Use ReadyNAS Replicate target as iSCSI Hyper-V target

[Raeme]

Hi, first post and I think it's kind of a complicated question - I'll do my best to be as detailed as possible.

I am in the midst of planning a hosted Hyper-V solution for a client. Here is my proposed configuration:

Co-location A
Two servers each hosting 2008R2 Hyper-V virtual machines (hardware on each server to be able to host all VMs in case of failure)
Backups using BackupAssist to ReadyNAS 4200 with 10GbE (servers will have 10GbE cards)

Co-location B
Single server with same hardware as two servers at primary location
ReadyNAS 4200 used as replicate target from primary location

In the event of a total disaster at co-location A, I want to be able to manually start Hyper-V hosting at co-location B. Because 2008R2 does not support SMB virtual machine configurations (I know it's coming in Server 2012), I want to use the ReadyNAS 4200 as an iSCSI target for the server's Hyper-V clients.

So my question is this: can I use the ReadyNAS 4200 in co-location B simultaneously as both a Replicate target and an iSCSI target?

Thanks!

[dengar]

I think so (assuming I understand you) - see if this makes sense. Replicate will be great for moving the backup files from your BackupAssist location to your colo; it only needs a share or export on the target. You can simultaneously host your VMs on an iSCSI LUN and have a separate share/export on the same volume. From that B location, you can browse the backup files and pull them out to start up as a VM manually. They will run in the iSCSI LUN after you start them with Hyper-V.