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EMC Symmetrix DMX-3 Product Guide
Data Integrity, Availability, and Protection
Virtual devices
Virtual devices are space-efficient copies which do not directly
consume physical storage. Each virtual device consists of pointers to
data stored on a source device or in a pool of save devices. A virtual
device integrates original data from a source device with updated
data in the save pool to present a usable copy of a source volume.
Although Virtual devices reduce physical storage requirements, they
do consume Symmetrix device numbers and host addresses.
Virtual devices (VDEV) can be associated with standard or BCV
devices. TimeFinder/Snap control operations can be performed on
any virtual device in a device group.
Virtual devices serve as a target in virtual snap copies from either
CKD or FBA source devices. Virtual devices cannot be SRDF devices.
Note: TimeFinder/Clone Mainframe SNAP Facility Version 5.6.0 Product Guide
contains additional information.
EMC Solutions Enabler Symmetrix TimeFinder Family CLI Version 6.4 Product
Guide contains more information about virtual devices and TimeFinder/Snap
operations.