Using VXLAN to Simplify vCloud Disaster Recovery
When architecting a resilient multisite VMware virtual infrastructure, one of the design aspects to always consider is the use of stretched Layer 2 networks to simplify solution design and the associated recovery process. The following are the main benefits of implementing stretched Layer 2 networks:
Ability to run workloads in more than one geographical location.
Migration of virtual machine workloads between geographic locations.
Avoids virtual machine
IP address changes when migrated between environments.
Simplified DR when not using VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager (SRM).
If used with SRM, it simplifies DR by not having to change IP addresses.
Even with the simplification afforded by stretched Layer 2 networks, people still tend to avoid them. The reason for this has to do with network instability that is introduced when there is a lot of latency between switching nodes on the network. Stretched Layer 2 networks also increase the failure domain radius by encompassing multiple locations. However, the biggest reason most people still do not opt for stretched Layer 2 is because of the higher cost usually associated with implementation.