📖 About this Domain
This domain covers the fundamental operations for virtual machine (VM) lifecycle management on the Nutanix Cloud Platform. It focuses on VM provisioning, configuration, and management tasks using Prism Element and the Acropolis Hypervisor (AHV). The core concepts involve creating VMs from images, allocating resources, and performing day-to-day operations.
🎓 What You Will Learn
- You will learn the procedure to create a VM in Prism, specifying vCPUs, memory, and attaching vDisks from a storage container.
- You will understand how to use the Image Service to upload and manage ISO files and disk images for VM provisioning.
- You will identify the steps for performing VM power operations, taking snapshots, and cloning VMs for rapid deployment.
- You will recognize the function of Nutanix Guest Tools (NGT) and the process for mounting the installer within the guest OS.
🛠️ Skills You Will Build
- You will build the skill to deploy and configure a new VM from an uploaded ISO image using the Prism web console.
- You will be able to modify an existing VM's hardware, including adding vDisks and connecting NICs to a virtual switch.
- You will gain proficiency in using the Acropolis Command-Line Interface (aCLI) to perform basic VM operations and retrieve configuration details.
- You will develop the ability to manage VM data protection by creating, cloning, and restoring from VM-level snapshots.
💡 Top Tips to Prepare
- Familiarize yourself with every option in the 'Create VM' and 'Update VM' dialog boxes within Prism Element.
- Practice the aCLI commands for vm.create and vm.update, as command syntax is a key testable area.
- Know the specific requirements and benefits of installing Nutanix Guest Tools, such as self-service restore and VSS snapshot support.
- Clearly distinguish the use cases for a VM clone versus a VM snapshot for operational and data protection scenarios.
📖 About this Domain
This domain covers the Nutanix Distributed Storage Fabric (DSF), the core software-defined storage layer of the Nutanix platform. It explains how DSF aggregates local storage from all nodes into a single, resilient storage pool for virtual machines.
🎓 What You Will Learn
- You will learn to identify the core components of the DSF, including the Controller VM (CVM), storage pools, and storage containers.
- You will understand the I/O path for reads and writes, emphasizing the role of the Stargate process and data locality.
- You will learn the relationships between physical disks, storage pools, containers, and vDisks.
- You will be introduced to data resiliency features like replication factor (RF) and checksums that ensure data integrity.
🛠️ Skills You Will Build
- You will build the skill to identify and differentiate between key DSF processes like Oplog, Extent Store, and Curator.
- You will be able to recognize the steps for creating and managing storage containers within Prism Element.
- You will develop the ability to trace a basic read/write I/O operation and understand how data locality optimizes performance.
- You will build the skill to explain how replication factor (RF2/RF3) protects data against node or disk failures.
💡 Top Tips to Prepare
- Focus on memorizing the definitions and functions of key DSF processes like Stargate, Medusa, Zookeeper, and Curator.
- Use official diagrams to visualize the I/O path for a VM write operation, including the CVM and Oplog.
- Clearly differentiate the roles of storage pools versus storage containers and their configuration options.
- Practice navigating the Storage dashboard in Prism Element to view container configurations and capacity utilization.
📖 About this Domain
This domain covers the operational procedures for administering a Nutanix cluster. It focuses on the day-to-day management tasks performed through Prism Element and Prism Central. You will learn about core components like VM, storage, and network management within the Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure.
🎓 What You Will Learn
- You will learn to use the Prism web console to monitor cluster health, performance, and alerts.
- You will learn to perform VM lifecycle operations on AHV, including creation, cloning, and snapshot management.
- You will learn to configure and manage storage components like storage containers, volume groups, and storage policies.
- You will learn to create and manage virtual networks for VM connectivity within the Nutanix environment.
🛠️ Skills You Will Build
- You will build skills to perform cluster-level administrative tasks, including starting and stopping nodes and the cluster.
- You will build the ability to configure data protection using protection domains and remote sites for disaster recovery.
- You will build proficiency in using the Life Cycle Manager (LCM) to perform one-click, non-disruptive upgrades.
- You will build competence in identifying and interpreting key cluster metrics and health checks from the Prism dashboard.
💡 Top Tips to Prepare
- Gain hands-on experience with Prism Element and Prism Central to understand the dashboards and workflows.
- Memorize the specific command-line procedures for safely stopping and starting a CVM, a node, and the entire cluster.
- Focus on the configuration steps for data services like Nutanix Files and Nutanix Volumes.
- Understand the LCM inventory and upgrade process for AOS, hypervisors, and firmware.
📖 About this Domain
This domain covers the fundamental networking concepts within the Nutanix Cloud Platform. You will explore how Nutanix AOS interacts with the physical network and manages virtual machine networking. Key components include the Open vSwitch (OVS), bridges, bonds, and VLANs.
🎓 What You Will Learn
- Identify Nutanix networking components like the Controller VM (CVM) external and internal interfaces.
- Understand AHV networking constructs including the Open vSwitch (OVS), bridges, and bonds for network resiliency.
- Recognize how to configure VLANs for virtual machine (VM) network segmentation within Prism.
- Utilize the Network Visualization tool in Prism Element to troubleshoot network connectivity issues.
🛠️ Skills You Will Build
- Ability to differentiate between various OVS bond modes like active-backup and balance-slb for load balancing and failover.
- Skill to create and manage virtual networks (VLANs) for VMs using Prism Element.
- Competency in using the Network Visualization page to identify network misconfigurations or physical switch issues.
💡 Top Tips to Prepare
- Memorize the default CVM network configuration, including the eth0 and eth1 interfaces on the OVS.
- Practice navigating the Prism Network Visualization page to understand host, VM, and switch port connections.
- Clearly distinguish between managed and unmanaged networks in AHV and their respective configuration methods.
- Review the different OVS bond modes and their use cases for network high availability.
📖 About this Domain
This domain covers the monitoring of a Nutanix cluster's operational state using Prism. It focuses on the Health Dashboard, interpreting system alerts, and running Nutanix Cluster Check (NCC). These functions are fundamental for maintaining AOS cluster stability and performance.
🎓 What You Will Learn
- You will learn to use the Health Dashboard to view cluster-wide health status and execute NCC health checks.
- You will learn to identify and interpret system alerts and events in the Alerts Dashboard to resolve issues.
- You will learn the procedure for collecting diagnostic information using Logbay for Nutanix Support.
- You will learn how Prism Central aggregates health and alert data from multiple managed clusters for centralized monitoring.
🛠️ Skills You Will Build
- You will build the skill to analyze NCC output to identify potential configuration or hardware issues.
- You will build the skill to triage and acknowledge alerts in Prism based on severity levels like Critical or Warning.
- You will build the skill to configure alert policies and SMTP settings for automated email notifications.
- You will build the skill to navigate Prism Element and Prism Central to locate specific health and performance metrics.
💡 Top Tips to Prepare
- Practice navigating the Health and Alerts dashboards within a live or simulated Prism interface.
- Memorize the primary function of Nutanix Cluster Check (NCC) as the core diagnostic tool for the cluster.
- Understand the clear difference between an alert, which requires an action, and an event, which is a logged occurrence.
- Focus on the different alert severities and what they signify for the operational state of the AOS cluster.
📖 About this Domain
This domain covers the foundational security architecture of the Nutanix Cloud Platform. It details the methods for securing cluster access, protecting data, and hardening the overall HCI environment. You will explore built-in features like role-based access control and data-at-rest encryption.
🎓 What You Will Learn
- You will learn to configure user authentication using local accounts and integration with directory services like LDAP and Active Directory.
- You will learn to implement Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) in Prism Element and Prism Central to enforce least-privilege access.
- You will learn the principles of Data-at-Rest Encryption (DARE), including software-based encryption with a Local Key Manager (LKM) and Self-Encrypting Drives (SEDs).
- You will learn about cluster hardening techniques, such as Cluster Lockdown mode and the Security Configuration Management Automation (SCMA) framework.
🛠️ Skills You Will Build
- You will build the skill to configure and manage user accounts and authentication providers directly within the Prism interface.
- You will build the skill to create custom roles and assign specific permissions to users and groups for granular access control.
- You will build the skill to identify the requirements and operational differences between software-defined and hardware-based encryption.
- You will build the skill to apply security best practices outlined in the Nutanix Security Guide to a Nutanix cluster.
💡 Top Tips to Prepare
- Focus on the specific RBAC roles available in Prism Element versus Prism Central, as their capabilities differ.
- Understand the key management process for software-based DARE, including the function of the native Local Key Manager.
- Memorize the purpose of Cluster Lockdown and what specific access methods it restricts on the Controller VM (CVM).
- Review the Nutanix Security Guide to understand the different security profiles and compliance standards the platform adheres to.
📖 About this Domain
Acropolis Hypervisor (AHV) is the native, license-free hypervisor for the Nutanix Cloud Platform, built on a hardened KVM foundation. This domain covers AHV's core architecture, networking components, and management through Prism for virtual machine (VM) operations.
🎓 What You Will Learn
- Understand the core components of AHV architecture, including the Open vSwitch (OVS) and libvirt integration.
- Learn to perform fundamental VM lifecycle management tasks such as create, clone, snapshot, and migrate using Prism Element.
- Grasp AHV networking concepts, including the configuration of bridges, bonds, and VLANs for VM traffic.
- Identify key AHV features like Acropolis Dynamic Scheduling (ADS) and IP Address Management (IPAM).
🛠️ Skills You Will Build
- You will build the skill to deploy and manage virtual machines directly on a Nutanix AHV cluster via Prism.
- You will be able to configure virtual networks using OVS bridges and bonds to connect VMs.
- You will develop the ability to manage VM high availability (HA) and leverage Acropolis Dynamic Scheduling (ADS) for resource optimization.
💡 Top Tips to Prepare
- Focus on the VM management dashboard within Prism Element, as all AHV operations are initiated from there.
- Memorize the key components of AHV networking, specifically the roles of OVS bridges and bonds in connecting physical and virtual networks.
- Practice the workflows for creating, cloning, and snapshotting a VM, including CPU, memory, and disk configurations.
- Differentiate between AHV-specific features like Turbo Mode and general virtualization concepts to avoid confusion with other hypervisors.
