VMware Certification
Instructor: David Davis
Top 3 VMware
Certifications You Must
Get - And How To Pass
the First Time
Who is David Davis?
• Over 18 years of IT experience as a
customer, blogger, and video training author
• vExpert, VCP5, VCAP-DCA, CCIE#9369
• Has written hundreds of articles about virtualization technology
• Spoke at VMworld US & EU in 2010/11
• Author of the best-selling video training library, available from
Please note:
• I don’t work for VMware
• All content here is public knowledge
• I won’t discuss what was on my exams
• This is not a “brain dump” session
• You won’t learn everything you need to know to take the VCP exam in 45 minutes
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
In This Lesson:
Why Get Certified?
VMware’s Certification Pyramid
Top VMware Certifications
What’s New in VMware Certification?
VCP5 Exam Cram
VCAP-DCA Preparation Tips
VCDX Preparation Tips
How can TrainSignal Help?
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
• Distinguish yourself
• Get a raise or promotion
• Get a new job
• Prove that you can / test your skills
• Learn new technology
Why Get Certified?
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VMware’s Certification Pyramid
VMware Certified Associate (VCA) VMware Certified Professional
(VCP)
VMware Certified
Advanced Professional (VCAP)
VCDX
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCAP – VMware Certified Advanced
Professional
VCAP-DCD – DataCenter Designer
VCAP-DCA – DataCenter Administrator
VCP – VMware Certified Professional
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
What’s New in VMware Certification?
VMware Certified Administrator (VCA) Desktop –or- VCA4-DT
VMware Certified Professional (VCP) Desktop –or- VCP5-DT VMware Certified Advanced
Professional (VCAP-DT) – coming soon (official)
VMware Certified Advanced Professional – DC Admin
(VCAP-DCA) VMware Certified Professional (VCP5)
VMware Certified Administrator (VCA) vSphere –or- VCA-vS
VCAP DC Design (VCAP5-DCD) Cloud Architect on
vCloud Director VMware Certified Design
eXpert (VCDX)
VCDX #1 – What’s his name?
VCP5 – The Path
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP - FAQ
• Yes, take a class (only VMware Cert that requires it)
• Yes, you can take it online
• Yes, you can still take the test without taking the class but, no, you won’t be a VCP
• VCP exam code is VCP510
• There are 85 questions & you have 90 minutes
• Score is between 100-500, passing is 300
• Note: VCP5-DT is also available but it requires you first have a “regular” VCP
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP - FAQ
• VMware Ed has a VCP mock exam on their website (it’s bad)
• The exam blueprint is your BIBLE for passing the VCP !
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram
• Section 1 – Plan, Install, Configure and Upgrade vCenter Server and VMware ESXi
– Objective 1.1 — Install and Configure vCenter Server – Objective 1.2 – Install and Configure VMware ESXi
– Objective 1.3 – Plan and Perform Upgrades of vCenter Server and VMware ESXi
– Objective 1.4 –Secure vCenter Server and ESXi
– Objective 1.5 – Identify vSphere Architecture and Solutions
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram – Upgrading to vSphere 5
1. Backup vCenter
2. Local vs remote DB
3. Upgrade vCenter (32 bit vs 64 bit)
4. Pre-agent upgrade checker
5. vCenter data migration tool, if needed
6. Upgrade the vSphere Client
7. Upgrade Update Manager
8. Upgrade ESX/ESXi to ESXi5 either
local, update manager, or AutoDeploy
(use vMotion for zero downtime?)
9. Upgrade VM Tools
10.Upgrade virtual hardware
11.Upgrade VMFS
12.Use new features
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram – What’s New 12 of 25
1. No more ESX Server (only ESXi)
2. Largest VMs ever (32 vCPUs & 1TB vRAM)
3. New vSphere HA, uses FDM, storage heartbeat 4. vSphere Auto Deploy
5. Profile-driven storage 6. Storage DRS (SDRS) 7. Web Client
8. vCenter Server Appliance (vCSA) 9. License reporting manager
10. vRAM Pooled pricing 11. ESXi Firewall
12. VAAI Offload for NAS
Note: Don’t forget about what’s new in vSphere 4.1 – SIOC, NIOC, VAAI, lockdown mode, vCenter Converter Hyper-V import, ESXi AD integration, memory compression, DRS affinity rules, etc.
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram – What’s New 13 of 25
13. VASA – vSphere API for Storage Awareness 14. Improved iSCSI Configuration GUI
15. Enhanced logging – new log files 16. Enhanced storage metrics
17. vSphere replication
18. Network I/O control custom resource pools 19. vDS port mirroring
20. Netflow version 5 21. Esxcli command
22. Swapping to host cache & SSD detection
23. vCenter dump collector and vCenter syslog collector 24. vShield 5
25. VMware Data Recovery 2.0 (an ISO, that contains plugin and VA)
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP #1 – What’s her name?
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram
• Section 2 – Plan and Configure vSphere Networking – Objective 2.1 – Configure vNetwork Standard Switches – Objective 2.2 – Configure vNetwork Distributed Switches – Objective 2.3 – Configure vSS and vDS Policies
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram
• Section 3 – Plan and Configure vSphere Storage – Objective 3.1 – Configure Shared Storage for vSphere
– Objective 3.2 – Configure the Storage Virtual Appliance for vSphere
– Objective 3.3 – Create and Configure VMFS and NFS Datastores
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram
• Section 4 – Deploy and Administer Virtual Machines and vApps
– Objective 4.1 – Create and Deploy Virtual Machines
– Objective 4.2 – Create and Deploy vApps
– Objective 4.3 – Manage Virtual Machine Clones and Templates
– Objective 4.4 – Administer Virtual Machines and vApps
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram
• Section 5 – Establish and Maintain Service Levels – Objective 5.1 – Create and Configure VMware Clusters
– Objective 5.2 – Plan and Implement VMware Fault Tolerance – Objective 5.3 – Create and Administer Resource Pools
– Objective 5.4 – Migrate Virtual Machines
– Objective 5.5 – Backup and Restore Virtual Machines
– Objective 5.6 – Patch and Update ESXi and Virtual Machines
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram
• Section 6 – Perform Basic Troubleshooting and Alarm Management
– Objective 6.1 – Perform Basic Troubleshooting for ESXi Hosts
– Objective 6.2 – Perform Basic vSphere Network Troubleshooting
Who is VCDX 007 ?
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram
• Section 6 – Perform Basic Troubleshooting and Alarm Management
– Objective 6.3 – Perform Basic vSphere Storage Troubleshooting – Objective 6.4 – Perform Basic Troubleshooting for HA/DRS
Clusters and vMotion/Storage vMotion
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram
• Section 7 – Monitor a vSphere Implementation
– Objective 7.1 – Monitor ESXi, vCenter Server and Virtual Machines
– Objective 7.2 – Create and Administer vCenter Server Alarms
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
http://www.simonlong.co.uk
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VMware
Community
Roundtable
Podcast
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
vChat
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
vNews & Chinwag
http://www.rtfm-ed.co.uk
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCP5 – Exam Cram – FINAL TIPS
• Know BOTH theory and practical (hands-on) in each section
• May want to memorize some theory, like maximum configurations
• You’ll remember the hands-on better if you actually do it
• Getting hands-on experience with vSphere CAN be free (60 day eval on your own desktop / laptop)
• Build a lab
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCAP - FAQ
• 2 kinds of VCAP = DCA and DCD
• DCA is my favorite
• DCA is 100% hands on with real servers !
• SO many configurations to perform, SO little time
• Closest exam I have ever to the CCIE
• Note: DCA5 is now in BETA
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCAP - FAQ
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCAP - DCA – Preparation Tips
• Must have a lab
• Master common configurations that you could perform in seconds
• Troubleshooting is HUGE
• Performance is very important
• (security and PowerCLI, not as much)
• Know ALL VMware products and features
• Know log file locations and what to look for
• Only receive a few basic vSphere docs
• Likely, won’t have time to use the provided docs anyway
• Be prepared to sit there for 3-4 hours – no snacks and no coffee
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
VCDX - Preparation Tips
Overview
• It’s about knowing your DESIGN
• VCAP DCA and DCD are prerequisites for VCDX5
• You create a design of a fictitious customer, diagram it, document it
• Submit it
• Defend it in front of a live panel of VCDXs Tips
• Talk to existing VCDXs (Nash, etc)
• Attend the VCDX workshop
• Create your own mock defense
• Attend a mock defense
• Be a enterprise consultant (or pretend you are)
Senior VMware Administrator in Connecticut
College degree VCP, VCAP, or VCDX
Virtualization Experience Pay range $165-$275K
Dated: 9/16/2011
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
Evolve or Die
I’m in charge of Printers… or LUNs… or FAX machines…
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
Evolve or Die
• Today’s datacenter no longer functions with
“siloed knowledge”
• Breakout into virtualization, storage, networking, and “THE CLOUD”
• Build your own lab to get hands-on knowledge
• Become an “infrastructure engineer”
Top 3 VMware Certifications You Must Get - And How To Pass the First Time
Cert + Hands-on + Initiative = SUCCESS!
• You won’t differentiate yourself with a “MCSE”
• Challenge yourself to become the “go to guy”, the “lynchpin”
of your organization
• Certification + hands-on + initiative = SUCCESS!
