1. A system that facilitates allocation of replicas among a set of storage nodes, comprising: a processor coupled to a memory that retains computer-executable instructions, the processor executes: a replication component that generates a replica requirement for a portion of data based at least in part on properties of the data or characteristics of one or more storage nodes; and a placement component that distributes one or more replicas of the portion of data among the one or more storage nodes in accordance with the replica requirement, the placement component selects storage nodes to store replicas based upon identified characteristics of the storage nodes.