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Replication Appliance - vmware machine - requirements for Azure Site Recovery (Modernised approach)

Anandha Padmanaban J C 0 Reputation points
2025-10-14T15:00:19.44+00:00

Hi,

I am going through the below document to understand the requirements for an onpremises VMWare environment to run Azure Site Recovery replication appliance and can see Windows Server 2022 - with Desktop experience as an OS requirement. Is it a strict requirement or can we use Windows servers 2016, 2019 as well ?

https://free.blessedness.top/en-us/azure/site-recovery/vmware-physical-azure-support-matrix#azure-site-recovery-replication-appliance

Azure Site Recovery
Azure Site Recovery
An Azure native disaster recovery service. Previously known as Microsoft Azure Hyper-V Recovery Manager.

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  1. Suchitra Suregaunkar 1,880 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2025-10-14T18:56:22.8233333+00:00

    Hello Anandha Padmanaban J C

    Thank you for posting your query on Microsoft Q&A platform.

    Yes, Windows Server 2022 with Desktop Experience is a strict requirement if you're deploying the Azure Site Recovery (ASR) replication appliance manually using PowerShell in the modernized architecture.

    Windows Server 2022 is Strictly Required for Manual Setup

    Windows Server 2019 is Supported Only via OVF Template

    • You can still deploy the replication appliance on Windows Server 2019 if you use the OVF template provided by Microsoft.
    • However, manual setup using PowerShell is not supported on 2019.
    • Upgrading from 2019 to 2022 is also not supported.

    Windows Server 2016 is not Supported

    • Windows Server 2016 is not supported for deploying the replication appliance in the modernized architecture.
    • The setup script will fail due to OS validation checks.

    This requirement applies specifically to the replication appliance. For replicated machines, Windows Server 2016, 2019, and 2022 are all supported.

    Always refer to the official support matrix for the most accurate and up-to-date guidance.

    So you can use Windows Server 2022 for manual deployment of the ASR replication appliance. Use Windows Server 2019 only with the OVF template. Do not use Windows Server 2016 as it is unsupported.

    Thanks,

    Suchitra.

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