VMs replicated without IP

[DanieleFiore201]

HI guys,

i'm currently testing vSphere replication and based on all tests i have done all recovered VMs do not have IPs configured.
I checked the admin guide PDF and this is mentioned anywhere.
Is it normal ? do i have to re-ip my VMs all the time once recovered ?

Many thanks in advance.

Daniele

[julienvarela]

Hi,

how is configured your vm on the primary site? with a static ip address or dhcp?

If you are using a dhcp server, you need to replicate it too.

Regards,

Julien

[DanieleFiore201]

Hi many thanks for fast reply , i have all VMs with fixed ip address.

[Ivan Angelov]

Please connect your network adapter of the recovered vm - it's disconnected in order to prevent IP conflict.

If protected vm is powered off or DHCP is used, it's enough.

[DanieleFiore201]

Hello,

yes i know the network is disconnected to avoid conflict but the VM is under DHCP and without fixed ip (which must be the same of the source VM).
As long as i'm doing a POC of this product for my company i have to list pro and cons , so my question is : is the VM without fixed IP by design ?

Many thanks

[DanieleFiore201]

when i wrote "but the VM is under DHCP and without fixed ip (which must be the same of the source VM)." => i mean the recovered VM.
All the VMs i want to protect are with fixed ip address and not under DHCP.

[Ivan Angelov]

Please tell me the guest OS used?

I'm asking because some linux distributions lose network connectivity when adapter id had changed.

If that's your case, there is simple workaround.

[DanieleFiore201]

Hi all of them are WIndows VMs

[Ivan Angelov]

OK, than it looks like IP configurations are not valid on recovery site.

Unfortunately, in this case you need to set manually valid IP/DNS/Gateway after recovery.

If recovery site network switches are configured in a way to work with protection

site IP configurations, then you will not have such a problem.

[DanieleFiore201]

I'm replicating the VM inside the same site and vCenter as i'm thinking to use vSphere replication as a kind of backup solution replicating from host A to host B in 2 different clusters.
So the network config is exactly the same.
I'm experiencing issues that makes me doubt about the reliability of the product which should work without further issues.

[mvalkanov]

Hi,

Please open an SR (support request), so that VMware team can assist you in resolving this issue.

vSphere Replication creates exact copy of the disk files and VM config files. The only difference in the recovered VM is that uuid.location property is removed (this prevents the I moved it / I copied it question during power on) and that the network adapter is disconnected.

These shouldn't affect IP configuration inside the OS to switch from static to DHCP-based.

Can you try to clone the same VM and run the clone on the same host/cluster, that you are using for the recovered VM, and see if the behavior is any different compared to the VM recovered via vSphere Replication?

Regards,

Martin

[Lee Dilworth]

i've been installing VR for customers since v5.0 and never seen this. can you screenshot the TCPIP properties before the VM is recovered and after you've recovered it? what windows version is this inside the GuestOS. Something doesn't sound right here.

[DanieleFiore201]

Hi,

thanks for your reply, it sounds a bit weird i have to post screenshoots but there you are (after migration , before migration).
OS is W2k8R2

[julienvarela]

Hi,

Do you have the same mac address on both vm? before and after?

Regards,

Julien

[DanieleFiore201]

Source and destination VMs have different MAC

[julienvarela]

So that's why,

If you are restoring on the same vCenter, your VM will be automatically created with a new mac address

Regards,

Julien

[Lee Dilworth]

correct!

sorry....i missed point where you said restore was to SAME vc! :smileyhappy:

[DanieleFiore201]

Hi Julien,

so is this the reason ? do i must take this as an assumption and expected by design ?
Nothing against it but i need to add this point in the pro & cons list.

So confirmed ?

[julienvarela]

Yes, i confirm..

In a correct design, you need to have a second vcenter on your backup site with srm.

Regards,

Julien.

[Lee Dilworth]

so you can replicate to a second site with a second vc (with or without SRM) but I think the use case here is you only want the replica copy to stay within the SAME site and be restored locally in the same vc correct? that is a use case the is supported with VR in "standalone" config and by standalone we can mean two options:

- across sites no SRM

- within single site, single vc and no SRM

i guess what you are looking for is to restore the vm locally and retain the credentials of the IP stack? correct?

[DanieleFiore201]

Hi exactly we need to replicate the VMs inside the same campus across 2 esx (managed by same VC) placed in 2 different buildings, we will not use SRM.

We will need an exact copy of the VM including the IP stack.

I read "standalone" but i just configured it normally without any special settings for a standalone config.

Am i doing right ? or any special things to do in a standalone config ?

Da: Smoggy <[e-mail]>

Per: Daniele Fiore <[e-mail]>

Data: 27/09/2013 09:53

Oggetto: New message: "VMs replicated without IP"

[Lee Dilworth]

OK I'm testing this in my lab but I want to be sure I do what you do.

When you recover the VM are you recovering it with the source VM:

- Still Powered On and in VC inventory)

- Powered OFF and still in VC Inventory)

In the recovery wizard I assume you are choosing the "Recover with latest available data" option and not "Recover with recent changes". Also I assume at the moment the VM MAC setting is "Automatic" and not "Manual" ?

[DanieleFiore201]

hi ,

i'll tell you what i'm doing :

- i power down the VM

- i click on the "recover VM"

- destination VM comes online without IP

In the recovery wizard I assume you are choosing the "Recover with latest available data" option and not "Recover with recent changes". Also I assume at the moment the VM MAC setting is "Automatic" and not "Manual" ? =>confirmed it all

[Lee Dilworth]

hmm ok so I just recovered a VM to the same VC, I left the source VM powered ON and recovered the VM to a different folder in the same VC. The recovered VM as expected comes on OK and its network adapter is "Disconnected" as I would expect, VR will always leave the NIC disconnected (when SRM is not used). If I login to the GuestOS and look at the TCPIP properties for that VM the static settings I have in place are ALL still there.

I performed second test where I run the recovery but only after the source VM is powered OFF, again same result. In both cases the TCPIP properties are retained but obviously the recovered VM has a different MAC address compared to the source.

what virtual NIC type is your VM using? E1000, VMXNET2, VMXNET3?

[DanieleFiore201]

uhm that is weird.....adapter is VMXNET3.....

Strange this is not happening to you...shall i open a BCS call to Cork ? i have to get clear of this somehow.

[Lee Dilworth]

ok i was using the E1000 nic. just tried the test again with the vm reconfigured to use the VMXNET3 nic and it still works fine in my environment. What VC/ESX/VR builds are you using? I cannot recall any bugs relating to this behavior but I can check. my vm was win2008 enterprise.

you have got vmtools running in your vm right?

[DanieleFiore201]

Hi there you go :

- vc : 5.1 U1b

- vSphere 5.1 build 799733

- VRA 819475

[Lee Dilworth]

sorry for late reply. same builds i'm using.

can you log a call? there is something either i'm missing here or odd in your setup. I cannot reproduce the behavior you are seeing. if possible can you reconfigure your VM to use the E1000 nic, set your static ip, ensure target copy is up to date and try another failover?

something odd going on in your environment or with your windows image. don't suppose you've got a linux Guest you can try?

[DanieleFiore201]

Hi,

Thanks for it, i will open a BCS call in Cork and i will email the SR if you interested.

Daniele

[Lee Dilworth]

sure send me SR#

not sure what else I can test in my lab as it all looks ok to me. upgrading lab to 5.5 now as it happens.

[julienvarela]

If you want to be able to restore with the same mac address in the same vCenter , my guess, you will need to create a task that will be reconfigured your VM mac settings using powercli for example.

regards,

julien.