Understanding IBM Cloud VMware Solutions

IBM Cloud VMware Solutions is a cloud-based offering that allows organizations to extend or migrate their existing VMware-based virtualized data centers to the IBM Cloud. The solution offers different deployment options, including self-managed and managed models, and can be used for both virtualized and cloud native applications. Key features and benefits include the following:

• Extending existing datacenters: The solution facilitates extending on-premises VMware environments to the cloud, allowing for flexible capacity management and resource allocation.
• Migration to the cloud: It supports the migration of existing VMware workloads to the cloud, enabling businesses to modernize their infrastructure and use cloud services.
• Disaster recovery and business continuity: IBM Cloud for VMware Solutions can serve as a cost-effective disaster recovery site or provide off-site backup options, enhancing business resilience.
• Cloud native applications: The solution can host cloud native applications alongside traditional VMware workloads, providing a unified platform for different application types.
• Flexibility and scalability: The solution offers flexibility in deployment options and allows for scaling resources up or down as needed, based on workload demands.
• Security and compliance: The solution provides a secure and compliant platform for running VMware workloads, with options for enhanced security features.
• Deployment models:
  • Self-managed: Provides single-tenant, bare-metal infrastructure with full control over the hypervisor and vCenter server, ideal for organizations needing high levels of isolation and control.
  • Managed: Uses VMware Cloud Director for a managed, cost-effective solution, ideal for cost-conscious organizations or those needing quick migration of VMs to the cloud.
• Management and control: With the self-managed model, customers have access to the native VMware stack to manage resources and workloads, similar to their on-premises environments. In the managed model, IBm manages up to and including the hypervizor so that customers can focus on the workloads

IBM Cloud for VMware Solutions provides a comprehensive platform for extending and migrating VMware workloads to the cloud, offering a flexible and secure environment for running various types of applications.

For more information, see HCX overview on IBM Cloud.

Key features and benefits of VMware HCX

Review the key features and benefits of VMware HCX:

• Seamless and live workload migration.
• VMware HCX on IBM Cloud supports multiple migration types in line to your business requirement.
• Allows organizations to move workloads to the cloud without major reconfiguration or performance impact.
• Hybrid cloud mobility provides an automated and secure extension of VMware environments between on-premises data centers and IBM Cloud. It creates high-performance, encrypted network tunnels between environments, enabling workload mobility without network reconfiguration.
• Network extension, HCX’s layer 2 network extension allows businesses to extend on-premises VLANs to IBM Cloud without changing IP addresses.
• WAN optimization improves performance, reducing latency and bandwidth consumption during migration.
• With simplified operations and automation, HCX simplifies workload migration with an intuitive interface, reducing manual efforts and operational complexity. It automates VM movement, can ensure faster cloud adoption without impacting productivity.

HCX Conclusion

Migrating VMware workloads to IBM Cloud by using HCX provides a robust and flexible solution for enterprises seeking to migrate workloads from on-premises to IBM Cloud for rehosting application workloads with cloud agility. With HCX, you can migrate workloads from vSphere and non-vSphere (KVM and Hyper-V) environments to IBM Cloud with zero downtime and enable moving applications to the latest VCF software and hardware environment.

References for VMware HCX

• VMware HCX on IBM Cloud
• VMware Solutions on IBM Cloud
• Official HCX documentation from Broadcom

Understanding Veeam on IBM Cloud

Migrating VMware workloads to the IBM Cloud is a strategic move that enhances scalability, resilience and cost efficiency. However, helping ensure a secure, fast, and disruption-free migration requires the right tools. Veeam on IBM Cloud provides a robust, enterprise-grade solution that simplifies VMware workload migration while can ensure business continuity, minimal downtime and strong data protection.

With Veeam’s advanced replication and continuous data protection technologies, organizations can move mission-critical applications such as Oracle and SAP HANA with zero impact on performance. Whether transferring entire virtual machines (VMs), critical application data, or hybrid workloads, Veeam can ensure high availability and reliability across on-premises, hybrid and public cloud environments.

Key benefits of Veeam

Using Veeam to migrate workloads to IBM Cloud VMware Solutions has the following benefits:

1. Effortless migration and seamless integration: Easily deployable from the IBM Cloud catalog, can ensure a smooth migration process without complex configurations.
2. Fast, reliable replication and near-zero data loss with Continuous Data Protection (CDP): Veeam backup and replication offers two powerful built-in migration capabilities for VMware VMs, ensuring fast, reliable replication with minimal downtime. The first approach uses Veeam backup proxy, using traditional backup and restore methods for secure data transfer. The second, Continuous Data Protection (CDP), provides real-time replication, delivering near-zero data loss and achieving low recovery point objectives (RPOs). Designed for mission-critical workloads, CDP enables instant failover, ensuring high availability and rapid recovery if a failure occurs. For more information, Continuous Data Protection (CDP).
3. Enterprise-grade security and compliance: Protects sensitive workloads with end-to-end encryption, ensuring compliance with regulations like GDPR while safeguarding Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and Sensitive Personal Information (SPI).
4. Cost-effective storage optimization: Seamlessly moves migrated workloads and backup files to IBM Cloud Object Storage, reducing storage costs while maintaining easy accessibility and high performance.

By using Veeam on IBM Cloud, enterprises can streamline VMware workload migration, minimize risks, and accelerate their cloud transformation journey. With automated failover, robust security and cost-optimized storage, Veeam can ensure a smooth, secure and highly efficient migration experience. Migrate smarter, reduce complexity, and future-proof your VMware workloads with Veeam on IBM Cloud.

The following table depicts the key differences between the features of Veeam backup proxy and Veeam VMware CDP proxy:

Deployment of Veeam on premises

Typically in a migration scenario, the Veeam Backup & Replication (VBR) server is already deployed within the client's on-premises infrastructure. This setup allows for centralized management of backup and replication tasks. The VBR server coordinates with Veeam proxies and repositories to handle data processing and storage. Proxies are responsible for data movement, optimizing the transfer between source and target, while repositories serve as storage locations for the backup data. This configuration ensures efficient data protection and recovery processes.

If the VBR server is not currently deployed, then the VBR server can be deployed in IBM Cloud, with the required Veeam components deployed on-premises.

Deployment of Veeam in IBM Cloud classic environment

Architecture of Veeam on IBM Cloud VMware Solutions (VCF for classic)

On the IBM Cloud classic VCF, Veeam components are deployed to facilitate seamless integration with the client's on-premises VBR server. This includes setting up Veeam proxies within the IBM Cloud environment to handle incoming replication traffic and manage data efficiently. These proxies communicate with the on-premises VBR server, enabling secure and optimized data transfer. Also, backup repositories can be configured within IBM Cloud to store replicated data, providing a scalable and secure solution for disaster recovery and data archiving.

The following image is the disaster recovery pattern architecture for VMware workloads on IBM Cloud VCF on classic.

Veeam on IBM Cloud VMware Solutions (VCF for classic) has the following key features:

1. IBM Cloud infrastructure:
   1. VMware Cloud Foundation
   2. Multiple ESXi bare metal servers forming a cluster hosting virtual machines
2. Veeam backup and replication server
   1. Responsible for managing the replication jobs
   2. Deployed onto a Microsoft Windows operating system
   3. Deployed within the VMware recovery environment as a virtual machine
   4. Veeam is deployed by using the simple deployment scenario that's also known as all-in-one.
3. Veeam repository:
   1. The backup repository is responsible for storing replication metadata of the Veeam VMware replication proxies.
   2. The backup repository stores replica metadata that contains information on the read data blocks. For more information, see Backup repository.
   3. Only the backup repository at the protected site is required.
   4. In this pattern, the backup repository is installed on a Linux virtual machine.
   5. Backup repositories can be hosted on Microsoft Windows or Linux operating systems.
   6. The repository has a single network interface, one on an IBM Cloud portable subnet that is used for proxies and on the IBM Cloud private VLAN - Primary (management) to enable efficient traffic flow from the Veeam VMware Backup proxy to the backup replication.
   7. For more information, see VMware backup proxies.
4. Veeam backup proxy:
   1. The backup proxy is responsible for replication of virtual machines.
   2. However, a minimum of one backup proxy per site is required multiple backup proxies should be deployed for availability and scaling.
   3. In this pattern backup proxies are installed on Linux virtual machines.
   4. Backup proxies can be hosted on Microsoft Windows or Linux operating systems.
   5. The proxies have two network interfaces; one on an IBM Cloud portable subnet used for proxies and on the IBM Cloud private VLAN - Primary (management) and a second on an IBM Cloud portable subnet on the IBM Cloud private VLAN - Secondary (Storage/vMotion). This is to enable efficient traffic flow from the ESXi hosts' vmk0 interfaces to the proxies and the from the proxies to the remote proxies bypassing the firewalls.
   6. For more information, see VMware Backup proxies.

      

5. Veeam VMware CDP proxy:
   1. The VMware CDP backup proxy is responsible for replication of virtual machines using CDP.
   2. VMware CDP backup proxies are only needed if RPO in seconds is needed.
   3. However, a minimum of one VMware CDP proxy per site is required multiple VMware CDP proxies should be deployed for availability and scaling.
   4. In this pattern, VMware CDP proxies are installed on Linux virtual machines.
   5. VMware CDP proxies can be hosted on Microsoft Windows or Linux operating systems.
   6. The proxies have two network interfaces; one on an IBM Cloud portable subnet used for proxies and on the IBM Cloud private VLAN - Primary (management) and a second on an IBM Cloud portable subnet on the IBM Cloud private VLAN - Secondary (Storage/vMotion). This is to enable efficient traffic flow from the ESXi hosts' vmk0 interfaces to the proxies and the from the proxies to the remote proxies bypassing the firewalls.
   7. For more information, see VMware CDP proxies

6. Veeam backup console:
   1. The console for configuring and monitoring replication jobs.
   2. Installed by default on the Veeam backup and replication server.
   3. It is recommended that it is uninstalled from the Veeam backup and replication server and installed on DevOps consoles.
   4. For more information, see Installing Veeam backup and replication console
7. Veeam ONE:
   1. Veeam ONE, part of the Veeam Availability Suite service, provides visibility into Veeam-protected workloads.
   2. Veeam ONE provides monitoring, reporting, alerting, diagnostics with automated resolutions and infrastructure utilization and capacity planning.

Deployment of Veeam in IBM Cloud VPC environment (VCF for VPC)

Architecture of Veeam on IBM Cloud VCF side

Within the IBM Cloud VCF environment, Veeam components are deployed to integrate seamlessly with the client's VBR server. This includes setting up Veeam proxies within the management domain of the VCF architecture. These proxies handle data processing tasks, facilitating efficient backup and replication operations. Backup repositories can also be established within the IBM Cloud VCF environment to store backup data securely. This setup ensures that data protection operations are optimized and aligned with the VCF infrastructure.

Veeam conclusion

Migrating VMware workloads to IBM Cloud by using Veeam provides a robust and flexible solution for enterprises seeking to enhance their data protection and disaster recovery capabilities. By using Veeam's seamless integration with IBM Cloud's VMware offerings, businesses can achieve high availability, secure backup and efficient recovery of critical applications and data. Careful planning and consideration of network configurations, resource allocation and compatibility are essential to ensure a smooth and successful migration process.

References for Veeam

• Veeam on IBM Cloud
• Veeam Replication Connectivity on VMware Cloud Foundation
• Veeam Backup Service for VMware Cloud Foundation
• Veeam Network connectivity
• Veeam Continuous Data Protection (CDP)
• Veeam user guide for backup and replication

Understanding Zerto on IBM Cloud

Zerto is a disaster recovery and migration solution that provides continuous data protection (CDP) for VMware workloads. It enables near-zero data loss and minimal downtime during migration by using real-time replication, journal-based recovery and automation. It brings together disaster recovery and data protection across on-premises, hybrid and multicloud environments. A single, unified and automated recovery and data management solution that simplifies the experience across all virtualized or cloud-based workloads.

For more information, see Zerto overview on IBM Cloud.

Key benefits of Zerto

The key features and benefits of Zerto include:

1. Continuous data protection: Use agent-less, nondisruptive continuous data replication with journaling versus snapshots.
2. Built-in WAN optimization and encryption: The Zerto appliance replicates every change generated in real time to the target journal.
3. Data storage: A long-term retention repository allows you to store data for years on cost-effective IBM Cloud Cloud Object Storage.
4. Native VMware and Zerto: The management server integrates with any hypervisor management platform.
5. Simplified deployment: An all-in-one cloud appliance combines management and replication components.

On IBM Cloud, Zerto automatic deployment is supported on VMware Cloud Foundation for Classic - Automated instances and can be deployed as an add-on service to the VCF instance.

Architecture of Zerto on IBM Cloud

In the IBM Cloud environment, the architecture involves deploying the Zerto Virtual Manager (z/VM) server that is the key management component that controls everything other than the actual replication of data. The ZVMs need to be installed both in the client's on-premises infrastructure and on IBM Cloud and then paired.

A Virtual Replication Appliance (VRA) needs to be installed in each hypervisor host where VMs are to be moved to or from. The VRA manages the replication of data from the on-premises to the IBM Cloud by adjusting the compression level according to CPU usage. For more information, see the Zerto solution architecture.

Deployment of Zerto on-premises

The on-premises site architecture includes the following:

• Zerto Virtual Manager Appliance (ZVMA): A Linux-based virtual appliance featuring microservices for security and authentication, logging and management. The z/VM appliance runs on a secure Linux operating system, managing replication and orchestrating recovery operations.
• Zerto Virtual Replication Appliances (VRAs): Installed, from the z/VM console, to each ESXi host to replicate data continuously from the source to the target VRA.
• WAN connection: Secure VPN or Direct Link connection between on-premises and IBM Cloud.

Deployment of Zerto for IBM Cloud VMware Cloud Foundation for Classic

Architecture of Zerto on IBM Cloud VCF for Classic

On IBM Cloud VCF on Classic - Automated, the architecture includes:

• Zerto Virtual Manager (z/VM): Installed on a Microsoft Windows 2019 Virtual Server Instance (VSI) on Classic, managing replication and orchestrating recovery operations. The installation of the z/VM is automated on IBM Cloud and can be done by adding the Zerto service to the VCF instance.
• Zerto Virtual Replication Appliances (VRAs): Installed on each ESXi host to replicate data continuously. They are deployed by IBM Cloud the automation into only the default cluster.
• One portable private IP address for the Zerto Virtual Manager
• One private portable subnet dedicated to the VRA deployment

The following image shows the migration pattern architecture for VMware workloads on IBM Cloud VCF on Classic - Automated.

Deployment of Zerto for IBM Cloud VCF for VPC

Architecture of Zerto on IBM Cloud VCF for VPC

There is no automated installation for Zerto on a VCF for VPC instance, so all the components need to be manually installed:

• Zerto Virtual Manager Appliance (ZVMA): Deployed into the management overlay networks, managing replication and orchestrating recovery operations. It needs access to the public network to access the call home on Zerto for registration.
• Zerto VRAs: Installed on each ESXi hosts within the VCF environment
• Transit Gateway: Deployed and connected to the VMware VPC to allow connectivity between the VPC and the on-premises network by Direct Link

The following image is the migration pattern architecture for VMware workloads on IBM Cloud VCF on VPC.

Understanding IBM Cloud VCDA

The VMware Cloud Director Availability solution enables migration from on-premises to VMware Cloud Foundation as a Service as a Service (VCFaaS) at both the virtual machine and at the vApp level.

The VCDA service is included by default in all multitenant virtual data centers (VDCs) and optionally included in your single-tenant VCFaaS Cloud Director site order at no charge. For a VCDA disaster recovery configuration, a monthly charge is incurred per protected virtual machine (VM).

IBM Cloud for IBMCloud VCFaaS with VCDA supports several migration scenarios:

• Migrate vCenter virtual machine workloads from on-premises and vCenter Server environments to VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) as a Service over the public or private IBM network.
• Migrate workloads from VCF as a Service single-tenant and multitenant instances to another VCF as a Service instance.

For more information, see VMware Cloud Foundation as a Service

IBM provides public instance endpoints with VCDA. Endpoints are used to access the VCDA web interface and also to migrate workloads. You can request new endpoints for private connections for an additional charge. With private endpoints, you can migrate workloads into VCF as a Service by using the IBM Cloud private network to improve consistency and security. Cloud-to-cloud migrations from both VMware Shared and from VCF as a Service to VCF as a Service are over the private network. See Adding and deleting private instance endpoints with VCDA.

VCFaaS service models

IBM Cloud for VMware Cloud Foundation as a Service (VCFaaS) has two service models:

• Single-tenant: Dedicated infrastructure to host your virtual data centers (VDCs).
• Multitenant: Shared infrastructure to host your VDCs.

VCFaaS multitenant instances are deployed to all supported regions by IBM. You create your VDCs on the IBM managed infrastructure. VCFaaS single-tenant instances are provisioned by your organization. For both service models, IBM performs the configuration, hosting, operations, and lifecycle management of the VMware by Broadcom software so you can quickly deploy your VMware-based cloud computing environments.

For more details, see VCF as a Service overview. To understand the VMware Cloud Director and VMware Cloud Director availability versions for VCFaaS, see VCF as a Service BOM.

Key VCDA components

The following components are installed, configured and managed by IBM in the single-tenant and multitenant instances and the services provided to you.

• VCFaas subscription
• vCloud director
• VCDA Cloud appliances

If the source environment is on-premises or an instance of VCF on Classic or VCF on VPC, then you are responsible for the following components:

• Replication manager: Orchestrates VM replication and failover
• Tunnel server: Secures encrypted data transfer over public/private networks
• vSphere environment: Source ESXi hosts and vCenter server

For more information, installing VCDA on-premises in VMware vCenter server. The same information can be used for installing VCDA on an instance of VCF on Classic or VCF on VPC.

Prerequisites of VCDA

Successful migration requires preparation at both the on-premises and IBM Cloud ends.

On-premises prerequisites:

• VCDA deployment: Install and configure the VCDA on-premises to Cloud Director Replication Appliance. This requires downloading the OVF template from VMware and deploying it via vCenter.
• Network connectivity: Ensure outbound access to IBM Cloud for replication traffic. An Internet connection or a Direct Link to IBM Cloud is necessary. Direct Link is preferred for low latency and faster migrations. For more information, see VMware Cloud Director Availability 4.7
• Optional: For layer 2 network extension, to establish the client L2 VPN session in a site not managed by NSX, download and deploy a stand-alone VMware NSX edge appliance, called an NSX autonomous edge.

IBM Cloud prerequisites:

• VCFaaS subscription: An active IBM Cloud account with VCFaaS provisioned, including a virtual data center (VDC) managed by vCloud Director.
• VCDA activation: VCDA is included by default in multitenant VDCs and optional in single-tenant VCFaaS setups. Ensure it’s enabled and paired with the on-premises appliance.
• Network configuration: Configure the necessary networking for connectivity. If using Layer 2 extension, you have configured matching network segments in your VDC.
• Storage profiles: Define destination storage policies (for example, vSAN or NFS) in vCloud Director to accommodate migrated VMs.
• Security: Implement network address translations, firewall rules, VPN tunnels encryption and access controls as per your organizational policies.

VCDA architecture

VMware vCloud Director Availability (VCDA) serves as the cornerstone for migrating VMware workloads from a source vSphere environment to IBM Cloud VMware Cloud Foundation as a Service (VCFaaS). VCDA facilitates this process by using asynchronous replication to transfer virtual machines (VMs) and vApps with minimal downtime, ensuring data integrity and operational continuity. The migration operates in a source-to-target model, where the source environment acts as the source for data transfer and the IBM Cloud VCFaaS environment serves as the target for the data transfer.

The migration architecture relies on a set of interconnected modules that bridge the on-premises and IBM Cloud environments, the following diagram shows the VCFaaS VCDA architecture:

• The on-premises VCDA replication manager communicates with vCenter to identify VMs and initiate replication. It then coordinates with the Tunnel Appliance to send encrypted data over the Internet or a private connection to the IBM Cloud Tunnel Appliance.
• In IBM Cloud, the VCDA Cloud Appliances receive the data and integrates it into the target VDC through vCloud Director. vCloud Director assigns compute, storage and networking resources from the underlying VCFaaS stack.
• NSX optionally enables Layer 2 network extension through the server L2 VPN session on the Edge Gateway. For layer 2 network extensions, see on-premises stretching layer 2 networks to the Cloud Director site

On-premises components:

• vCenter server: Manages the source vSphere environment, hosting the VMs and vApps targeted for migration. It provides the VCDA appliances with access to VM metadata and storage.
• VCDA on-premises appliance: Comprises the replication managementaAppliance and tunnel appliance. The replication manager orchestrates replication tasks, while the tunnel appliance establishes a secure, encrypted connection (port 8048) to IBM Cloud for data transfer.
• ESXi hosts: Run the VMs and facilitate disk-level replication via integration with VCDA.

IBM Cloud VCFaaS (Single or Multi-tenent):

• vCloud Director: Acts as the management layer for the VCFaaS environment, providing tenant isolation, resource allocation and the target VDC for migrated workloads.
• VCDA Cloud Appliances: Deployed within IBM Cloud, these include the Cloud Director replication Management Appliance (paired with vCloud Director) and the Tunnel Appliances, which receives and processes replicated data.
• VMware Cloud Foundation stack: Includes vSphere, vSAN and NSX-T, hosted on IBM Cloud infrastructure, serving as the runtime environment for migrated workloads.
• Cloud networking : Ensures secure, high-speed connectivity between on-premises and cloud networks. VCDA endpoints are available on the Internet or the IBM Cloud private network that can be reached from on-premises locations via Direct Link or VPN.

For more VCDA architecture details, see deployment architecture for the on-premises to Cloud Director Replication Appliance

For additional migration details, see migrating workloads from an on-premises vCenter environment to VCF as a Service.

VCDA conclusion

Migrating VMware workloads to IBM Cloud VCFaaS using VCDA provides a robust and flexible solution for enterprises seeking to migrate workloads from source vSphere environments to IBM Cloud VCFaaS for rehosting application workloads with cloud agility. With VCDA, you can migrate workloads quickly and easily from vSphere environments to IBM Cloud VCFaaS with options to host your VMware workloads on an IBM managed single-tenant or multitenant instance.

References for VCDA

• Getting started with VCF as a Service
• What is VMware Cloud Director availability

Understanding PrimaryIO

PrimaryIO is a technology-first company with an IBM Cloud-native platform wrapped in orchestrated services. Together the technology, processes and people, PrimaryIO enables the cloud journey for organizations.

As a key step in the cloud journey, migration can deliver strategic benefits as well as cost savings from hardware, software license and operational optimization.

Cloud scalability and elasticity offer customers the ability to scale up and down according to their needs. Migrations are ideally tailored to the specific requirements, whether a swift “big bang” move, or a methodical, timed series of workload waves.

Irrespective of approach, migrations need to be well planned and well executed to minimize time, risk and cost. Due to their unique tools, experience and technical depth, PrimaryIO is the leading provider of migrations into IBM Cloud. Migrations have become a key offering from PrimaryIO, consumable through a tile in the IBM Cloud catalog.

From a technology perspective, PrimaryIO provide an IBM Cloud-native SaaS platform that supports migration into IBM Cloud. Use cases supported include, but are not limited to:

1. “Lift and shift” migration of VMware workloads into IBM Cloud VCF.
2. Migration of lower-tier applications, like Dev/Test, while simultaneously using IBM Cloud as a DR site for on-prem production VMware VMs.
3. Migration of VMware VMs to IBM Cloud-native Virtual Server Instances (VSIs), thereby reducing dependence on VMware.
4. Migration of VMware VMs into IBM’s managed VCFaaS platform.

Key benefits of PrimaryIO

The key benefits of the PrimaryIO service include:

1. Rapid, predictable relocation of VMware VMs to IBM Cloud as either a primary site, DR site or even a tertiary DR site.
2. Easy-to-consume ordering via a catalog tile Primaryio Catalog.
3. Engagements are initiated with an assessment and discovery phase, enabling an optimization of cloud-based infrastructure, thereby reducing cost and using the most efficient cloud-available IaaS, such as Intel 4th Gen Xeon (“Sapphire Rapids”) server configurations.
4. As an optional capability, VM conversion at scale through automation, is available to replatform to IBM Cloud-native VSIs.
5. Due to PrimaryIO's proprietary Block Stream Protocol and the Continuous Data Protection of changed blocks, on-premises changes are synced with the cloud-based VMs, resulting in seamless migrations.
6. Enterprise-grade security is obtained as a result of encryption of all data whether in transit or at rest.
7. Customer data remains in the customer’s control. Customer data is not imported into the primaryio-managed control plane SaaS application.

After migration, customers can choose from various platform features including ProtectIO, which provides ongoing disaster recovery and ransomware recovery capabilities. Additional optional functionality includes the conversion from VMware VMs to IBM Cloud-native VSIs via the ConvertIO utility.

Following migration, if protecting VMs with ProtectIO, the DR recovery Point Objective is near-zero while recovery Time Objective can be selected, based on the customer application criticality requirements and desire to reduce costs.

Migration considerations and requirements for PrimaryIO

When planning a migration to IBM Cloud using PrimaryIO, consider the following:

• Network connectivity: Data integrity, reliability and speed are a function of the connectivity between the migration source VMs and the IBM Cloud target site. This must be in place before migration.
• Resource allocation: The necessary credentialing and compute, network and storage resources must be properly provisioned in IBM Cloud in order to assure that anticipated performance of the migrated VMs in IBM Cloud.
• Compatibility: On premises VMs including edge security must be provisioned in a compatible IBM Cloud environment.
• Minimal impact planning: Methodology coupled with resource allocation needs to be well planned in order to minimize impact to the applications, and by extension to the business dependent on those applications.

Migration to IBM Cloud classic environment with PrimaryIO

Architecture of PrimaryIO platform on IBM Cloud VMware Solutions (VCF for classic)

Supporting VCF for IBM Cloud classic, PrimaryIO uses its flagship control plane SaaS platform. There is no application to install to orchestrate actions such as migration, failover or fire-drill. These capabilities are always up and running in the ProtectIO DRaaS web-accessible application.

The following architecture diagram reflects the typical components of a source site, destination site and SaaS control plane in support of a typical VM workload migration into IBM Cloud classic.

Key architectural features:

1. Customer source site - On-premises or in IBM Cloud
   • vSphere - VMware server
   • ESXi host with VMware virtual machines
   • Connectivity (IPsec tunnel) to IBM Cloud Public
   • VAIO filter sending blocks to Target Site
2. IBM Cloud classic target site
   • DR Data Receiver Agent
   • VMware ESXi host
   • Target VMs
3. PrimaryIO SaaS application control plane in IBM Cloud
   • Served UI web console (PIO UI)
   • SQL database storing key metadata (not VM application data)
   • Red Hat OpenShift Kubernetes on IBM Cloud

Migration to IBM Cloud VPC environment with PrimaryIO

PrimaryIO has no significant architectural differences distinguishing IBM Cloud VPC from its IBM Cloud classic offering. In fact, the SaaS platform is the same, whether on cloud classic or VPC. Due to differences between classic and VPC, there are infrastructure and functional differences between migrated VMs in the two cloud environments. The single most significant difference between a classic and VPC migration is the bare metal configuration options, coupled with the time it takes to implement configuration changes in the target account. The SLAs are purely a function of the IBM Cloud infrastructure limitations.

Architecture of PrimaryIO platform on IBM Cloud VMware Solutions (VCF for VPC)

Supporting VCF for IBM Cloud VPC, PrimaryIO uses its flagship control plane SaaS platform. There is no application to install to orchestrate actions such as migration (initial sync), failover or fire-drill. These capabilities are always up and running in the ProtectIO DRaaS web-accessible application.

The following architecture diagram reflects the typical components of a source site, destination site and SaaS control plane is support of a typical VM workload migration into IBM Cloud VPC.

Key architectural features:

1. Customer source site - On-premises or in IBM Cloud
   • vSphere - VMware server
   • ESXi host with VMware virtual machines
   • Connectivity (IPsec tunnel) to IBM Cloud Public
   • VAIO filter sending blocks to target site
2. IBM Cloud VPC target site
   • DR data receiver agent
   • VMware ESXi host
   • Target VMs
3. PrimaryIO SaaS application control plane in IBM Cloud
   • Served UI web console (PIO UI)
   • SQL database storing key metadata (not VM application data)
   • Red Hat OpenShift Kubernetes (ROKs) on IBM Cloud

References for PrimaryIO

• PrimaryIO
• ProtectIO DRaaS Managed Service
• ConvertIO VMware Workload Migration and Conversion
• VMware Cloud Migration Services