VMware vSAN: Install, Configure, Manage [v7.x]

Module 1: Course Introduction

• Introductions and course logistics
• Course objectives

Module 2: 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

Module 3: 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

Module 4: 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 vSphere Lifecycle Manager 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

Module 5: 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

Module 6: 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

Module 7: Configuring 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

Module 8: 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

Module 9: Introduction to Advanced vSAN Configurations

• Identify requirements to configure vSAN iSCSI target
• Detail VMware HCI Mesh technology and architecture
• Detail vSAN File Service architecture and configuration
• Explain the use cases of vSAN Direct Configuration

Module 10: 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

Module 11: 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 the benefits of vSphere HA and vSphere Site Recovery Manager in a vSAN stretched cluster
• Explain storage policies for vSAN stretched cluster

Module 12: 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
• Analyze vsantop performance metrics
• Use a vSAN proactive test to detect and diagnose cluster issues