VMware Install, Configure, Manage, v8: Hack The Cert (VICMHACK) – Outline

Detailed Course Outline

Challenge 1: Host install & Initial Config

  • Basic config of the first host using embedded host client.
  • Change client theme.
  • Configure ntp.
  • Add hosts to AD.
  • Enable SSH and ESXi Shell.

Challenge 2: vCenter Install & Initial Config

  • Deploy VCSA, choose size and number of vCenters.
  • Create vCenter inventory objects.
  • Add hosts.
  • Add licenses.
  • Join domain and add identity source.
  • Set permissions.
  • Configure syslog.

Challenge 3: Networking

  • Create standard virtual switches and portgoups, edit policies.
  • Create Distributed virtual switch.
  • Migrate VMs from VSS to VDS.
  • Backup VDS.
  • Enable heath check.
  • Configure Port Mirroring.
  • Restore VDS

Challenge 4: Storage

  • Configure iSCSI on ESXi hosts.
  • Create, Expand, Remove & Add Additional iSCSI datastores.
  • Datastore Maintenance Mode.
  • Add NFS datastore.
  • Add vSAN Disk Group
  • Create vSAN storage policies

Challenge 5: Working with VMs

  • Create VM and install a Guest OS.
  • Adding VMs into the Inventory.
  • Deploy VM from OVF Template.
  • Edit VM Settings.
  • Adding resources into a VM.
  • Expanding Virtual Disks.

Challenge 6 – Creating VMs and Content Libraries

  • Create VM Template.
  • Create Customisation specification.
  • Deploy VMs from Template.
  • Content Library.
  • Clone a VM Template to Library.
  • Deploy a VM from Content Library

Challenge 7 – vMotion, SvMotion and Cross vCenter vMotion

  • Configure network for vMotion.
  • Migrate VMs across hosts with vMotion.
  • Migrate VMs between Datastores with SvMotion.
  • Cross vCenter vMotion

Challenge 8 – VM Resources and vSphere Clusters, DRS

  • Manage CPU and Memory resources.
  • Enable Shares, Limits and Reservations.
  • Create and manage Resource Contention.
  • Create Clusters
  • Enable EVC
  • Enable DRS and create DRS Groups / Rules.
  • Maintenance Mode

Challenge 9 – Additional Cluster Features HA / FT / vSAN

  • Enable and test vSphere HA and FT.
  • Configure management redundancy.
  • Edit Datastore Heartbeat settings and Advanced HA settings.
  • Edit Admission Control policies.

Challenge 10 – Host, vCenter and VM maintenance

  • Create and manage VM Snapshots.
  • Backup VCSA.
  • Configure Product Locker location.
  • Backup Hosts and vCenter.
  • Explore Lifecycle Manager.
  • Upgrading Hosts and vCenter.