VMware Cloud Foundation: Build, Manage, and Secure 9.1

Overview

This five-day course provides the knowledge and skills to build, manage, and secure a VMware Cloud Foundation Private Cloud. Delegates will explore VCF architecture, licensing models, and Private Cloud components at both the fleet and instance levels. The course covers end-to-end fleet deployment, post-deployment tasks, fleet management, workload domain management, NSX networking, vSAN storage, certificate management, lifecycle operations, security, and upgrade paths to version 9.1.

Prerequisites

Participants should have:

• Completed Learning Path Stage-1 Training, including:
  • Introduction to VCF
  • VMware Cloud Foundation: Compute Fundamentals
  • VMware Cloud Foundation: Storage Fundamentals
  • VMware Cloud Foundation: Network Fundamentals
• Working experience and knowledge of VMware vSphere, VMware NSX, and vSAN environments

Target audience

This course is designed for:

• System administrators
• Solution engineers
• Consultants
• Architects
• Support personnel

Objectives

By the end of this course, learners will be able to:

• Describe VMware Cloud Foundation architecture and Private Cloud components at the fleet and instance levels
• Deploy and configure a VCF Private Cloud using the VCF Installer, including networking, storage, and post-deployment tasks
• Manage VCF fleet operations including SSO, RBAC, identity federation, workload domains, NSX networking, and vSAN storage
• Manage VCF lifecycle using the software depot, patch and upgrade VCF components, and implement backup and restore procedures
• Apply VCF security using Security Posture Management, the Security Operations Dashboard, certificate management, and supported upgrade paths to VCF 9.1

Outline

Course Introduction

• VMware Cloud Foundation components, architecture, and supported private cloud use cases
• Licensing model and available license types
• Overview of course curriculum

VCF Private Cloud: Overview and Architecture

• Key features, use cases, and integrated security capabilities
• Advanced services and operational capabilities
• Private Cloud architecture at fleet and instance levels
• Roles and capabilities within a VCF Private Cloud environment

VCF Private Cloud Deployment

• Fleet deployment considerations and planning requirements
• Deployment sequence and core component configuration
• Deployment configuration of instance and fleet management components
• Deploying a new VCF fleet using the Installer wizard or JSON file

VCF Post-Deployment Tasks

• VCF Operations for Networks, Logs, and Identity Broker deployment models
• Deployment considerations for VCF Operations components
• Navigating VCF Operations components and post-deployment management tasks

VCF Fleet Management

• Licensing model including capacity pooling and licensing procedures
• Configuring Single Sign-On and Identity Broker deployment models
• Supported directories and identity providers, SSO enablement
• Managing role-based access control, users, user groups, and credentials
• Password management workflows and API options for credential management

VCF Workload Domain

• Workload domains and vSphere, network, and storage design considerations
• Design prerequisites and creating workload domains
• Configuring vCenter linked groups and managing host and cluster additions
• Importing an existing vCenter as a workload domain

VCF Networking

• Core components of NSX architecture
• NSX overlay networking concepts
• Virtual Private Cloud constructs and subnet configuration
• Network connectivity during fleet deployment, Transit Gateways

VCF Storage Management

• Storage models including principal and supplemental options
• vSAN networking and hardware requirements
• Configuring vSAN clusters and storage policies
• vSAN fault domains and cluster operations
• Analysing vSAN performance and generating storage reports

VCF Certificate Management

• Public key infrastructure concepts and certificate signing requests
• Certificate management workflow in SDDC Manager
• Integrating with Microsoft CA and OpenSSL CA for certificate issuance
• Installing and managing certificates from Microsoft CA, OpenSSL CA, or third-party CAs

VCF Lifecycle Management

• Role and configuration of the software depot
• Managing software depot content, storage, and bundle assignments
• Upgrading and patching management and fleet components
• Configuring backup and restore procedures
• Executing backup and restore operations for fleet-level and management components

VCF Security

• Security, compliance, and resilience principles
• Integrated security features across VCF layers
• Assessing compliance and managing security posture
• Monitoring security health and analysing audit trail events
• Orchestrating Protection and Recovery workflows

VCF Upgrade Paths

• Supported upgrade paths to VCF 9.1 and compatibility assessments
• Upgrade process from vSphere 8.0 to VCF 9.1
• Upgrade stages from vSphere 8.0 with Aria components
• Prerequisites and upgrade sequence from VCF 5.2 with Aria components
• Differentiating vSphere upgrade path and vCenter import process

Exams and assessments

This course helps students prepare for the VMware Certified Professional – VMware Cloud Foundation Administrator exam which is available separately.

Hands-on learning

This course includes:

• Practical deployment and configuration of VCF Private Cloud components
• Performing post-deployment management tasks
• Managing workload domains, NSX networking, and vSAN storage
• Certificate management and lifecycle operations including patching, upgrading, backup, and restore
• Security posture assessment and monitoring using VCF tools