2.1 Supported Configurations

2.1.1 Supported Source Workloads For Migration to Non-Cloud Platforms

PlateSpin Migrate supports the migration of the following Windows and Linux workloads to non-cloud platforms, such as physical machines and virtual machines on supported hypervisors.

The following migration features are supported for migration to non-cloud platforms:

  • Peer-to-peer migrations (P2V, V2V, V2P, P2P).

  • Peer-to-peer workload synchronization (P2V, V2V, P2P, V2P).

    NOTE:Not all workloads are supported on all target VM platforms. Migration of workloads to a target VM container is subject to the support of the guest operating system on the target host by the host vendor.

Review the following sections:

Supported Microsoft Windows Workloads For Migration to Non-Cloud Platforms

Operating System

Remarks

Servers

  • Windows Server 2012 R2
  • Windows Server 2012

  • Windows Server 2008 R2
  • Windows Server 2008

Includes domain controller (DC) systems and Small Business Server (SBS) editions.

Does not support migration of Windows Server 2008 R2 SP0 to Hyper-V because Microsoft no longer supports it. See Microsoft TechNet Website.

  • Windows Server 2003 R2
  • Windows Server 2003 SP 1 and later

 

Clusters

  • Windows Server 2012 R2 Cluster
  • Windows Server 2012 Cluster

Supports quorum models:

  • Node and Disk Majority

  • No Majority: Disk Only

PlateSpin Migrate supports only block-level replication for clusters.

You can use the Web Interface or the Migrate Client to migrate supported Windows Server clusters. See Migrating Windows Clusters.

PlateSpin Migrate does not support migration of Windows Server clusters to the following target infrastructures:

  • Images

  • Cloud

  • Windows Server 2008 R2 Cluster
  • Windows Server 2008 Cluster

Supports quorum models:

  • Node and Disk Majority

  • No Majority: Disk Only

  • Windows Server 2003 R2 Cluster
  • Windows Server 2003 Cluster

Supports quorum model:

  • Single-Quorum Device Cluster

Desktops

Windows 8 and 8.1

Requires the High Performance Power Plan.

Windows 7

Supports only Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate.

Windows Vista SP 1 and later

Supports only the Business/Enterprise and Ultimate versions.

Windows XP SP 1 and later

 

NOTE:Only NTFS files systems are supported.

Supported Linux Workloads For Migration to Non-Cloud Platforms

Linux Distribution

Versions

Remarks

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

AS/ES/WS 4, 5.0 to 5.11, 6.0 to 6.8, and 7.0 to 7.2

For Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.7, Oracle Linux 6.7, and CentOS 6.7 workloads with LVM volumes, incremental replication is supported only for the latest available kernel (version 2.6.32-642.13.1.el6) for the 6.7 distribution. This is the same kernel that is used by the RHEL 6.8 distribution. See Incremental Replication Does Not Transfer Data from Source to Target for LVM Volumes on RHEL 6.7, Oracle Linux 6.7, and CentOS 6.7 in the PlateSpin Migrate 12.2 Release Notes.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES)

9, 10, 11 (SP1, SP2, SP3, and SP4)

The SLES 11 SP2 (32-bit) with kernel 3.0.13-0.27-pae is not supported. The kernel for this version of SLES must be upgraded to 3.0.51-0.7.9-pae so that the conversion works.

CentOS

See Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Same level of support as that for workloads running RHEL except that CentOS 4.x is not supported for Hyper-V.

Oracle Linux (OL) (formerly Oracle Enterprise Linux)

See Red Hat Enterprise. Linux.

Same level of support for standard kernels as that for workloads running RHEL.

Same level of support for Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK) kernels on supported RHEL distributions for OL 6.7 and later.

NOTE:

The following guidelines apply to Linux migrations to non-cloud target platforms:

  • Workload imaging is not supported in Linux workloads.

  • Migration of UEFI-based Linux workloads to Hyper-V target container is not supported.

  • Conversion between UEFI and BIOS based Linux systems is not supported.

The following guidelines apply to all Linux migrations:

  • Migrate supports EXT2, EXT3, EXT4, REISERFS, and XFS Linux file systems.

  • Migrate supports Linux workloads with /boot on the first disk (sda).

  • Linux-based source workloads must be running a Secure Shell (SSH) server.

  • Migration of encrypted volumes is not supported.

  • For Linux workloads, Migrate supports only block-based live data transfer with a blkwatch driver. For a list of pre-compiled blkwatch drivers, see List of Distributions.

  • Some of the supported Linux versions require that you compile the PlateSpin blkwatch module for your specific kernel. Those workloads are called out explicitly.

    Precompiled blkwatch drivers are available for the standard kernel and Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK) as noted in the List of Distributions. For other Oracle Linux distributions, precompiled drivers are available only for the corresponding Red Hat Compatible Kernel (RHCK).

2.1.2 Supported Workloads for Migration to the Cloud

To migrate the workloads to Microsoft Azure and VMware vCloud Director, use the PlateSpin Migrate Web Interface. To migrate the workloads to Amazon Web Services, use the PlateSpin Migrate Client.

The following migration features are supported for migrations to cloud platforms:

  • Migrations to Cloud (P2C, V2C)

    NOTE:Not all workloads are supported on all target cloud platforms. Migration of workloads to a cloud container is subject to the support of the guest operating system on the target cloud platform by the cloud provider.

NOTE:Migration of UEFI workloads to the Cloud is not supported.

Review the following sections:

Supported Workloads For Migration to Microsoft Azure

For information about migrating workloads to Microsoft Azure, see Configuring Migration of a Workload to Microsoft Azure.

Windows Platforms

Operating System

Remarks

Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2012

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2

 

NOTE:Only NTFS files systems are supported.

Linux Platforms

Linux Distribution

Versions

Remarks

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

6.7 to 6.8 and 7.1 to 7.2

For Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.7, Oracle Linux 6.7, and CentOS 6.7 workloads with LVM volumes, incremental replication is supported only for the latest available kernel (version 2.6.32-642.13.1.el6) for the 6.7 distribution. This is the same kernel that is used by the RHEL 6.8 distribution. See Incremental Replication Does Not Transfer Data from Source to Target for LVM Volumes on RHEL 6.7, Oracle Linux 6.7, and CentOS 6.7 in the PlateSpin Migrate 12.2 Release Notes.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES)

11 (SP3 and SP4)

 

CentOS

See Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Same level of support as that for workloads running RHEL.

Oracle Linux (OL) (formerly Oracle Enterprise Linux)

See Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Same level of support for standard kernels as that for workloads running RHEL.

Same level of support for Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK) kernels on supported RHEL distributions for OL 6.7 and later.

NOTE:

The following guidelines apply to all Linux migrations:

  • Migrate supports EXT2, EXT3, EXT4, REISERFS, and XFS Linux file systems.

  • Migrate supports Linux workloads with /boot on the first disk (sda).

  • Linux-based source workloads must be running a Secure Shell (SSH) server.

  • Migration of encrypted volumes is not supported.

  • For Linux workloads, Migrate supports only block-based live data transfer with a blkwatch driver. For a list of pre-compiled blkwatch drivers, see List of Distributions.

  • Some of the supported Linux versions require that you compile the PlateSpin blkwatch module for your specific kernel. Those workloads are called out explicitly.

    Precompiled blkwatch drivers are available for the standard kernel and Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK) as noted in the List of Distributions. For other Oracle Linux distributions, precompiled drivers are available only for the corresponding Red Hat Compatible Kernel (RHCK).

Supported Workloads For Migration to VMware vCloud Director

For information about migrating workloads to Microsoft Azure, see Configuring Migration of a Workload to VMware vCloud Director.

Windows Platforms

Operating System

Remarks

Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2012

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2008

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2

DoNotReplaceSysFiles must be set to True.

Microsoft Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 (SP1) or later

DoNotReplaceSysFiles must be set to True.

NOTE:Only NTFS files systems are supported.

Linux Platforms

Linux Distribution

Versions

Remarks

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

4, 5.0 to 5.11, 6.0 to 6.8, and 7.0 to 7.2

For Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.7, Oracle Linux 6.7, and CentOS 6.7 workloads with LVM volumes, incremental replication is supported only for the latest available kernel (version 2.6.32-642.13.1.el6) for the 6.7 distribution. This is the same kernel that is used by the RHEL 6.8 distribution. See Incremental Replication Does Not Transfer Data from Source to Target for LVM Volumes on RHEL 6.7, Oracle Linux 6.7, and CentOS 6.7 in the PlateSpin Migrate 12.2 Release Notes.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES)

10 and 11 (SP1, SP2, SP3, and SP4)

 

CentOS

See Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Same level of support as that for workloads running RHEL.

Oracle Linux (OL) (formerly Oracle Enterprise Linux)

See Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Same level of support for standard kernels as that for workloads running RHEL.

Same level of support for Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK) kernels on supported RHEL distributions for OL 6.7 and later.

NOTE:

The following guidelines apply to all Linux migrations:

  • Migrate supports EXT2, EXT3, EXT4, REISERFS, and XFS Linux file systems.

  • Migrate supports Linux workloads with /boot on the first disk (sda).

  • Linux-based source workloads must be running a Secure Shell (SSH) server.

  • Migration of encrypted volumes is not supported.

  • For Linux workloads, Migrate supports only block-based live data transfer with a blkwatch driver. For a list of pre-compiled blkwatch drivers, see List of Distributions.

  • Some of the supported Linux versions require that you compile the PlateSpin blkwatch module for your specific kernel. Those workloads are called out explicitly.

    Precompiled blkwatch drivers are available for the standard kernel and Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK) as noted in the List of Distributions. For other Oracle Linux distributions, precompiled drivers are available only for the corresponding Red Hat Compatible Kernel (RHCK).

Supported Workloads For Migration to Amazon Web Services

For information about migrating workloads to Microsoft Azure, see Configuring Migration of a Workload to Amazon Web Services.

Windows Platforms

Operating System

Remarks

Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2012

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2008

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2

 

Microsoft Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 (SP1) or later

 

NOTE:Only NTFS files systems are supported.

Linux Platforms

Linux Distribution

Versions

Remarks

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)

5.1 to 5.11, 6.1 to 6.8, and 7.0 to 7.2

For Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.7, Oracle Linux 6.7, and CentOS 6.7 workloads with LVM volumes, incremental replication is supported only for the latest available kernel (version 2.6.32-642.13.1.el6) for the 6.7 distribution. This is the same kernel that is used by the RHEL 6.8 distribution. See Incremental Replication Does Not Transfer Data from Source to Target for LVM Volumes on RHEL 6.7, Oracle Linux 6.7, and CentOS 6.7 in the PlateSpin Migrate 12.2 Release Notes.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES)

11 (SP2 and SP3)

 

CentOS

See Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Same level of support as that for workloads running RHEL.

Oracle Linux (OL) (formerly Oracle Enterprise Linux)

See Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Same level of support for standard kernels as that for workloads running RHEL.

Same level of support for Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK) kernels on supported RHEL distributions for OL 6.7 and later.

NOTE:

The following guidelines apply to all Linux migrations:

  • Migrate supports EXT2, EXT3, EXT4, REISERFS, and XFS Linux file systems.

  • Migrate supports Linux workloads with /boot on the first disk (sda).

  • Linux-based source workloads must be running a Secure Shell (SSH) server.

  • Migration of encrypted volumes is not supported.

  • For Linux workloads, Migrate supports only block-based live data transfer with a blkwatch driver. For a list of pre-compiled blkwatch drivers, see List of Distributions.

  • Some of the supported Linux versions require that you compile the PlateSpin blkwatch module for your specific kernel. Those workloads are called out explicitly.

    Precompiled blkwatch drivers are available for the standard kernel and Unbreakable Enterprise Kernel (UEK) as noted in the List of Distributions. For other Oracle Linux distributions, precompiled drivers are available only for the corresponding Red Hat Compatible Kernel (RHCK).

2.1.3 Supported Target Virtualization Platforms

The following is a list of supported virtualization platforms.

IMPORTANT:You need an OS license for the migrated target workload.

Table 2-1 Supported Target Virtualization Platforms for the Migrate Web Interface and Migrate Client

Platform

Versions

Remarks

VMware vCenter

  • 6.0 (U1 and U2)
  • 5.5 (U1, U2, and U3)
  • 5.1 (U1, U2, and U3)
  • 5.0 (U1, U2, and U3)
  • 4.1 (U1, U2, and U3)

For vCenter 5.5, target containers using VMware Virtual SAN (VSAN) 5.5 storage are supported.

Raw Device Mapping (RDM) for target VMs is supported using the X2P workflow.

VMware ESXi

  • 6.0 (U1 and U2)
  • 5.5 (U1, U2, and U3)
  • 5.1 (U1, U2, and U3)
  • 5.0 (U1, U2, and U3)
  • 4.1 (U1, U2, and U3)

All ESXi versions must have a paid license; migration is unsupported with these systems if they are operating with a free license.

Raw Device Mapping (RDM) for target VMs is supported using the X2P workflow.

VMware ESX

  • 4.1 (U1, U2, and U3)

Raw Device Mapping (RDM) for target VMs is supported using the X2P workflow.

NOTE:For information about creating the target VM disk on VMware containers using Raw Device Mapping (RDM), see Migrating a Workload to a VM Host Using the X2P Workflow.

Table 2-2 Supported Target Virtualization Platforms for the Migrate Client Only

Platform

Versions

Remarks

Microsoft Windows Server with Hyper-V

  • Windows Server 2012 R2
  • Windows Server 2012
  • Windows Server 2008 R2

Migration of UEFI-based Linux workloads to Hyper-V target container is not supported.

Windows Server 2008 R2 is supported through Migrating a Workload to a VM Host Using the X2P Workflow.

Citrix XenServer

6.0 to 6.2, and 6.5

Fully virtualized guests are supported.

Supported through Migrating a Workload to a VM Host Using the X2P Workflow.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server with Xen

11 SP3

Fully virtualized guests are supported.

Supported through Migrating a Workload to a VM Host Using the X2P Workflow.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) with KVM

11 SP3 and 12 SP1

Fully virtualized guests are supported.

Supported through Migrating a Workload to a VM Host Using the X2P Workflow.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) with KVM

6.4 to 7.0, and 7.2

Fully virtualized guests are supported.

Supported through Migrating a Workload to a VM Host Using the X2P Workflow.

2.1.4 Supported Target Cloud Platforms

PlateSpin Migrate supports migration of workloads to the following cloud platforms:

  • Microsoft Azure

  • VMware vCloud Director version 5.5.x

  • Amazon Web Services (AWS)

2.1.5 Supported Storage

PlateSpin Migrate supports the following storage configurations for Windows and Linux workloads.

Storage Disks

PlateSpin Migrate supports several types of storage disks, including basic disks, Windows dynamic disks, LVM2, RAID, NAS, and SAN.

Partitioning Schemes

PlateSpin Migrate supports MBR (Master Boot Record) and GPT (GUID Partition Table) partitioning schemes for Windows and Linux workloads. Workloads and storage for migration must be configured on disks partitioned with the MBR or GPT. Although GPT allows up to 128 partitions per single disk, PlateSpin Migrate supports only 57 or fewer GPT partitions per disk.

Windows File Systems

PlateSpin Migrate supports only the NTFS file system on any supported Windows system.

Linux File Systems

PlateSpin Migrate supports EXT2, EXT3, EXT4, REISERFS, and XFS file systems.

NOTE:

  • PlateSpin Migrate does not support the NSS file system and EVMS volumes.

  • Encrypted volumes of workloads on the source are decrypted in the target VM.

Linux Storage Features

For Linux workloads, PlateSpin Migrate provides the following additional storage support:

  • Non-volume storage, such as a swap partition that is associated with the source workload, is recreated in the migrated workload.

  • The layout of volume groups and logical volumes is preserved so that you can re-create it during migration.

LVM Raw Disk Volumes

LVM raw disk volumes are supported in the Same as Source configurations on Linux workloads.

2.1.6 Supported Workload Architectures

PlateSpin Migrate supports the following x86-based computer architectures:

Processors

PlateSpin Migrate supports migration of x86-based physical and virtual workloads in your data center:

  • 64-bit

  • 32-bit

Cores and Sockets for Target VMs

For VM containers using VMware 5.1, 5.5, and 6.0 with a minimum VM hardware Level 8, PlateSpin Migrate allows you to specify the number of sockets and the number of cores per socket for the target workload. It automatically calculates the total cores. This parameter applies on the initial setup of a workload with an initial replication setting of Full Replication.

NOTE:The maximum number of cores the workload can use is subject to external factors such as the guest operating system, the VM hardware version, VMware licensing for the ESXi host, and ESXi host compute maximums for vSphere (see vSphere 5.1 Configuration Maximums).

Some distributions of a guest OS might not honor the cores and cores per socket configuration. For example, guest OSes using SLES 10 SP4 retain their original cores and sockets settings as installed, whereas other SLES and RHEL distributions honor the configuration.

Virtual CPUs for Target VMs

For VM containers using VMware 4.1, PlateSpin Migrate allows you to specify the required number of vCPUs (virtual CPUs) to assign to the target workload. This parameter applies on the initial setup of a workload with an initial replication setting of Full Replication. Each vCPU is presented to the guest OS on the VM container as a single core, single socket.

UEFI and BIOS Firmware

PlateSpin Migrate mirrors the Microsoft support of UEFI or BIOS-based Windows workloads. It transfers workloads (both File and Block-based transfers are supported) from source to target while enforcing the supported firmware for the respective source and target operating systems. When any migration between UEFI and BIOS systems are initiated, Migrate analyzes the transition and alerts you about its validity.

NOTE:If you are migrating UEFI-based workload onto vSphere target container and you want to continue using the same firmware boot mode, you need to target a vSphere 5.0 container or newer.

The following are examples of Migrate behavior when doing conversion between UEFI and BIOS-based systems:

  • When transferring a UEFI-based workload to a VMware vSphere 4.x container (which does not support UEFI), Migrate transitions the workload’s UEFI firmware to BIOS firmware.

  • When migrating a UEFI-based source on a BIOS-based target, Migrate converts the UEFI system’s boot disks, which were GPT, to MBR disks. When migrating BIOS workload on a UEFI-based target, Migrate converts the BIOS system's boot disks, which are MBR, to GPT disks.

NOTE:If you are protecting a UEFI-based workload and you want to continue using the same firmware boot mode throughout the protected workload lifecycle, you must target a vSphere 5.0 or newer container.

2.1.7 Supported International Languages

In addition to English, PlateSpin Migrate provides National Language Support (NLS) for Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, French, German, and Japanese.

Localized online documentation is available in these languages, as well as in Spanish (es).

2.1.8 Supported Web Browsers

The PlateSpin Migrate Web Interface and PlateSpin Configuration options are available from a supported web browser: Google Chrome, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox.