Compare SnapMirror and SnapVault in terms of replication direction, access to data, and typical use cases.

Compare SnapMirror and SnapVault in terms of replication direction, access to data, and typical use cases.

• A. SnapMirror is a replication mechanism for disaster recovery across ONTAP systems (async or sync); SnapVault is a backup-like relationship for long-term retention, usually read-only at the target.
• B. SnapMirror is for backup; SnapVault for disaster recovery
• C. SnapMirror is read-only; SnapVault writable
• D. SnapMirror only works within a single cluster; SnapVault only in cloud

Answer: (A)

The main distinction is how the data is moved and how it’s used: SnapMirror replicates active data to another ONTAP system to support disaster recovery, while SnapVault creates backup-like copies for long-term retention that are typically not used for day-to-day access. With SnapMirror, replication can be synchronous or asynchronous, and the destination volume acts as a live failover target. You can bring the DR site online and access the data there if a disaster occurs, making it suitable for near-term recovery objectives across ONTAP systems. With SnapVault, the relationship is backup-oriented. The vault holds copies that are retained for longer periods and are usually read-only at the target. It’s used to restore data from backups rather than to run production workloads, serving as a dependable archive and restore path. In practice, this means SnapMirror is chosen for disaster recovery replication across locations or clusters, whereas SnapVault is chosen for long-term backups and archival retention. The other options mix up the roles: SnapMirror isn’t simply backup, and SnapVault isn’t typically used for active disaster recovery; SnapMirror isn’t restricted to a single cluster, and both can operate in on-premises, cross-cluster, or cloud contexts depending on deployment.

The main distinction is how the data is moved and how it’s used: SnapMirror replicates active data to another ONTAP system to support disaster recovery, while SnapVault creates backup-like copies for long-term retention that are typically not used for day-to-day access.

With SnapMirror, replication can be synchronous or asynchronous, and the destination volume acts as a live failover target. You can bring the DR site online and access the data there if a disaster occurs, making it suitable for near-term recovery objectives across ONTAP systems.

With SnapVault, the relationship is backup-oriented. The vault holds copies that are retained for longer periods and are usually read-only at the target. It’s used to restore data from backups rather than to run production workloads, serving as a dependable archive and restore path.

In practice, this means SnapMirror is chosen for disaster recovery replication across locations or clusters, whereas SnapVault is chosen for long-term backups and archival retention. The other options mix up the roles: SnapMirror isn’t simply backup, and SnapVault isn’t typically used for active disaster recovery; SnapMirror isn’t restricted to a single cluster, and both can operate in on-premises, cross-cluster, or cloud contexts depending on deployment.