IsReplica bug?

[ChrisGundry]

I am playing about with using 'IsReplica' instead of identifying our replica servers by '_replica'. Seemed to be working well but then I looked in business view at what it had captured and there are several discrepancies.
1. We use Citrix MCS (machine creation services) to create VMs from a snapshot on another VM. We replicate a VM from our production site to our DR site and then use that VM to create a DR Citrix farm using MCS. All the VMs in the DR farm have been captured as 'replicas' when using the 'IsReplica' option. I guess this is because they were created from a replica VM, but I am not sure what is making them show as a replica in VeeamOne Business View? Is there a way around this?
It's worth noting that in our production site where we also use MCS to create machines, the machines there are not captured as 'IsReplica'. So it is just the ones created in the DR site, from the replica VM that seem to have the issue.

2. SureBackup lab VMs. When they are created these VMs are all showing as replicas when using 'IsReplica'.

Because of these two issues we can't use 'IsReplica' at the moment.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

[Shestakov]

Hello Chris,
Thanks for the good questions. I'll test the behavior in my lab and ask devs about the IsReplica logic.
As for Surebackup lab VMs, do you perform recovery verification from those VMs created from replica VM?

[ChrisGundry]

Hi Nikita,

Thanks.

No, the SureBackup lab VMs are in this case coming from a Nimble storage snapshot taken via Veeam schedule.

They are not a replica VM themselves or created from a replica VM. All the VMs in the SureBackup job are source VMs for replication jobs though, if that makes sense. But I don't see why that would be an issue, the other VMs that are the source of replication jobs are not showing as IsReplica.

[Shestakov]

Thanks for the reply, I'll double-check about Surebackup VMs.
As for the first question, VMs are treated as replicas if they have a corresponding parameter. You can remove the field shown below in vSphere VM configuration parameters to make vSphere and Veeam ONE stop treating the VMs as replicas.

[ChrisGundry]

Hi Nikita,

I have checked and that setting entry is filled out for all the Citrix MCS machines created from the replica VM. I guess it has copied/inherited this from the replica VM that was used as the source of the clone process? If that is the case then I guess there is no way around this? I can't delete the setting entry from all of the MCS VMs because they get re-created from the replica VM about once a month at least, so that setting would get filled out again each time. Unless you can think of anything else I will have to not use 'IsReplica' as a result of this and do it how I did before by checking if the VM name ends with '_replica'.

I will wait to hear back about SureBackup VMs.

Thanks

[Shestakov]

The only thing I can think of is a script which will clean the entity when new VM is created.
Workaround with VM name parameter also looks applicable.
Thanks!

[Shestakov]

Could you also check if VMs in Surebackup lab have the mentioned parameter?
By the way, just curious, for what do you categorize VMs in Surebackup lab at all?