Replication Replication is a disaster recovery feature that replicates data snapshots to alternate media or to remote filesystem(s). This process provides data availability, maintaining additional copies of data in case of catastrophic events. This allows for quick recovery with a minimal downtime. Things to know about Replication on the BrickStor SP system: Uses block level replication to another pool(s) on the same system and/or remote BrickStor SP system(s). Before enabling replication between BrickStor SP systems, they must first be configured as System Peers. See Configuring system peers for details. System Peers are BrickStor SP systems that have been paired together for replication configuration. System Peers can be configured to have either a one-way or a two-way relationship for data replication. Only the changed data is transmitted to shorten replication windows and reduce bandwidth usage. Replication can be throttled during the specified time window. BrickStor SP Replication supports pause and resume during the transfer process. WAN optimized replication is a licensed feature that utilizes multiple network connections for efficient snapshot transfer. Replication best practices When setting up replication, snapshots should be set to be taken more frequently than non-replicated systems. This will reduce the size of each snapshot taken and subsequently reduce any chances of failure due to network interruption or latency. For datasets with Encryption enabled, keys should be exported from the local BrickStor SP and imported to the remote BrickStor SP, so data can be recovered there. Use the advanced configuration parameters to optimize replication: Configure priorities to determine which datasets will replicate first. Configure bandwidth throttling to optimize how much bandwidth is used and at what times of day. Optimize snapshot retention periods on both ends. On the local system, ensure that snapshots are not aging out before they are replicated. Avoid using long retention periods for snapshots. Replication peers should be on an appropriate data network that will be available and not interfere with other network traffic. Configure email notifications to stay updated on all pending and completed replication transfers. Configuring dataset replication Configuring system peers Navigate to the System Peers page. Click Create Connection. Select the Source appliance. Select New External for the Destination and click Next. Complete the instructions as prompted to initiate pairing. Once the peer relationship is created, enable replication for the desired datasets. Enabling replication To enable replication between two systems, a peer relationship must first be established with the destination system from the source system. See Configuring system peers. Navigate to the Snapshot Replication page. Click the action cog () next to the desired dataset. Select Configure from the dropdown menu. Toggle the Auto Snapshot Replication switch to Enabled. Click Add and select the desired remote data location. Click Add again. Click Apply.