Course Content
VMware vSphere: Install, Configure, Manage Content
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Course Introduction
Introduction to vSphere and the Software Defined Data Center
As a vSphere administrator, you must be familiar with the components on which vSphere is based. You must also understand the following concepts: Virtualization, the role of the ESXi hypervisor in virtualization and virtual machines Fundamental vSphere components and the use of vSphere in the software-defined data center Use of vSphere clients to administer and manage vSphere environments
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Overview of vSphere and Virtual Machines
vSphere Virtualization of Resources
vSphere User Interfaces
Overview of ESXi
Virtual Machines
You can create a virtual machine in several ways. Choosing the correct method can save you time and make the deployment process manageable and scalable.
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Creating Virtual Machines
Virtual Machine Hardware Deep Dive
Introduction to Containers
vCenter Server
vCenter Server helps you centrally manage multiple ESXi hosts and their virtual machines. If you do not properly deploy, configure, and manage vCenter Server Appliance, your environment might experience reduced administrative efficiency or ESXi host and virtual machine downtime.
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Centralized Management with vCenter Server
Deploying vCenter Server Appliance
vSphere Licensing
Managing the vCenter Server Inventory
vCenter Server Roles and Permissions
Monitoring vCenter Server Appliance
Backing Up and Restoring vCenter Server Appliance
vCenter Server High Availability
Configuring and Managing Virtual Networks
When you configure ESXi networking properly, virtual machines can communicate with other virtual, and physical, machines. In this way, remote host management and IP-based storage operate effectively.
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Introduction to vSphere Standard Switches
Configuring Standard Switch Policies
Configuring and Managing Virtual Storage
Understanding the available storage options helps you set up your storage according to your cost, performance, and manageability requirements. You can use shared storage for disaster recovery, high availability, and moving virtual machines between hosts.
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vSphere Storage Concepts
Fibre Channel Storage
iSCSI Storage
VMFS Datastores
NFS Datastores
vSAN Datastores
Virtual Machine Management
Virtual machines are the foundation of your virtual infrastructure. Managing VMs effectively requires skills in creating templates and clones, modifying VMs, migrating VMs, taking snapshots, and protecting the VMs through replication and backups.
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Creating Templates and Clones
Working with Content Libraries
Modifying Virtual Machines
Migrating VMs with vSphere vMotion
Enhanced vMotion Compatibility
Migrating VMs with vSphere Storage vMotion
Creating Virtual Machine Snapshots
vSphere Replication and Backup
Resource Management and Monitoring
Although the VMkernel works proactively to avoid resource contention, maximizing performance requires both analysis and ongoing monitoring. Developing skills in resource management, you can dynamically reallocate resources so that you can use available capacity more efficiently.
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Virtual CPU and Memory Concepts
vSphere Resource Controls
vSphere Resource Monitoring Tools
Monitoring Resource Use in vSphere
Using Alarms in vSphere
vSphere Clusters
Most organizations rely on computer-based services like email, databases, and web-based applications. The failure of any of these services can mean lost productivity and revenue. By understanding and using vSphere HA, you can configure highly available, computer-based services, which are important for an organization to remain competitive in contemporary business environments. And by developing skills in using vSphere DRS, you can improve service levels by guaranteeing appropriate resources to virtual machines.
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vSphere Clusters Overview
vSphere DRS
Introduction to vSphere HA
vSphere HA Architecture
Configuring vSphere HA
Introduction to vSphere Fault Tolerance
vSphere Lifecycle Management
Managing the life cycle of vSphere involves keeping vCenter Server and ESXi hosts up to date and integrated with other VMware and third-party solutions. To achieve these goals, you must understand how to use the new features provided by vSphere Lifecycle Manager, namely, clusterlevel management of ESXi hosts and the vCenter Server Update Planner.
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vCenter Server Update Planner
Overview of vSphere Lifecycle Manager
Working with Baselines
Working with Images
Managing the Life Cycle of VMware Tools and VM Hardware
VMware vSphere: Install, Configure, Manage
About Lesson

vSphere DRS

Learner Objectives

After completing this lesson, you should be able to meet the following objectives:

  • Describe the functions of a vSphere DRS cluster
  • Explain how vSphere DRS determines VM placement on hosts in the cluster
  • Enable vSphere DRS in a cluster
  • Monitor a vSphere DRS cluster

About vSphere DRS

vSphere DRS is a cluster feature that helps improve resource allocation across all hosts in a cluster.

It aggregates computing capacity across a collection of servers into logical resource pools.

vSphere DRS is used in the following situations:

  • Initial placement of a VM when it is powered on
  • Load balancing
  • Migrating VMs when an ESXi host is placed in maintenance mode

vSphere DRS: VM Focused

vSphere DRS is VM focused:

  • While the VM is powered on, vSphere DRS operates on an individual VM basis by ensuring that each VM’s resource requirements are met.
  • vSphere DRS calculates a score for each VM and gives recommendations (or migrates VMs) for meeting VM’s resource requirements.

About the VM DRS Score

The VM DRS score is a metric that tracks a VM’s execution efficiency on a given host. Execution efficiency is the frequency that the VM is reported as having its resources requirements met:

  • Values closer to 0% indicate severe resource contention.
  • Values closer to 100% indicate mild to no resource contention.

VM DRS Score List

The cluster’s Monitor tab lists the VM DRS Score and more detailed metrics for all the VMs in the cluster.

Viewing VM DRS Scores Using Performance Charts (1)

The advanced performance chart for a cluster object provides the DRS Score counter.

Viewing VM DRS Scores Using Performance Charts (2)

The DRS Score counter displays the DRS scores for VMs in the cluster over the selected time period.

Viewing vSphere DRS Settings

 

When you click VIEW DRS SETTINGS, the main vSphere DRS parameters and their current values are shown. vSphere DRS settings include:

  • • Automation level
  • • Migration threshold

vSphere DRS Settings: Automation Level

You can configure the automation level for the initial placement of VMs and for dynamic balancing while VMs are running.

vSphere DRS Settings: Migration Threshold

The migration threshold determines how aggressively vSphere DRS selects to migrate VMs.

vSphere DRS Settings: Predictive DRS

vSphere DRS and vRealize Operations Manager combine data to predict future demand and determine when and where high resource utilization occurs. To make predictive decisions, the vSphere DRS data collector retrieves the following data:

  • Resource usage statistics from ESXi hosts
  • Predicted usage statistics from the vRealize Operations Manager server Predicted usage statistics always take precedence over current usage statistics.

vSphere DRS Settings: VM Swap File Location

By default, swap files for a VM are on a datastore in the folder containing the other VM files. For all VMs in the cluster, you can place VM swap files on an alternative datastore. If vSphere DRS is enabled, you should place the VM swap file in the VM’s directory.

vSphere DRS

vSphere DRS Settings: VM Affinity

vSphere DRS virtual machine affinity rules specify that selected VMs be placed either on the same host (affinity) or on separate hosts (anti-affinity):

  • Affinity rules: Use for multiVM systems where VMs communicate heavily with one another.
  • Anti-affinity rules: Use for multi-VM systems where load balancing or high availability is desired.

vSphere DRS Settings: DRS Groups

vSphere DRS

VM groups and host groups are used in defining VM-Host affinity rules. The VM-Host affinity rule specifies whether VMs can or cannot be run on a host. Types of groups:

  • VM group: One or more VMs
  • Host group: One or more ESXi hosts A VM can belong to multiple VM groups.

A host can belong to multiple host groups.

vSphere DRS Settings: VM-Host Affinity Rules

vSphere DRS

A VM-Host affinity rule:

  • Defines an affinity (or anti-affinity) relationship between a VM group and a host group
  • Is either a required rule or a preferential rule Rule options:
  • Must run on hosts in group
  • Should run on hosts in group
  • Must not run on hosts in group
  • Should not run on hosts in group

VM-Host Affinity Preferential Rules

A preferential rule is softly enforced and can be violated if necessary. Example: Separate VMs on different blade systems for improved performance.

vSphere DRS

VM-Host Affinity Required Rules

A required rule is strictly enforced and can never be violated. Example: Enforce host-based ISV licensing. vSphere DRS

vSphere DRS Settings: VM-Level Automation

You can customize the automation level for individual VMs in a cluster to override the automation level set on the entire cluster.

vSphere DRS

vSphere DRS Cluster Requirements

ESXi hosts that are added to a vSphere DRS cluster must meet certain requirements to use cluster features successfully:

  • To use vSphere DRS for load balancing, the hosts in your cluster must be part of a vSphere vMotion network:
    • If the hosts are not part of a vSphere vMotion network, vSphere DRS can still make initial placement recommendations.
    • vSphere DRS works best if the VMs meet vSphere vMotion requirements.
  • Configure all managed hosts to use shared storage.

Viewing vSphere DRS Cluster Resource Utilization

From the cluster’s Monitor tab, you can view CPU, memory, and network utilization per host.

vSphere DRS

Viewing vSphere DRS Recommendations

vSphere DRS

The DRS Recommendations pane displays information about the vSphere DRS recommendations made for the cluster. You can also view the faults that occurred when the recommendations were applied and the history of vSphere DRS actions.

Maintenance Mode and Standby Mode

vSphere DRS

Maintenance mode:

  • Removes a host’s resources from a cluster, making those resources unavailable for use
  • Is often used to service a host in a cluster

To place a host in maintenance mode:

  • All running VMs on the host must be migrated to another host, shut down or suspended.
  • When DRS is in fully automated mode, powered-on VMs are automatically migrated from a host that is placed in maintenance mode.

Standby mode:

  • Is used by vSphere DPM to optimize power usage. When a host is placed in standby mode, it is powered off.

Removing a Host from the vSphere DRS Cluster

To remove a host from a cluster:

  1. Place the host in maintenance mode.
  2. Drag the host to a different inventory location, for example, the data center or another cluster.

The resources available for the cluster decrease.

vSphere DRS and Dynamic DirectPath I/O

 

Dynamic DirectPath I/O improves the vSphere DirectPath I/O functionality by adding a layer of abstraction between a VM and the physical PCI device:

A pool of PCI devices that are available in the cluster can be assigned to the VM.

vSphere DRS is aware of Dynamic DirectPath I/O devices:

  • When the VM is powered on, vSphere DRS places the VM on any ESXi host that provides the assigned PCI device.
  • vSphere DRS takes action only at VM power on and does not perform any load-balancing actions.

Adding a Dynamic DirectPath I/O Device to a VM

vSphere DRS

 

You can add Dynamic DirectPath I/O devices to a VM by editing the VM’s settings.

Review of Learner Objectives

After completing this vSphere DRS lesson, you should be able to meet the following objectives:

  • Describe the functions of a vSphere DRS cluster
  • Explain how vSphere DRS determines VM placement on hosts in the cluster
  • Enable vSphere DRS in a cluster
  • Monitor a vSphere DRS cluster
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