US Patent 9881014 Snap and replicate for unified datapath architecture

A data protection technique maintains replicas of both a data object and its snaps by conducting replication operations on the data object between a source and a destination. The technique includes generating a pair of content-consistent snaps, one snap of the data object at the source and one snap of its replica at the destination. A common snap signature identifies both snaps of the pair of content-consistent snaps. Orchestration of replication ensures that both snaps of the pair share the same content. The two snaps may thus be used interchangeably, with the snap of the replica at the destination providing essentially a backup of the snap of the data object at the source.