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Server virtualization has become a more cost-effective way for enterprises to implement disaster recovery plans, and VMware (NYSE: VMW) hopes to make it even easier (see Virtualization Makes Disaster Recovery Cheaper).
The server Virtualizationleader this week unveiled VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager 4, which centralizes management of disaster recovery plans and automates testing and recovery for virtual environments.
The new version adds support for NFS in addition to iSCSI and Fibre Channel, compatibility with VMware vSphere 4, and simplified “many-to-one” failover using a single shared recovery site.
VMware Site Recovery Manager, first released in mid-2008, boasts more than 2,000 customers and support from a dozen data storage vendors. It integrates with third-party data replication and storage solutions to automate disaster recovery tasks.
VMware product marketing manager Jon Bock said the product has met with strong demand in the 16 months or so that it’s been on the market. “It’s rare that we find a customer who isn’t interested in automating disaster recovery,” he said.
SRM automates manual disaster recovery run books, so updating the DR plan and testing it becomes easier and recovery can be launched from a single management console. Virtualization can also save on hardware costs at replication sites by avoiding the need for identical hardware, and backing up a virtual machine can make for easier recovery than a physical server.
“Disaster recovery has become one of the main reasons people look at virtualization,” said Bock.
VMware offered a testimony from one happy user. Ed Belliveau, principal systems engineer at Bentley University, said in a statement, “In my 25 years of IT experience, VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager is one of the best solutions that I have ever implemented. With the latest Site Recovery Manager improvements and features, coupled with integration with VMware vSphere, disaster recovery preparation is much easier.”
VMware parent company EMC (NYSE: EMC) announced broad support for the new offering across its data storage product line, including adapters for Symmetrix Remote Data Facility (SRDF), Celerra Replicator with NFS and iSCSI support, MirrorView and RecoverPoint.
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