VMware vSAN: Install, Configure, Manage [V8]

This course focuses on building the required skills for common Day -2 vSAN administrator tasks such as vSAN node management, cluster maintenance, security operations, troubleshooting and advanced vSAN cluster operations. You will learn these skills through the completion of instructor-led activities and hands-on lab exercises.

• Storage and virtual infrastructure consultants;
• Solution architects, and administrators who are responsible for production support and administration of VMware vSAN 8.

• Describe vSAN concepts;
• Detail the underlying vSAN architecture and components;
• Explain the key features and use cases for vSAN;
• Identify requirements and planning considerations for vSAN clusters;
• Explain the importance vSAN node hardware compatibility;
• Describe the different vSAN deployment options;
• Explain how to configure vSAN fault domains;
• Detail how to define and create a VM storage policy;
• Discuss the impact of vSAN storage policy changes;
• Detail vSAN resilience and data availability;
• Describe vSAN storage space efficiency;
• Explain how vSAN encryption works;
• Detail VMware HCI Mesh™ technology and architecture;
• Detail vSAN File Service architecture and configuration;
• Describe how to setup a stretched and a two-node vSAN cluster;
• Describe vSAN maintenance mode and data evacuation options;
• Define the steps to shut down a vSAN cluster for maintenance;
• Explain how to use proactive tests to check the integrity of a vSAN cluster;
• Use VMware Skyline Health™ for monitoring vSAN health;
• Use VMware Skyline Health to investigate and help determine failure conditions;
• Discuss vSAN troubleshooting best practices;
• Describe vSAN Express Storage ArchitectureTM concepts.

Completion of the following course is required VMware vSphere: Install, Configure, Manage or equivalent knowledge.

Not intended.

Course Introduction
• Introductions and course logistics;
• Course objectives.

Introduction to vSAN
• Describe vSAN architecture;
• Describe the vSAN software components: CLOM, DOM, LSOM, CMMDS, and RDT;
• Identify vSAN objects and components;
• Describe the advantages of object-based storage;
• Describe the difference between All-Flash and Hybrid vSAN architecture;
• Explain the key features and use cases for vSAN;
• Discuss the vSAN integration and compatibility with other VMware technologies.

Planning a vSAN Cluster
• Identify requirements and planning considerations for vSAN clusters;
• Apply vSAN cluster planning and deployment best practices;
• Determine and plan for storage consumption by data growth and failure tolerance;
• Design vSAN hosts for operational needs;
• Identify vSAN networking features and requirements;
• Describe ways of controlling traffic in a vSAN environment;
• Recognize best practices for vSAN network configurations.

Deploying a vSAN Cluster
• Recognize the importance of hardware compatibility;
• Ensure the compatibility of driver and firmware versioning;
• Use tools to automate driver validation and installation;
• Apply host hardware settings for optimum performance;
• Use VMware vSphere® Lifecycle ManagerTM to perform upgrades;
• Deploy and configure a vSAN Cluster using the Cluster QuickStart wizard;
• Manually configure a vSAN Cluster using VMware vSphere® Client™;
• Explain and configure vSAN fault domains;
• Using VMware vSphere® High Availability with vSAN;
• Understand vSAN Cluster maintenance capabilities;
• Describe the difference between implicit and explicit fault domains;
• Create explicit fault domains.

vSAN Storage Policies
• Describe a vSAN object;
• Describe how objects are split into components;
• Explain the purpose of witness components;
• Explain how vSAN stores large objects;
• View object and component placement on the vSAN datastore;
• Explain how storage policies work with vSAN;
• Define and create a virtual machine storage policy;
• Apply and modify virtual machine storage policies;
• Change virtual machine storage policies dynamically;
• Identify virtual machine storage policy compliance status.

vSAN Resilience and Data Availability
• Describe and configure the Object Repair Timer advanced option;
• Plan disk replacement in a vSAN cluster;
• Plan maintenance tasks to avoid vSAN object failures;
• Recognize the importance of managing snapshot utilization in a vSAN cluster;
7 Managing vSAN Storage Space Efficiency;
• Discuss deduplication and compression techniques;
• Understand deduplication and compression overhead;
• Discuss compression only mode;
• Configure erasure coding;
• Configure swap object thin provisioning;
• Discuss reclaiming storage space with SCSI UNMAP;
• Configure TRIM/UNMAP.

vSAN Security Operations
• Identify differences between VM encryption and vSAN encryption;
• Perform ongoing operations to maintain data security;
• Describe the workflow of data-in transit encryption;
• Identify the steps involved in replacing Key Management Server.

vSAN HCI Mesh
• Understand the purpose of vSAN HCI Mesh;
• Detail vSAN HCI Mesh technology and architecture;
• Perform mount and unmount of a remote datastore.

vSAN File Service and iSCSI Target Service
• Understand the purpose of vSAN File Services;
• Detail vSAN File Services architecture;
• Configure vSAN File Shares;
• Describe vSAN iSCSI Target Service.

vSAN Stretched and Two Node Clusters
• Describe the architecture and uses case for stretched clusters;
• Detail the deployment and replacement of a vSAN witness node;
• Describe the architecture and uses case for two-node clusters;
• Explain storage policies for vSAN stretched cluster.

vSAN Cluster Maintenance
• Perform typical vSAN maintenance operations;
• Describe vSAN maintenance modes and data evacuation options;
• Assess the impact on cluster objects of entering maintenance mode;
• Determine the specific data actions required after exiting maintenance mode;
• Define the steps to shut down and reboot hosts and vSAN clusters;
• Use best practices for boot devices;
• Replace vSAN nodes.

vSAN Cluster Monitoring
• Describe how the Customer Experience Improvement Program (CEIP) enables VMware to
improve products and services;
• Use VMware Skyline Health for monitoring vSAN cluster health;
• Manage alerts, alarms, and notifications related to vSAN in VMware vSphere® Client™;
• Create and configure custom alarms to trigger vSAN health issues;
• Use IOInsight metrics for monitoring vSAN performance;
• Use a vSAN proactive test to detect and diagnose cluster issues.

vSAN Troubleshooting
• Use a structured approach to solve configuration and operational problems;
• Apply troubleshooting methodology to logically diagnose faults and optimize troubleshooting efficiency;
• Use VMware Skyline Health to investigate and help determine failure conditions;
• Explain which log files are useful for vSAN troubleshooting.

vSAN Express Storage Architecture
• Understand the purpose of vSAN Express Storage Architecture;
• Describe the vSAN Express Storage Architecture components;
• Identify Storage Policy differences;
• Understand compression and encryption operation differences.