Using Stretched Storage Clustering with Virtual Volumes

Starting with vSphere 8.0 Update 3, Virtual Volumes support Stretched Storage Clustering (SSC) through SCSI.

SSC is a specific storage configuration that is commonly referred to as Metro Storage Clustering. A metro cluster is a host cluster that spans multiple sites located in different locations (usually two). The different sites that make up these types of clusters are almost always located in the same area if not city due to the latency requirements. The hosts may be in different data centers but still access the same shared storage. SSC configurations allow fully active and workload-balanced data centers to be used to their full potential and for fast recovery in the event of a host or even full site failure. These configurations are usually implemented in environments where disaster and downtime avoidance is a key requirement.

Virtual Volumes support the uniform host access SSC configuration where vSphere hosts from both sites are all connected to a storage node in the storage cluster across all sites. For information about specific requirements and best practices for an SSC implementation, see https://core.vmware.com/vsphere-virtual-volumes-vvols.