I have been using Zerto for almost 10 years. It was purchased as a replacement for EMC Recover Point. The product is easy to install and configure. Run books are created to automate the recovery of systems in a timely manner in the event of a disaster. Once installed, it can make disaster recovery testing simple and quick. For testing, an isolated network "bubble" is created and all systems are brought up inside it. Testing can be done and once completed, just select "End Test" and all of the virtual machines are spun down and removed. A report can then be generated and provided to management or anyone else such as regulatory or compliance bodies.
However, Zerto can be used for much more than BCDR. It is also very useful for upgrade or configuration change testing. For example, we were looking to upgrade our domain controllers to Windows Server 2019. We spun up copies of our domain controllers as well as some other critical systems within the isolated network. Through the vCenter console, we were then able to step through the process of adding a newer domain controller, moving the FSMO roles, and testing applications. All without impacting or risking our production environment. Performing a test of our procedures allows us to be more confident of the upgrade process and reduced the risk and impact of our production systems.
Besides testing, Zerto can also be used to move or migrate virtual machines to another location, environment, or hypervisor. Does one location run Hyper-V and other VMware? Zerto can move systems from one environment to the other. It is compatible with both environments. Are you standing up a new data center cluster or location and need to seamlessly move virtual machines? Zerto can do that as well.
Need something to back up your virtual environment? In recent years, backup has been added to Zerto. The product can now be used to save the backup of your virtual machine when needed. This would enable you to save a copy for long-term storage if you have a compliance or regulatory requirement to save backups for a longer period of time than would be typically seen in a recovery product like Zerto. It avoids the need for a separate product in most cases.
Zerto is a versatile product that has many uses besides just being for disaster recovery. It can be used for operating systems or application patching, testing, and upgrading. Combine that with it being easy to install, configure and manage, it only makes sense to be the product that a company adopts as its backup and recovery solution.
I agree with what you shared. Zerto is a great product and their support is very good. It is disappointing that I have to stop using it because they are discontinuing Hyper-V support. I am looking at other products and options.