VLSR - Understanding Site Recovery Manager Licensing Models

Products

• VMware Live Recovery

Issue/Introduction

Understanding the licensing structure for Site Recovery Manager (SRM) is crucial for organizations managing virtualized environments. There are two key licensing models to consider: 'Per Protected Virtual Machine' and 'Per host CPU (PCPU)'. Each model comes with its own set of considerations and requirements, ensuring that the appropriate licensing is in place for the protected virtual machines and the physical CPUs of the hosts involved in the recovery process.

Resolution

Site Recovery Manager Licensing Types

1. Per protected virtual machine

With “Per Protected Virtual Machine” licensing, only virtual machines that are protected by Site Recovery Manager require Site Recovery Manager licensing. Licenses are required for all protected virtual machines, even if they are powered off. This is fairly simple to understand and i.e., you only have to count the number of VM in each Protection Group and match it with the usage under the licenses tab of vCenter. This will show you the precise usage of the license. 

2. Per host CPU (PCPU)

In the case of CPU based licensing, SRM calculates the physical CPUs (PCPU) of each host where the protected VMs reside at the source site and the hosts on the target site where the SRM placeholder VMs are created. 

The number of protected VMs does not match the CPU usage displayed in the asset. SRM calculates CPU usage by summing up all CPUs of the ESX hosts that have protected VMs running on them:

You have to add up the usage of each SRM asset under the solutions tab to arrive at the exact CPU usage, the screenshots below highlight an example. 

Accurately assessing the usage under the licenses tab of vCenter or summing up the CPU usage of ESX hosts is essential for compliance. By following these guidelines, organizations can ensure that they have the appropriate licensing for their protected virtual machines and host CPUs, thereby optimizing their disaster recovery capabilities.

Additional Information

Site Recovery Manager FAQ