I have installed Zerto in my home lab and setup replication from one cluster to another to demo a DR scenario. Below is the step-by-step install for a Zerto Virtual Replication Manager (ZVM) Express Setup.
My Home Lab Setup
Hardware
- 2 Desktop Cases
- 2 Intel i5 Processors (1 per host)
- 16GB Memory per host
- 3 1GB nics per host (1 for Management, 1 for vMotion and FT, and 1 for iSCSI)
- HP 1810 8 port managed switch
- Synology DS 413j with 4 2TB disks with Raid 1/0
Setup
- Prod and DR Cluster
- 1 host per cluster with vSphere 5.5
- 1 Domain Controller (08R2) per site
- 1 vCenter Virtual Appliance (5.5) per site
- 1 Zerto Virtual Manager Sever and Zerto Virtual Replicator Per site.
- 1 Windows 7 and XP VM per site
Zerto Requirements and Pre-installation
- Windows Server 2003 SP2 or higher up to Windows Server 2012R2. I recommend a 64-bit OS
- 2 CPUs and 4GB RAM
- Microsoft .net 4.0 and higher
- At least 2GB of free disk space
- Of course there is several Windows Firewall settings. Refer to “Zerto Virtual Manager Installation and Initial Configuration Guide”.
- Download Installer form Zero.
Installation
- Launch the Zerto Virtual Replication installer
- Accept the license Agreement
3. Select the destination for the install files
- Express Install
5. vCenter Server and Site Connectivity
- Checks Prerequisites
- Finish
- Login and get Started
As you can see the initial setup for the ZVM is as simple as it gets. I will go over Zerto Replication Appliances (VRA) deployment as well as Replication in my next blog post. Refer to Zerto.com for any additional information.