Workload migration support from legacy vCenter Server versions in Cloud Director Availability 4.x

Products

• VMware Cloud Director

Issue/Introduction

This article details the support options as well as the caveats and limitations for migrating workloads from vCenter Server 5.5, 6.0, 6.5, and 6.7 to a cloud site using Cloud Director Availability.

Environment

VMware Cloud Director Availability 4.x

Resolution

Supported versions of Cloud Director Availability for legacy vCenter Server migrations

Legacy vCenter Server migration support was introduced in Cloud Director Availability 4.4.1. To leverage legacy vCenter Server migrations, deploy a supported version of Cloud Director Availability on both the source legacy on-premises site and the destination cloud site.

Caveats and limitations

The supported source vCenter Server and ESXi versions for legacy migrations are:

• 5.5 U3
• 6.0 U3
• 6.5 U3
• 6.7 U3

Note: From Cloud Director Availability 4.6 onwards, source vCenter Server and ESXi versions 6.5 and 6.7 are now considered legacy vSphere environments.

Note: The legacy vCenter Server 5.5, 6.0, 6.5, and 6.7 versions do not support the VMware Cloud Director Availability vSphere plug-in. You can either migrate the workloads from the on-premises appliance interface or from the cloud site as incoming migrations.

Replication operations

Only migrations are supported from the legacy vCenter Server source site. 

Replication direction

It is only supported to migrate workloads in a single direction, from an on-premises site to a cloud site where the legacy vCenter Server is the source on-premises site. Depending on the cloud site, the legacy migrations support the following use cases:

• Cloud Director backed cloud sites, running the Cloud Director Availability cloud appliances. In the legacy vCenter Server on-premises site, deploy the On-Premises to Cloud Director Appliance for this use case.
• Cloud vCenter Server sites, running a vCenter Replication Management appliance. In the legacy on-premises site, deploy the On-Premises to Cloud vCenter Appliance for this use case.

For more information on the Cloud Director Availability deployment types in an on-premises site, see the Installation, Configuration, and Upgrade Guide in On-Premises and Provider Site section of the Cloud Director Availability documentation.

Data engine

The classic data engine is the only data engine supported for legacy migrations.

Technical support limitations

As legacy vSphere environments reach both the end of general support and technical guidance, VMware Cloud Director Availability offers best effort support only to resolve issues encountered with legacy workload migrations.