How to Configure Site Recovery Manager 5.1

In order to configure srm, two sites need to be configured. The first one is the protected site and the second is the recovery site. At a minimum, each site should have a vcenter server and at least one esxi server. Each site should have at least one virtual machine for testing purposes. Once the two sites are built, the installation of srm 5.1 can proceed.

Step 1. In both sites, use the vsphere client create a virtual switch with a port group to be used by vSphere Replication. A standard switch or distributed switch can be used.

Step 2. In both sites, double click on the srm 5.1 installer and during the srm install wizard, accept the license, select the destination folder and specify the name of the vcenter server for that site. Use a FQDN.  Use the default selection for the certificate type selection and add a name and organization unit. In the SRM Extention field, add the name for the local site and add an email address. When faced with the questions regarding the database configuration, add the database client, the data source name, username and password.. Click on install.

 Step 3. In both sites, use the vsphere client to enable the srm client plugin. Click on Plugins, Manage Plugins and click on Download and Install the Client Plugin. Click on Home and verify that the client plugin is enabled.

Step 4. Once the software is installed, it's time to pair up the two sites. Go to one of the sites only. Using the vsphere client, click on Home and then click on the Site Recovery Icon. Click on the Summary tab, Click on Configure Connection in the Commands panel. Add the FQDN of the vcenter server on the other site. authenticate yourself (ex: administrator//password) and complete the connection. Once this is done, verify that both sites are connected.

Step 5. On both sites, click on home and click on the icon vcenter server settings. Click on Runtime Settings and input the ip address of the respective vcenter server. This will set the vcenter Server Managed IP Field.

Step 6. On both sites, it's time to deploy the replication appliance. Click on Home and then select the SRM icon. Click on the Summary Tab and then click on Deploy VR Appliance. Point to the OVF file of the appliance, give the appliance a name and select the host and datastore to use. Connect it to the switch/port group created earlier. Specify the ip, gateway, dns records and click on finish. A few minutes later, the appliance is created and boots automatically. The appliance is based on SUSE linux and it has 2 virtual cpus and 4 gbs of ram.

Step 7. Next, configure the appliance. Click on the Summary tab and click on Configure the VR appliance.
Log in as root and select the VR tab and the click on Configuration. Specify the ip address of the VRM host, add the name of the VRM site and specify the FQDN of the vcenter server. Select Generate a self-signed certificate and Save and Restart the Service.

Step 8. Configure a VR appliance connection by selecting Configure the VR Connection. By the time you are done, the Summary tab will show that the sites and appliance are connected.

Step 9. Now it's time to map the pools, folders and networks between sites. In your protected site, click on
home and click on the SRM icon. Select your site and click on Resource Mappings. Map your pools to the pools on the recovery site. Click on the Folder Mappings tab and do the same. Do the same with the Network Mappings tab.  Below is a capture of the network mapping.

Step 10. Click on Placeholder Datastore. Select a vmfs datastore to be used to store small placeholder files.

Step 11. Configure Replication for one virtual machine. Click on Home and select Hosts and Clusters. Find
your virtual machine and right click on it. Select vSphere Replication. Select an RPO (Recovery Point) of 15 minutes, select a remote datastore, enable replication for the disk and select the target disk type (thick or thin). Assign the VR Server (Feel free to go with Auto-Assign).