaster. Having these different recovery plans allow you to decide how recovery occurs.
You can use only one recovery plan at a time to recover a protection group. If multiple recovery plans that
specify the same protection group are tested or run simultaneously, only one recovery plan can failover the
protection group. Other running recovery plans that specify the same protection group report warnings for
that protection group and the virtual machines it contains. These warnings explain that the virtual machines
were failed over. Other protection groups that those recovery plans cover are not affected by the warnings.

Configuring and Maintaining the Protection of a Virtual Machine
Every virtual machine in a protection group must be configured in such a way that it can be added to vSphere
inventory at the recovery site. Array-based replication requires that each virtual machine be assigned to a
resource pool, folder, and network that exist at the recovery site. An SRM administrator can specify defaults
for these assignments. These defaults, called inventory mappings, are applied when the protection group is
created, and can be reapplied as needed, for example, whenever you add a new virtual machine to the
protection group. If you do not specify inventory mappings, you must configure them individually for each
member of the protection group. Virtual machines that are on a protected datastore but that are not configured
or are improperly configured are not protected.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

About Placeholder Virtual Machines and Inventory Mapping
For each virtual machine that you add to a protection group, SRM creates a placeholder at the recovery site.
These placeholders are added to, and can be managed as part of, the recovery site's inventory.
When you add a virtual machine or template to a protection group, SRM reserves a place for it in the recovery
site's inventory by creating a subset of virtual machine files at the recovery site and then using that subset as
a placeholder to register the virtual machine with the recovery site vCenter. The presence of these placeholders
in recovery site inventory provides a visual indication to SRM administrators that the virtual machines are
protected, and to vCenter administrators that the virtual machines can be powered on and start consuming
local resources when SRM tests or runs a recovery plan.
No member of a protection group is protected until its placeholder has been created. Placeholders are not
created until valid inventory mappings have been established by either applying the site’s inventory mappings
to all members of a protection group or configuring mappings for individual members. If inventory mappings
are established for a site, you cannot override them by configuring the protection of individual virtual
machines. If you need to override inventory mappings for a few members of a protection group, use the vSphere
Client to connect to the recovery site and edit the settings of the placeholders or move them to a different folder
or resource pool.
You can treat placeholders like other members of the recovery site vCenter inventory, although they cannot
be powered on. When a placeholder is created, its folder and compute resource assignments are derived from
inventory mappings established at the protected site. A recovery site vCenter administrator can modify folder
and compute resource assignments as necessary. Changes to a placeholder virtual machine network can be
edited only in the inventory mappings. If no mapping for a network exists, the user can specify a new network
when protecting the virtual machine. Changes made to the placeholder override settings established during
the protection of the virtual machine and are preserved at the recovery site during the test and recovery.
When you recover a protected virtual machine by testing or running a recovery plan, its placeholder is replaced
by the recovered virtual machine and powered on as directed by the recovery plan. After a recovery plan test
finishes, the placeholders are restored as part of the cleanup process.

Testing and Running a Recovery Plan
Testing a recovery plan exercises nearly every aspect of a recovery plan, though several concessions are made
to avoid disrupting ongoing operations. While testing a recovery plan has no lasting effects on either the
protected or the recovery site, running a recovery plan has significant effects on both sites.
Run test recoveries as often as needed. Testing a recovery plan does not affect replication or the ongoing
operations of either site. Testing a recovery plan might temporarily suspend selected local virtual machines at
the recovery site if recoveries are configured to do so. You can cancel a recovery plan test at any time.
In the case of planned migrations, a recovery stops replication after a final synchronization of the source to the
target. For disaster recoveries, virtual machines are restored to the most recent available state, as determined
by the recovery point objective (RPO). After the final replication is completed, SRM makes changes at both
sites that require significant time and effort to reverse. Because of this, the privilege to test a recovery plan and
the privilege to run a recovery plan must be separately assigned.
You need different privileges when testing and running a recovery plan.
Table 1-1. Differences Between Testing and Running a Recovery Plan

Test a Recovery Plan

Run a Recovery Plan

Required privileges

Assign the Site Recovery
Manager.Recovery
Plans.Testpermission from the
Permissions tab.

Assign the Site Recovery
Manager.Recovery Plans.Recovery
permission from the Permissions tab.

Effect on virtual machines at
protected site

None

Virtual machines are shut down in reverse
priority order.

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Chapter 1 Administering VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager

Table 1-1. Differences Between Testing and Running a Recovery Plan (Continued)
Test a Recovery Plan

Run a Recovery Plan

Effect on virtual machines at
recovery site

Local virtual machines are suspended
if required by the plan. Suspended
virtual machines are restarted after
the test is cleaned up.

Local virtual machines are suspended if
required by the plan.

Effect on replication

Temporary snapshots of replicated
storage are created at the recovery
site. For array based replication, the
arrays are rescanned to discover
them.

In the case of a planned migration,
replicated datastores are synchronized,
then replication is stopped, and the target
devices at the recovery site are made
writable. During a disaster recovery, the
same steps are attempted, but if they do not
succeed, the errors are ignored.

Network

If test networks are explicitly
assigned, recovered virtual machines
are connected to a test network. If
virtual machine network assignment
is auto, SRM assigns virtual machines
to temporary networks that are not
connected to any physical network.

Recovered virtual machines are connected
to a datacenter network.

Interruption

Can be canceled.

May be canceled in some cases.

How SRM Interacts with DPM and DRS During Recovery
Distributed Power Management (DPM) is a VMware feature that manages power consumption by ESX hosts.
Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS) is a VMware facility that manages the assignment of virtual machines
to ESX hosts. DPM and DRS are not mandatory, but SRM supports both services and enabling them provides
certain benefits when using SRM.
SRM temporarily disables DPM for the cluster and ensures that all hosts in it are powered on before recovery
begins. After the recovery or test is complete, SRM re-enables DPM for the cluster, but the hosts in it are left
in the running state so that DPM can power them down as needed. SRM registers virtual machines across the
available ESX hosts in a round-robin order, to distribute the potential load as evenly as possible. SRM always
uses DRS placement to balance the load intelligently across hosts before it powers on recovered virtual
machines on the recovery site, even if DRS is disabled on the cluster. If DRS is enabled and in fully automatic
mode, DRS might move other virtual machines to further balance the load across the cluster while SRM is
powering on the recovered virtual machines, and DRS will continue to balance all virtual machines across the
cluster after SRM has powered on the recovered virtual machines.

Test Bubble Networks and Datacenter Networks
SRM can create a test bubble network to which recovered virtual machines are connected during a test. SRM
defaults to the Auto setting so that an accidental test recovery does not affect production. This network is
managed by its own virtual switch, and in most cases recovered virtual machines can use it without having to
change network properties such as IP address, gateway, and so on. A datacenter network, in contrast, is one
that typically supports existing virtual machines at the recovery site. To use it, recovered virtual machines
must conform to its network address availability rules. These virtual machines must use a network address
that can be served and routed by the network's switch, must be configured to use the correct gateway and DNS
host, and so on. Recovered virtual machines that use DHCP can connect to this network without additional
customization. Others require IP customization and recovery plan steps that apply the customization.
Virtual machines that must interact with each other should be failed over to the same test bubble network. For
example, if a Web server accesses information on a database, those virtual machines should fail over together
to the same network. This step enables testing of the function of the failed over virtual machines.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

About Reprotect
With reprotect, you can protect recovered virtual machines after a recovery back to the original protected site,
including reversing the direction of replication.
Reprotect uses the protection information that was established before a recovery to reverse the direction of
protection. You can complete the Reprotect process after a recovery is finished. If the recovery finishes with
errors, you must fix all errors and rerun the recovery, repeating this process until no errors occur.
IMPORTANT Reprotect is supported only for array-based replication. vSphere Replication (VR) reprotect is not
supported. If a recovery plan contains VR groups, remove those groups before you run a reprotect operation.

About Failback
A failback is an optional procedure that restores the original configuration of the protected and recovery sites
after a recovery. You can configure and run a failback procedure when you are ready to restore services to the
protected site.
Failback is a term for a collection of procedures that you can use to restore the original configuration of the
protected and recovery sites after a recovery. Anytime errors occur during a failback, you must resolve those
errors and repeat the failback until the process completes successfully.
After a recovery has occurred, a failback can be completed. Failbacks have three phases. For example, at the
start, A is the protected site and B is the recovery site. A recovery occurs, migrating the virtual machines to
site B. You might choose to run a failback. At that point, the following phases occur:
n

Perform a reprotect. The former recovery site, B, is made the protected site and information about
protection is used to establish protection with A being the recovery site.

Perform a planned migration. The virtual machines are recovered to site A. To avoid interruptions in
virtual machine availability, you may want to run a test before actually completing the planned migration.
If errors are identified by the test, these issues can be resolved before actually performing the planned
migration.

Perform a second reprotect, this time with site A being protected with site B as the recovery site.

About the Site Recovery Manager Database
The SRM server requires its own database, which it uses to store data such as recovery plans and inventory
information.
The SRM database is a critical part of any SRM installation. The database must be created and a database
connection established before you can install SRM. If you are updating SRM to a new release, you can use the
existing database connection, but you must back up the database first, otherwise, you will not be able to revert
to the previous release of SRM.
The SRM database at each site holds information about virtual machine protection groups and recovery plans.
SRM cannot use the vCenter database because it has different database schema requirements, though you can
use the vCenter database server to create and support the SRM database. Each SRM site requires its own
instance of the SRM database. Before you can install SRM, the database must exist .
When you install SRM, you specify the following information about how SRM connects to the database.

Server Type

The type of database server being used.

DSN

The DSN (database source name) specifies a data structure that contains
information about the SRM database that the ODBC driver needs to connect to
that data source.

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Chapter 1 Administering VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager

User Name and
Password

This authentication information is required so that SRM can use the database.

Connection Count

The initial connection pool size. If all connections are in use and a new one is
needed, a connection is created as long as it does not exceed the maximum
number of connections allowed. It is faster for SRM to use a connection from
the pool than to create a new one. In most cases, it is not necessary to change
this setting. Before changing this setting consult with your database
administrator.

Max Connections

The maximum number of connections to open to the database at one time. If
the database administrator has restricted the number of connections that the
database can have open, this value cannot exceed that number. In most cases,
it is not necessary to change this setting. Before changing this setting consult
with your database administrator.

SRM and VMware vCenter Server
The SRM server operates as an extension to the vCenter Server at a site. Because the SRM server depends on
vCenter Server for some services, you must install and configure vCenter Server at a site before you install
SRM.
SRM takes advantage of vCenter services, such as storage management, authentication, authorization, and
guest customization. SRM also uses the standard set of vSphere administrative tools to manage these services.

How Changes to vCenter Server Inventory Affect SRM
Because SRM protection groups apply to a subset of vCenter inventory, changes to the protected inventory
made by vCenter administrators and users can affect the integrity of SRM protection and recovery. SRM
depends on the availability of certain objects, such as virtual machines, folders, resource pools, and networks,
in the vCenter inventory at the protected and recovery sites. Deletion of resources such as folders or networks
that are referenced by recovery plans can invalidate the plan. Renaming or relocating objects in the vCenter
inventory does not affect SRM, unless it causes resources to become inaccessible during test or recovery.
SRM can tolerate the following changes at the protected site without disruption:
n

Deleting protected virtual machines.

Deleting an object for which an inventory mapping exists.

SRM can tolerate the following changes at the recovery site without disruption:
n

Moving placeholder virtual machines to a different folder or resource pool.

Deleting an object for which an inventory map exists.

SRM and the vCenter Database
If you update the vCenter installation that SRM extends, do not reinitialize the vCenter database during the
update. SRM stores identification information about all vCenter objects in SRM's database. If you reinitialize
the vCenter database, the identification data that SRM has stored no longer matches identification information
in the new vCenter and objects are not found.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

SRM and Other vCenter Server Solutions
You can run other VMware solutions such as vCenter Update Manager, vCenter Server Heartbeat, VMware
Fault Tolerance, and vCenter CapacityIQ in deployments that you protect using SRM. However, use caution
before connecting other VMware solutions to the vCenter Server instance to which the SRM server is connected.
Connecting other VMware solutions to the same vCenter Server instance as SRM might cause problems when
you upgrade SRM or vSphere. Check the compatibility and interoperability of these solutions with SRM before
you deploy them.

SRM Licensing
The SRM server requires a license key to operate. You install each SRM server with an evaluation license that
is valid for 60 days and supports protecting up to 75 virtual machines.
SRM uses the vSphere licensing infrastructure for license management. Additionally, vSphere needs to be
licensed sufficiently for SRM to protect and recover virtual machines.
After the evaluation license expires, existing protection groups remain protected and can be recovered, but
you cannot create new protection groups or modify existing ones until you obtain and assign a valid SRM
license key. VMware recommends that you obtain and assign SRM license keys as soon as possible after
installing SRM. You can obtain a license key from your VMware sales representative.

How License Keys Apply to Protected and Recovery Sites
SRM requires a license key that specifies the maximum number of protected virtual machines at a site. Larger
licenses are often required when protecting large numbers of virtual machines.
n

Install keys at one site to enable failover.

Install keys at both sites to enable bidirectional operation including reprotection.

If your SRM Servers are connected with linked vCenter Servers, the SRM servers can share the same license
key.
To obtain your license keys, go to the VMware Product Licensing Center
(http://www.vmware.com/support/licensing/index.html).
SRM licensing checks for a valid license whenever you add a virtual machine to or remove a virtual machine
from a protection group. If licenses are not in compliance, vSphere triggers a licensing alarm. VMware
recommends that you configure alerts for triggered licensing events so that licensing administrators are
notified by email.

SRM Authentication
All communications between SRM and vCenter Servers take place over a SSL connections and are authenticated
by public key certificates or stored credentials.
When you install an SRM server, you must choose either credential-based authentication or certificate-based
authentication. You cannot mix authentication methods between SRM servers at different sites and between
SRM and vCenter. By default, SRM uses credential-based authentication, but certificate-based authentication
can alternatively be selected. The authentication method you choose when installing the SRM server is used
to authenticate connections between the SRM servers at the protected and recovery sites, and between SRM
and vCenter.

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Certificate-Based Authentication
If you have or can acquire a PKCS#12 certificate signed by a trusted authority, use certificate-based
authentication. Public key certificates signed by a trusted authority streamline many SRM operations and
provide the highest level of security. Certificates used by SRM have special requirements. See “Requirements
When Using Public Key Certificates,” on page 19.

Credential-Based Authentication
If you are using credential-based authentication, SRM stores a user name and password that you specify during
installation, and then uses those credentials when connecting to vCenter. SRM also creates a special-purpose
certificate for its own use. This certificate includes additional information that you supply during installation.
That information, an Organization name and Organization Unit name, must be identical for both members of
an SRM server pair.
NOTE Even though SRM creates and uses this special-purpose certificate when you choose credential-based
authentication, credential-based authentication is not equivalent to certificate-based authentication in either
security or operational simplicity.

Certificate Warnings
If you are using credential-based authentication, attempts by the SRM server to connect to vCenter produce a
certificate warning because the trust relationship asserted by the special-purpose certificates created by SRM
and vCenter cannot be verified by SSL. A warning allows you to verify the thumbprint of the certificate used
by the other server and confirm its identity. To avoid these warnings, use certificate-based authentication and
obtain your certificate from a trusted certificate authority.

Requirements When Using Public Key Certificates
If you installed SSL certificates issued by a trusted certificate authority (CA) on the vCenter Server that supports
SRM, the certificates you create for use by SRM must meet specific criteria.
While SRM uses standard PKCS#12 certificate for authentication, it places a few specific requirements on the
contents of certain fields of those certificates. These requirements apply to the certificates used by both members
of an SRM server pair (the protected site and the recovery site).
n

The certificates must have a Subject Name value constructed from the following componants.
n

A Common Name (CN) attribute, whose value must be the same for both members of the pair. A
string such as "SRM" is appropriate here.

An Organization (O) attribute, whose value must be the same as the value of this attribute in the
supporting vCenter Server's certificate.

An Organizational Unit (OU) attribute, whose value must be the same as the value of this attribute
in the supporting vCenter Server's certificate.

The certificate used by each member of an SRM server pair must include a Subject Alternative Name
attribute whose value is the fully-qualified domain name of the SRM server host. (This value will be
different for each member of the SRM server pair.) Because this name is subject to a case-sensitive
comparison, use lowercase letters when specifying the name during SRM installation.
n

If you are using an openssl CA, modify the openssl configuration file to include a line like the
following if the SRM server host's fully-qualified domain name is srm1.example.com:
subjectAltName = DNS: srm1.example.com

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If you are using a Microsoft CA, refer to http://support.microsoft.com/kb/931351 for information on
how to set the Subject Alternative Name.

Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

The certificate used by each member of an SRM server pair must include an extendedKeyUsage or
enhancedKeyUsage attribute whose value is serverAuth, clientAuth. If you are using an openssl CA,
modify the openssl configuration file to include a line like the following:
extendedKeyUsage = serverAuth, clientAuth

The SRM certificate password must not exceed 31 characters.

Understanding Roles and Permissions
SRM provides disaster recovery by performing operations on behalf of users. These operations involve
managing objects, such as recovery plans or protection groups, and performing operations, such as replicating
or powering off virtual machines. SRM must be able to complete these tasks, when appropriate, and refuse to
complete operations when they are not authorized. To achieve this goal, SRM uses permissions and roles.
the following are key terms related to permissions and roles.
Privilege

The right to perform an action. Examples of privileges include creating a
recovery plan or modifying a protection group.

Role

A collection of privileges. Default roles are designed to provide the privileges
associated with some user role such as users who will manage protection
groups or complete recoveries.

Permissions

A role granted to a particular user or group (also known as a principal) on some
object. A permission is the intersection of role, object, and principal.
A permission is the intersection of a privilege and an object. For example, the
privilege to modify a protection group as it applies to a specific protection
group in the inventory.

SRM determines if the operation is permitted when protection is configured, rather than at the time the
operation is to be completed. After SRM verifies that the appropriate permissions are assigned on vSphere
resources, future actions are carried out on behalf of users by SRM using the vSphere administrator context.
For configuration operations, user permissions are validated when the operation is requested. Other operations
require two phases of validation.
1

During configuration, SRM verifies that the user configuring the system has the required permissions to
complete the configuration on the vCenter object. For example, a user must have permission to protect a
virtual machine and use resources on a secondary vCenter Server that the recovered virtual machine
would use.

The user executing the configuration must have permissions to complete the task. For example, a user
must have permissions to execute a recovery plan. The task is then completed in the administrative context.

As a result, a user who completes a particular task, such as a failover, does not have to have permissions to act
on vSphere resources. The action is authorized by the role, but is completed by SRM acting as an administrator.
These operations are carried out using the administrator credentials provided during site pairing.
SRM maintains a database of permissions for internal SRM objects using a model similar to the one used by
vCenter Servers. SRM verifies its own SRM privileges even on vCenter objects. For example, SRM checks for
Recovery Use permission on the target datastore rather than multiple low-level permissions, such as Allocate
space.

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Assign Roles and Permissions
Permission assignments apply on a per-site basis. After installation only vCenter Administrators can log into
SRM. To allow other users access, vCenter Administrators must grant them permissions in the SRM UI. You
must add corresponding permission on both sites.
SRM requires permissions on vCenter objects as well as SRM objects. To configure permissions on the remote
vCenter installation, start another instance of vSphere Client. You can change SRM permissions from the same
UI on both sites after pairing. SRM augments vCenter roles and permissions with additional ones that allow
detailed control over SRM specific tasks and operations. You can use the SRM Assign Permissions window
the same way that you use the Assign Permissions window in the vSphere Client.
Procedure
1

Click Sites, and select the site for which you want to assign permissions.

Click the Permissions tab.

Right-click one of the items and click Add Permission.

Select a role from the Assigned Role drop-down menu.
This menu displays all the roles that are available from SRM and vCenter. When the role appears, the
privileges granted to the role are listed in the section below the role title.

Select Propagate to Child Objects to apply the selected role to all child objects of the selected inventory
object.

Click the Add button.

Identify a user or group for the role.

From the Domain drop-down menu, select the domain where the user or group is located.

Either enter a name in the Search text box or select a name from the Name list.

Click Add and click OK.

Click OK to finish the task.

The list of permissions references all users and groups that have roles assigned to the object and where in the
hierarchy those roles are assigned.
What to do next
Repeat the procedure to assign roles and permissions to users at the recovery site.

SRM Roles Reference
SRM includes a set of roles. Each role is assigned a set of privileges, which enable the completion of actions.
Roles may have overlapping sets of privileges and actions. For example, both the SRM Administrator role and
the SRM Protection Groups Administrator have the Create privilege for protection groups for Site Recovery
Manager. This privilege enables them to complete one aspect of the set of tasks that make up managing
protection groups.
The complete list of roles, the privileges granted to those roles, and the actions associated with those privileges
are described in the following table.

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Table 1-2. SRM Roles
Role

Privilege

Action

SRM Administrator

Site Recovery Manager > Advanced
Settings > Modify
Site Recovery Manager > Array
Manager > Configure
Site Recovery Manager > Diagnostics >
Export
Site Recovery Manager > Inventory
Preferences > Modify
Site Recovery Manager > Placeholder
Datastores > Configure
Site Recovery Manager > Protection
Group > Assign to Plan
Site Recovery Manager > Protection
Group > Create
Site Recovery Manager > Protection
Group > Modify
Site Recovery Manager > Protection
Group > Remove
Site Recovery Manager > Protection
Group > Remove from Plan
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
History > View Deleted
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
History > Plans
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Configure
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > commands
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Create
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Modify
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Remove
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Reprotect
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Test
Site Recovery Manager > Remote Site
> Modify
Virtual Machine > Replication >
Protect
Virtual Machine > Replication > Stop

Configure advanced settings

Site Recovery Manager > Protection
Group > Create
Site Recovery Manager > Protection
Group > Modify
Site Recovery Manager > Protection
Group > Remove
Virtual Machine > Replication >
Protect
Virtual Machine > Replication > Stop

Manage protection groups
Protect virtual machines

SRM Protection Groups Administrator

Configure connections
Configure inventory preferences
Configure placeholder datastores
Configure array managers
Manage protection groups
Manage recovery plans
Protect virtual machines
Edit protection groups
Remove protection groups

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Table 1-2. SRM Roles (Continued)
Role

Privilege

Action

SRM Recovery Plans Administrator

Site Recovery Manager > Protection
Group > Assign to Plan
Site Recovery Manager > Protection
Group > Remove from Plan
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Configure
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Commands
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Create
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Modify
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Remove
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
Plan > Test
Resource > Recovery Use

Manage recovery plans

Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
plan > Modify
Site Recovery Manager > Recovery
plan > Test

Test recovery plans
Cancel recovery plans test
Edit virtual machine recovery
properties

SRM Test Administrator

Add protection groups to recovery
plans
Test recovery plans
Cancel recovery plan test
Edit virtual machine recovery
properties

SRM Network Ports
SRM servers use several network ports to communicate with each other, with client plug-ins, and with vCenter.
If any of these ports are in use by other applications or are blocked on your network, you must reconfigure
SRM to use different ones.
Table 1-3 lists the default network ports the SRM uses for intrasite (between hosts at a single site) and intersite
(between hosts at the protected and recovery sites) communications. You can change these defaults when you
install SRM. Beyond these standard ports, you must also ensure the following requirements.
n

vSphere Replication (VR) Servers and SRM servers have NFC traffic access to target ESX servers.

Any network requirements of your particular array-based replication are met.

Table 1-3. SRM Network Ports
Default Port

Protocol or Description

Endpoints or Consumers
All traffic to SRM servers through the
vCenter Server proxy.

8095

SOAP

SRM server and vCenter Server
(intrasite only). This port must be
accessible from the vCenter Server
proxy system.

9085

HTTP

vCenter Server (for plug-in download).
This port must be accessible from the
vCenter Server proxy system.

9007

SOAP

Used by external API clients for task
automation.

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Table 1-4. How VRMS Uses Network Ports
Default Port

Protocol or Description

Endpoints or Consumers
All traffic to SRM servers through the
vCenter Server proxy.

8043

SOAP

VRM and the vCenter Server proxy.

8080

VAMI Web UI

Administrator's web browser.

Table 1-5. How VR Servers Use Network Ports
Default Port

Protocol or Description

Endpoints or Consumers

8123

SOAP

Management traffic used by VRMS to
manage the VR Servers.

5480

VAMI Web UI

Administrator's web browser.

31031

Initial replication traffic

From the ESX host at the protected site
to the VR appliance at recovery site.

44046

Ongoing replication traffic

From the ESX host at the protected site
to the VR appliance at recovery site.

Connecting to SRM
Use the vSphere Client to connect to and manage SRM. Ensure you connect using an account that has been
paired with a role that has the necessary permissions.
SRM does not require that you connect to a specific SRM site in an SRM deployment. Changes can be made to
the protected and recovery sites by connecting to a vCenter Server at either site. Completing administrative
tasks on a SRM deployment begins with the following steps:
Procedure
1

Open a vSphere Client and connect to the vCenter Server for either the protected or recovery site.
Log in using an account that has been granted the permissions required to complete the desired task.

If sites are not paired, you must select the system to which to connect.

If sites are paired, you must provide the user name and password for both sites.

On the vSphere Client Home page, click the Site Recovery icon.

Once you have clicked the Site Recovery icon, complete the steps prescribed for the particular administrative
task.
SRM adds several roles, each of which include permissions for completing SRM tasks. You can pair users with
these particular roles, enabling them to complete tasks. For more information about the roles that SRM adds
and the privileges required to complete tasks, see “SRM Roles Reference,” on page 21.

Operational Limits of Site Recovery Manager
Each SRM server can support up to a certain number of virtual machines, protection groups, datastore groups,
vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS) instances per host, and vSphere Replication Servers (VRS)
servers per VRMS.
You can run one SRM Server per vCenter Server instance.
The limits for replicated datastore groups and running recovery plans are suggested and not enforced.

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Table 1-6. SRM Protection Limits for Array Based Protection
Item

Maximum

Protected virtual machines per protection group

500

Protected virtual machines

1000

Protection groups per recovery plan

150

Datastore groups

150

Concurrent recoveries

Table 1-7. SRM Protection Limits for vSphere Replication Protection
Item

Maximum

Protected virtual machines per protection group

500

Protected virtual machines

500

Protection groups per recovery plan

250

Datastore groups

250

Concurrent recoveries

Table 1-8. SRM Deployment Limits for vSphere Replication
Item

Maximum

vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS) appliances
per vCenter Server instance

vSphere Replication Server (VRS) appliances registered to a
VRMS appliance

Virtual machine replication schedules per VRS appliance

100

VMware recommends that you never use SRM to protect Active Directory domain controllers. Active Directory
provides its own replication technology and restore mode, and these technologies can be used to handle
disaster recovery situations.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

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Installing and Updating Site Recovery
Manager

You must install an SRM server at the protected site and also at the recovery site. After the SRM servers are
installed, you can download the SRM client plug-in from either SRM server using the Manage Plugins menu
from your vSphere Client. You use the SRM client plug-in to configure and manage SRM at each site.
Prerequisites
SRM requires that a vCenter Server be installed at each site prior to installing SRM. The SRM installer must be
able to connect with this server during installation. VMware recommends installing SRM on a system that is
different from the system where vCenter Server is installed. If SRM and vCenter Server are installed on the
same system, administrative tasks might become more difficult to perform. If you are upgrading SRM, only
protection groups and recovery plans that are in a valid state are saved during the upgrade. Protection groups
or recovery plans that are in an invalid state are discarded.
The system on which SRM is installed has the following hardware requirements:
n

Processor – 2.0GHz or higher Intel or AMD x86 processor

Memory – 2GB minimum

Disk Storage – 5GB minimum

Networking – Gigabit recommended

For current information about supported platforms and databases, see the Site Recovery Manager Compatibility
Matrixes, at http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/srm_pubs.html.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n

“Configuring the SRM Database,” on page 28

“About the vSphere Replication Management Database,” on page 29

“Install the SRM Server,” on page 31

“Upgrading SRM,” on page 33

“Install Storage Replication Adapters,” on page 38

“Install the SRM Client Plug-In,” on page 38

“Connect the Sites,” on page 39

“Revert to a Previous Release,” on page 40

“Repair or Modify the Installation of a Site Recovery Manager Server,” on page 40

“Install the SRM License Key,” on page 42

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Configuring the SRM Database
Each SRM server requires its own database to store recovery plans, inventory information, and similar data.
Before installing the SRM server, you must configure and initialize the SRM database.
If you are updating SRM to a new release, you can use the existing database. Before attempting an SRM
environment upgrade, ensure both SRM server databases are backed up. This helps ensure you can revert after
the upgrade, if required.
SRM cannot use the vCenter database because it has different database schema requirements, though you can
use the vCenter database server to create and support the SRM database. Each SRM site requires its own
instance of the SRM database. The database must exist before SRM can be installed.
NOTE If you reinitialize the database after you install SRM, you must run the SRM installer in maintenance
mode and specify a new database connection.

Microsoft SQL Server Configuration
A Microsoft SQL Server configuration must meet specific requirements to support SRM.
SRM requires that the Microsoft SQL Server must have a 32-bit DSN. Microsoft SQL Server has the following
configuration requirements when used as the SRM database.
n

The database schema has three requirements:
n

It must be owned by the SRM database user (the database user name you supply when configuring
the SRM database connection).

It must be the default schema for the SRM database user.

The DB schema name must be the same as the DB user name.

You must grant the SRM database user the following permissions:
n

bulk insert

connect

create table

If you are using Windows authentication, the database user account must be the same user account that
you use to run the SRM service.

If you are using SQL Authentication, you can leave the default local System user.

If the SRM server and database server run on different hosts, you must use mixed mode authentication.

If SQL Server is installed locally, you might need to disable the Shared Memory network setting on the
database server.

Oracle Server Configuration
An Oracle Server configuration must meet specific requirements to support SRM.
Oracle Server has the following configuration requirements when used as the SRM database.

When creating the database instance, specify utf-8 encoding.

You must grant the following permissions to the SRM database user (the database user name you supply
when configuring the SRM database connection):
n

connect

resource

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create session

DB2 Server Configuration
A DB2 Server configuration must meet specific requirements to support SRM.
DB2 Server has the following configuration requirements when used as the SRM database:
n

When creating the database instance, specify utf-8 encoding.

Because DB2 uses Windows authentication, specify the database owner as a domain account.

About the vSphere Replication Management Database
To use vSphere Replication with SRM, you will need vSphere Replication Management (VRM) Servers. Each
VRM Server requires its own database, separate from the SRM database.
The vSphere Replication Management (VRM) database is a critical part of any VRM installation. The database
schema must be created before you can install VRM.
VRM cannot use the vCenter database because it has different database schema requirements, although you
can use the vCenter database server to create and support the VRM database. Each VRM site requires its own
instance of the VRM database. The database must exist before you can install VRM . If the VRM database at
either site becomes corrupted, the VRM servers at both sites will shut down.

Configure the VRM Database
You must configure the vSphere Replication Management (VRM) database to enable VRM and vSphere
Replication (VR).
To configure the common VRM Server (VRMS) database properties you have to go to the VRMS VAMI (Virtual
Appliance Management Interface) by navigating your browser to the VRMS URL and port number, which is
8080. Alternately you can navigate to the VRMS VAMI by clicking on the Configure VRM Server link available
in the SRM UI. You must configure each VRMS site separately. If you reinitialize the database after you deploy
VRMS, you must go to the VRMS VAMI to re-setup the VRM to use the new database connection.

Common Database Configurations
Common database properties include the following.
n

DB Type: Choose one of the supported database types.
n

Microsoft SQL Server

Oracle Server

DB2 Server

DB Host: The database server URL.

DB Port: When you select your database type a default port value will be suggested. You can keep it or
change it to match your database server configuration.

DB Username: The VRM database user.

DB Password: The VRM database user password.

DB Name: The VRM database schema name. Create the schema name in advance.

DB URL: This URL is auto-generated and hidden by default. Advanced users might want to fine-tune
other database properties.

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Microsoft SQL Server Configuration
A Microsoft SQL Server configuration must meet specific requirements to support VRM. You must configure
these requirements in Microsoft SQL Server.
n

You can use either a named instance or the default instance of SQL Server.

Enable TCP on the database instance.

Use a static TCP port, for example set to the default of 1433. Alternatively, to use dynamic TCP ports, you
must perform additional configuration.
n

Use a named instance of SQL Server rather than the default instance. You can only use dynamic ports
with a named instance of SQL Server.

In the DB URL in the VRMS configuration interface, replace port=port_number with
instanceName=instance_name.

Verify that the SQL Server Browser service is running.

The SQL Server Browser runs on port 1434. Use the PortQuery tool from a remote machine to check
that the port on which the SQL Server Browser service runs is not blocked by a firewall.
PortQry.exe -n Machine_Name -p UDP -e 1434

Because the VRMS and the database server run on different hosts, you must use mixed mode
authentication and not Windows Authentication.

The VRM database requires a security login with SQL Server Authentication.

The VRM database login must be the database owner.

Because it is the database owner, the login maps to the database user dbo and uses the dbo schema. Keep
the dbo user and dbo schema settings.

The VRM database user must have database administrator privileges.

The VRM database user must have the following permissions:
n

bulk insert

connect

create table

create view

Oracle Server Configuration
An Oracle Server configuration must meet specific requirements to support VRM. Oracle Server has the
following configuration requirements when used as the VRM database.

When creating the database instance, specify utf-8 encoding.

The VRM database user (the database user name you supply when configuring the SRM database
connection) must be granted the following permissions:
n

connect

resource

create session

create view

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DB2 Server Configuration
A DB2 Server configuration must meet specific requirements to support VRM. DB2 Server has the following
configuration requirements when used as the VRM database.
n

When creating the database instance, specify utf-8 encoding.

DB2 uses Windows authentication, so you must specify the database owner as a domain account.

VRMS uses temporary tables, so you must verify that the user account that you use to log in to the VRMS
database can create temporary tables. See “Configuration of the VRMS Database Fails with DB2
Databases,” on page 104.

Install the SRM Server
You must install an SRM server at the protected site and at the recovery site.
NOTE If you are upgrading an existing SRM installation, see “Update the SRM Server,” on page 35.
Prerequisites
Configure and start the SRM database service before you install the SRM server. See “About the Site Recovery
Manager Database,” on page 16.
Provide a 32-bit System DSN. For information about creating a 32-bit DSN on a 64-bit system, see
http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1010401.
Verify that you have the following information:
n

The fully qualified domain name (FQDN) or IP address of the site’s vCenter server. The server must be
running and accessible during SRM installation.Use the same type of addressing in all cases. Using FQDNs
is preferred, but if that is not universally possible, use IP addresses for all cases. See “Requirements When
Using Public Key Certificates,” on page 19.

The user name and password of the vCenter administrator.

A user name and password for the SRM database. See “Configuring the SRM Database,” on page 28.

If you are using certificate-based authentication, the pathname to an appropriate certificate file. See “SRM
Authentication,” on page 18.

Procedure
1

Log in to the machine on which you are installing SRM.
Use an account with sufficient privileges. This account is often an Active Directory domain administrator,
but can also be a local administrator.

Download the SRM installation file to a folder on the machine, or open a folder on the network that contains
this file.
For faster starting and installing, copy the installation file to a local temporary folder.

Double-click the SRM installer icon.
If the installer detects an existing installation, verify that you want to update the existing installation. If
you want to update an existing installation, stop installing the SRM server.

Click Next .

Select I agree to the terms in the license agreement and click Next.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Select the folder in which to install SRM and click Next.
The default installation folder for a new installation of SRM is C:\Program Files (x86)\VMware\VMware
vCenter Site Recovery Manager. If you use a different folder, the pathname cannot be longer than 240
characters and cannot include non-ASCII characters.

(Optional) Select whether or not to install vSphere Replication functions.
Installing vSphere Replication enables additional functions. You can install vSphere Replication later
using the Repair Installation option.

Enter information about the vCenter server at the site where you are installing SRM and click Next.
Option

Action

vCenter Server Address

Type the host name or IP address of the vCenter server. Enter the host name
in lowercase letters. After installation is complete and you are configuring
the connection between the protected and recovery sites, supply this host
name or IP address exactly as you enter it here, because is subject to casesensitive comparisons.

vCenter Server Port

Accept the default or enter a different port.

vCenter Server Username

Type the user name of an administrator of the specified vCenter server.

vCenter Server Password

Type the password for the specified user name. The password cannot be
empty.

The installer contacts the specified vCenter server and validates the information you supplied.
9

Select an authentication method.
n

To use credential-based authentication, select Automatically generate certificate and click Next. Type
text values for your organization and organization unit, typically your company name and the name
of your group within the company.

To use certificate-based authentication, select Use a PKCS #12 certificate file and click Next. Type
the path to the certificate file. The certificate file must contain exactly one certificate with exactly one
private key matching the certificate. Type the certificate password.

Type the administrator and host configuration information.
Option

Description

Local Site Name

A name for this installation of SRM. A suggested name is generated, but you
can type any name. It cannot be the same name that you use for another SRM
installation with which this one will be paired.

Administrator E-mail

Email address to which SRM administrative alerts and notifications are sent.

Additional E-mail

An optional additional email address to which SRM administrative alerts
and notifications are sent.

Local Host

Name or IP address of the local host. This value is obtained by the SRM
installer and needs to be changed only if it is incorrect. For example, the local
host might have more than one network interface and the one detected by
the SRM installer is not the one you want to use.

Listener Ports

SOAP and HTTP port numbers to use.

API Listener Port

SOAP port number for API clients to use.

The SRM installer supplies default values for these ports. Do not change them unless the defaults would
cause port conflicts.

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Type the SRM database configuration information and click Next.
Option

Action

Database Client

Select a database client type from the drop-down menu.

Data Source Name

Select an existing DSN from the drop-down menu,. You can also click ODBC
DSN Setup to view existing DSNs or create a system DSN.

Username

A user ID valid for the specified database.

Password

Password for the specified user ID.

Connection Count

Initial connection pool size.

Max Connections

Maximum number of database connections that can be open simultaneously.

Click Install.

When the installation is finished, click Finish.

What to do next
You can install SRAs at each site for array-based replication or install and configure vSphere Replication
Management Servers for vSphere Replication. See “Install Storage Replication Adapters,” on page 38 or
“Deploy a vSphere Replication Management Server,” on page 52.

Upgrading SRM
You can use the SRM 5.0 installer to update existing installations, while preserving work done to configure
site protection.
SRM 5.0 supports upgrading existing SRM 4.1 and 4.1.1 deployments. Versions of SRM from before 4.1 must
be upgraded to version 4.1 or 4.1.1 before upgrading to 5.0. SRM 4.1, 4.1.1, and 5.0 run only on 64-bit operating
systems, but previous versions of SRM may be installed on 32-bit operating systems. Keep this in mind when
you consider upgrading from versions of SRM from 4.0 and earlier.
For the supported upgrade paths for SRM 5.0 update releases, see the release notes for those update releases.
The SRM upgrade process preserves existing information about SRM configurations.
The SRM upgrade progresses through the following phases:
n

Prepare for Upgrade

Upgrade SRM Servers

Upgrade the vSphere Client

Configure the installation

To return to 4.1 or 4.1.1 after the SRM Server upgrade has completed, restore the database and re-install the
SRM 4.1 or 4.1.1 server.

Information Supported for Transfer
Information from existing installations is preserved during upgrade to SRM 5.0. This includes the following:
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Datastore groups

Protection groups

Inventory mappings

Recovery plans

IP customizations for individual virtual machines

Custom roles and their memberships

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

SRM object permissions in vSphere

Custom alarms and alarm actions

Test plan histories

Security certificates

Mass IP customization files (CSVs)

New Behavior for 5.0
Because of the significant changes introduce in SRM 5.0, including modifications to the database schemas, an
upgrade while the system is running is not possible.
As a result, the upgrade process involves taking an existing installation offline, upgrading the SRM server and
vSphere Clients, and then migrating existing 4.1 inventory information to the SRM database.

Upgrade Workflow
The steps required to complete an upgrade are as follows:
1

Back up the SRM database at the protected site.

Upgrade vCenter Server to version 5.0 at the protected site.

Upgrade SRM server to version 5.0 at the protected site. Keep the Storage Report displayed by the installer.

Upgrade the database, vCenter Server, and SRM server on the recovery site.

At each site, install version 2.0 SRAs (compatible with SRM 5.0).

Upgrade the SRM plug-in used by the vSphere Client.

Pair the sites.

At each site, configure the array manager (using the Storage Report that was generated when the SRM 5.0
installer finished).

At only one site, run the srm-migration.exe utility using the vmware-dr.xml configuration file to import
SRM 4.1 inventory.

As the srm-migration.exe utility completes its tasks, the exported XML data files are imported into the SRM
installation.

Prepare for SRM Upgrade
You must complete this process for all SRM sites and assumes all SRM servers are version 4.1 or later.
As part of the upgrade process, vCenter Servers that support SRM servers must be upgraded to version 5.0,
as well. For details about upgrading vCenter Servers, see the vSphere Upgrade Guide. Three upgrade
approaches are available.

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Chapter 2 Installing and Updating Site Recovery Manager

Table 2-1. vCenter Upgrade Paths for SRM
Upgrade Type

Description

Supported

In-place upgrade

The simplest upgrade path. This path
involve upgrading those vCenter
Servers associated with SRM before
upgrading SRM.

Yes

Upgrade with migration

If you need to migrate an SRM server
to a different host or virtual machine
as part of the SRM upgrade, VMware
recommends that you first uninstall
the existing SRM 4.1 server (keeping
the database contents) and then run
the SRM 5.0 installer on the new host
or virtual machine, using the existing
database.

Yes

New installation with migration

New installations of vCenter Server
are established and SRM is migrated to
these new servers.

No. SRM cannot be migrated to a new
installation of vCenter Servers. Unique
object identifiers on the vCenter Server
are not available if a new vCenter Server
installation is used.

Prerequisites
To upgrade servers that are running older versions of SRM, upgrade to 4.1 .
Procedure
1

Back up the site’s database contents using tools provided with the database.

If vCenter Servers are not upgraded to 5.0, upgrade them now.

What to do next
Complete this process for all vCenter Servers. After upgrading all vCenter Servers, you are ready to upgrade
the SRM Servers, as described in “Update the SRM Server,” on page 35.

Update the SRM Server
When you update the Site Recovery Manager server, information about vCenter Server connections,
certificates, and database configuration is read from the existing installation and reused by the updated
installation.
The update mode of the SRM installer provides a quick way to update the SRM server to a new release without
changing any of the information that you provided for the current installation. If you need to change any of
that information, including database connections, authentication method, certificate location, or administrator
credentials, you must follow the update with a repair mode installation, or uninstall the existing release
(keeping the database) and then install the new release.
Prerequisites
Back up your current SRM database at both sites.
Procedure
1

Log in to the virtual machine on which you are installing SRM.
Log in using an account with sufficient privileges. This is often an Active Directory domain administrator,
but may also be a local administrator.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Download the SRM installation file to a folder on the host, or open a folder on the network that contains
this file.
For faster starting and installing, copy the installation file to a local temporary folder.

Double-click the SRM installer icon to begin installation.

When prompted to verify that you want to update the existing installation, click Yes.

Click Next.

Click Yes to confirm that you backed up the database.
The installer reads configuration data from the existing installation and uses it to complete the update.
The update installs the same location as the previous installation. If any of the existing configuration
information is invalid for the upgrade (for example, if the database is not accessible at the same DSN, or
the vCenter Server is not accessible at the same port), the update fails.

When the wizard finishes, click Finish.
The installer completes the following tasks:
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The database schema is upgraded to support SRM 5.0.

Setup data is exported to an XML file including information about all protection groups, recovery
plans, and inventory mappings.

A storage report is produced. Save or print the storage report. This information is required to complete
the process of installing the SRAs in the “Configure the Upgraded SRM Installation,” on page 36.

What to do next
Complete this process for all sites and then upgrade vSphere Client plug-ins, as described in “Upgrade the
SRM Client Plug-In,” on page 36.

Upgrade the SRM Client Plug-In
You must upgrade the client plug-in for all vSphere Clients that are used to manage SRM.
Prerequisites
Verify that vCenter Server 5.0 is available.
Procedure
1

Uninstall the SRM 4.1 plug-in, if installed.

Download the vSphere Client from vCenter Server and install or upgrade vSphere Client 5.0.

Connect to either site's vCenter Server.

Download, install, and start the SRM plug-in for vSphere Client.

What to do next
As necessary, complete this process for other vSphere Clients. After upgrading vSphere Clients, complete the
tasks described in “Configure the Upgraded SRM Installation,” on page 36.

Configure the Upgraded SRM Installation
You must configure the upgraded components to establish a working SRM installation.
Prerequisites
Verify that you upgraded the vCenter Servers, SRM Servers, and vSphere Clients.

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Chapter 2 Installing and Updating Site Recovery Manager

Procedure
1

Use the vSphere Client to pair the SRM servers.

Configure SRM storage.
Use the storage report generated by the installer for required information.
a

Refresh SRAs on both the local and remote site.
SRM 5.0 requires different versions of SRAs from previous versions such as SRM 4.1.

Create array managers for the SRAs.

Enable replicated array pairs.

Verify datastores are replicated as expected.

Use the srm-migration.exe utility to import the configuration that was exported to an XML file by the
installer as described in “Update the SRM Server,” on page 35.

SRM Migration Utility
Use the SRM Migration utility (srm-migration.exe) to import SRM 4.1 inventory and, optionally, upgrade SRM
4.1 Mass IP Customization files (CSVs).
The SRM Migration tool performs the following tasks:
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Connect to local and remote vCenter and SRM servers.

Verify SRM server pairing.

Create inventory mappings.

Create protection groups at the local site and protect virtual machines. This process re-uses placeholder
virtual machines created with SRM 4.1.

Create protection groups at the remote site. This task is applicable to bi-directional setup only.

Create recovery plans at the remote site and protect virtual machines. This process re-uses placeholder
virtual machines created with SRM 4.1.

Create recovery plans at the local site. This task is applicable to bi-directional setup only.

Link newly created recovery plans with the recovery plan history preserved in the database.

You can display the options for the srm-migration utility by running the command with no arguments. The
help included with command line utility provides the following information.
srm-migration.exe takes the following arguments:
-cmd : importConfig
-cfg : Full path to SRM server XML config file vmware-dr.xml
-lcl-csv-file
-rem-usr

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path> : (Optional) File containing SRM 4.1 IP settings for Vms recovered at
path> : (Optional) File containing SRM 4.1 IP settings for Vms recovered at
: local vCenter server username
: remote vCenter server username

Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Install Storage Replication Adapters
If you are using array-based replication, you must install a Storage Replication Adapter (SRA). An SRA is a
program provided by an array vendor that enables SRM to work with a specific kind of array. You must install
an appropriate SRA on the SRM server hosts at the protected and recovery sites. If you are using vSphere
Replication (VR), an SRA is not required.
Prerequisites
n

You must read the documentation provided with your SRA. SRA do not support all features that storage
arrays support. The documentation included with your SRA normally details what is supported and
required. For example, HP and EMC have very detailed physical requirements which must be met for the
SRA to perform as expected.

SRM server installation creates a directory in which you can install the SRAs. This directory is created in
the SRM installation folder under \storage\sra. Install the SRM server before you install the SRAs.

Your SRA might require the installation of other vendor-provided components. Some of these components
might need to be installed on the SRM server host; others might require only network access by the SRM
server. For the latest information on such requirements, review the release notes and readme files for the
SRAs you are installing.

The storage array's capability to create snapshot copies of the replicated devices must be enabled. Refer
to your array vendors SRA documentation for details.

Procedure
1

Download the SRA.
You can download storage replication adapters and their documentation from
http://www.vmware.com/download/srm/. Storage replication adapters downloaded from other sites are
not supported by VMware.

Install the SRA on each SRM server host.
Storage replication adapters come with their own installation instructions. The adapter you are using must
be installed on the SRM server host at the protected and recovery sites. To properly install a vendor's SRA,
install the same version of the SRA at both sites. Do not mix SRA versions.

Using the vSphere Client, connect to SRM, select Array Managers in the left pane, click the SRAs tab, and
click Reload SRAs. This refreshes SRA information, allowing the discovery of the newly installed SRA.

What to do next
“Configure Array Managers,” on page 47 using the wizard to configure array managers so replication can
occur as desired.

Install the SRM Client Plug-In
To install the Site Recovery Manager client plug-in, use a vSphere Client to connect to the vCenter Server at
the protected or recovery site. Download the plug-in from the server and enable it in the vSphere Client.
When you install the Site Recovery Manager server, the Site Recovery Manager client plug-in becomes available
as a download from the vCenter server that the Site Recovery Manager server installation extends. You can
download, install, and enable the SRM client plug-in on any host where a vSphere Client is installed.
Prerequisites
Verify that the Site Recovery Manager server is installed at the protected and recovery sites.

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Chapter 2 Installing and Updating Site Recovery Manager

Procedure
1

Start the vSphere Client and connect to vCenter Server at the protected or recovery site.

Select Plugins > Manage Plugins.

In the Available Plug-ins area , right-click the VMware vCenter Site Recovery plug-in and click Download
and Install.

After the download finishes, click Next to start the wizard.

Click I accept the terms in the license agreement, and click Next.

Click Install.

When the installation finishes, click Finish.
If the installation replaced any open files, you are prompted to shut down and restart Windows.

Connect the Sites
Before you can use SRM, you must designate and connect sites. The sites must authenticate with each other.
This is known as site pairing.
Prerequisites
Before performing any configuration activity such as site pairing, ensure that you have installed an SRM server
at both sites, and that you have installed the SRM plug-in at a vSphere client from which you want to administer
SRM.
NOTE If you are using credential-based authentication or if you are using an untrusted certificate, several of
the steps in this procedure produce certificate warnings.
Procedure
1

Click Sites in the left pane and click Configure Connection.

On the Remote Site Information page, type the IP address or host name of the vCenter server at the recovery
site and the port to which to connect and click Next.
NOTE If you are using credential-based authentication, you must enter exactly the same information here
that you entered when installing the SRM server at the recovery site. If you entered an IP address in that
step, enter it again here. If you entered a hostname in that step, enter it here in exactly the same way.
Port 80 is used for the initial connection to the remote site. After the initial HTTP connection is made, the
two sites establish an SSL connection for subsequent connections.

On the vCenter Server Authentication page, provide the vCenter administrator user name and password
for the remote site and click Next.
If you are using credential-based authentication, you must enter exactly the same information here that
you entered when installing the SRM server at the recovery site. The wizard automatically completes
several steps to establish the connection.

In the Remote vCenter Server window, enter credentials for the remote vCenter Server that is managing
the SRM server at the other site.

On the Compete Connections page, click Finish after all of the site paring steps have completed
successfully.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Revert to a Previous Release
To revert to a previous release, uninstall the current SRM server release from the protected and recovery sites,
uninstall the SRM plug-in, and restore the SRM database from the backup you made before you updated the
SRM server. You can then install the previous release and use the restored database.
Prerequisites
Verify that that the current installation of vCenter supports that release. For information about vCenter releases
that support SRM, see the Site Recovery Manager Compatibility Matrixes, accessible from
http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/srm_pubs.html. For information about reverting a vCenter
installation, see the vSphere documentation.
Procedure
1

Uninstall SRM at the protected and recovery sites.
Where sites have been paired, SRM at both sites must be uninstalled. If you uninstall SRM from one
member of a site pair, the database of the remaining member becomes inconsistent.

Uninstall the SRM plug-in from any vCenter clients where it has been installed.

Restore the database used by the previous release, following the procedures documented by your database
vendor.
The database must be restored to both sites so they are synchronized.

Install the previous release of SRM.

Repair or Modify the Installation of a Site Recovery Manager Server
To repair an SRM server installation or to change the information that you supplied when you installed the
SRM Server, you can make changes by running the SRM installer in repair or modify mode.
Installing the SRM server binds the installation to a number of values that you supply, including the vCenter
server to extend, the SRM database DSN and credentials, the type of authentication, and so on. The SRM
installer supports a modify mode that allows you to change the following values:
n

The user name and password of the vCenter administrator

The username, password, and connection numbers for the SRM database

The type of authentication (certificate-based or credential-based), the authentication details, or both

The installer's modify mode presents modified versions of some of the pages that are part of the SRM server
installation. For information about the repair options, see “Install the SRM Server,” on page 31.
Running the installer in repair mode fixes missing or corrupted files, shortcuts, and registry entries.
CAUTION If you activated automatic generation of SSL certificates on the SRM server, running the repair mode
of the SRM installer updates the certificate thumbprint. Updating the thumbprint can affect the connection
between the protected site and the recovery site. Do not run the SRM installer in repair mode on the protected
site and on the recovery site simultaneously. Check the connection between the protected site and the recovery
site after you run the installer in repair mode. For information about how to configure the connection between
the protected site and the recovery site, see “Connect the Sites,” on page 39.
Prerequisites
Verify that you have administrator privileges on the SRM server or that you are a member of the Administrators
group. If you are a member of the Administrators group but you are not an administrator, disable Windows
User Account Control (UAC) before you attempt the change operation.

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Chapter 2 Installing and Updating Site Recovery Manager

Procedure
1

Open the Windows Add or Remove Software tool.

Navigate to the entry for VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager and click Change to start the installer
in repair mode.

Click Next.

Select Modify or Repair and click Next.

Option

Description

Repair

Fixes issues in the SRM Server installation. Selecting Repair runs the installer
in repair mode without any user input. Go to Step 10.

Modify

Allows you to adjust the settings that you configured when you installed
SRM Server. Selecting Modify opens a wizards that allows you to modify
the installation settings. Go to Step 6.

Type the vCenter Server username and password.
You cannot use the installer's repair mode to change the vCenter server address or port. When you click
Next, the installer contacts the specified vCenter server and validates the information you supplied.

Select an authentication method and click Next.
Option

Description

Leave the current authentication
method unchanged

Select Use existing certificate. If the installed certificate is not valid, this
option is unavailable.

Use credential-based authentication

Select Automatically generate certificate.

Use certificate-based authentication,

Select Use a PKCS #12 certificate file.

Unless you select Use existing certificate, you are prompted to supply additional authentication details
such as certificate location or strings to use for Organization and Organizational Unit.
8

Provide the required database configuration information and click Next.
Option

Description

Username

A user ID valid for the specified database.

Password

The password for the specified user ID.

Connection Count

The initial connection pool size.

Max Connections

The maximum number of database connection open simultaneously.

Select Use existing database or Recreate the database and click Next.
Option

Description

Use existing database

Preserves the contents of the existing database.

Recreate the database

Overwrites the existing database and deletes its contents.

Click Install to repair or modify the installation.
The installer makes the requested repairs or modifications and restarts the SRM server.
NOTE If the SRM server fails to restart, check that the vCenter Server and SRM database server are running.
Check also that the Server and Workstation Windows services are running on the SRM server host.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

When the repair operation is finished and the SRM server restarts, log in to the SRM interface in the vSphere
client to check the status of the connection between the protected site and the recovery site.

(Optional) If the connection between the protected site and the recovery site is broken, reconfigure the
connection, starting from the SRM server that you updated.

Install the SRM License Key
The SRM server requires a license key to operate. VMware recommends that you install an SRM license key
as soon as possible after you install SRM.
SRM uses the vSphere licensing infrastructure for license management. Additionally, vSphere itself needs to
be licensed sufficiently for SRM to protect and recover virtual machines.
Procedure
1

Open a vSphere client and connect to a vCenter Server on which SRM is deployed.

On the vSphere client Home page, click Licensing.

For the report view, select Asset.

Right-click an SRM asset and select Change license key.

Select Assign a new license key and click Enter Key.

Enter the license key, type an optional label for the key, and click OK.

Click OK.

What to do next
Repeat the process so license keys are assigned to all appropriate sites.

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Establishing Inventory Mappings and
Placeholder Datastores

The protection provided by SRM is supported by placeholder datastores, datastore mappings, and inventory
mappings.
This chapter includes the following topics:
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“Understanding Placeholder Datastores,” on page 43

“Configure Datastore Mappings for vSphere Replication Management,” on page 44

“Select Inventory Mappings,” on page 44

Understanding Placeholder Datastores
For each virtual machine in a protection group, SRM creates a placeholder at the recovery site. You can add to
these placeholders, and manage them as part of the recovery site's inventory.
You must identify a datastore that SRM will use to store placeholder virtual machines. After you determine
which datastore will hold placeholders, SRM reserves a place for protected virtual machines in the recovery
site's inventory. This is done by creating a subset of virtual machine files on the specified datastore at the
recovery site and then using that subset to register the placeholder virtual machine with the recovery site
vCenter. The presence of these placeholder virtual machines in the recovery site inventory provides a visual
indication to SRM administrators that the virtual machines are protected, and to vCenter administrators that
the virtual machines can be powered on and start consuming local resources when SRM tests or runs a recovery
plan. You must establish placeholder datastores at both sites. Having placeholder datastores at both sites
enables reprotection by providing a location to store the identity and inventory location of the old production
machine in an empty shell of a virtual machine. This placeholder virtual machine is created during the recovery
workflow when the production virtual machine is deactivated. This placeholder virtual machine can then be
used and eventually removed as the recovery process is completed.
Placeholder virtual machines behave like any other member of the recovery site vCenter inventory, though
they cannot be powered on. When a placeholder is created, its folder and compute resource assignments are
derived from inventory mappings established at the protected site. Changes made to the placeholder virtual
machines in the recovery site inventory override settings established by inventory mapping. These settings
are preserved during the recovery or test.
When evaluating datastores in which to establish placeholder datastores, consider the following:
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For clusters, the placeholder datastores must be visible to all hosts in the cluster.

You cannot replicate placeholder datastores.

Configure placeholders for both sites if failback is to be supported.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Configure a Placeholder Datastore
Specify a placeholder datastore for SRM to use for the storage of placeholder virtual machines.
Prerequisites
Verify that sites are connected and paired.
Procedure
1

Click Sites in the left pane, and select a site

Click the Placeholder Datastores tab.

Click Configure Placeholder Datastore.

Expand the folders to find a datastore to designate as the location for placeholder datastores, click the
datastore, and click OK.
The selected placeholder datastore appears in the Datastore column. If the datastore is on a standalone
host, the host name appears. If the datastore is on a host that is in a cluster, the cluster name appears.
NOTE If an array manager is replicating datastores, but the array manager is not configured with SRM,
the option to select the replicated datastore might be available. Do not select replicated datastores.
Previously configured and replicated datastores appear but you cannot select them.

Configure Datastore Mappings for vSphere Replication Management
Configure datastore mappings to determine which datastores are used to store replicated virtual machine disks
and configuration files at the recovery site. Use datastore mappings when you configure vSphere Replication
(VR) for virtual machines as a way to select the default destination datastores.
Datastore mappings are determined based on the source datastores of the virtual machines being configured
for replication. A source datastore can be a single datastore containing a single virtual machine, or many
datastores with many virtual machines with files spread across the datastores. When configuring replication
for a single virtual machine, mappings may be overridden, but when configuring replication for multiple
virtual machines, you use only datastore mappings, and you cannot override these mappings.
Datastores can be nested within objects, so you might need to expand folders or datacenters to find a datastore.
Procedure
1

Click vSphere Replication in the left pane, and select a site.

Click the Datastore Mappings tab, and select one or more source datastores.

Click Configure Mapping.

Browse to and select a datastore to map to at the recovery site.

Select Inventory Mappings
Mappings provide default locations and networks for use when placeholder virtual machines are initially
created on the recovery site.
Unless you intend to configure these mappings individually for each member of the group, configure inventory
mappings before you create protection groups. Inventory mappings provide a convenient way to specify how
resources at the protected site are mapped to resources at the recovery site. These mappings are applied to all
members of a protection group when the group is created, and can be reapplied as needed, such as when new
members are added. If you create a protection group and no mappings exist, you must configure each protected
virtual machine individually. While SRM does not enforce an inventory mapping requirement, a virtual

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Chapter 3 Establishing Inventory Mappings and Placeholder Datastores

machine cannot be protected unless it has some form of valid inventory mappings for networks, folders, and
compute resources. Inventory mappings can be created at both protection and recovery site. After having
established mappings at the protected site when configuring protection, you should also configure inventory
mappings at the recovery site.
During reprotect, the virtual machines that were protected before failover are used to complete reprotection.
The originally protected virtual machines and their backings are used to protect the virtual machines that were
formerly the recovery virtual machines. For reprotection where devices are added after a virtual machine is
failed over or when original production virtual machines were deleted, then mappings are used during
reprotection. In most cases, the previously protected virtual machines and their device backings are used
during reprotection.
Because placeholders do not support NICs, you cannot make changes to placeholder virtual machine network
configurations.
Changes to Inventory Mappings do not affect virtual machines that are already protected by SRM. New
mappings are only applied to newly added virtual machines or if users repair a lost placeholder for a particular
virtual machine. Placeholder virtual machines are created in the location specified by inventory mappings, but
you can move these virtual machines among folders and resource pools using the vSphere Client.
Procedure
1

Click Sites in the left pane and select the site for which to configure mappings.

Select a tab for a type of inventory object to configure.
You can choose among the Resource Mappings tab, Folder Mappings tab, and Network Mappings tab.
The Mapping page displays a tree of resources at the protected site.

Select an inventory object and click Configure Mapping.

Expand the inventory items and navigate to the recovery site resource (network, folder, or resource pool)
to which you want to map the protected site resource.

(Optional) Choose a number of options for how to establish the mapping:
n

Select an existing resource.

To create an object for a folder or resource mapping, click the button for creating a resource.

The selected resource appears in the Recovery Site Resources column, and its path relative to the root of
the recovery site vCenter appears in the Recovery Site Path column.
6

Repeat step Step 2 through step Step 4 for any resource types for which you want to establish mappings.

What to do next
Assign placeholder datastores. See “Understanding Placeholder Datastores,” on page 43.

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Configuring Array-Based Protection

After you pair the protected and recovery sites, you must configure protection for virtual machines. If you are
using array-based replication, configure storage replication adapters (SRAs) at each site, and then configure
SRM at each site.
If you are using only vSphere Replication, array managers are not required, and you can go to Chapter 5,
“Installing vSphere Replication Servers,” on page 51.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n

“Configure Array Managers,” on page 47

“Edit Array Managers,” on page 48

Configure Array Managers
After you pair the protected site and recovery site, configure their respective array managers so that SRM can
discover replicated devices, compute datastore groups, and initiate storage operations.
The array manager configuration wizard takes you through a number of steps:
n

Select the array manager type and provide a name. When editing an array manager, you can change the
name, but you cannot change the type.

Provide SRM with connection information and credentials (if needed) for array management systems at
the protected and recovery sites.

You typically configure array managers only once, after you connect the sites. You do not need to reconfigure
them unless array manager connection information or credentials change, or you want to use a different set of
arrays.
Prerequisites
n

Connect the sites as described in “Connect the Sites,” on page 39.

Install SRAs at both sites as described in “Install Storage Replication Adapters,” on page 38.

Procedure
1

Click Array Managers, and select the folder in which you want to configure array managers.

Click Add Array Manager.

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Provide an SRA name and select an adapter type.
a

Type a name for the array in the Display Name text box.
Use a descriptive name that makes it easy for you to identify the storage associated with this array
manager.

Ensure that the array manager type that you want SRM to use appears in the SRA Type field.
If more than one SRA has been installed on the SRM server host, click the drop-down arrow and select
a manager type. If no manager type appears, either you need to rescan SRAs or no SRA has been
installed on the SRM server host.

Provide the required information for the adapter selected.
The SRA creates these text boxes. For more information about how to fill them in, see the documentation
provided by your SRA vendor. While text boxes vary among SRAs, common text boxes include IP address,
protocol information, mapping between array names and IP addresses, and user name and password.

Finish the wizard.

Repeat steps Step 1 through Step 5 to configure an array adapter for the recovery site.

In the Array Pairs tab, select an array pair, and click Enable.

If array managers have been added, but no array pairs are visible, click Refresh to collect the latest
information about array pairs.

Rescan Arrays to Detect Configuration Changes
SRM checks arrays for changes to device configurations every 24 hours. However, you can force an array rescan
at any time.
Configuring array managers causes SRM to compute datastore groups based on the set of replicated storage
devices it discovers. If you change the configuration of the array at either site to add or remove devices, SRM
must rescan the arrays and recompute the datastore groups.
Procedure
1

Click Array Managers in the left pane and click Configure.

On the Protected Site Array Managers page , click Next.

Cick Next.

Click Rescan Arrays.

Click Finish to complete the operation.

Edit Array Managers
Use the Edit Array Manager wizard to modify an array manager's name or other settings such as IP address
or user name and password.
For more information about how to fill in the adapter fields, see the documentation provided by your SRA
vendor. While fields vary among SRAs, common fields include IP address, protocol information, mapping
between array names and IP addresses, and user names and passwords.
Procedure

Click Array Managers in the left pane, and select an array manager.

Click Edit Array Manager.

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Chapter 4 Configuring Array-Based Protection

Modify the name for the array in the Display Name field.
Use a descriptive name that makes it easy for you to identify the storage associated with this array
manager. The array manager type cannot be modified.

Modify the adapter information.
These fields are created by the SRA.

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Click Finish to complete the modification of the array manager.

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Installing vSphere Replication Servers

vSphere Replication (VR) uses replication technologies included in ESX Servers with the assistance of virtual
appliances to replicate virtual machines between sites.
VR is provided by vSphere Replication Servers (VR Servers or VRS). VR Servers are managed by the vSphere
Replication Management Server (VRMS). Both VRMS and VR Servers are virtual appliances. To use VR you
must deploy exactly one VRMS server at each site and at least one VR Server at the recovery site. To enable
replication in both directions, you must deploy at least one VRS at each site. To meet the load balancing needs
of your VR you might want to deploy multiple VR Servers at each site. Each VRMS must be registered with a
corresponding vCenter Server. For example, the primary site VRMS must be registered with the primary site
vCenter Server.
Both the VRMS and VRS appliances provide a virtual appliance management interface (VAMI). You can use
these interfaces to configure the VRMS database, as well as network settings, public-key certificates, and
passwords for the appliances.
Before using VR, you need to configure the VR infrastructure including having managed IP addresses defined
in the runtime settings at both sites and having a VRMS database installed. The getting started page provides
guidance to ensure that you complete the installation and configuration process correctly.
n

When installing SRM, make sure that you select the VR option. If you installed SRM and want to add VR,
you can add that option by running the installer again.

Pair SRM servers as described in “Connect the Sites,” on page 39.

Deploy VRMS at both sites as described in “Deploy a vSphere Replication Management Server,” on
page 52.

Pair VRMS servers as described in “Configure vSphere Replication Management Connections,” on
page 55.

Deploy VR Servers as described in “Deploy a vSphere Replication Server,” on page 55.

Configure VR Servers as described in “Configure vSphere Replication Server Settings,” on page 56.

This chapter includes the following topics:
n

“Deploy a vSphere Replication Management Server,” on page 52

“Configure vSphere Replication Management Server Settings,” on page 52

“Configure vSphere Replication Management Connections,” on page 55

“Deploy a vSphere Replication Server,” on page 55

“Configure vSphere Replication Server Settings,” on page 56

“Register a vSphere Replication Server,” on page 57

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Deploy a vSphere Replication Management Server
Before using vSphere Replication (VR), you need to deploy a vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS)
from the SRM UI, thereby creating the framework to support VR. VR requires that VRMS be deployed at each
site.
Prerequisites
n

Verify that you have a static IP address.

Verify that the SRM database has been set up.

Verify that you enabled the VR option during SRM installation.

Procedure
1

Click vSphere Replication in the left pane.

Select one of the sites, which is indicated with a folder icon, and click the Getting Started tab.

Click Deploy a vSphere Replication Management Server.
A VRMS is deployed as a virtual appliance using the OVF wizard.

Click OK to start the OVF wizard.
Information about the OVF wizard appears in the vSphere Virtual Machine Administration Guide. The OVF
wizard guides you through basic appliance configuration. When prompted by the OVF wizard, you must
set the root password for the VRM Server appliance.

The VRMS is deployed. If problems occurred during the installation process, you can find the OVF for the
VRMS server virtual appliance in the SRM installation directory. Use this file to manually deploy the appliance
from the vSphere Client by selecting Deploy OVF Template from the File menu. The OVF file can be found
in the www directory in the vCenter Server installation. For example, it might be found in C:\Program Files
(x86)\VMware\VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager\www\HMS_OVF10.ovf.

Configure vSphere Replication Management Server Settings
You configure vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS) settings through the virtual appliance
management interface (VAMI). These settings are established during installation. You can modify the settings
after the server is deployed.
The Configuration section of the VRMS tab is used to configure the following items:
n

Database settings

vCenter Server information

SSL Certificate settings

Configure these settings before you use VR replication. Manage these settings using the VAMI after deploying
VRMS. You can use the SRM interface to connect to the VRMS by clicking the Getting Started tab and clicking
the Configure VRMS link. Alternatively, you can connect to VAMI on the Web by entering the server's IP
address and the specify the port (8080) in a browser. A sample address might be https://192.168.1.2:8080/. The
IP address might vary, but the port is always 8080.
Prerequisites

Verify that the VRMS is powered on.

You must have administrator privileges to configure VRMS.

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Chapter 5 Installing vSphere Replication Servers

Procedure
1

Connect to the VRMS Web interface.

Provide the user name and password for the server.
The user name is root and the password is configured during the OVF deployment of the VRMS.

Click the VRMS tab and click Configuration.

In Configuration mode, select manual configuration to specify a configuration or select Configure from
an Existing VRMS Database to use a previously established configuration.

In the DB text boxes, provide information about the database for VRMS to use.

In the VRMS text boxes, provide the name and network address for the VRMS.
You must provide unique names for the VRMS on the protected site and on the recovery site.

In the VC text boxes, provide information about the vCenter Server being used with this installation.
Use the same address format, IP address or FQDN, that you used during installation.

Install an SSL certificate.
Option

Description

Enable the SSL Certificate Policy

Enabling the policy provides greater assurance, but might require additional
public-key configuration. Enable the SSL Certificate Policy for greater
assurance.

Generate a self-signed certificate or
install an existing certificate

Using a self-signed certificate might provide reduced levels of trust and
might not be suitable for environments where high-levels of compliance with
security standards are required.

To apply changes, click Save and Restart Service.

Configure VRMS Security Settings
You may change the VRMS server password to meet security standards of your organization. Use this
password to log into the VAMI or to log into the console.
Prerequisites
Ensure that the VRMS server is powered on.
Procedure
1

In the SRM interface, click the Getting Started tab and click Configure VRMS Server to connect to the
VRMS server.
Alternatively, you can connect to the VRMS server web interface by entering the server's IP address and
port 8080 in a browser. A sample address might be https://192.168.1.2:8080/.

Provide the user name and password for the server.
User name is always root.

Click the VRMS tab and click the Security button.

To change the root user password:
a

Type the current password in the Current Password field.

Type the new password in the New Password and the Confirm New Password text boxes.
VRMS does not support blank passwords.

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Click Apply to change the password.

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Review the current SSL information.

Configure VRMS Network Settings
You can review current network settings and change address and proxy settings for the VRMS Server. You
might makes these changes to match network reconfigurations.
Procedure
1

In the SRM interface, click the Getting Started tab, and click Configure VRMS Server to connect to the
VRMS server.
Alternatively, you can connect to the VRMS server web interface by entering the server's IP address and
port 8080 in a browser. A sample address might be https://192.168.1.2:8080/.

Type the user name and password for the server.
User name is always root.

Click the Network tab.

Click the Status button to review current settings.

Click the Address button to review and modify address settings.
a

Select DHCP or static IP addressing.
DHCP is not recommended if the IP address of the appliance might change if it reboots.

Enter IP settings, DNS settings, and host name information.

Click Save Settings. If you do not click Save Settings, changes are discarded.

Click the Proxy button to review and modify proxy settings.
a

Enable Use a proxy server to use a proxy server.

Type a proxy server name in the Proxy Server text box.

Type a proxy port in the Proxy Port text box.

(Optional) Type a proxy server user name and password.

Click Save Settings. If you do not click Save Settings, changes are discarded.

Configure VRMS System Settings
Configure VRMS system settings if you need to administer or gather information about the vSphere Replication
Mananger Server (VRMS) appliance. Use the System tab to review information for a server virtual appliance.
You can review information about: appliance vendor, name, and version; host name; and appliance operating
system and version.
Procedure
1

In the SRM interface, click Getting Started, and click the Configure VRMS Server link.
Alternatively, you can connect to the VRMS server Web interface by entering the server's IP address and
port 8080 in a browser. A sample address might be https://192.168.1.2:8080/.

Connect to the VRMS server.

Type the user name and password for the server.
User name is always root.

Click the System tab.

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Chapter 5 Installing vSphere Replication Servers

Click the Information button.
For this server virtual appliance, you can review information about:
n

Appliance vendor

Appliance name

Appliance version

Hostname

Appliance operating system and version.

Click View for information about the OVF environment.

Click Reboot to reboot the virtual appliance.

Click Shutdown to shutdown the virtual appliance.
Shutting down the VRMS virtual appliance does not affect the replication of already configured
virtual machines but it prevents the configuring replication of new virtual machines as well as
modifying existing replication settings.

Click the Time Zone button and select a time zone from the System Time Zone drop-down list and click
Save Settings.

Configure vSphere Replication Management Connections
Configure vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS) connections between sites that support vSphere
Replication (VR).
You can complete this process at either site that has VRMS servers installed. If you are using an untrusted
certificate, certificate warnings might appear during the process.
Prerequisites
Verify that the VRMS servers are deployed and configured at two sites, both of which also have SRM servers
installed and paired.
Procedure
1

Click vSphere Replication in the left pane, and select a site.
A site is indicated with a folder icon,

Click the Summary tab, and click Configure VRMS Connection.

Enter the administrator password for the remote vCenter Server.

Click OK to confirm connection between the servers.

The Summary tab for the vSphere Replication pane shows the servers are connected.

Deploy a vSphere Replication Server
Deploy a vSphere Replication Server (VRS) to enable vSphere Replication (VR). To use VR you must deploy
exactly one VRMS server at each site and at least one VR Server at the recovery site. To enable replication in
both directions, you must deploy at least one VRS at each site.
To meet the load balancing needs of your VR replication you may want to deploy multiple VR Servers at each
site. To meet your load balancing needs you might want to deploy multiple VR Servers at each site. The
protected site VRMS must be registered with the protected site vCenter Server. The recovery site VRMS must
be registered with the recovery site vCenter Servers, and the VR servers must be registered with the VRMS at
their site.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

The VRS, which is a virtual appliance, is stored with the SRM server. VRS servers should be deployed at a site
after a VRMS server is deployed and configured for that site. If problems occur when deploying the VRS using
the SRM interface, the VRS OVF file can be found in the SRM installation directory. This file can be used to
manually deploy the appliance from the vSphere Client by selecting Deploy OVF Template from the File
menu. The OVF file is in the www directory in the vCenter Server installation. For example, it might be found
in C:\Program Files (x86)\VMware\VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager\www\vrserver_OVF10.ovf.
This procedure involves connecting to SRM as described in “Connecting to SRM,” on page 24.
Procedure
1

Click vSphere Replication, and click the Summary tab,

Click Deploy VR Server.
The VRS is deployed as a virtual appliance using an OVF wizard.

Click OK to launch the OVF wizard.
Information about the OVF wizard is contained in deploying OVF templates in the vSphere Virtual Machine
Administration Guide.

Configure vSphere Replication Server Settings
Configure vSphere Replication Server (VRS) settings using the virtual appliance management interface. VRS
settings are established during installation. you can modify the settings after the server is deployed. Unlike
VRMS, VRS does not require any additional configuration through the VAMI after deployment.
Using a self-signed certificate provides the benefit of public-key based encryption and authentication, though
using such a certificate does not provide the level of assurance offered when using a certificate signed by a
certificate authority.
Prerequisites
Verify that a VRS is installed, and that the server is powered on.
Procedure
1

In the SRM interface, select vSphere Replication.

Select a VR Server, and click the Configure VR Server link.
Alternatively, you can connect to the VRS Web interface by entering the server's IP address and port (5480)
in a browser. A sample address might be https://192.168.1.2:5480. The IP address might vary, but the port
is always 5480.

Log into the VR Server configuration interface as root.
The default root password is vmware.

Click the VR Server tab.

Change the Super User password.

(Optional) Click Generate and Install to generate and install a self-signed certificate.

Use an existing SSL certificate.
a

Click the Browse button next to the Certificate text box to browse for an existing certificate.

Click the Browse button next to the Key text box to browse for an existing private key.

Click Upload to upload the specified certificate and key.

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Chapter 5 Installing vSphere Replication Servers

Register a vSphere Replication Server
You must register the vSphere Replication Server (VRS) with the vSphere Replication Management Server
(VRMS) to enable vSphere Replication (VR).
Prerequisites
n

Configure a VRMS as described in “Configure vSphere Replication Server Settings,” on page 56.

Verify that the VRMS is paired as described in “Configure vSphere Replication Management
Connections,” on page 55.

Procedure
1

Click vSphere Replication in the left pane, select a site, and click Register VR Server.
The Register VRS page displays a list of resources at the selected site.

Select a virtual machine in the inventory that is a working VRS and click OK.
If you are using an untrusted certificate, certificate warnings might appear.

What to do next
Create protection groups and replicate virtual machines as described in Chapter 6, “Creating Protection Groups
and Replicating Virtual Machines,” on page 59.

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Creating Protection Groups and
Replicating Virtual Machines

After you configure a replication solution, you create protection groups. You can also customize the
configuration of virtual machine replication and protection.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n

“Limitations to Protection and Recovery of Virtual Machines,” on page 59

“Create Array-Based Protection Groups,” on page 60

“Create vSphere Replication Protection Groups,” on page 61

“Configure Replication for a Single Virtual Machine,” on page 62

“Configure Replication for Multiple Virtual Machines,” on page 63

“Replicate Virtual Machines Using Physical Couriering,” on page 64

“Move a Virtual Machine to a New vSphere Replication Server,” on page 66

“Apply Inventory Mappings to All Members of a Protection Group,” on page 66

Limitations to Protection and Recovery of Virtual Machines
The protection and recovery by SRM of virtual machines in the suspended state, virtual machines with
snapshots, and virtual machines that are linked clones is subject to limitations.

Protection and Recovery of Suspended Virtual Machines
When you suspend a virtual machine, vSphere creates and saves its memory state. When the virtual machine
resumes, vSphere restores the saved memory state to allow the virtual machine to continue without any
disruption to the applications and guest operating systems that it is running.

Protection and Recovery of Virtual Machines with Snapshots
Array-based replication supports the protection and recovery of virtual machines with snapshots, but with
limitations.
You can specify a custom location for storing snapshot delta files by setting the workingDir parameter in VMX
files. SRM does not support the use of the workingDir parameter.
Limitations also apply if you are running versions of ESX or ESXi Server older than version 4.1.
n

If the virtual machine has multiple VMDK disk files, all the disk files must be contained in the same folder
as the VMX file itself.

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If a virtual machine is attached to a Raw Disk Mapping (RDM) disk device, you must store the mapping
file in the same folder as the VMX file. RDM snapshots are only available if you create the RDM mapping
using Virtual Compatibility Mode.

If you are running a ESX or ESXi Server 4.1 or later, these limitations do not apply.
vSphere Replication supports the protection of virtual machines with snapshots, but you can only recover the
latest snapshot.

Protection and Recovery of Linked Clone Virtual Machines
vSphere Replication does not support the protection and recovery of virtual machines that are linked clones.
Array-based replication supports the protection and recovery of virtual machines that are linked clones if all
the nodes in the snapshot tree are replicated.

Create Array-Based Protection Groups
For array-based replication, SRM organizes datastore groups to collect all files associated with protected virtual
machines. You then associate these datastore groups with protection groups. All virtual machines in a datastore
group replicate their files together, and all failover together. You can have a virtual machine with files on
different datastores. In such a case, SRM combines the datastores that contain files for a single virtual machine
to create a datastore group.
A datastore group is the smallest unit of storage that can be failed over or tested independently. Several rules
show how the groups are calculated.
n

If a device is used by a datastore, all devices used by that datastore are combined.

If a device is a part of a consistency group in the array, all devices in the consistency group are combined.

If a virtual machine spans multiple datastores, all devices belonging to all such datastores are combined.

These rules are repeated until no more devices are added to the datastore group.
You can organize protections groups in folders. Different views in the Recovery interface display the names
of the recovery groups, but they do not display the folder names. If you have two protection groups with the
same name in different folders, it can be difficult to tell them apart in some views in the Recovery interface.
Consequently, you should ensure that protection names are unique across all folders. In environments in which
not all users have view privileges for all folders, to be sure of the uniqueness of protection group names, do
not place protection groups in folders.
Procedure
1

Click Protection Groups, and click the Create Protection Group.

On the Select a Site and Protection Group Type page, select which site will be protected and select Array
Based Replication.

Select a datastore group from the list, and click Next.
The datastore groups listed were discovered when you configured the array managers. Each datastore
group in the list is replicated to the recovery site. When you select a datastore group, the virtual machines
in that datastore group are listed in the lower Virtual Machines on the Selected Datastore Grouppane,
and are marked to include in the protection group after you establish the protection group.

Type a name and optional description for the protection group, and click Next.

Click Finish to create the protection group and begin the automatic protection of the specified virtual
machines.

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Chapter 6 Creating Protection Groups and Replicating Virtual Machines

SRM creates a protection groups that you can use to protect virtual machines. After protection is established,
placeholders are created and inventory mappings applied for each virtual machine in the group. If a virtual
machine cannot be mapped to a folder, network, and resource pool on the recovery site, it is listed with a status
of Mapping Missing, and a placeholder is not created for it. Wait to ensure that the operations complete as
expected. Make sure that the protection group was created and virtual machines were protected. The progress
of those tasks can be monitored in the Recent Tasks panel of the vSphere Client.
What to do next
Create a protection plan with which to associate your protection groups. This process is described in “Create
a Recovery Plan,” on page 67.

Edit Array-Based Protection Groups
You can change the name and description of an array-based protection group and add or remove datastore
groups that are part of the protection group.
Procedure
1

Click Protection Groups, and select a protection group.

Click Edit Protection Group.

Edit the name or description of the protection group.

Add or remove virtual machines that are included in the protection group and click OK.

Create vSphere Replication Protection Groups
Create protection groups for vSphere Replication (VR) to enable protection.
You can organize protections groups in folders. Different views in the Recovery interface display the names
of the recovery groups, but they do not display the folder names. If you have two protection groups with the
same name in different folders, it can be difficult to tell them apart in some views in the Recovery interface.
Consequently, you should ensure that protection names are unique across all folders. In environments in which
not all users have view privileges for all folders, to be sure of the uniqueness of protection group names, do
not place protection groups in folders.
Prerequisites
Establish vSphere Replication for virtual machines using the vSphere Client. See “Configure Replication for a
Single Virtual Machine,” on page 62 or “Configure Replication for Multiple Virtual Machines,” on
page 63.
Procedure
1

Click Protection Groups and click the Create Protection Group.

On the Select a Site and Protection Group Type page, select which site will be protected and select vSphere
Replication.

Select virtual machines from the list and click Next.
Only virtual machines with VR enabled and not already in a protection group appear.

Type a name and optional description for the protection group, and click Next.

Click Finish to create the protection group and begin the automatic protection of the specified virtual
machines.

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What to do next
Next create a recovery plan with which to associate your protection groups. This process is described in “Create
a Recovery Plan,” on page 67.

Edit vSphere Replication Protection Groups
You can change the name of a vSphere Replication (VR) protection group and the virtual machines that are
protected in the group.
Procedure
1

Click Protection Groups in the left pane and right-click a protection group.

Select Edit Protection Group.

Edit the name or description of the protection group.

Add virtual machines to the protection group and click OK.

Configure Replication for a Single Virtual Machine
Individual virtual machines and their virtual disks can be protected by vSphere Replication (VR).
Prerequisites
To replicate a virtual machine using VR, you must establish the VR infrastructure at both sites. A minimal VR
infrastructure requires one vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS) at both sites and at least one VR
Server (VRS) on the recovery site. SRM servers at each site must be paired, and VRMS must be paired as well.
Procedure

On the vSphere Client Home page, click VMs and Templates.

Browse the inventory to find the single virtual machine to be replicated using VR.

Right-click the virtual machine and click vSphere Replication....

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Chapter 6 Creating Protection Groups and Replicating Virtual Machines

Configure general replication settings.
a

Use the Recovery Point Objective (RPO) slider or enter a value to configure the maximum amount of
data that can be lost in the case of a site failure. The available range is from 15 minutes to 24 hours.
For example, a recovery point objective of one hour seeks to ensure that the virtual machine loses no
more than one hour of data during the recovery. For smaller RPOs, less data is lost in a recovery, but
more network bandwidth is consumed keeping the replica up to date.
NOTE Every time that a virutal machine reaches its RPO target, SRM records approximately 3800
bytes of data in the vCenter Server events database. If you set a low RPO period, this can quickly
create a large volume of data in the database. To avoid creating large volumes of data in the vCenter
Server events database, you should limit the number of days that vCenter Server retains event data.
See Configure Database Retention Policy in the vCenter Server and Host Management Guide.
Alternatively, set a higher RPO value.

Select a Guest OS Quiescing configuration.
The available quiescing types are determined by the virtual machine's operating system. Microsoft
Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) quiescing is supported for Windows virtual machines running
Windows Server 2003 or newer. VR does not support quiescing for Linux and older versions of
Windows such as Windows XP or Windows 2000. For Windows 7 and Windows 2008 and newer
virtual machines file-system level quiescing is supported, but application level quiescing is not.

If no target file location is specified or to override the default determined by the datastore mappings,
click Browse to select a target location for the virtual machine. If this option is selected, an empty,
blank replica disk is created. To use non-blank disks, see “Replicate Virtual Machines Using Physical
Couriering,” on page 64.
Either select a datastore or a folder within a datastore:

Browse to select a datastore and click OK.

Enable Specify datastore folder, browse to a datastore, click Browse, browse to find the desired
folder in the Browse Datastores window, then double-click the desired folder.

Select a replication destination for each media device for the virtual machine. Repeat this step for each
device in the virtual machine.
The next pages are created dynamically. They might include multiple virtual drives, all of which you can
configure uniquely. Configurable settings include whether the virtual drive is replicated, the virtual
drive's replication destination, and information about how the replicated virtual drive is configured. If
the disk is to be replicated, select a replication destination before proceeding.

Accept the automatic assignment of a VRS, or select a particular server.

Review the settings and click Finish to establish replication.

Configure Replication for Multiple Virtual Machines
Multiple virtual machines can be protected by vSphere Replication.
Prerequisites
To replicate virtual machines using VR, establish the VR infrastructure at both sites. A minimal VR
infrastructure requires one vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS) at both sites and at least one
vSphere Replication Server (VRS) on the recovery site. SRM servers at each site must be paired, and VRMSs
must be paired as well. If a virtual machine is powered off, replication begins when the virtual machine is
powered on.

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Before replicating multiple machines, configure datastore mappings in the SRM user interface. For more
information, see “Configure Datastore Mappings for vSphere Replication Management,” on page 44. You
configure the mappings so that information is available to SRM regarding the target datastore destinations for
replication.
Procedure
1

On the vSphere Client Home page, click VMs and Templates.

Select a folder or datacenter in the left pane and click the Virtual Machines tab.
A list of virtual machines appears in the right pane.

On the right pane, right-click the virtual machines to be replicated and click vSphere Replication

On the Replication Settings page, configure general replication settings.
a

Use the Recovery Point Objective (RPO) slider or enter a value.
The RPO value determines the maximum amount of data that can be lost during the recovery. The
available range is from 15 minutes to 24 hours.
NOTE Every time that a virutal machine reaches its RPO target, SRM records approximately 3800
bytes of data in the vCenter Server events database. If you set a low RPO period, this can quickly
create a large volume of data in the database. To avoid creating large volumes of data in the vCenter
Server events database, you should limit the number of days that vCenter Server retains event data.
See Configure Database Retention Policy in the vCenter Server and Host Management Guide.
Alternatively, set a higher RPO value.

Select the Guest OS Quiescing method.

Choose whether to enable Initial copies of .vmdk files have been placed on the target datastore.
This option searches the replicated datastore. If candidate files are found, confirm whether to use the
found files as initial copies.

On the VRS page, accept the automatic assignment of a VRS or select a particular server.

Review the settings and click Finish to establish replication.

Replicate Virtual Machines Using Physical Couriering
Initial replication of .vmdk files can be made more efficient by physically couriering files on a storage device.
This may also be known as sneakernet replication. Physical couriering may be required if it's not practical to
copy the files over the network because the amount of data is large, the bandwidth available is small, or some
combination of the two.
When replicating virtual machines, it is best to ensure that virtual machines are replicated to subdirectories
within datastores. Copying disks are expected to work, as long as the method preserves the identity information
stored inside the .vmdk file.
Prerequisites
To replicate a virtual machine using vSphere Replication (VR), you must establish the VR infrastructure at both
sites. A minimal VR infrastructure requires one vSphere Replication Management Servers (VRMS) at both sites
and at least one VR server on the recovery site. SRM servers at each site must be paired, and VRMS must be
paired as well. If a virtual machine is powered off, replication begins when the virtual machine is powered on.
Procedure
1

Use the vSphere Client to connect to a vCenter Server that can manage the virtual machines to be physically
couriered.

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Chapter 6 Creating Protection Groups and Replicating Virtual Machines

Click Datastores. In the left pane, browse to the datastore that contains the files for the virtual machine,
select the datastore, and in the right pane, click Browse this datastore.

Select the folders for all virtual machines to be couriered, right-click the selection, and click Download...

Select a destination to which to copy the files and click OK.

Click Yes.

After the download finishes, transfer media containing the files to the paired site location to upload them.

On the vSphere Client Home page at the paired site, click Datastores. In the left pane, browse to the
datastore that will contain the files for the virtual machine, select the datastore, and in the right pane, click
Browse this datastore.

Select the folder that will contain the copies of the virtual machines, right-click the selection, and click
Upload Folder...

Select the folder containing the virtual machines, and click OK.

On the production site, click VMs and Templates in the vSphere Client home page.

Find the virtual machine that will be replicated within the inventory. Right-click the virtual machine and
click Site Recovery Manager vSphere Replication...

Configure general replication settings.
a

Click Browse... to browse for a datastore to which to replicate the virtual machine. Click the
Browse checkbox in the datastore selection dialog box, then double-click a destination folder to select
it.
Select the folder you created when you uploaded the vmdk. Before selecting the destination directory,
you must use the vSphere client to create the directory on the destination datastore.

Use the Recovery Point Objective (RPO) slider or enter a value to configure the maximum amount of
data that can be lost during the recovery.
For example, a recovery point objective of one hour seeks to ensure that no virtual machines lose more
than one hour of data during the recovery. For smaller RPOs, less data is lost in a recovery, but more
network bandwidth is consumed keeping replicas synchronized.

Choose a Guest OS Quiescing configuration.
The available quiescing types are determined by the virtual machine's operating system. VSS
quiescing is supported for Windows virtual machines running Windows XP or later. Linux does not
support quiescing.

Select a replication destination for each media device for the virtual machine. Repeat this step for each
device in the virtual machine.
a

Select Select an existing file to use as an initial copy and click Browse.

Browse to find the vmdk file that was physically transferred to the other site and double-click the file.

Click Yes to confirm that the physically transferred copy of the vmdk will be overwritten in future
replication.

The next pages are created dynamically. They may include multiple virtual drives, all of which can be
configured uniquely. Configurable settings include whether the virtual drive is replicated, the virtual
drive's replication destination, and information about how the replicated virtual drive is configured. You
must specify a replication destination before proceeding.
14

In the VR Server page, either accept the automatic assignment of a VR Server, or select a particular server.

Review the settings and click Finish to establish replication.

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Move a Virtual Machine to a New vSphere Replication Server
After establishing vSphere Replication (VR), you can move the virtual machines being replicated to other VR
Servers. You might do this to complete maintenance tasks on existing VR servers or to balance the load on VR
servers in the event that one server becomes overloaded with virtual machines.
Procedure
1

Click vSphere Replication, and select a site.

Click the Virtual Machines tab.

Right-click a virtual machine and select Move to.

Select an VR Server from the Move to Replication Server pane and click Next.

Review the information about the planned move, and click Finish to complete the change.

Apply Inventory Mappings to All Members of a Protection Group
When you create a protection group for either vSphere or array-based replication, your inventory mappings
are applied to all the virtual machines in it. If you change the mappings, add virtual machines to the protected
datastore, or if the virtual machines lose their protection, you can reapply the mappings to all unconfigured
virtual machines in one step.
Procedure
1

Click Protection Groups in the left pane and click the Virtual Machines tab.

On the Virtual Machines page, click Configure All.

This procedure applies existing inventory mappings to all virtual machines that have a status of Not
Configured.
What to do next
After this process finishes, virtual machines that could not be configured have a status of Mapping Missing or
Mapping Invalid. You must configure protection for these machines individually.

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Recovery Plans and Reprotection

After you have configured SRM at the protected and recovery sites, you can create and test a recovery plan
without affecting services at either site. You can also perform planned migrations or disaster recoveries by
running a recovery plan, and, if necessary, reverse the role of your two sites by performing a reprotect.
The test does not disrupt replication or any ongoing activities at the protected site. Recovery plans that suspend
local virtual machines do so for tests as well as for actual recoveries. With this exception, recovery plan tests
do not disrupt activities at either site.
NOTE Permission to test a recovery plan does not include permission to run a recovery plan. Permission to
run a recovery plan does not include permission to test a recovery plan. You must assign each permission
separately.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n

“Create a Recovery Plan,” on page 67

“Test a Recovery Plan,” on page 68

“Run a Recovery Plan,” on page 70

“Understanding Reprotection,” on page 71

Create a Recovery Plan
Create a recovery plan to establish how virtual machines are recovered. A basic recovery plan includes steps
that use default values to control how virtual machines in a protection group are recovered at the recovery
site. You can customize the plan to meet your needs. Recovery plans are different from protection groups in
that recovery plans indicate how virtual machines in one or more protection groups are restored at the recovery
site.
During tests, keep the virtual machine that is recovered during the test isolated from other machines in your
environment. If duplicate machines are brought on-line and begin interacting with other machines in your
production network, errors can occur. You can isolate virtual machines restored during test recoveries either
by selecting Auto, which is an isolated network, or by selecting a network that was manually created, but
which is not connected to other networks.
Procedure
1

Click Recovery Plans, and click Create.

On the Recovery Site page, choose the recovery site.

On the Select Protection Groups page, select one or more protection groups for the plan to recover, and
click Next.
You might need to expand folders to find protection groups.

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Select a recovery site network to which recovered virtual machines connect during recovery plan tests,
and click Next.

Type a name for the plan in the Recovery Plan Name text box and add an optional description.

Click Next.

Review the summary information and click Finish to create the recovery plan.

Edit a Recovery Plan
You can change the properties of a recovery plan including plan name and description, test networks, and the
contained protection groups. Edit a recovery plan to change any of the properties that you specified when you
created it. You can edit recovery plans either from the protected site or the recovery site.
Procedure
1

Click Recovery Plans, and select the recovery plan you want to edit.

Click Edit.
After you open the plan for editing, you can change any of its properties.

Choose the recovery site.

Select one or more protection groups for the plan to recover, and click Next.
You might need to expand folders to find the protection groups.

Select a recovery site network to which recovered virtual machines connect during recovery plan tests,
and click Next.

Type a name for the plan in the Recovery Plan Name text box and add an optional description.

Click Next.

Review the summary information and click Finish to make the specified changes to the recovery plan.

Remove a Recovery Plan
You can remove a recovery plan if you no longer need it. Removing a recovery plan also deletes the history of
the plan.
Prerequisites
Export the history of the recovery plan. Removing a recovery plan also deletes the history of the plan.
Procedure
1

Click Recovery Plans.

Right-click the plan that you want to remove, and select Remove Recovery Plan.

Test a Recovery Plan
When you test a recovery plan, you use a test network and a temporary snapshot of replicated data at the
recovery site. No operations are disrupted at the protected site.
Testing a recovery plan runs all the steps in the plan with the exception of powering down virtual machines
at the protected site and forcing devices at the recovery site to assume mastership of replicated data. If the plan
requests suspension of local virtual machines at the recovery site, they are suspended during the test. A test
makes no other changes to the production environment at either site.

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Procedure
1

Click Recovery Plans in the left pane.

Click the recovery plan to test, and click Test.

Determine whether to enable Replicate recent changes to recovery site.
Enabling this option ensures that the recovery site has the latest copy of protected virtual machines, but
the synchronization might take additional time.

Click Next.

Review the confirmation window and click Finish.
The wizard closes and the recovery plan test begins.

Click the Recovery Steps tab to monitor the progress of the test and respond to messages.
The Recovery Steps tab displays the progress of individual steps. The Recent Tasks area reports the
progress of the overall plan.
NOTE SRM initiates recovery steps in the prescribed order, with one exception. It does not wait for the
Prepare Storage step to finish for all protection groups before continuing to the next steps.

When the recovery plan test completes, click Cleanup.
Running cleanup returns the protected virtual machines to their initial state and resets the recovery plan
to the Ready state.

(Optional) If the cleanup encounters errors, run the cleanup again with the Force Cleanup option selected.
The Force Cleanup option cleans up and ignores any errors that might occur. If necessary, run cleanup
several times with the Force Cleanup option selected, until the cleanup succeeds.

Cancel a Test or Recovery
You can cancel a recovery plan test or recovery at any time.
When you cancel a test or recovery, no new steps are started, and in-progress steps are stopped subject to the
following rules.
n

Steps that cannot be stopped, such as powering on or waiting for a heartbeat, run to completion before
the cancellation completes.

Steps that add or remove storage devices are undone by cleanup operations if you cancel.

The time it takes to cancel a test or recovery depends on the type and number of steps that are currently in
progress.
Procedure
u

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To cancel a test or recovery, click the Cancel button on the recovery plan toolbar.

Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Run a Recovery Plan
When you run a recovery plan, all virtual machines in the recovery plan are migrated to the recovery site. The
corresponding virtual machines in the protected site are shut down.
When you perform a planned migration, SRM attempts to replicate all virtual machines and gracefully shut
down the protected machines. If errors occur during a planned migration, the plan pauses so that users can
resolve errors. Replicating and shutting down virtual machines and providing opportunities to resolve errors
makes it possible to reprotect the virtual machines. When you perform a disaster recovery, SRM attempts to
shut down any virtual machines. If they cannot be shut down, the copies at the recovery site are still started,
and automatic reprotection might not be possible.
CAUTION A recovery plan makes significant alterations in the configurations of the protected and recovery
sites and it stops replication. Do not run any recovery plan that is not tested. In the case of array-based
replication, recovered virtual machines and services might need to be supported at the recovery site for a period
of time. Reversing these changes might cost significant time and effort and can result in prolonged service
downtime.
Forced failover is intended for use in cases where storage arrays fail at the protected site and, as a result,
protected virtual machines are unmanageable and cannot be shut down, powered off, or unregistered. In such
a case, the system state cannot be changed for extended periods. To resolve this situation, you can force failover.
Forcing failover does not complete the process of shutting down the virtual machines at the protected site. As
a result, a split-brain scenario occurs, but the recovery might be completed quickly.
Running forced failover can affect the mirroring between the protected and the recovery storage arrays. After
you run forced failover, you must check that mirroring is set up correctly between the protected array and the
recovery array before you can perform further replication operations. If mirroring is not set up correctly, you
must repair the mirroring by using the storage array software.
You can only use forced failover with array-based replication. Forced failover is not supported for vSphere
Replication.
When forced failover is enabled, any outstanding changes on the protection site are not replicated to the
recovery site before the failover sequence begins. Replication of the changes occurs according to the recovery
point objective (RPO) period of the storage array. If a new virtual machine or template is added on the
protection site and failover is initiated before the storage RPO period has elapsed, the new virtual machine or
template does not appear on the replicated datastore and is lost. To avoid losing the new virtual machine or
template, wait until the end of the RPO period before running the recovery plan with forced failover.
After the forced failover is finished and you have verified the mirroring of the storage arrays, you can resolve
the issue that necessitated the forced failover. After the underlying issue is resolved, run planned migration
on the recovery plan again, resolve any problems that occur, and rerun the plan until it finishes successfully.
Running the recovery plan again does not affect the recovered virtual machines at the recovery site.
NOTE Forced failover is only available in SRM 5.0.1 and later.
Prerequisites
To use forced failover, you must first enable this function. You enable forced failover by enabling the
recovery.forcedFailover setting as described in “Change Recovery Site Settings,” on page 89.
Procedure

Click Recovery Plans in the left pane and click the recovery plan to run.

In the Commands area, click Recovery.

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Chapter 7 Recovery Plans and Reprotection

Review the information in the confirmation prompt, and select I understand that this process will
permanently alter the virtual machines and infrastructure of both the protect and recovery
datacenters.

(Optional) If you enabled the forced failover function, you can select the Forced Failover - recovery site
operations only check box.

Click Next.

Click Start to run the recovery plan.

Click the Recovery Steps tab.
The Recovery Steps tab displays the progress of individual steps. The Recent Tasks area reports the
progress of the overall plan.

What to do next
You can reprotect virtual machines that use array-based replication. After a recovery plan is run and the virtual
machines in it are operating at the recovery site, you can reprotect, which establishes protection of the virtual
machines in the opposite direction. The virtual machines and the services that they provide are now accessible
at the recovery site.

Understanding Reprotection
After a recovery, the recovery site becomes the new production site and is not protected. If a disaster occurs
at the new production site, no other site is available to fail over to. A best practice is to protect the new
production site to some other site immediately after a recovery. If the original production site is operational,
you can use the original production site as a new recovery site to protect the new production site, effectively
reversing the direction of protection. Reestablishing protection in the opposite direction by recreating all
protection groups and recovery plans is time consuming and prone to errors. SRM provides an automated way
to achieve reprotection.
Reprotection is available only in noncatastrophic failures. This means that the original vCenter servers, ESX
Servers, SRM servers, and corresponding databases must be eventually recoverable.
For reprotect to be available, the following steps must first occur:
1

A recovery must be completed with all steps finishing successfully. If errors occurred during the recovery,
the user must resolve the problems that caused the errors and rerun the recovery. When you rerun a
recovery, operations that succeeded previously are skipped. For example, successfully failed over virtual
machines are not failed over again and continue running without interruption.

The original site must be available and SRM servers at both sites must be in a connected state.

The recovery plan runs in the reprotection mode to reverse the replication direction for the underlying
arrays.

NOTE Reprotect is supported only for array-based replication. vSphere Replication (VR) reprotect is not
supported. If a recovery plan contains VR groups, remove those groups before you run a reprotect operation.
Reprotection is not available if the following situations occur:
n

Recovery plans cannot be completed without errors. For reprotect to be available, all steps of the recovery
plan must finish successfully.

VR groups are included in the recovery plan.

The original site cannot be restored, for example if a physical catastrophe destroys the original site. To
unpair and recreate the pairing of protected and recovery sites, both sites must be available. If you cannot
restore the original protected site, you must reinstall SRM on both the protected and recovery sites.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Reprotection of MCSC and Fault Tolerant Virtual Machines
To use reprotection with Microsoft Cluster Server (MSCS) and fault tolerant virtual machines, the host
machines on which the virtual machines run must meet certain criteria.
n

You must run a fault tolerant virtual machine and its shadow on two separate ESXi Servers.

You can run a cluster of MCSC virtual machines in the following possible configurations.
n

All the virtual machines of the cluster run on a single ESXi Server.

If the MCSC cluster is spread over more than one ESXi Server, you can only run one MCSC virtual
machine per ESXi Server, with a maximum of two ESXi Servers in the cluster.

Because of these constraints, reprotection of MCSC and fault tolerant virtual machines is impossible if you do
not enable VMware High Availability (HA) and Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS). When moving MCSC
and fault tolerant virtual machines across their primary and secondary sites during reprotection, you must
enable HA and DRS, setting the affinity and anti-affinity rules as appropriate.

Reprotection Process
The process of completing reprotection includes two sets of tasks:
n

Reversing the direction of protection groups using the new protected and recovery site configuration.

Forcing a synchronization of storage from the new protected site (the original recovery site) to the new
recovery site (to original protected site).

Reversing the Direction of Protection Groups
When a user initiates the reprotection process, SRM instructs the underlying arrays to reverse the direction of
replication. After the replication is reversed, SRM creates placeholder virtual machines at the new recovery
site (the original protected site).
When creating placeholder virtual machines, SRM uses the location of the original production virtual machine
to determine where to create placeholder virtual machines. Placeholder virtual machines are created in a
location that is defined as the placeholder location as part of inventory mapping. If the original production
virtual machines are no longer available (for example because they were deleted by a user), SRM uses the
reverse inventory mappings (from the original recovery site to the original production site) to determine the
resource pools and folders for the placeholder virtual machines. Because of this, these reverse inventory
mappings must be configured prior to running reprotect, otherwise reprotect may fail.
The files for the placeholder virtual machine are placed in the placeholder datastore defined for the original
production site, not the datastore that held the original production virtual machine.

Forcing Data Synchronization
Forcing synchronization of data from the new protection site to the new recovery site ensures that the recovery
site has a current copy of the production virtual machines running at the protection site. Forcing this
synchronization ensures that recovery is immediately possible after the reprotect completes.

Manual Reprotection for vSphere Replication
Reprotection must be manually established for vSphere Replication. After a failover, existing replication is
stopped. Existing replication must be unconfigured and then reconfigured in the opposite direction. It may be
effective to use the original production virtual machine as a copy for physical couriering. In such a case, the
disk names are different, so it is necessary to choose the target for each disk independently. Finally, configure
protection groups and recovery plans in the opposite direction, thereby manually establishing reprotection.

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Chapter 7 Recovery Plans and Reprotection

Reprotection State Reference
As the process of reprotection proceeds, there are several states that can be observed in the recovery plan in
the vSphere client SRM plug-in in the vSphere Client.
Table 7-1. Reprotection States
State

Description

Reprotect In Progress

SRM is attempting to complete the process of reprotection. If
reprotection fails, the result is the state "Reprotect
Interrupted".

Partial Reprotect

Occurs if multiple recovery plans share the same protection
groups and some groups have already been reprotected in
some plans, but some have not. If this occurs, run reprotect
for partially reprotected plans and all groups that were not
reprotected will be reprotected.

Incomplete Reprotect

Occurs because of failures during reprotect. For example, this
state might occur due to a failure to synchronize storage or
a failure to create placeholder virtual machines.
n If a reprotect operation fails to synchronize storage,
ensure sites are connected, review the reprotect step
progress in the vSphere client SRM plug-in, and begin
the reprotect task again.
n If placeholder virtual machines are not created,
recoveries are now possible, but you may wish to review
the reprotect step progress in the vSphere client SRM
plug-in, resolve any open issues, and begin the reprotect
task again.

Reprotect Interrupted

If one of the SRM servers crashes during the reprotect, this
state occurs. Make sure both SRM servers are running and
begin the reprotect task again.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

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Customizing Site Recovery Manager

In its default configuration, SRM enables a number of simple recovery scenarios. Advanced users can customize
SRM to support a broader range of site recovery requirements.
The default protection and recovery capabilities of SRM can be appropriate for sites that have simple
configurations or recovery objectives. Sites that have more complex requirements, such as many virtual
machines, a variety of guest operating systems, and application-specific networking requirements, typically
need to modify the settings.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n

“Customizing a Recovery Plan,” on page 75

“Configure Protection for a Virtual Machine or Template,” on page 86

“Configure Resource Mappings for a Virtual Machine,” on page 87

“Configure SRM Alarms,” on page 88

“Working with Advanced Settings,” on page 88

Customizing a Recovery Plan
You can customize a recovery plan to run commands, display messages that require a response, and change
the recovery priority of protected virtual machines.
A simple recovery plan that specifies only a test network to which the recovered virtual machines connect and
response times that the test should expect can provide an effective way to test an SRM configuration, However,
you must customize most recovery plans intended for production use to suit specific needs. For example, a
recovery plan for an emergency at the protected site is likely to be different from a planned migration of services
from one site to another.
NOTE A recovery plan always reflects the current state of the protection groups that it recovers. If any members
of a protection group display problems (for example, a status other than OK), you must correct the problems
before you can make any changes to the recovery plan.

Recovery Plan Steps
A recovery plan runs a series of steps that must be done in a specific order. You cannot change the order or
purpose of the steps, but you can insert your own steps that display messages and run commands.
Recovery plan steps have several behaviors:
n

Some steps are executed during all recoveries.

Some steps are executed only during test recoveries.

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Some steps are always skipped during test recoveries.

Understanding the steps, their order, and the context in which they run is important when you customize a
recovery plan.
NOTE When you run a recovery plan, it starts by powering off the virtual machines at the protected site.
Machines are powered off in reverse priority order (high-priority machines are powered off last). This step is
omitted when you test a recovery plan.

Recovery Order
When a recovery plan runs, groups of virtual machines are started according to priority. Before a priority group
is started, all machines in the next-higher priority group must have recovered or failed to recover. As long as
dependancies have been met, the recovery engine attempts to power on as many virtual machines in parallel
as vCenter supports.

Recovery Plan Time-Outs and Pauses
Several kinds of time-outs can occur during the execution of recovery plan steps. These time-outs cause the
plan to pause for a specified interval to give the step time to complete.
NOTE Message steps force the plan to pause until they are acknowledged. Before you add a message step to
a recovery plan, make sure that it is really necessary. Before you test or run a recovery plan that contains
message steps, make sure that someone can monitor the plan's progress and respond to the messages as needed.

Steps That Are Not Executed During a Test
When you run a recovery plan, it starts by shutting down protected virtual machine at the protected site.
Machines are shut down in reverse priority order (high-priority machines are shut down last). This step is
omitted when you test a recovery plan.

Cleanup Steps That Are Executed Only During a Test
Clean up steps are performed after a recovery plan test. The steps begin executing after you respond to the
prompt that appears after the test finishes.
1

Power off each recovered virtual machine.

Replace recovered virtual machines with placeholders, preserving their identity and configuration
information.

Clean up replicated storage snapshots that were used by the recovered virtual machines during the test.

Guidelines for Writing Command Steps
When you create a command step to add to a recovery plan, make sure that it takes into account the
environment in which it must run. Errors in a command step affect the integrity of a recovery plan, so test the
command on the recovery site SRM server host before you add it to the plan.
All batch files or commands that you add to a recovery plan must meet the following requirements:
n

You must start the Windows command shell using its full path on the local host. For example, to run a
script located in c:\alarmscript.bat, use the following command line:
c:\windows\system32\cmd.exe /c c:\alarmscript.bat

Batch files and commands must be installed locally on the SRM server host at the recovery site.

Batch files and commands must complete within 300 seconds. Otherwise, the recovery plan terminates
with an error. To change this limit, see “Change Recovery Site Settings,” on page 89.

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Batch files or commands that produce output that contains characters with ASCII values greater than 127
must use UTF-8 encoding. Only the final 4KB of script output is captured in log files and recovery history.
Scripts that produce more output can redirect the output to a file rather than sending it to the standard
output to be logged.

Execution Environment for Command Steps
Command steps run with the identity of the LocalSystem account on the SRM server host at the recovery site.
When a command step runs, a number of environment variables are available for it to use. Table 8-1 lists the
environment variables that are available to all command steps.
Table 8-1. Environment Variables Available to All Command Steps
Name

Value

Example

VMware_RecoveryName

Name of the recovery plan that is
executing.

Plan A

VMware_RecoveryMode

Recovery mode.

test or recovery

VMware_VC_Host

Host name of the vCenter host at the
recovery site.

vc_hostname.example.com

VMware_VC_Port

Network port used to contact the
vCenter host.

443

The environment variables listed in Table 8-2 are also set if the command step is executing on a recovered
virtual machine.
Table 8-2. Environment Variables Available to Command Steps Running on Recovered Virtual Machines
Name

Value

Example

VMware_VM_Uuid

UUID used by vCenter to uniquely identify
this virtual machine.

4212145a-eeae-a02c-e525-ebba70b0d4f3

VMware_VM_Name

Name of this virtual machine, as set at the
protected site.

My New Virtual Machine

VMware_VM_Ref

Managed object ID of the virtual machine.

vm-1199

VMware_VM_GuestName

Name of the guest OS as defined by the VIM
API.

otherGuest

VMware_VM_GuestIp

IP address of the virtual machine, if known.

192.168.0.103

Vmware_VM_Path

Path to this virtual machine's VMDK file.

[datastore-123] jquser-vm2/jquservm2.vmdk

Customize Recovery Plan Steps
You can customize many recovery plan steps to extend the basic functions provided by a default recovery plan.
To customize recovery plan steps, open the Recovery Steps page of a recovery plan.
Procedure
1

Click Recovery Plans, and click the plan that you want to customize.

Click the Recovery Steps tab.

Right-click the step that you want to modify, and select an option from the menu.
To export the entire plan as an HTML document for your reference, right-click any step and click
Export. To edit the properties of the plan, right-click any step and click Edit Recovery Plan.

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Specify Virtual Machine Recovery Priority
By default, all virtual machines in a new recovery plan are members of the level 3 priority group. Members of
this group are recovered in the order that they were created on the protected datastore. You can move a virtual
machine to a different priority group or to a different priority within a group.
Procedure
1

Open the Recovery Steps page for the plan, as described in “Customize Recovery Plan Steps,” on
page 77.

To display the virtual machines in the normal priority group, expand the Recover Normal Priority Virtual
Machines step.
Unless you modified recovery priorities, all virtual machines in the plan are included in the Recover
Normal Priority Virtual Machines step.

To raise the recovery priority of a virtual machine, right-click it and click Move Up.
You can move a virtual machine to a higher priority within its current group, or to a higher priority group.

To lower the recovery priority of a virtual machine, right-click it and click Move Down.
You can move a virtual machine to a lower priority within its current group, or to a lower priority group.

What to do next
Review the list of virtual machines in the Shutdown Virtual Machines at Protected Site step. Modifying the
recovery priority of a virtual machine does not affect the priority with which it is powered off on the protected
site. If you want to change the power off priority of a virtual machine, you must do so explicitly by moving it
up or down in one of the Shutdown steps.
NOTE Shutdown steps are run in reverse priority order; high-priority virtual machines are powered off last.

Custom Recovery Steps
Custom recovery steps provide a way to run commands or to present messages. Custom recovery steps are
executed during the recovery process and can be completed either on the SRM server machine or in a virtual
machine that is being recovered.
You have several categories of custom recovery steps available:
n

Command recovery steps. These custom recovery steps execute commands that run in their own processes.
Command custom recovery steps have two types.
n

Top-Level Commands. Executed on the SRM server. For example, you might use these commands to
power on physical devices or redirect network traffic.

Per-VM Commands. Associated with newly recovered virtual machines during the recovery process.
Use these commands to complete configuration tasks after powering on a virtual machine. You can
execute the commands pre-power on or post-power on. Commands that are configured to run after
the virtual machine is recovered (meaning post-power on), can be run either on the SRM server
machine or within the newly recovered virtual machine.

Message prompts. Present a message in the SRM user interface. You can use this message to pause the
recovery workflow and provide information to the user running the recovery plan. For example, users
might be instructed to perform some manual recovery process or to verify steps. The only action users
can take in direct response to a prompt is to click OK, which dismisses the message and allows the recovery
to continue.

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During the reprotect for a recovery plan, all custom recovery steps are preserved in the recovery plan. However,
if a recovery or test is done for the recovery plan after a reprotect, these custom recovery steps are executed
on the new recovery site (the original protected site). Typically, you can use prompt custom recovery steps
directly without any modifications. However, you might need to modify command custom recovery steps
after the reprotect, if these commands contain site-specific information, such as network configuration.
Recovery Step Outcomes
SRM attempts to complete all custom recovery steps, but some might fail to complete. The response to failures
to complete a recovery step varies based on the recovery step type.
n

Command custom recovery steps. By default, SRM waits for these commands to complete for five
minutes,. You can customize each command timeout. After a command is completed, the next recovery
step in the recovery plan is executed. However, failures of custom commands have two different behaviors
on the flow of the recovery plan.
n

Top-Level commands. If a recovery step fails, the failure is logged, a warning is shown in the recovery
plan, and subsequent custom recovery steps continue to be executed.

Per-VM commands. Per-VM custom recovery steps are executed in sets either before or after a virtual
machine is powered on. If a command fails, the remaining Per-VM custom recovery steps in the set
are not executed. For example, if there are five pre-power commands on and five post-power on
commands, and the third command in the pre-power on set fails, the remaining two pre-power on
commands are skipped and SRM does not power on the virtual machine nor run any post-power on
commands.

Prompt custom recovery steps. Prompt custom recovery steps cannot fail. However, the execution of the
recovery plan is paused until the user dismisses the prompt.

Configure Top-Level Commands and Prompts
You can add top-level commands and prompts anywhere in the recovery plan.
Procedure
1

Click Recovery Plans in the left pane, and select a recovery plan.

Click the Recovery Steps tab.

Select one of the steps and click the Add Step icon, the Edit Step icon, or the Remove Step icon.
Some icons might be grayed-out, depending on where you clicked in the recovery steps.

If you clicked Add or Edit, configure the step.
a

Select the type of Step to be completed. Choose from a step on the SRM server or a prompt.

In the Name field, type a name for the step.

In the Content field, enter the commands to be completed.

For steps that are not prompts, you can modify the Timeout information.

For new steps, choose whether the step is placed before or after the selected step.

Configure Per-Virtual Machine Commands and Prompts
You can configure custom recovery steps for pre-power on and post-power on for a virtual machine. These
steps are associated with the protected virtual machine in the same way that customization information is. If
the same virtual machine is shared between plans, the commands and prompts are the same.
Procedure
1

Click Recovery Plans in the left pane, and select a recovery plan.

Click the Virtual Machines tab.

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Select a virtual machine and click Configure.

Select Pre-Power On Steps or Post Power On Steps in the left pane, and click Add, Edit, or Remove.

If you click Add or Edit, configure the step.
a

Select the type of Step to be completed: a step on the SRM server, a step on the virtual machine, or a
prompt.
Complete pre-power on steps on the SRM server.

In the Name field, type a name for the step.

In the Content field, enter the commands to be executed.

(Optional) For steps that are not prompts, modify the Timeout information.

Customize the Recovery of an Individual Virtual Machine
You can configure a virtual machine in a recovery plan to use a prescribed customization specification, or to
execute message or command steps when it is recovered.
Procedure
1

Click Recovery Plans in the left pane, and click the plan that you want to customize.

Click the Recovery Steps tab.

Click the Virtual Machines tab.

Right-click a virtual machine in the list, and click Configure.

Click IP Settings.
You can also enter a description of the specification you apply. Only the IP properties from the selected
specification are applied. If you used the dr-ip-customizer.exe command to customize virtual machines
in the recovery plan, you do not need to specify that customization here.

Select the appropriate entry to add a message or command step that executes before the machine is
powered on.

Select the appropriate entry to add a message or command step that executes after the machine is powered
on.
Message and command steps added to the recovery steps for a virtual machine operate like message and
command steps added to a recovery plan. See “Guidelines for Writing Command Steps,” on page 76.

The customizations that you specify become associated with the protected virtual machine. As a result, the
settings are shared between all recovery plans that apply to this virtual machine.
NOTE If you remove the protection of a virtual machine, all recovery customizations are lost.

Customize IP Properties For an Individual Virtual Machine
You can customize IP settings for individual virtual machines for both the protected site and the recovery site.
IP settings for the recovery site are used during the recovery or test from the protection site to the recovery
site. IP settings for the protection site are used after reprotect during the recovery or test from the original
recovery site to the original protection site. Customization settings are associated with protected virtual
machines. As a result, if the same protected virtual machine is a part of multiple recovery plans, then all
recovery plans will use a single copy of the customization settings.
IP customization in SRM 5.0 supports:
n

IPv4 and IPv6 addressing.

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Different IP customizations for each site.

DHCP, Static IPv4, or Static IPv6 addressing.

Address customization for Windows and Linux virtual machines.

Customizing multiple NICs for each virtual machine.

You can also apply IP customizations to multiple virtual machines.
SRM includes the ability for the vSwitches to be DVS based and, therefore, span hosts. You can create recovery
plans that recover virtual machines across multiple recovery site hosts, contained within a quarantined test
network. If you accept the default test network configured as Auto, then virtual machines that are recovered
across hosts are placed in their own test bubble network. Each test bubble switch is isolated between hosts. As
a result, virtual machines in the same plan are isolated when the recovery completes. If you want the virtual
machines to be able to communicate, establish and select DVS switches or VLANs. Establishing an isolated
VLAN that connects all hosts to each other but not to a production network makes it possible to more
realistically test a recovery. To achieve connectivity among recovery hosts but isolation from the production
network, use the following recommendations:
n

Create DVS switches that are connected to an isolated VLAN that is private. Such a VLAN allows hosts
and virtual machines to be connected, but to be isolated from production virtual machines. Use a naming
convention that clearly designates the DVS is for testing use, and then select this DVS in the recovery plan
test network column.

Create test VLANs, providing no route back to protected site, on a physical network. Trunk test VLANs
to recovery site vSphere clusters and create virtual switches for test VLAN IDs, again using a clear naming
convention to identify these switches as being for testing use. Select these switches from the test recovery
network column in recovery plan editor.

IP customization is configured as part of the process of configuring virtual machine recovery properties. If a
NIC is not customized, it uses the same IP settings from the other site.
Procedure
1

Click Recovery Plans, and click the plan that you want to customize.

Click the Virtual Machines tab and click Configure VM.

Select the NIC for which you will modify IP Settings.

To customize settings, enable the Customize IP settings during recovery option.

Click Configure Protection or Configure Recovery, depending on which set of IP settings you want to
configure.

Click the General tab to configure settings.
a

Choose the type of addressing to be used.
Available options include DHCP, static IPv4, or static IPv6.

For static addresses, enter an IP address, subnet information, and gateway server addresses.
Alternately, if the virtual machine is powered on and has VMware Tools installed, you can click
Update to import current settings configured on the virtual machine.

Click the DNS tab to configure DNS settings.
a

Choose how DNS servers are found.
You can use DHCP to find DNS servers or you can specify primary and alternate DNS servers.

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Enter a DNS suffix and click Add or select an existing DNS suffix and click Remove, Move Up, or
Move Down.

Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Click the WINS tab to enter primary and secondary WINS addresses.
The WINS tab is available only when configuring DHCP or IPv4 addresses for Windows virtual machines.

Repeat Step 5 through Step 8 to configure recovery or protection settings, if required.
For example, if you configured IP settings for the protected site, you might want to configure settings for
the recovery site.

Repeat the configuration process for other NICs, as required, beginning by choosing another NIC as
described in step Step 3.

Report IP Address Mappings for a Protection Group
The IP address map reporter generates an XML document describing the IP properties of protected virtual
machines and their placeholders, grouped by site and recovery plan. This information can help you understand
the network requirements of a recovery plan.
Because the IP address mapping reporter must connect to both sites, you can run the command at either site.
You are prompted to supply the vCenter login credentials for each site when the command runs.
Procedure
1

Open a command shell on the SRM server host at either the protected or recovery site.

Change to the C:\Program Files\VMware\VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager\bin directory.

Run the dr-ip-reporter.exe command, as shown in this example.
dr-ip-reporter.exe -cfg ..\config\vmware-dr.xml -out c:\tmp\report.xml

To restrict the list of networks to just the ones required by a specific recovery plan, include the -plan
option on the command line, as shown in this example.
dr-ip-reporter.exe -cfg ..\config\vmware-dr.xml -out c:\tmp\report.xml -plan Plan-B

NOTE The command normally asks you to verify the thumbprints presented by the certificates at each
site. You can suppress the verification request by including the -I option.

Understanding Customizing IP Properties for Multiple Virtual Machines
Manually configuring IP settings for many virtual machines at a recovery site can be time consuming and
errors in configuration might occur. To facilitate the configuration process, SRM includes dr-ipcustomizer.exe, which is installed in the bin subdirectory of the SRM installation directory. Use this tool to
create or apply comma separated value (CSV) files containing information about networking configurations.
A challenge of representing virtual machine network configurations in a CSV file is that virtual machine
configurations include hierarchical information. For example, a single virtual machine may contain multiple
adapters, and each adapter may have multiple listings for elements such as gateways. The CSV format does
not provide a system for hierarchical representations. As a result, each row in the CSV file that the DR IP
Customizer generates may provide some or all pertinent information for a virtual machine.
For a virtual machine with a simple network configuration, all information can be included in a single row. In
the case of a more complicated virtual machine, multiple rows might be required. In the example of virtual
machines with multiple network cards or multiple gateways require multiple rows, each row in the CSV file
includes identification information describing which virtual machine and adapter the information applies to.
Information is aggregated together to be applied to the appropriate virtual machine.
To apply IPv6 customizations to virtual machines, the machine running dr-ip-customizer must have IPv6
enabled. IPv6 is not enabled by default on Windows XP or Windows 2003. Attempts to apply IPv6 address
customizations from a machine without IPv6 enabled fail when the DR IP Customizer validates the CSV input.

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Customize IP Properties for Multiple Virtual Machines
Use the dr-ip-customizer.exe tool on a computer with access to vCenter Servers in your environment to
specify IP properties for any or all of the virtual machines in a recovery plan by editing a file that the tool
generates. Configure IP settings for both protected and recovery sites so failback operations are easier to
configure.
Procedure
1

Open a command shell on the SRM server host.

Change directory to C:\Program Files (x86)\VMware\VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager\bin.

Run the dr-ip-customizer.exe command.
The following is an example of how you might run the tool.
dr-ip-customizer.exe --cfg ..\config\vmware-dr.xml --cmd generate --out
"C:\MassIPCustCSVs\MassIPCust-generate-output.csv --vc vc04.eng.example.com

Edit the generated file that was created at C:\MassIPCustCSVs\MassIPCust-generate-output.csv to
customize IP properties for the virtual machines in the recovery plan.

Run dr-ip-customizer.exe to apply the customized IP properties.
For example, to apply settings from a CSV file, run the following command.
dr-ip-customizer.exe --cfg ..\config\vmware-dr.xml --cmd apply --csv
"C:\MassIPCustCSVs\MassIPCust-ipv6.csv --vc vc04.eng.example.com

You can include a --verbose option on any dr-ip-customizer.exe command line to log additional
diagnostic messages. Always use the same vCenter Server for apply and drop commands as the one used
to generate the CSV. Virtual machine IDs for protected virtual machines are different at each site, so the
CSV generated at one site should not be applied at a different site.
The specified customizations are applied to all of the virtual machines named in the csv file during a recovery.
(You do not need to manually configure IP settings for these machines when you edit their recovery plan
properties.)
Make sure to consistently use the same --vc setting. You can work with either protected or recovery vCenter
Server, but use the same one for both the generate and apply operations.

Dr Ip Customizer Reference
The dr-ip-customizer.exe tool includes several options. Whenever you use the DR IP Customizer, you must
specify the location of the SRM server configuration XML file and the action to take.
DR IP Customizer Tool Syntax
The syntax of the DR IP Customizer is as follows:
dr-ip-customizer.exe --cfg --cmd [--csv
] [--out ] [--vc ] [--ignorethumbprint] [--extra-dns-columns] [--verbose]

The options available with DR IP Customizer are:
n

-h [ --help ] Display usage info.

--cfg path Path to application XML configuration file.

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--cmd arg Command to execute:
n

apply Applies the network customization settings from the input CSV file to the recovery plans on

the SRM servers.
n

generate Generates a basic CSV file for the all virtual machines in the recovery plans on the SRM

servers.
n

drop Removes virtual machine recovery settings from virtual machines specified by the input CSV

file.
n

--csv arg Path to the CSV file. Read as input for the apply and drop commands.

-o [ --out ] arg Output CSV file to use for the generate command. Will overwrite any existing contents.

--vc arg VMware vCenter Server host name. The virtual machine Ids are different at each site.

-i [ --ignore-thumbprint ] Ignore the server thumbprint confirmation prompt.

-e [ --extra-dns-columns ] Must be specified if the input CSV file contains extra columns for DNS

information.
n

-v [ --verbose ] Enable verbose output.

CSV Structure Reference
You may omit values if no setting is needed. The columns used to apply values to virtual machine network
configurations are as follows:

Adapter ID: A unique identifier used to collect information from multiple rows together for application
to a single virtual machine. Note that settings for entry for VM ID 0 are global settings. This means that
values specified for VM ID 0 are applied to virtual machines that do not have values to override the global
settings. This can be useful, for example, for configuring DNS server information or gateway information.

VM Name

vCenter Server

Adapter ID

DNS Domain

Net BIOS

Primary WINS

Secondary WINS

IP Address: This field is required. You can enter an address or the value DHCP .

Subnet Mask

Gateway(s)

IPv6 Address

IPv6 Subnet Prefix length

IPv6 Gateway(s)

DNS Server(s)

DNS Suffix(es)

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Guidelines
Follow these guidelines.
n

You can export protected virtual machine information to use as a template, rather than author a new CSV
file manually. The generated file can provide a structure that you can modify to suit the needs of your
environment.

Some restrictions exist on the ways in which DNS settings are applied.
n

In Windows
n

DNS Suffix : Global settings for all adapters

DNS Server : per-adapter setting (If user entered it in 'Adapter ID' 0 row, it will be treated as a
global setting)

In Linux
n

DNS Suffix : Global settings for all adapters

DNS Server : Global settings for all adapters

The DR IP Customizer validates that WINS settings are applied only to Windows virtual machines, but it
does not validate NetBIOS settings.

Use the minimum number of rows possible for each adapter.

Use either 1 IPv4 or 1 IPv6 per NIC. Virtual machines may support multiple addresses.

The IPv4 field cannot be left blank. In the IPv4 field you can specify DHCP if a static IPv6 address is to be
used.

Commas are not allowed in any field.

The only fields that you can modify for a row where Adapter ID is 0 are DNS Server(s) and DNS Suffix(es).
These values, if specified, are inherited by all other adapters for that VM ID.

To define properties for a specific adapter on a placeholder virtual machine, create a new row that contains
that virtual machine’s ID in the VM ID column and the adapter ID (the virtual PCI slot in which the adapter
is installed on the placeholder virtual machine) in the Adapter ID column, then specify values for the other
columns.

To specify more than one value for a column, create an additional row for that adapter and include the
value in the column in that row. To ensure the additional row is associated with the intended virtual
machine, copy the VM ID, VM Name, vCenter Server, Adapter ID column values.

The NetBIOS column, if not left empty, must contain one of the following strings: disableNetBIOS,
enableNetBIOS, or enableNetBIOSViaDhcp.

Example
In an SRM recovery plan that defines a placeholder virtual machines, the generated file might look like this:
VM ID,VM Name,VC Name,Adapter ID,Primary WINS,Secondary WINS,IP Address,Subnet
Mask,Gateway(s),DNS Server(s),DNS Suffix(es)
protected-vm-10301,example-vm-3-win,vc04.eng.example.com,0,,,,,,,

The file consists of a header row that defines the meaning of each column, and a single row for each placeholder
virtual machine found in the recovery plan. All the other columns are empty.
After creating the csv file, the contents can be modified to configure settings for three network adapters for the
virtual machine protected-vm-10301.

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Table 8-3. Sample CSV File Contents

vCen
ter
Serv
er

Seco
ndar
y
Wins

VM ID
protect
edvm-10
301

exam
plevm-3
-win

vc04.
eng.e
xamp
le.co
m

examp
le.com

protect
edvm-10
301

exam
plevm-3
-win

vc04.
eng.e
xamp
le.co
m

eng.ex
ample.
com

protect
edvm-10
301

exam
plevm-3
-win

vc04.
eng.e
xamp
le.co
m

protect
edvm-10
301

exam
plevm-3
-win

vc04.
eng.e
xamp
le.co
m

protect
edvm-10
301

exam
plevm-3
-win

vc04.
eng.e
xamp
le.co
m

protect
edvm-10
301

exam
plevm-3
-win

vc04.
eng.e
xamp
le.co
m

192.1
68.1.5

192.1
68.1.6

IP
Addr
ess

192.1
68.1.9

Subn
et
Mask

255.2
55.25
5.0

Gate
way(
s)

192.1
68.1.1

IPv6
Addre
ss

IPv6
Gate
way(s
)

VM
Nam
e

Adap
ter ID

Prim
ary
Wins

IPv6
Subn
et
Prefix
Lengt
h

DNS
Serv
er(s)

DNS
Suffix(
es)

dhcp

192.1
68.1.1
6

192.1
68.1.5

192.1
68.1.6

192.1
68.1.1
0

DHC
P

255.2
55.25
5.0

192.1
68.1.1

192.1
68.1.1
7

::ffff:
192.0.
0.12

::fff:
192.0.
0.1

Configure Protection for a Virtual Machine or Template
You can edit the protection properties of any virtual machine or template in a protection group. You can change
the resource mappings, attached storage devices and their datastores, and other properties that control the
configuration with which the virtual machine is recovered.
You must configure protection for virtual machines that have a status of Not Configured or Mapping Missing.
If you are using array based replication, when you edit the properties of a virtual machine to add or change
storage devices (such as hard disks or DVD drives) you can affect the protection of that machine if you add a
device that is stored on a datastore that is not replicated, or that is protected by a different protection group.

If the new device is created on a replicated datastore that is not protected (not part of any protection group),
the datastore is added to the virtual machine's protected datastore group and the virtual machine's
protection is unaffected.

If the new device is created on a replicated datastore that is protected by a different protection group, the
virtual machine's protection is invalidated.

If the new device is created on a nonreplicated datastore, the virtual machine's protection is invalidated.

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If you use Storage VMotion to move a virtual machine to a nonreplicated datastore, or to a replicated
datastore on an array that SRM has not been configured to manage (through an SRA), the virtual machine's
protection is invalidated. You can use Storage VMotion to move a virtual machine to datastore that is part
of another protection group, though.

Procedure
1

Click Protection Groups in the left pane, navigate to the protection group that includes the virtual machine
that you want to configure.

On the Virtual Machines tab, select a virtual machine and click Configure Protection.

In the Virtual Machine Properties window, review and configure properties as needed.
a

Click Recovery Folder and specify an alternate destination folder.

Click Recovery Resource and specify an alternate resource pool in which to place the recovered virtual
machine.

If configuring protection for a template, click Recovery Host and specify an alternate host to which
to recover the virtual machine.
This step is only applicable for templates.

d
4

Click Recovery Network and specify an alternate recovery network to which to restore the virtual
machine.

Click OK to apply the new configuration to the selected virtual machine.

Configure Resource Mappings for a Virtual Machine
If you have not specified inventory mappings for your site, you must configure resource mappings for
individual virtual machines. You can configure resource mappings only if site-wide inventory mappings have
not been established.
If inventory mappings have been established for a site, you cannot override them by configuring the protection
of individual virtual machines. If you need to override inventory mappings for a few members of a protection
group, use the vSphere Client to connect to the recovery site and edit the settings of the placeholders or move
them to a different folder or resource pool.
Procedure
1

Click Protection Groups, and navigate to the protection group that includes the virtual machine that you
want to configure.

On the Virtual Machines page, right-click a virtual machine and click Configure Protection.
If you established inventory mappings, they are applied.

Configure mappings as needed.
For most virtual machines, you can change the Folder and Compute Resource mappings. For more
information, see “Configure Protection for a Virtual Machine or Template,” on page 86.

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Configure SRM Alarms
SRM adds feature-specific alarms to the ones supported by vCenter. You can configure SRM alarms to send
an email notification, send an SNMP trap, or run a script on the machine that contains the vCenter Server.
vCenter provides a comprehensive and flexible alarm facility. As a vCenter extension, SRM can add its own
alarms to the ones provided by vCenter. The SRM Alarms window lists all SRM alarm events and allows you
to edit their settings to specify the action to take when an event triggers the alarm. None of the SRM alarms
are configured by default to take any action. To enable actions for any of them, you must configure them to
do so.
NOTE For alarms to provide email notification, you must first configure vCenter mail sender settings. See the
vCenter help.
Procedure
1

In the left pane, click Sites, and select a site.

Click the Alarms tab to display the list of SRM alarms.

Right-click an alarm and click Edit Settings.

Click the Actions tab.

Click Add to add an action. The default action for every event is Send a notification e-mail.

(Optional) To change the default action, click it and select a different action from the drop-down list.
The default action for every event is Send a notification e-mail.

Click the General tab.

Check the Enable this alarm option to enable the actions for the alarm.

Working with Advanced Settings
Using the Advanced Settings, you can view or change many custom settings for the SRM service. The Advanced
Settings dialog box provides a way for a user with adequate privileges to change a number of default values
that affect the operation of various SRM features.
Procedure
1

Click Sites in the left pane, and right-click the site whose settings you want to change.

Click Advanced Settings.

, Click a setting category.

In the category window, make your changes.

Click OK to save your changes.

Repeat the procedure as needed at the recovery site.

Guest Customization Settings
Change these settings only if instructed to do so by VMware Support.

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Change Recovery Site Settings
Use the Advanced Settings Recovery page to adjust default values for time-outs that occur when you test or
run a recovery plan. You might do this if tasks were failing to complete due to insufficient time.
Several types of time-outs can occur during the execution of recovery plan steps. These time-outs cause the
plan to pause for a specified interval to give the step time to finish.
Command line timeout

By default, SRM allows 300 seconds for a command step to finish. If a command
step takes longer than 300 seconds, the step terminates and the recovery plan
fails with an error.

Power state change
timeout

By default, SRM allows 120 seconds for a virtual machine at the protected site
to respond to a power-down request when testing or running a recovery plan.
If the request does not finish in this interval, the plan skips to the next virtual
machine in the list (or to the next step) and reports a recovery plan error.

Procedure
1

Click Sites in the left pane, and right-click the site whose settings you want to change.

Click Advanced Settings.

Click Recovery.

Modify recovery site settings.
n

To change the command-line timeout, enter a new value in the
recovery.calloutCommandLineTimeout text box. The new value applies to all command steps.

To change the customization timeout, enter a new value in the recovery.customizationTimeout text
box.

To change the default priority, enter a new value in the recovery.defaultPriority text box.

To change the power off timeout, enter a new value in the recovery.powerOffTimeout text box. The
new time-out value applies to power-off tasks for virtual machines at the protected site.

To enable or disable forced failover, select or deselect the recovery.forcedFailover check box.
NOTE Forced failover is only available in SRM 5.0.1 and later.

To change the delay before powering on a virtual machine, enter a new value in the
recovery.powerOnDelay text box. The new value applies to power-on tasks for virtual machines at
the protected site.

To change the power state change timeout, enter a new value in the recovery.powerOnTimeout text
box. The new power-on value applies to power-on tasks for virtual machines at the protected site.

Enable or disable recovery.preserveCustPkg.

Enable or disable recovery.skipGuestShutdownto complete or skip the guest shutdown.

Click OK to save your changes.

Change Array-Based Storage Provider Settings
For array-based replication, the SAN provider is the interface between SRM and your storage replication
adapter (SRA). Some SRAs require you to make changes to default SAN provider values. You can change the
default timeout values and other behaviors of the SRM SAN provider.
For more information about these values, see the SRA documentation from your array vendor.

VMware, Inc.

Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Procedure
1

Click Sites in the left pane, and right-click the site whose settings you want to change.

Click Advanced Settings.

Click storageProvider.

Modify the SAN provider settings.
n

To force removal, upon successful completion of a recovery, of the snap-xx prefix applied to recovered
datastore names, select the storageProvider.fixRecoveredDatastoreNames check box.

To repeat host scans during testing and recovery, enter a new value in the
storageProvider.hostRescanRepeatCnt text box. Some storage arrays require more than one rescan,
for example to discover the snapshots of failed-over LUNs.
NOTE The storageProvider.hostRescanRepeatCnt parameter is available in SRM 5.0.1 and later. It is
not available in SRM 5.0.

To change the interval that SRM waits for each HBA rescan to complete, enter a new value in the
storageProvider.hostRescanTimeoutSec text box.

Click OK to save your changes.

Change Local Site Settings
SRM monitors consumption of resources on the SRM server host, and it raises an alarm when a resource
threshold is reached. You can use the Advanced Settings localSiteStatus page to change the thresholds and
the way the alarms are raised to suit your needs.
Procedure
1

Click Sites in the left pane, and right-click the local site whose settings you want to change.

Click Advanced Settings.

Click localSiteStatus.

Change the settings as needed.

To change the interval at which SRM checks the CPU usage, disk space, and free memory at the local
site, enter a new value in the localSiteStatus.checkInterval text box.

To change the name for the local site, enter a new value in the localSiteStatus.displayName text box.

To change the interval that which SRM waits between raising alarms about CPU usage, disk space,
and free memory at the local site, enter a new value in the localSiteStatus.eventFrequency text box.

To change the percentage of CPU usage that causes SRM to raise a high CPU usage event, enter a new
value in the localSiteStatus.maxCpuUsage text box.

To change the percentage of free disk space that causes SRM to raise a low disk space event, enter a
new value in the localSiteStatus.minDiskSpace text box.

To change the amount of free memory that causes SRM to raise a low memory event, enter a new
value in the localSiteStatus.minMemory text box.

Click OK to save your changes.

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Chapter 8 Customizing Site Recovery Manager

Change Remote Site Settings
Use the Advanced Settings remoteSiteStatus page to modify default values that the SRM server at the site to
which the vSphere Client is currently connected uses to determine whether the SRM server at the remote site
is available
SRM monitors the connection between the members of an SRM site pair (a protected site and its recovery site)
and, by default, raises alarms when this connection is interrupted. You can change the criteria that cause a
"remote site down" event and also change the way the related alarms are raised to suit your needs.
Procedure
1

Click Sites in the left pane, and right-click the remote site whose settings you want to change.

Click Advanced Settings.

Click remoteSiteStatus.

Modify the settings.

To change the number of failed pings before posting a site down event, enter a new value in the
remoteSiteStatus.panicDelay text box.

To change the number of remote site status checks (pings) to try before declaring the check a failure,
enter a new value in the remoteSiteStatus.pingFailedDelay text box.

To change the interval at which SRM checks to see whether the SRM server at the remote site is
available, enter a new value in the remoteSiteStatus.pingInterval text box.

Click OK to save your changes.

Change Storage Settings
You can adjust SRM storage settings.
Procedure
1

Click Sites in the left pane, right-click a site, and click Advanced Settings.

In the navigation pane of the Advanced Settings window, click Storage.

Modify the storage settings as needed.

VMware, Inc.

To change SRA update timeout, enter a new value in the storage.commandTimeout field.

To change the maximum number of concurrent SRA operations, enter a new value in the
storage.maxConcurrentCommandCnt field.

To change the minimum amount of time in seconds between datastore group computations, enter a
new value in the storage.minDsGroupComputationInterval field.

To change the interval between status updates for ongoing data synchronization operations, enter a
new value in the storage.querySyncStatusPollingInterval field.

To change the interval between storage array discovery checks, enter a new value in the
storage.storagePingInterval field.

To change the maximum amount of time permitted for data synchronization operations to complete,
enter a new value in the storage.syncTimeout field.

Click OK to save your changes and close the Advanced Settings window.

Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Change Replication Setting
You can adjust replication settings to modify how long SRM waits for virtual machine placeholder creation to
complete.
Procedure
1

Click Sites, and right-click the site whose settings you want to change.

Click Advanced Settings.

Click replication.

Change the replication.placeholderVmCreationTimeout setting to modify the number of seconds to wait
when creating a placeholder virtual machine.

Click OK to save your changes.

Change vSphere Replication Settings
You can adjust the settings for vSphere Replication (VR) to specify different recovery point objectives.
Procedure

Click Sites in the left pane, and right-click the site whose settings you want to change.

Click Advanced Settings.

Click vrReplication.

Modify default recovery point objective (RPO) settings.

Click OK to save your changes.

VMware, Inc.

Troubleshooting SRM

If you have problems with replication, site pairing, or guest customization, you can troubleshoot the problem.
To help identify the cause, you might need to collect SRM server or client log files to review or send to VMware
Support.
Errors encountered during SRM operations appear in error dialog boxes or appear in the Recent Tasks window.
Most errors also generate an entry in an SRM log files. Check the recent tasks and log files for the recovery site
and the protected site.
When searching for the cause of a problem, also check the VMware knowledge base at
http://kb.vmware.com.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n

“Events and Alarms,” on page 93

“Collecting SRM Log Files,” on page 102

“Features Are Unavailable When Deploying VRMS,” on page 103

“OVF Package is Invalid and Cannot be Deployed,” on page 103

“Connection Errors Between VRMS and SQL Cannot be Resolved,” on page 103

“Configuration of the VRMS Database Fails with DB2 Databases,” on page 104

Events and Alarms
SRM supports logging events and each event includes a corresponding alarm that can be triggered when the
event occurs. This provides a way to track to health and functioning of your system and resolve potential issues
before they impact the protection SRM provides.
Alarms are enabled using the Alarm Manager in the vSphere Client. SRM also includes SNMP traps.
Events can be categorized according to functional areas:
n

Site Status

Protection Group Events

Recovery Events

SNMP Traps

Storage and Storage Provider Events

Licensing Events

Permissions Events

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Connection Monitor Algorithm
Connection related events are produced according to this algorithm:
1

When administrative connection between two paired SRM servers is established SRM server that initiated
the connection raises RemoteSiteUpEvent.

When SRM detects that a monitored connection is down it starts a periodic connection check. Time interval
for these pings is configurable through the remoteSiteStatus.pingInterval advanced setting.
a

Connection monitor skips a configurable number of failed pings. You can control this number through
the remoteSiteStatus.pingFailedDelay advanced setting.

When the number of skipped failed pings exceeds the allowed value SRM posts
RemoteSitePingFailedEvent.

When the number of skipped failed pings becomes more than another configurable limit SRM raises
RemoteSiteDownEvent on each failed ping and stops raising RemoteSitePingFailedEventevents. The
second limit of failed pings is configurable through remoteSiteStatus.panicDelay advanced setting.

SRM continues to raise connection down events until connection is reestablished.

Site Status Events
Site status events provide information about the status and connection between protected and recovery sites.
Table 9-1. Site Status Events
Event Key

Event Description

Cause

UnknownStatusEvent

SRM server status is not available

RemoteSiteDownEvent

Remote SRM site is down

This event is signaled when the SRM
server loses its connection with the
remote SRM server.

RemoteSitePingFailedEvent

Remote SRM site is not responding to
pings

This may be due to failures at the site or
network connectivity.

RemoteSiteCreatedEvent

Remote SRM site has been created

This occurs when a site is established.

RemoteSiteUpEvent

Remote SRM site is responsive

This occurs when the SRM server reestablishes its connection with the
remote SRM server.

RemoteSiteDeletedEvent

Remote SRM site has been deleted.

Protection Group Events
Protection Group events provide information about actions and status related to protection groups.
These events have three categories:

Protection Group Replication Informational Events

Protection Group Replication Warning Events

Protection Group Replication Error Events

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Chapter 9 Troubleshooting SRM

Table 9-2. Protection Group Replication Informational Events
Event Key

Event Description

Cause

ProtectionGroup > CreatedEvent

Created protection group.

Posted on both vCenter Servers in the
completion of the Commit phase of
creating a protection group.

ProtectionGroup > RemovedEvent

Removed protection group.

Posted on both vCenter Servers in the
completion of the Commit phase of
removing a protection group.

ProtectionGroup > ReconfiguredEvent

Reconfigured protection group.

Posted on both vCenter Servers in the
completion of the Commit phase of
reconfiguring a protection group.

ProtectedVmCreatedEvent

Virtual machine in group is
configured for protection.

Posted on both vCenter Servers in the
completion of the Commit phase of the
protection of a virtual machine.

ProtectedVmRemovedEvent

Virtual machine in group is no longer
configured for protection.

Posted on both vCenter Servers in the
completion of the Commit phase of
unprotecting a virtual machine.

ProtectedVmReconfiguredProtectionSe
ttingsEvent

Reconfigured protection settings for
virtual machine.

Posted on both vCenter Servers in the
completion of the Commit phase of
reconfiguring virtual machine
protection settings.

ProtectedVmReconfiguredRecoveryLo
cationSettingsEvent

Reconfigured recovery location
settings for virtual machine.

Posted on the Production site vCenter
Server only on the successful
completion of reconfiguring the
recovery location settings for a
protected virtual machine.

PlaceholderVmCreatedEvent

The placeholder virtual machine was
created in the VMware vCenter Server
inventory.

Posted on the Recovery site vCenter
Server only when we create the
placeholder virtual machine as a result
of protection, repair.

PlaceholderVmCreatedFromOldProdu
ctionVmEvent

The placeholder virtual machine was
created in the VMware vCenter Server
inventory using the identity of the old
production virtual machine.

Posted on the Recovery site vCenter
Server only when we create the
placeholder virtual machine as a result
of swapping for the old production
virtual machine during or after
reprotection.

Table 9-3. Protection Group Replication Warning Events
Event Key

Event Description

Cause

VmNotFullyProtectedEvent

Virtual machine in group: One or more
devices need to be configured for
protection.

Posted on the Production site vCenter
Server only upon device handling
updating the recovery location settings
with a non-empty unresolvedDevices
set. This can be triggered by changes to
the production virtual machine or
during reprotection of a virtual
machine.

PlaceholderVmUnexpectedlyDeletedE
vent

Virtual machine in group: The
placeholder virtual machine was
removed from the VMware vCenter
Server inventory.

Posted on the Recovery site vCenter
Server only when we detect that the
placeholder virtual machine was
unexpectedly deleted or removed from
the vCenter inventory.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Table 9-4. Protection Group Replication Error Events
Event Key

Event Description

Cause

ProductionVmDeletedEvent

Virtual machine in group: The
production virtual machine has been
removed from the virtual
machineware vCenter Server
inventory.

Posted when we detect that the
protected virtual machine’s production
virtual machine has been deleted or
removed from the vCenter inventory.

ProductionVmInvalidEvent

Virtual machine in group: Cannot
resolve the file locations of the
production virtual machine for
replication.

Posted whenever we handle device or
recovery location changes but notice
that the provider cannot find the
production virtual machine files in
order to replicate them.

Recovery Events
Recovery events provide information about actions and status related to recovery processes.
Table 9-5. Recovery Events

Event Key

Event Description

Cause

RecoveryVmBegin

Recovery Plan has begun recovering
the specified virtual machine.

Signaled when the recovery virtual
machine was successfully created. If
some error occurred before the virtual
machine ID is known the event is not
fired.

RecoveryVmEnd

Recovery Plan has completed
recovering the virtual machine.

Signaled after the last post-power on
script has completed, or after a
recovery-stopping error has occurred
for the virtual machine.

RecoveryPlanCreate

Recovery Plan has been created.

Signaled when a new plan is created or
cloned. It will be sent to each vCenter
server where the plan is hosted.

RecoveryPlanDestroy

Recovery Plan has been destroyed.

Signaled when a plan has been deleted
from the site. Note that on the site where
the plan has been requested to deleted
there can be a significant delay, while it
waits for the plan to be deleted at the
other site. It will be sent to each vCenter
server where the plan is hosted.

RecoveryPlanEdit

Recovery Plan was changed.

RecoveryPlanExecuteTestBegin

Recovery Plan has begun a test.

Signaled on the recovery site when a
recovery test is initiated.

RecoveryPlanExecuteTestEnd

Recovery Plan has completed a test.

Signaled on the recovery site when a
recovery test has completed. If an error
occurred it is available as described.

RecoveryPlanExecuteCleanupBegin

Recovery Plan has begun a test
cleanup.

Signaled on the recovery site when a test
cleanup is initiated.

RecoveryPlanExecuteCleanupEnd

Recovery Plan has completed a test
cleanup.

Signaled on the recovery site when a test
cleanup has completed. If an error
occurred it is available as described.

RecoveryPlanExecuteBegin

Recovery Plan has begun a recovery.

Signaled on the recovery site when a
recovery is initiated.

RecoveryPlanExecuteEnd

Recovery Plan has completed a
recovery.

Signaled on the recovery site when a
recovery has completed. If an error
occurred it is available as described.

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Chapter 9 Troubleshooting SRM

Table 9-5. Recovery Events (Continued)
Event Key

Event Description

Cause

RecoveryPlanExecuteReprotectBegin

Recovery Plan has begun a reprotect
operation.

Signaled on the recovery site when a
reprotect is initiated.

RecoveryPlanExecuteReprotectEnd

Recovery Plan has completed a
reprotect operation.

Signaled on the recovery site when a
reprotect has completed. If an error
occurred it is available as described.

RecoveryPlanPromptDisplay

Recovery Plan is displaying a prompt
and is waiting for user input.

Signaled on the recovery site when a
prompt step is encountered. The key is
a unique identifier for the prompt.

RecoveryPlanPromptResponse

Recovery Plan has received an answer
to its prompt.

Signaled on the recovery site when a
prompt step is closed.

RecoveryPlanServerCommandBegin

Recovery Plan has started to run a
Command on the SRM server
machine.

Signaled on the recovery site when SRM
has started to run a Callout Command
on the SRM server machine.

RecoveryPlanServerCommandEnd

Recovery Plan has completed the
execution of a Command on the SRM
server machine.

Signaled on the recovery site when SRM
has finished running a Callout
Command on the SRM server machine.

RecoveryPlanVmCommandBegin

Recovery Plan has started to run a
Command on a recovered virtual
machine.

Signaled on the recovery site when SRM
has started to run a Callout Command
on a recovered virtual machine.

RecoveryPlanVmCommandEnd

Recovery Plan has completed the
execution of a Command on a
recovered virtual machine.

Signaled on the recovery site when SRM
has finished running a Callout
Command on a recovered virtual
machine.

SNMP Traps
SRM sends SNMP traps to community targets defined in vCenter. You can configure them using the vSphere
Client. When you enter localhost or 127.0.0.1 as a target host for SNMP traps, SRM uses the IP address or host
name of the vSphere server as configured by the SRM installer.
SNMP traps for SRM 5.0 are backward compatible with SRM 4.0 and later releases.
Table 9-6. SNMP Traps
Type

Description

Content

RecoveryPlanExecuteTestBeginTrap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
starts a test.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state.

RecoveryPlanExecuteTestEndTrap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
ends a test.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state, result
status.

RecoveryPlanExecuteCleanupBeginTra
p

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
starts a test cleanup.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state.

RecoveryPlanExecuteCleanupEndTrap

This trap is sent a Recovery Plan ends
a test cleanup.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state, result
status.

RecoveryPlanExecuteBeginTrap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
starts a recovery.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state.

RecoveryPlanExecuteEndTrap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
ends a recovery.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state, result
status.

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Table 9-6. SNMP Traps (Continued)
Type

Description

Content

RecoveryPlanExecuteReprotectBeginTr
ap

This trap is sent when SRM starts the
reprotect workflow for a Recovery
Plan.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state.

RecoveryPlanExecuteReprotectEndTra
p

This trap is sent when SRM has
finished the reprotect workflow for a
Recovery Plan.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state, result
status.

RecoveryVmBeginTrap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
starts recovering a virtual machine.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state, virtual
machine name, virtual machine UUID.

RecoveryVmEndTrap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
has finished recovering a virtual
machine.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state, virtual
machine name, virtual machine UUID,
result status.

RecoveryPlanServerCommandBeginTr
ap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
starts the execution of a command
callout on SRM server's machine.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state,
command name.

RecoveryPlanServerCommandEndTra
p

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
has finished the execution of a
command callout on SRM server's
machine.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state,
command name, result status.

RecoveryPlanVmCommandBeginTrap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
starts the execution of a command
callout on a recovered virtual
machine.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state,
command name, virtual machine name,
virtual machine UUID.

RecoveryPlanVmCommandEndTrap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
has finished the execution of a
command callout on a recovered
virtual machine.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state,
command name, virtual machine name,
virtual machine UUID, result status.

RecoveryPlanPromptDisplayTrap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
requires user input before continuing.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, execution state, prompt
string.

RecoveryPlanPromptResponseTrap

This trap is sent when a Recovery Plan
no longer requires user input before
continuing.

SRM site name, recovery plan name,
recovery type, and execution state.

Storage and Storage Provider Events
Storage and storage provider events provide information about actions and status related storage or storage
providers.
Table 9-7. SRA Events

Type

Description

Content

StorageAdapterLoaded

Loaded the specified SRA.

SRM detected new SRA either during
startup or during user-initiated SRAs
reload.

StorageAdapterReloadFailed

Failed to load SRA from the specified
path.

SRM failed to reload previously known
SRA either during startup or during
user-initiated SRAs reload.

StorageAdapterChanged

Loaded new version of the specified
SRA.

SRM detected that previously known
SRA was upgraded.

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Chapter 9 Troubleshooting SRM

Table 9-8. Array Manager Events
Type

Description

Content

StorageArrayManagerAdded

Created the specified array manager
using the specified SRA.

User added an Array Manager.

StorageArrayManagerRemoved

Deleted the specified array manager.

User removed an Array Manager.

StorageArrayManagerReconfigured

Reconfigured the specified array
manager.

User edited Array Manager properties.

StorageArrayManagerPingOk

Ping for the specified array manager
succeeded.

SRM server successfully pinged an
Array Manager.

StorageArrayManagerPingFailed

Failed to ping the specified array
manager.

An error occurred during Array
Manager ping.

Type

Description

Content

StorageArrayPairDiscovered

Discovered replicated array pair with
Array Manager.

User created Array Manager which
discovered replicated array pairs.

StorageArrayPairEnabled

Enabled replicated array pair with
Array Manager.

User enabled an Array Pair.

StorageArrayPairDisabled

Disabled replicated array pair with
Array Manager.

User disabled an Array Pair.

StorageArrayPairPingOk

Ping for replicated array pair
succeeded.

SRM server successfully pinged the
array pair.

StorageArrayPairPingFailed

Failed to ping replicated array pair.

An error occurred during Array Pair
ping.

Type

Description

Content

StorageDatastoreDiscovered

Discovered replicated datastore.

SRM server discovered replicated
datastore.

StorageDatastoreLost

Specified datastore is no longer
replicated.

User turned off replication of storage
devices backing the datastore.

StorageRdmDiscovered

Discovered replicated RDM attached
to specified virtual machine.

SRM server discovered replicated RDM.

StorageRdmLost

RDM attached to specified virtual
machine is no longer replicated.

User turned off replication of the LUN
backing the RDM.

Type

Description

Content

StorageProviderDatastoreProtected

Protected datastore in specified
protection group.

User included datastore in new or
existing protection group.

StorageProviderDatastoreUnprotected

Unprotected specified datastore.

User removed datastore from
protection group or deleted protection
group which contained this datastore.

StorageProviderVmDiscovered

Discovered replicated virtual
machine.

User created virtual machine on a
replicated datastore.

StorageProviderVmLost

Specified virtual machine is no longer
replicated

User migrated virtual machine off of the
replicated datastore.

Table 9-9. Array Pair Events

Table 9-10. Datastore Events

Table 9-11. Protection Events

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

Table 9-11. Protection Events (Continued)

100

Type

Description

Content

StorageProviderDatastoreProtectionMi
ssing

Replicated datastore needs to be
included in specified protection
group.

See description.

StorageProviderDatastoreProtectionCo
nflict

Replicated datastore needs to be
included in specified protection group
but is included in an alternate
protection group.

See description.

StorageProviderDatastoreReplicationL
ost

Datastore included in specified
protection group is no longer
replicated.

User turned off replication for devices
backing the datastore.

StorageProviderGroupProtectionResto
red

Protection has been restored for
specified protection group.

The previous (non-empty) issues of a
protection group are cleared.

StorageProviderVmDatastoreProtectio
nMissing

Datastore used by virtual machine
needs to be included in specified
protection group.

See description.

StorageProviderVmDatastoreProtectio
nConflict

Datastore used by specified virtual
machine needs to be added to
specified protection group, but is
currently in use by an alternate
protection group.

See description.

StorageProviderVmDatastoreReplicati
onLost

Datastore used by specified virtual
machine and included in specified
protection group is no longer
replicated.

See description.

StorageProviderVmProtectionRestored

Protection for specified virtual
machine in specified protection group
has been restored.

The previous (non-empty) issues for a
protected virtual machine are cleared.
The event will not be posted when
issues related to non-protected virtual
machine are cleared

StorageProviderGgSpansProtectionGr
oups

Specified consistency group spans
specified protection groups.

See description.

StorageProviderCgDatastoreMissingPr
otection

Datastore from specified consistency
group needs to be included in
specified protection group.

See description.

StorageProviderDatastoreSpansConsis
tencyGroups

Datastore spans devices from different
consistency groups.

See description.

StorageProviderNfsDatastoreUrlConfli
ct

NFS datastores mounted from
specified volume have different URLs
mounted from the remote host. The
remote path has the specified URL,
while the datastore mounted from the
other host has the specified URL.

The same NFS volume is mounted using
the different IP addresses of the same
NFS server in two different datastores.

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Chapter 9 Troubleshooting SRM

Licensing Events
Licensing events provide information about changes in SRM licensing status.
Table 9-12. Licensing Events
Type

Description

Content

LicenseExpiringEvent

The SRM License at the specified site
expires in the specified number of
days.

Every 24 hours, non-evaluation,
expiring licenses are checked for the
number of days left. This event is posted
with the results.

EvaluationLicenseExpiringEvent

The SRM Evaluation License at the
specified site expires in the specified
number of days.

Every 24 hours, evaluation licenses are
checked for the number of days left. This
event is posted with the results.

LicenseExpiredEvent

The SRM license at the specified site
license has expired.

Every 30 minutes, expired (nonevaluation) licenses will post this event.

EvaluationLicenseExpiredEvent

The SRM Evaluation License at the
specified site license has expired.

Every 30 minutes, evaluation licenses
will post this event.

UnlicensedFeatureEvent

The SRM license at the specified site is
overallocated by the specified number
of licenses.

Every 24 hours and upon the protection
or unprotection of a virtual machine,
this event will be posted if the total
number of licenses exceeds the capacity
in the license.

LicenseUsageChangedEvent

The SRM license at the specified site is
using the specified number out of the
total number licenses.

Every 24 hours and upon the protection
or unprotection of a virtual machine,
this event will be posted if the total
number of licenses does not exceed the
capacity in the license.

Permissions Events
Permission events provide information about changes to SRM permissions.
Table 9-13. Permissions Events
Type

Description

Content

PermissionsAddedEvent

Permission created for the entity on
SRM.

A permission for the entity was created
using the role specified. The
IsPropagate flag indicates whether the
permission is propagated down the
entity hierarchy.

PermissionsDeletedEvent

Permission rule removed for the entity
on SRM

A permission for the entity was deleted.

PermissionsUpdatedEvent

Permission changed for the entity on
SRM.

A permission for the indicated entity
was modified.

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Collecting SRM Log Files
SRM creates several log files that contain information that can help VMware Support diagnose problems. You
can use the SRM log collector to simplify log file collection.
The SRM server and client use different log files. The SRM server log files contain information about the server
configuration and messages related to server operations. The SRM client log files contain information about
the client configuration and messages related to client plug-in operations. The SRM plug-in logs are part of
the general logs produced by the vSphere client. As a result, collecting the vSphere client log files (together
with the vSphere log files) collects SRM plug-in log files. The SRM log collects or retrieves the files and collects
them in compressed file (zipped) which is placed in a location that you choose.
SRM also provides for the collection of VRMS and VR logs as part of the SRM log bundle. Logs from vCenter
servers and ESX servers that are part of your SRM system might also include information useful in diagnosing
SRM issues.

Collect SRM Log Files Using the vSphere Client
SRM supports downloading logs for SRM, VRM, VR, VC, and ESX from a single site to a user-specified location.
Use this information to understand and resolve issues. For best results, collect logs from each site.
Procedure
1

Click Sites, and select a site.

Click the Summary tab, and click Export System Logs.

Specify log collection settings. You may After selecting a location, click Next.
a

In the Download Location field, enter a path, or click Browse to browse for a location.
You can also create a folder.

(Optional) In Options, disable download of vSphere Replication (VR) log data.

VR system logs are downloaded by default. These logs include information about vSphere Replication
Management (VRM), VR, and replication events.
The Downloading System Logs Bundles window provides information about the following:
n

A list of each host system, the status of their log bundle download, and other details.

Download Details provides information on the log bundle file name and destination for the log bundle
file.

This process does not collect client logs. Client logs must be collected separately.

Collect SRM Server Log Files
You can collect SRM server log files into a log bundle to gather information that may be useful in diagnosing
problems.
Procedure
n

102

To initiate the collection of SRM server log files from the Start menu:
a

Select Start > Programs > VMware > VMware Site Recovery Manager > Generate vCenter Site
Recovery Manager log bundle.

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Chapter 9 Troubleshooting SRM

To initiate the collection of SRM server log files from the Windows command line:
a

Start a Windows command shell on the SRM server host.

Change directory to C:\Program Files (x86)\VMware\VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager\bin.

Run the following command.
cscript srm-support.wsf

The individual log files are collected in a file named srm-support-MM-DD-YYYY-HH-MM.zip, where MM-DDYYYY-HH-MM indicates the month, day, year, hour, and minute when the log files were created.

Features Are Unavailable When Deploying VRMS
When you deploy VRMS, you get an error about unavailable features.
Problem
When you deply VRMS, an error appears about unavailable features.
Cause
This error is typically the result of the vCenter Management Web service being paused or stopped.
Solution
Attempt to start the vCenter Management Web service. If the service fails to start, confirm that Tomcat is
running on the server. If the server is installed, but not running, try starting the server. If attempting to start
the Tomcat server does not resolve the problem, the issue might be occurring because the vCenter Server has
the wrong version of Java installed.

OVF Package is Invalid and Cannot be Deployed
When you attempt to deploy OVF for the vSphere Replication Server, the OVF package error might occur.
Problem
The error OVF package is invalid and cannot be deployed might appear while you attempt to deploy the
vSphere Replication Management Server.
Cause
This problem is due to the vCenter Server port being changed from the default of 80.
Solution
If possible, change the vCenter Server port back to 80.

Connection Errors Between VRMS and SQL Cannot be Resolved
You get a connection error between the vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS) and SQL that you
cannot resolve.
Problem
VRMS might not be able to connect to SQL, and you have insufficient information to solve this problem.
Cause
This problem can be caused by several issues, and initially available information about the problem is
insufficient to affect a resolution.

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Solution
1

Use a file management tool to connect to the VRMS appliance.
For example, you might use SCP or WinSCP. Connect using the root account, which is the same account
used to connect to VAMI.

Delete any files you find in /opt/vmware/vrms/logs.

Connect to VAMI and attempt to save the VRMS configuration.
This action recreates the SQL error.

Connect to the VRMS appliance again and find the hms.log file which is in /opt/vmware/vrms/logs.
This log file contains information about the error that just occurred. Use this information to troubleshoot
the connection issue, or provide the information to VMware for further assistance.

Configuration of the VRMS Database Fails with DB2 Databases
vSphere Replication creates temporary tables in the vSphere Replication Management Server (VRMS) database.
When you use a DB2 database, the database might require additional configuration.
Problem
If the VRMS user account that you use to log in to the VRMS database cannot create temporary tables,
configuration of VRMS can fail, the VRMS database can become unstable, and replication can fail. If the
temporary table space is not configured for this user account, the VRMS logs include error messages.
n

javax.persistence.PersistenceException: org.hibernate.exception.SQLGrammarException: could
not insert/select ids for bulk delete

DB2 SQL Error: SQLCODE=-204, SQLSTATE=42704

This problem only occurs when you use a DB2 database.
Cause
The temporary table space was not configured for the user account that you use to connect to the VRMS
database.
Solution
1

Run an SQL script to verify that the VRMS user account can create temporary tables in DB2 databases.
declare global temporary table testtable(foobar integer) on commit preserve rows not logged

If the script runs successfully, no further configuration is required. If it fails, you see a message like the
following message:
A default table space could not be found with a page size of at least "4096" that authorization
ID "HMS_PROT" is authorized to use. SQLCODE=-286, SQLSTATE=42727, DRIVER=4.11.69

If the script fails, run an SQL script to configure the temporary table space.
CREATE USER TEMPORARY TABLESPACE tbsp_temp_hms_prot MANAGED BY AUTOMATIC STORAGE GRANT USE OF
TABLESPACE tbsp_temp_hms_prot TO USER HMS_PROT

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Index

A
administration, overview of 9
advanced setting dialog box, vSphere
replication 92
advanced setting dialog boxes
replication 92
storage 91
advanced settings dialog box, recovery site 89
advanced settings dialog boxes
guest customization 88
local site 90
remote site 91
SAN provider 89
Advanced Settings dialog boxes 88
alarms, SRM-specific 88
array based protection group, edit 61
array based recovery plan, create 67
array managers
and storage replication adapters 47
edit 48
replicated device discovery 47
to configure 47
to rescan arrays 48
authentication
certificate warnings and 18
methods used by Site Recovery Manager 18

C
callouts, See also recover steps
certificate
public key 18
requirements for 19
to change type 40
to update 40
certificate warning 18
client plug-in, upgrade 36
configure
custom recovery steps 79
upgraded srm installation 36
connect to, srm 24
custom recovery steps, configure 79
customizing, IP properties 80
customizing SRM 75

D
database
backup requirements 35, 40

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configuration details 28
Connection Count value 16
DB2 29
Max Connections value 16
Microsoft SQL Server 28
Oracle 28
Site Recovery Manager 16
to change connection details 28, 40
vCenter 17
VRMS 29
database configuration, vSphere Replication 29
datastore
protected 11
replicated 13
datastore group
how computed 12
maximum number supported 24
datastore mappings, configure 44
dr-ip-customizer.exe, reference 83

E
environment variables 76
events
licensing 101
permissions 101
protection groups 94
recovery 96
site status 94
storage 98
storage provider 98

F
failback, about 16
failover, effects of 70
feedback 7
forced failover 70

H
host based replication 12

I
installation
of storage replication adapter 38
reverting to a previous release 40
Site Recovery Manager Client plug-in 38
Site Recovery Manager server 31

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

to repair 40
updating to a new release 35
inventory mappings
about 14
and placeholders 14
to apply 66
to create 44
to override 86, 87
IP address mappings
to customize 83
to report 82
IP properties, customizing 80

L
license key, to install 42
licensing
about 18
events 101
license key 42
linked clones, limitations on recovery of 59
log files
collecting 102
SRM server 102
logs, downloading 102

M
managing 24

N
network, test 14
network settings, vrms 54

O
OVF, cannot be deployed 103

P
pair, vrms 55
permissions
events 101
to assign 21
permissions and roles, understanding 20
permissions required 24
physical couriering 64
placeholder datastore, add 44
placeholder datastores, understanding 43
placeholders, in vCenter inventory 14
plug-in
Site Recovery Manager Client 38
to install 38
ports, used by SRM 23
protected site
configure array managers for 47
configuring 47
host compatibility requirements 11
to designate 39

106

protection group
maximum number supported 24
relationship to datastore group 13
relationship to recovery plan 13
to create 60
protection groups
events 94
vr 61

R
recovery
customize for a virtual machine 80
events 96
steps 78
test 67
recovery plan
cleanup 68
command steps 76
customizing 75
force cleanup 68
forced failover 70
running 14, 70
steps 75
testing 14, 68
time-outs 75
to change properties of 68
to customize steps 77
to remove 68
to report IP address mappings used by 82
virtual machine recovery priority 75
recovery priority, virtual machine 75, 78
recovery site
configure array managers for 47
configuring 47
host compatibility requirements 11
to designate 39
recovery test, to cancel 69
replicating, virtual machines 59
replication
and recovery 14
array-based 11
sneakernet 64
replication framework 43
reprotect 16
reprotection
process 72
understanding 71
reprotection states 73
roles, to assign 21

S
security settings, vrms 53
settings, vrs 56

VMware, Inc.

Index

site
protected 11
recovery 11
site pairing 39
Site Recovery Manager, and other vCenter Server
Solutions 17
site status, events 94
snapshots, limitations on recovery of 59
sneakernet, replication 64
SNMP traps 97
SRA, See storage replication adapter
SRM migration utility 37
srm roles 21
srm upgrade, preparation 34
steps, recovery 78
storage, events 98
storage provider, events 98
storage replication adapter
and array managers 47
to download 38
to install 38
support 7
suspended virtual machines, limitations on
recovery oflimitations on recovery of 59
system settings, vrms 52

system settings 52
time zone 54
VRMS
database 29
deploy 52
features unavailable 103
VRMS and SQL, connection failure 103
VRMS database
configure temporary tables 104
troubleshooting 104
vrs, settings 56
vSphere Replication
database configuration 29
deployment limits 24
vSphere Replication Server (VRS), register 57

W
workflow 10

T
troubleshooting 93

U
understanding
permissions and roles 20
reprotection 71
upgrade, client plug-in 36
upgrading, SRM 33

V
vCenter
and Site Recovery Manager 17
to change connection information 40
to change credentials used by Site Recovery
Manager 40
virtual machine
customize IP properties for 83
customize recovery of 80
recovery priority 75, 78
vr, replicate virtual machines 62, 63
vr protection group, edit 62
vr server
deploy 55
move 66
vrm, working with 51
vrms
network settings 54
pair 55
security settings 53

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Site Recovery Manager Administration Guide

108

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