In a DR topology, what is the typical role of SnapMirror and SnapVault?

• A. SnapMirror handles replication of snapshots to a remote ONTAP system; SnapVault stores backups on a secondary target for long-term retention.
• B. SnapMirror handles on-site backups only; SnapVault handles remote replication.
• C. SnapMirror and SnapVault replace each other depending on workload.
• D. SnapMirror is used for file system organization and SnapVault for CPU tuning.

Answer: (A)

In a disaster recovery setup, you separate near-term protection from long-term retention. SnapMirror is used to replicate snapshot data to a remote ONTAP system, giving you a current, ready-to-failover copy at the DR site. This supports quick recovery of recently changed data and enables failover if the primary site goes down.

SnapVault, on the other hand, stores backups of those snapshots on a secondary target for long-term retention. It preserves historical versions and provides point-in-time restores, independent of the live DR replica. This complements SnapMirror by maintaining an archival backup set that you can restore from years later if needed.

So, the typical DR role is: SnapMirror handles replication to the remote system for DR readiness, while SnapVault provides long-term backup storage on a secondary target. The other options mix up replication and backup concepts or assign inappropriate roles to the tools.