Fix Common Hyper-V Replication Errors 2023

Replicating an operating system or Hyper-V saves a lot of time. However, replication of Hyper-V also called “Hyper-V replica, “is different. The replication process allows you to replicate from one virtual machine to another virtual machine environment. Simply put, it creates a copy of a live virtual machine on an offline virtual machine. generally useful for a disaster recovery strategy. In this article, we will share the correction of some of the common hyper-v replication errors.

Correction of Hyper-V replication errors

There can be several reasons why Hyper-V replication may fail. It could be network issues, an outdated host, integrity, or anything else. Below are some of the common issues and resolutions:

Hyper-V Suspended Replication for the Virtual Machine due to an unrecoverable failure. (Virtual machine ID ).
Hyper-V prevented virtual machine from starting because it is prepared for failover
Hyper-V failed to resolve Replica Server name
Hyper-V is not able to accept replication on Replica Server for the virtual machine
Operation failed to complete. Hyper-V is not in a valid replication state to perform the operation

It is interesting to note that most Hyper-V errors occur because there is a synchronization problem between them. Either the host is under maintenance, or the replica server is offline or not ready.

1]Hyper-V has suspended replication of the virtual machine due to an unrecoverable failure. (Virtual machine ID)

Full description includes: Hyper-V was unable to replicate changes for the virtual machine because the replica server refused the connection. This could be because a replication operation is pending on the replication server for the same virtual machine, which takes longer than expected or has an existing connection. (Virtual machine ID )

To resolve, check the following:

Right-click the virtual machine and choose to resume the replication process.
Make sure the replication server is online.
The replica server should always have enough space
Sufficient network bandwidth to ensure that the replication process can be completed in a single cycle.

These can usually fix the problem, but if not, delete the replica and reinstall the replication, suggests Microsoft. You will have to wait for the synchronization to finish. If the replication server has been offline for a long time, the source server acclimates so much data that it becomes impossible to send it.

2]Hyper-V prevented virtual machine from starting because it is prepared for failover

When configuring the Replica Server page, you must enter either the NetBIOS or FQDN from the replica server. If the replica server is part of a failover cluster, enter the name of Hyper-V Replica Broker.

If there is anything other than what we shared above, you will get this error because the failover process is unable to find it. To fix it, you will need to edit the replication configuration page and replace the name with NetBIOS or FQDN. Once the fix is done, you will not receive the Hyper-V replication error.

3]Hyper-V failed to resolve Replica Server name

As above, and this is a clear error. If the Hyper-V is unable to resolve the name of the replica server, you need to check if you are using NetBIOS or FQDN. If you use the correct format, this is a DNS problem. You should check with the DNS server to find out why it is unable to resolve the expected server address.

4]Hyper-V is not able to accept replication on Replica Server for the virtual machine

Hyper-V is unable to accept replication

When replication is enabled on a virtual machine, the process creates replica virtual machine files where everything is stored. Each of these folders has a name that represents the GUID. It is unique for each source server. If for some reason the Hyper-V Configuration Wizard has the same UID, as it has already been configured once, you will receive this error. Since the process checks for any duplicate virtual machines before finalizing, the error is displayed.

The alternative to this method is to not use the GUID. Microsoft Docs suggests the following:

Enable replication for the virtual machine and make sure that the initial replication does not start immediately (you can choose to schedule the initial replication for a later date)

Once the replica virtual machine is created, use the Move wizard to move the virtual machine storage to the path of your choice (Storage migration)

After the storage migration is complete, you can start the initial replication of the virtual machine

5]Operation execution failed, Hyper-V is not in a valid replication state to perform the operation

This happens for two reasons. The first is when the server is not configured to be a replica server. So when the source starts the replication process, the other end doesn’t know what needs to be done with the input. Second, the server blocks access to Hyper-V on the Rep0lication server.

While the first cause can be fixed by preparing the replica server, the second is more of a firewall problem than an IT administrator can solve for you.

I hope you have been able to resolve these common Hyper-V replication errors. I’m sure there may be more, so if you find any, let us know and we’ll find a solution.