My last post about the new reality of shipping both storage hardware AND storage "files" (VMware virtual storage appliances) is a starting point for various conversations. I find replication to be one of the more interesting technologies to examine in the context of private clouds.
As a developer, I can build storage software and ship it as either a piece of hardware or as a file. A "file" can be "deployed as a storage system" in one of the flexible private cloud environments that Chuck keeps talking about.
This file, when "booted" in a vStorage operating environment, could in theory represent a Symmetrix, a CLARiiON, a Centera, or a Celerra.
And, if you've been following Chad's posts on the subject, you'll notice that Celerra VSAs fully support replication to each other.
The replication possibilities with private clouds are numerous. Let's step through some of them.