Frequently Asked Questions

What is this course about? In this course, you gain the skills to virtualise your organisation's infrastructure. Through extensive hands-on exercises, you learn how to deploy and configure a highly available virtual infrastructure with VMware Infrastructure 3 (VI3), including VirtualCenter Server and VMware ESX Server. Who will benefit from this course? This course is valuable for anyone interested in implementing ESX Server and/or VirtualCenter, including: IT infrastructure architects System administrators System engineers Datacenter operators What background do I need? Experience with Windows or Linux system administration and networking knowledge is assumed. For example, you should know how to: Create and administer users, groups and shared network resources Configure networking resources, such as routers, switches and firewalls Specify hardware requirements for server operating systems and applications running on those servers Remotely access and administer computers in a network environment Why should my organisation implement VMware Infrastructure 3? VMware Virtual Infrastructure 3 is a powerful suite of software tools that enable organisations to optimise and manage IT environments through virtualisation. The main components of VMware Infrastructure are ESX Server, Virtual Machine File System (VMFS) and VirtualCenter. VMware Virtual Infrastructure 3, when effectively deployed, can: Increase hardware utilisation and reduce hardware costs Reduce the physical space required for your datacenter Decrease the power and cooling requirements of your datacenter Reduce labor costs by simplifying and automating IT operations Increase application availability to the datacenter customers Improve the responsiveness to business needs with instant provisioning and dynamic optimisation of applications and environments My company is considering upgrading to VI3, should I take this course? Yes. Virtual Infrastructure 3 is a very complex implementation technology, and "getting it right" the first time is essential to datacenter security, reliability and stability. This course will prepare you for that upgrade. Does this course help me prepare for VMware Professional Certification? Yes. While this Learning Tree course focuses on the practical implementation of VMware Virtual Infrastructure 3, it also covers a significant amount of content required to become a VMware Certified Professional. However, this course is not a VMware authorised course and will not count towards official VMware certification requirements. Please check the VMware Web site for more information on their certification requirements. What version of VMware is used in this course? This course uses VMware Infrastructure 3, which is a suite of products and includes: ESX Server, version 3.5 VMware Infrastrucure Management Installer Virtual Center, version 2.5 VMware Consolidated Backup, version 1.1 Which operating systems are used in the course? Several operating systems are used in this course. The foundation is ESX Server. You will also learn to deploy virtual machines with various guest operating systems, such as Windows 2003/XP/Vista and Linux. How is this course different from Course 170? Course 170, Deploying Virtual Server and Workstation Technology: Hands-On, is not product specific and covers the concepts of virtualisation in general, including the basics of ESX Server. Course 171 focuses on the suite of products included in VMware Infrastructure 3, their installation, deployment, configuration and optimisation. How much time is spent on each topic? Content Hours Enterprise virtualisation concepts 3.0 Installing and configuring Virtual Infrastructure 3 components 3.0 Configuring network resources 2.0 Accessing shared storage 2.0 Managing via VirtualCenter 3.0 Working with virtual machines 4.0 Securing access to the infrastructure 2.0 Using VMotion, Distributed Resource Scheduler and High Availability 4.0 Times, including the workshops, are estimates; exact times may vary according to the needs of each class. How much of this course is hands-on? Approximately 60 percent of this course is spent in hands-on exercises which provide experience designing and deploying a VMware virtual infrastructure. Exercises include: Designing and implementing virtual switch plans and policies Installing and configuring ESX and the VirtualCenter Server Creating and cloning Virtual Machines from the VI Client and Web management interfaces Moving a live VM using VMotion Converting virtual machines to templates Creating and managing resource pools How does this course relate to other Learning Tree courses? The following courses may be of interest: 170, Deploying Virtual Server and Workstation Technology: Hands-On provides the skills to implement VMware and Microsoft virtual machine technologies 367, TCP/IP: A Comprehensive Hands-On Introduction offers the skills to configure host and access internetworks using TCP/IP protocols 289, Disaster Recovery Planning: Ensuring Business Continuity provides the knowledge to create, document and test continuity plans for your organisation 961, Windows Server® 2008 Administration: Hands-On provides the skills to maintain, troubleshoot and secure Windows Server 2008 964, Windows Server® 2008 Security Infrastructure: Hands-On teaches the skills to apply Windows Server 2008 features to secure your infrastructure 954, Deploying Microsoft Office SharePoint® Server 2007: Hands-On offers the knowledge to deploy and manage Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) 981, Securing Exchange 2007: Hands-On provides the skills to create a secure Exchange 2007 environment 468, System and Network Security: A Comprehensive Introduction offers the skills to analyse your exposure to security threats and protect your organisation's systems and data 940, Securing Web Applications, Services and Servers: Hands-On provides the knowledge to implement and test secure Web applications in your organisation