SetUp Confirmation

[DAXQ]

I have the following set up and am wondering if I could potentially be looking a t a problem or missing something? I set this up because the VM I was using to run my Veeam backup(s) was running on the server that lost its raid controller. So I had to do a new install of Veeam on a different PC, import everything and do a slow restore and I am wondering if this would resolve that issue and make things quicker:

Two Identical ESXi 5.5 VmWare servers A & B

A-----------------------------------------B
VM1-Live -------> replicate --> VM1-replica
VM2-replica <-- replicate <-- VM2-Live
VM3-Live -------> replicate --> VM3-replica
VM4-replica <-- replicate <-- VM4-Live
Veeam-replica <-- replicate <-- Veeam-Live --> Config Saved daily to FreeNAS datastore

VM1-Live is scheduled to replicate every 6 hours - each of the others are set up to run after the last [basic daisy chain] VM1 every 6 then VM2, VM3, VM4, Veeam itsef. Replicas occur every 6 hours to allow for big changes if needed, but most runs take about 45 minutes for all the VM(s) to replicate. If I lose either physical server, I should be able to bring everything up (fairly quickly if needed) - but I am wondering if I am missing something that could potentially be a problem? I used to replicate nightly, but it broke a while back - just decided to start running real slow so I moved to a backup scenario until I could resolve replicating - and never resolved replicating. The restore from backup took just over 10 hours - which I would like to avoid in the future. We are not in a scenario where we need HA or SAN etc... I am hoping this will work for a 6 hour loss window that I can bring everything (even Veeam itself) back up on one of the servers.

Is there something else I should/could consider to be a potential problem or that I should keep in mind if running this way? Any and all suggestions/recommendations are greatly appreciated.

[foggy]

David, basically replication indeed allows for faster restore (failover) in case of disaster. However it is typically recommended to use both backups and replication as they address different DR cases. Also, I would note that you would need to manually failover (start via vSphere Client) Veeam B&R replica VM in case you lose server B prior to start failing over other VMs.

[DAXQ]

Thanks for the rapid reply - I did not mention that we are also relying on Barracuda Backup to take our actual data (SQL snapshots, User files etc...) offsite and into the cloud - which would be used in case of a real catastrophe where I would have to actually rebuild servers - it is even slower than backup restore from Veeam [not Veeams fault physics and networking].

With this setup - I would figure just as you said - If server B failed (like last time) I would need to power up the Veeam Server on A manually - and if it was a raid crash like this last time, I would just assume it to be a permanent failover and rename the VM [remove replica from name and folder name] and power it on. Once Powered on though - considering that this Veeam server can now only see server A (B is dead in the water) - would I still be able to fail over the other two servers to different restore points in case there was an issue with the latest replica? Or would I only be able to use the last replica an have to bring them up manually as well? Right now I have it set to keep 7 points (default), but wonder if they are really necessary.

And truth be told, if there are ever issues where I need to knowingly abandon B . I left the 7 restore points cause it was default and I think I have an issue with commitment.

[foggy]

With this setup - I would figure just as you said - If server B failed (like last time) I would need to power up the Veeam Server on A manually - and if it was a raid crash like this last time, I would just assume it to be a permanent failover and rename the VM [remove replica from name and folder name] and power it on. Once Powered on though - considering that this Veeam server can now only see server A (B is dead in the water) - would I still be able to fail over the other two servers to different restore points in case there was an issue with the latest replica? Or would I only be able to use the last replica an have to bring them up manually as well? Right now I have it set to keep 7 points (default), but wonder if they are really necessary.

Yes, you will be able to failover other VMs to any available restore point from Veeam B&R console.