Ask the Experts

Ask the Experts

• What to consider before you install vCloud Connector

  VMware vCC requires a handful of prerequisites before you can deploy it. Install vCC once you have the correct processors, memory, network controllers and software.  Continue Reading

• The importance of vCloud Connector server, interface and nodes

  The three crucial components of vCC are the interface, the server and the nodes. The interface enables admins to modify the environment, while the server acts as the go-between.  Continue Reading

• What is vCloud Connector and what does it do?

  VMware vCC enables organizations to move workloads, such as VMs, templates and vApps, between clouds by extending the data center, synchronizing content and managing content.  Continue Reading

• Learn which edge data center types are best to virtualize

  You can implement ESXi on ARM -- or other RISC processors -- in micro and nano data centers. A nano data center is more specialized but also more limited than a micro data center.  Continue Reading

• What does an ESXi on ARM architecture look like?

  When you run a hypervisor such as VMware ESXi on ARM architecture, consolidation shouldn't be your goal; isolation, sandboxing and management should be.  Continue Reading

• Implement edge virtualization to ease device management

  Virtualization at the edge offers pros and cons. By virtualizing edge devices, admins can use a familiar management platform for devices both in and out of the data center.  Continue Reading

• Choose between CISC vs. RISC processors for edge virtualization

  CISC and RISC processing architectures have different benefits and drawbacks when it comes to implementing virtualization at the edge, but RISC processors reduce power consumption.  Continue Reading

• Can you run an enterprise workload on VMware Cloud on AWS?

  There is a small list of enterprise-class deployments and integrations known to run on VMware Cloud on AWS, but not all complex workloads are suited to the cloud yet.  Continue Reading

• Stay up to date with the VMware Cloud on AWS roadmap

  Upcoming features on the VMware Cloud on AWS roadmap include two SDKs, disaster recovery testing improvements and increased VMware Site Recovery protection.  Continue Reading

• Learn about VMware Cloud on AWS pricing and availability

  VMware Cloud on AWS offers three pricing tiers for different types of businesses and is available in most major global AWS regions. Learn which tier works best for your business.  Continue Reading

• Take advantage of these 4 VMware Cloud on AWS features

  VMware features, such as Site Recovery, vSphere vMotion, vSAN stretched clusters and Elastic Distributed Resource Scheduler, are available on VMware Cloud on AWS.  Continue Reading

• What are the limitations of free ESXi?

  VMware's ESXi hypervisor is free to license and use, but its capabilities are limited without vSphere. You get what you pay for.  Continue Reading

• These VMware and third-party VM backup tools make your job easier

  With the right tools and resources, VM backup and recovery can be easier. Consider factors such as product compatibility and future business needs before deciding what to use.  Continue Reading

• 6 VMware VM backup best practices you should know

  Understand these six crucial best practices for backing up and restoring VMs on your ESXi host. These strategies will ensure backups are protected and restoration is successful.  Continue Reading

• VMware VM backup strategies combine tradition with new methods

  Different VM backup and restoration approaches can favor consistency, speed or simplicity. Consider which you value most, and tailor your methodology to that.  Continue Reading

• Use the command line for ESXi host backup and restoration

  Backing up and properly restoring VMs are essential tasks for workload protection. Use a command-line interface, such as vSphere CLI or PowerCLI, to back up and restore the ESXi host.  Continue Reading

• How do you enable centralized vCenter logging?

  Centralize vCenter log files with vRealize Log Insight. Configuration with vSphere is simple and enables the centralization and transmission of event and task logs.  Continue Reading

• How do you reconfigure access to a VMkernel port?

  Use ESXi firewall configuration settings and VMkernel ports to control the levels of access that different services, such as Secure Shell, have to your management network.  Continue Reading

• How do you prevent host isolation during network maintenance?

  The host in a VMware high availability cluster uses a heartbeat network that can incorrectly report host isolation. Reconfigure your settings to prevent this during maintenance.  Continue Reading

• Why aren't I seeing DRS load-balancing recommendations?

  Conservative vSphere cluster settings tell DRS to only apply the recommendations that are required for host maintenance, so you might not get any load-balancing suggestions.  Continue Reading

• How should I prepare for a VMware exam?

  To prepare for a VMware certification exam, study the blueprint that VMware provides. You can also save some money on the test if you keep an eye out for discount codes.  Continue Reading

• How can I use and keep track of VMware flash storage devices?

  There are several uses for flash drives in VMware vSphere, but admins must keep an eye on drive lifespan. One way to do that is to compare actual usage with what vendors promise.  Continue Reading

• How are VMware thin provisioning and thick provisioning different?

  Thin provisioning helps ensure that organizations don't waste storage capacity, which is a potential pitfall of thick provisioning. But thin provisioning requires more monitoring.  Continue Reading

• What are the benefits and drawbacks of raw device mapping?

  Admins can give VMs access to storage through RDM, but some devices don't support it. And choosing physical compatibility mode affects what administrative features are available.  Continue Reading

• How does storage acceleration work in a VMware environment?

  Storage acceleration helps improve array performance by offloading storage operations from the server to the ESXi host, and it uses fewer processor and memory resources.  Continue Reading

• Which tools does NSX use for virtual network management?

  NSX uses VMware services, such as vRealize Operations Manager and VMware Integrated OpenStack, and integrates with third-party platforms for security and virtual network management.  Continue Reading

• Which VMware NSX editions are suited for your organization's needs?

  There are four VMware NSX editions, each with its own feature set. Learn more about these features and whether they meet the needs of your infrastructure.  Continue Reading

• Which VMware NSX features handle networking and security?

  The VMware NSX network virtualization platform provides a flexible software-defined networking overlay and granular security to round out the company's software-defined data center.  Continue Reading

• What are the benefits of the NSX network virtualization platform?

  VMware's NSX network virtualization platform applies software-layer abstraction to networking, adds network functionality and enforces granular security policies.  Continue Reading

• What is VMware Remote Console and how do you run it?

  A vSphere administrator can use VMware Remote Console to remotely access a VM's peripherals, configuration and desktop remotely through the vSphere Web Client.  Continue Reading

• How do Docker container hosts and virtual container hosts differ?

  VSphere Integrated Containers gives you two options for container deployment, each of which takes a different approach to provisioning, memory, security and more.  Continue Reading

• How do you upgrade VM hardware, and what are the benefits?

  You can set up your infrastructure to better take advantage of new technology in just a few steps. Perform a VM version upgrade to get the most out of what you have.  Continue Reading

• How do VMware VIC security features protect containers?

  VMware VIC security features, like isolation and user authentication, can improve enterprise container security so long as proper configuration and usage policies are observed.  Continue Reading

• How do VIC components manage Docker container images?

  VSphere Integrated Containers uses a combination of VIC engine, Project Harbor, Project Admiral and Photon OS to handle container provisioning, runtime, workflow and management.  Continue Reading

• How does VIC provide VMware container support?

  VIC supports container creation and image deployment through virtual container hosts, which suit well-proven workloads, or Docker container hosts, which can build images.  Continue Reading

• Does VMware AppDefense protect hybrid environments?

  The VMware AppDefense network security product uses Security Management proxies to protect on-premises and public cloud workloads at the application layer.  Continue Reading

• How does AppDefense integrate VMware application monitoring?

  VMware AppDefense integrates with a variety of tools and products. These partnerships reveal insight into application behavior, including automated responses to deviations.  Continue Reading

• How do you use AppDefense for VMware application monitoring?

  VMware AppDefense secures an application by monitoring deviations from its normal behavior. Its core functions establish a baseline, measure behavior and try to correct it.  Continue Reading

• What is VMware AppDefense, and what benefits does it provide?

  VMware AppDefense promises to overcome some of the issues associated with enterprise cybersecurity and low-level infrastructure-based rule sets.  Continue Reading

• How do you use VMware ESXi logs to troubleshoot your host?

  With access to logs, you can troubleshoot your ESXi host and track issues as they crop up. You can access your logs via the console or a web browser with only a few simple steps.  Continue Reading

• Which vSAN 6.6 system requirements do you need to meet?

  If you plan to manually configure a vSAN 6.6 or 6.6.1 deployment, make sure your organization meets these hardware and software requirements before you get started.  Continue Reading

• Which vSAN features improve storage management and performance?

  VSAN 6.6 and 6.6.1 boast new features, such as vSAN Configuration Assist, integration with vROps and a streamlined upgrade process to improve storage performance and management.  Continue Reading

• How can you secure VMware environments with vSAN features?

  For enterprises that require powerful security and resiliency, vSAN 6.6 presents an array of features, such as encryption and stretched clusters, to boost VMware security.  Continue Reading

• How can a vSAN-HCI combination complete your VM environment?

  HCI can streamline data centers, but its modular approach poses storage challenges. Use vSAN to complete your virtual environment, and avoid unnecessary work.  Continue Reading

• What happens when you violate affinity or anti-affinity rules?

  Just because VM placement is flexible doesn't mean you should take it for granted. Affinity rule conflicts can take a serious toll on the functionality of multiple VMware platforms.  Continue Reading

• How do you apply VM-host and VM-VM affinity rules in DRS?

  Affinity and anti-affinity rules improve application performance and resilience. Select the desired clusters in vSphere Web Client, and add rules to apply affinity rules to DRS.  Continue Reading

• What are VM-VM and VM-host affinity and anti-affinity rules?

  It's important to create specific rules in VMware DRS to outline how different VMs and hosts behave. What kinds of affinity and anti-affinity rules are there, and how do they work?  Continue Reading

• How do affinity and anti-affinity rules improve VM failover?

  Proper VM placement can go a long way toward maintaining availability in the event of a failure. How can you use affinity and anti-affinity rules with DRS for better VM distribution?  Continue Reading

• What are the benefits of VMware SPBM, and how does it work?

  You can use VMware Storage Policy-Based Management to create custom VM storage policies and automatically apply these policies to any new VMs you provision in VVOLs and vSAN.  Continue Reading

• Where can you download the VMware Photon platform and get support?

  The VMware GitHub wiki page offers a number of formats of Photon for different installation types, as well as documentation on how to use Photon and information about support.  Continue Reading

• How can a VM storage policy improve vSAN cluster redundancy?

  FTT dictates how many failures can occur in a vSAN cluster without sacrificing availability. How can you use a VM storage policy to define the amount of Failures To Tolerate?  Continue Reading

• How does Photon Controller compare to vSphere Integrated Containers?

  Photon Controller and vSphere Integrated Containers both manage containers, but in different ways. What's the difference between these utilities, and when should you use them together?  Continue Reading

• What are the different vSAN Stretched Cluster configuration options?

  VMware increased flexibility in vSAN 6.6 with the addition of new stretched cluster configuration options. What are these options, and how do they improve availability?  Continue Reading

• To which OpenStack projects does VMware contribute the most?

  VMware Integrated OpenStack might not be the highest priority product in VMware's portfolio, but VMware is a major contributor to other OpenStack projects.  Continue Reading

• How do you run Photon OS on vSphere or platforms like Google?

  Photon OS optimizes VMware Photon platform deployment, not only in vSphere but in GCE, EC2 and more. Follow these steps to learn how to run Photon OS on different platforms.  Continue Reading

• How do you manually download VMware Tools ISO images?

  VMware Tools optimizes VMs within a vSphere infrastructure. Although it's typically bundled with ESXi hosts, you can also manually install VMware Tools via an ISO image.  Continue Reading

• What is Photon OS, and why would I use it in my data center?

  Due to its scalability, low cost and fast deployment, container technology is on the rise. How does VMware harness the power of containers in a vSphere environment?  Continue Reading

• How do deduplication and compression compare to RAID erasure coding?

  RAID 5 and RAID 6 erasure coding, deduplication and compression are similar but distinct concepts that reduce data and maintain storage capacity in virtualized environments.  Continue Reading

• How do you implement RAID 5 or RAID 6 erasure coding in vSAN 6.2?

  To configure RAID 1, RAID 5 or RAID 6 erasure coding in VMware vSAN 6.2, an administrator must first choose the proper RAID protection settings.  Continue Reading

• What are VMware vSphere snapshots, and what's the best way to use them?

  VSphere snapshots help restore a VM to a given point in time but can eat up data store resources. How should you use, monitor and manage snapshots in a virtual environment?  Continue Reading

• How does VMware VIO add cloud functionality to vSphere?

  OpenStack makes workloads available, but most distributions are difficult to deploy. How does VIO compare to other distributions, and how does it improve vSphere?  Continue Reading

• What are some best practices for vSphere HA clusters?

  With the right configuration, VMware vSphere HA can reduce application downtime, protect against server failure and restart failed VMs.  Continue Reading

• How does RAID 5 or RAID 6 affect storage performance and capacity?

  RAID provides workload resilience and protects against data loss, but not all levels of RAID are made alike. What are the storage tradeoffs for RAID 1, RAID 5 and RAID 6?  Continue Reading

• What is the difference between erasure coding, RAID 5 and RAID 6?

  RAID 5 and RAID 6 are two types of erasure coding. The former protects data with basic parity, while the latter builds in a second layer of parity for even greater protection.  Continue Reading

• How does free vSphere deploy and export VMs?

  The free vSphere license lacks the ability to create a template from an existing VM. How can administrators work around this shortcoming?  Continue Reading

• How does VMware secure boot protect VMs and ESXi hosts?

  New to vSphere 6.5, the secure boot feature protects VMs and ESXi hosts from viruses, malware and spyware -- and enabling it is as easy as checking off a box.  Continue Reading

• How does vSphere 6.5 improve on the Storage I/O Control feature?

  VMware vSphere 6.5 Storage I/O Control uses vSphere APIs for I/O Filters framework to create and apply storage policies and I/O limit rules for VM workloads.  Continue Reading

• How does SIOC use storage policies to optimize workload performance?

  Storage bottlenecks can take a serious toll on storage latency and VM performance. How can administrators use SIOC storage policies to eliminate storage contention?  Continue Reading

• What issues can storage I/O control present in vSphere?

  Storage I/O control can be an effective way to handle occasional storage sharing issues, but it is not always suitable for every virtual machine.  Continue Reading

• How do you configure ESXi time sync through the vSphere Web Client?

  Configuring ESXi time sync should be a top priority for admins once installation is complete -- failure to do so could result in application failure, VM issues and more.  Continue Reading

• What is storage I/O control in VMware vSphere 6.5?

  VMware storage I/O control helps improve the quality of storage in vSphere. VSphere 6.5 integrates storage I/O control configurations into the VM Storage Policy.  Continue Reading

• Best practices to keep your vSphere environment secure

  VMware introduced a lot of new features that focused on security in vSphere 6.5. But, beyond those features, you can follow these practices to improve security.  Continue Reading

• How does VMware vSphere 6.5 improve its Content Library?

  Introduced in vSphere 6.0, the Content Library was a nifty tool, but had some serious limitations. VSphere 6.5 changes that with a number of new capabilities.  Continue Reading

• How does ESXi secure boot improve vSphere security?

  VMware vSphere 6.5 takes an extra security step, building on UEFI secure boot with added cryptographic validation to all ESXi components.  Continue Reading

• What is vSphere 6.5 encrypted vMotion and how does it work?

  Live migration of VMs isn't a new technology, but vMotion encryption adds a unique layer of security because the user isn't encrypting the network.  Continue Reading

• What is enhanced logging and how does it boost vSphere security?

  Logs have been an integral piece of troubleshooting. New enhanced logs boosts vSphere security by providing much more detail about errors and changes.  Continue Reading

• How do you change ESXi 6.5 host names and DNS configuration?

  Admins have options when it comes to changing an ESXi 6.5 host name, but only the vSphere Web Client has full functionality in the latest release.  Continue Reading

• How do you upgrade a stand-alone host to ESXi 6.5?

  Upgrading a stand-alone host to ESXi 6.5 is as easy as downloading the offline bundle update, starting Secure Shell and running a few commands with the ESXi software command tool set.  Continue Reading

• Remove snapshots without issue by being prepared

  Data center admins often run into problems when it comes to snapshot removal. The best way to avoid these issues is to prevent them in the first place.  Continue Reading

• What is the role of the message bus in VMware NSX?

  A message bus guarantees the delivery of messages to a host, even if that host is unavailable or you're unable to establish a connection. So, how do you use it in NSX?  Continue Reading

• What is the best way to collect vSphere log files?

  There are a few ways to collect vSphere log files. If you have access to vCenter, you can use the vSphere Web Client.  Continue Reading

• What vCenter Server upgrade options does vSphere 6.5 offer?

  VSphere 6.5 offers three different options for upgrading vCenter Server; which option you choose depends upon your environment's architecture.  Continue Reading

• How do you recreate a missing VMDK descriptor file?

  The descriptor file plays an essential role in a virtual machine disk file, pointing to the larger data file and other VMDK information. So, what do you do when it goes missing?  Continue Reading

• How does an OVF file work with VMware Workstation?

  With so many different files forms supported in virtualization, there is a lack of standardization. Administrators can mitigate that problem using OVF file format.  Continue Reading

• VMware upgrades vRealize Operations Manager 6.3, Automation 7.1

  Right before VMworld 2016 US, VMware released upgrades, debuting vRealize Operations Manager 6.3, vRealize Automation 7.1, and vRealize Orchestrator 7.1 to whet users' appetites.  Continue Reading

• Monitor and manage network traffic with traffic shaping and NIOC

  Monitoring and managing network traffic through vSphere Distributed Switches is easy, thanks to the traffic shaping and network I/O control capabilities.  Continue Reading

• Can you upgrade older versions of vSphere Distributed Switch to vSphere 6?

  The latest version of vSphere brings new capabilities to the vSphere Distributed Switch. So how do you go about upgrading an outdated version of vDS?  Continue Reading

• What vSphere's latest features mean for VMware vDS

  VSphere 5 and 6 offer a number of features to boost networking performance. Let's take a look at how these features affect the functionality of vSphere Distributed Switches.  Continue Reading

• How can a vSphere Distributed Switch improve your networking experience?

  Tools like the vSphere Distributed Switch help numb the pain of networking by introducing robust network features and aggregating virtual switches into a single distributed switch.  Continue Reading

• What is the best way to log in to vCenter Server with vSphere 6 Web Client?

  In order to successfully log in to vCenter Server with vSphere Web Client, start by figuring out which version of vCenter Server you're running.  Continue Reading

• How do you open a VM console and use timeouts in vSphere Web Client?

  By making small alterations and adjustments to the VM console, you can customize and optimize your vSphere 6 Web Client experience.  Continue Reading

• What direction should you go in with your VMware test lab?

  There are a number of details to consider when building a VMware home lab but there are some general best practices to follow.  Continue Reading

• What software is required for the vSphere 6 Web Client?

  In this round of Ask the Expert, Stephen Bigelow discusses the requirements of a vSphere 6 Web Client deployment.  Continue Reading

• Why you would want to disable snapshots in a hypervisor

  Since snapshots are essential to VM management, you might be wondering why anyone would want to disable them. In reality, unused and old snapshots can be a major drain on storage.  Continue Reading

• How can you disable snapshots in vSphere 6?

  Reducing the number of snapshots that you have could boost performance. Here's how to disable snapshots completely.  Continue Reading

• How are vSphere Virtual Volumes managed?

  When it comes to deploying and managing VVOLs, administrators have an option between the vSphere Web Client or the ESXCLI.  Continue Reading

• Which container types will VMware VIC support?

  VMware vSphere Integrated Containers provides an environment where containers can be deployed and managed within virtual machines.  Continue Reading

• What are the key components of vSphere VVOLs?

  In order for VVOLs to work, both VMware and storage array vendors must provide a series of components that can operate with one another.  Continue Reading

• What are the requirements for long-distance vMotion in vSphere 6?

  VMware vSphere 6 increases the latency cap and allows VM migrations across continental distances, but there are certain requirements for long-distance vMotion.  Continue Reading

• Which service features support vSphere Integrated Containers?

  With vSphere Integrated Containers and additional VMware tools, users can isolate and manage containers while avoiding the usual problems associated with container-based virtualization.  Continue Reading