VMware Certified Design Expert on vSphere 4 Design Defense Blueprint

VCDX4

VMware Certified Design Expert on vSphere 4

Design Defense Blueprint

VCDX4
DesignDefenseBlueprintVersion1 7March2011

Disclaimer
ThisblueprintisintendedtoprovideinformationabouttheobjectivescoveredbytheVMwareCertifiedDesignExpert onvSphere4designdefenseexerciseandrelatedresources.Thematerialcontainedwithinthisblueprintisnot intendedtoguaranteethatapassingscorewillbeachievedonthedesigndefenseexercise.VMwarerecommends thatacandidatethoroughlyunderstandtheobjectivesindicatedinthisguideandutilizetheresourcesandcourses recommendedinthisguidewhereneeded.

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VMware Certified Design Expert on vSphere 4 Design Defense Blueprint

VCDX4

TableofContents

Section1:TheVCDXCertification....................................................................................................................................3 1.1:PurposeandStructureoftheCertification ..........................................................................................................3 . 1.2:IntendedAudience...............................................................................................................................................4 Section2:TheVCDXApplicationandDefense................................................................................................................4 2.1:ContentsofCandidateSubmission.......................................................................................................................4 2.2:FormatandStructureoftheDesignDefense.......................................................................................................5 2.3:HowObjectivesRelatetoComponentsoftheDesignDefense...........................................................................6 2.4:Languages.............................................................................................................................................................6 2.5:TimeLimit.............................................................................................................................................................6 2.6:SchedulingaDefense............................................................................................................................................6 2.7:RetakePolicies......................................................................................................................................................6 2.8:ApplicantIntegrity................................................................................................................................................6 Section3:ObjectivesCoveredintheVCDXDesignDefense...........................................................................................7 3.1:CustomerRequirements.......................................................................................................................................7 3.2:SolutionArchitecture............................................................................................................................................8 3.3:EngineeringSpecifications....................................................................................................................................9 3.4:ImplementationGuidanceofSubmittedDesign................................................................................................ 0 1 3.5:ObjectivesRelatedtotheDefenseSessionsInteractiveExercises.................................................................... 0 1 Section4:VCDXPathsandSuggestedCourses............................................................................................................. 2 1 4.1:VCDX4PathOptions........................................................................................................................................... 2 1 1 4.2:SuggestedCourses.............................................................................................................................................. 2 Section5:AdditionalResources.................................................................................................................................... 3 1 5.1:VCDXCommunity ............................................................................................................................................... 3 . 1 5.2:BuildingaVMwarevSphereTestEnvironment.................................................................................................. 3 1 5.3:DefenseRehearsal.............................................................................................................................................. 3 1

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VMware Certified Design Expert on vSphere 4 Design Defense Blueprint

VCDX4

Section1:TheVCDXCertification

1.1:PurposeandStructureoftheCertification
TheVMwareCertifiedDesignExpert(VCDX)certificationrecognizesdesignarchitectshighlyskilledinVMwareenterprise deployments.Theprogramisdesignedforveteranprofessionalswhowanttovalidateanddemonstratetheirexpertisein VMwarevirtualinfrastructure. AchievingtheVMwareCertifiedDesignExpertonvSphere4certificationrequirespriorcompletionofthefollowingsteps: AttainmentoftheVMwareCertifiedProfessionalonvSphere4(VCP4)certification AttainmentoftheVMwareCertifiedAdvancedProfessionalDatacenterAdministrationonvSphere4(VCAP4DCA) certification AttainmentoftheVMwareCertifiedAdvancedProfessionalDatacenterDesignonvSphere4(VCAP4DCD) certification

AcandidatemustachievetheVCP4beforeattemptingeitherVCAPexamination,althoughVCAP4DCDandVCAP4DCAcanbe attemptedineitherorder. Whenalltheseprerequisiteshavebeenachieved,acandidatemaysubmitanapplication,asdetailedintheVMwareCertified DesignExpertonVMwarevSphere4(VCDX4)Handbook&Application.Afterabriefsketchofthecandidatesprofessional qualifications,theapplicationprovidesanoverviewofaVMwarevSpheredesignprojectthatthecandidatewishestopresent anddefend.Thesubmittedprojectmaybeactual(inotherwords,itwasbuiltonbehalfofarealdesignclient),fictional,ora blendofactualandfictionalelements.NotethelanguagefromtheHandbook&Applicationonwhattypeofdesignprojectis appropriate: Thedesignyousubmitmustbeforaninfrastructure FulldetailsontheapplicationsubmissionprocessarepresentedintheHandbook&Application. Oncesubmitted,theapplicationwillbereviewedbyVMwaredesignexperts.Itmayberejectedonanyofthefollowing grounds: Theapplicationformorthesupportingdocumentationcontaintheworkofothersthatisnotexplicitlymarkedassuch. Thesubmissionisnotdetailedenoughindescribingdesignconsiderations,justificationsandtheirimpact.Itshould demonstratethecandidatesclearunderstandingofthedeploymentandoperationalimplicationsofthevirtual infrastructuredesign. DesigndocumentssubmitteddonotincludetherequireddocumentationlistedintheVCDX4Application.The applicationpackagemustincludeallsupportingdocumentationrequested. Thedocumentationisnotconsistentwiththedesignpresented. Theapplicationmerelyechoespublishedsampleimplementations,templates,anddefaults,withoutdemonstrationof thecandidatesdesignskills. Theapplicationproposesadefenseofadesignthatisnotrobustorcomplexenoughtodemonstratethebreadthof knowledgeanddesignskillsrequiredoftheVCDX4certifiedindividual. wherebusinessrequirementsdrivedesignandimplementationdecisions suitedformissioncriticalapplications inamanagedenvironment.

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VCDX4

Technicalmisunderstandinghasledtoafaultydesignthatwillhavesignificantanddetrimentalimpactontheintegrity ofthedeployedarchitecture. Theapplicationpackageisnotdeliveredintherequestedformats. Theapplicationpackageisnotsubmittedontime.

IfacandidatesVCDX4applicationisaccepted,heorshewillbeinvitedtoappearbeforeapanelofotherVCDXholdersand defenditscontents. Thecertificationisgranted,notonthebasisofthesubmitteddesign,butratherontheknowledge,skills,andabilitiesofthe candidate.Thedesignandthedesigndefensesessionarethetoolsbywhichthecandidatesknowledge,skills,andabilitiesare evaluated.

1.2:IntendedAudience
Notethisdescriptionofthecandidate,excerptedfromtheHandbook&Application: Inhisorhertypicaljobrole,thesuccessfulVCDXcandidateholdsprimaryresponsibilityforarchitecturaldesignofa proposedvirtualinfrastructure,configurationrecommendationsandplanning,integrationplanningforthirdparty applications,andidentificationofdeploymentvalidationprocessesandprocedures. TheVCDX4certificationprocessspecificallyavoidsmakingcertainkindsofrequirements. NospecificnumberofyearsofexperienceinVMwarevSpherebasedvirtualinfrastructuredesignisrequired. Candidatesarenotrequiredtobeemployedbyparticulartypesofcompanies. Nospecifichighereducationrequirementismade. Nospecificjobroleorjobtitleisrequired.

Nevertheless,candidateswillbeatadistinctadvantageiftheirdaytodayjobrolefocusesontheVMwarevSpherebased designsofenterprisescaleandcomplexity,withvisibilityintotheirimplementationandtheresultsobtainedafterthose deploymentsgolive.Candidatesareresponsiblefordevelopingappropriatehandsonskillsrelatedtoarchitecturedesign.

Section2:TheVCDXApplicationandDefense
2.1:ContentsofCandidateSubmission
TheVCDX4applicationformrequirestheattachmentofdesigndocumentationonitsassociatedproject.Acompleted applicationcontainspointersintothatdocumentation,callingreviewersattentiontoparticularcontents.Candidatesare encouragedtosubmitconceptualmodeldiagrams,logicaldesigndiagrams,andphysicaldesigndiagrams;aswellaswritten documentation,usingtheformatsspecifiedintheHandbook&Application. ForpurposesoftheVCDX4applicationprocess,conceptualdesign,logicaldesign,andphysicaldesignaredefinedasfollows: Thereisnorequiredminimumpagecountorwordcountofanapplication.Inthepast,VCDXsubmissionsbysuccessful candidateshavetypicallyrangedbetween100and300pages,includingtheapplicationformitselfandalldiagrams. Conceptualmodel:themappingofdesignclientrequirementstohighlevelsolutioncomponents Logicaldesign:theinterrelationofthehighlevelsolutioncomponents,omittinghardwaredetailsandphysicallayout Physicaldesign:thephysicalcomponentsoftheasbuiltsolutionandtheirphysicalconnections,presentedinamanner usefultoinstallationpersonnel

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VCDX4

Thetypicalsubmissionofasuccessfulcandidatemeetsthesecriteria: ItincludesallitemsrequiredbytheVCDX4applicationform. Itcontainssufficientdocumentationtocoverthescopeoftheprojectitdescribes ItaddressesallareasoftheVCDX4blueprint.

Candidatesdonotnecessarilyservetheirowninterestsbysubmittinglargequantitiesofmaterial.Beingconciseanddeleting extraneousmatterhelptodirectreviewers'focustothepartsofyourapplicationyoudeemmostrelevant.VMwarereserves therighttorequiretheresubmissionofapplicationsdeemedtocontainduplication,needlessrestatementorelaboration,or unreasonablequantitiesoftangentiallyrelatedmaterials.Ifanapplicationreferstoexternalresourcessuchasvendor whitepapers,URLsforthesedocumentsratherthanthedocumentsthemselvesshouldbeincludedinthesubmission. TheVCDX4applicationformrequiresthatothercontributorstothesubmitteddesignbeclearlyidentified,andthenatureof theircontributionexplained.Ifmaterialextractedfromatemplateisincludedinthedesign,thecandidatemustidentifythat templateasacontributorandciteitssource. Thesubmitteddesignitselfdoesnotstandalone.Candidateswho,duringthedefensesession,failtodisplaymasteryofthe materialsinthesubmissionwillnotreceivefullmarks.

2.2:FormatandStructureoftheDesignDefense
Candidatesshouldassumethatthedefensesessionsdurationwilloccupytheentiretyofamorningoranafternoon.During thissession,thecandidatewillbeaskedtoperformthefollowingtasks: Orallydefendthesubmitteddesign(75minutes) o Conciselyexplainthedesignandjustifythedecisionsmadetocreateit.(Planonspendingnomorethan15 minutesinthissubsection.) o Throughoutthe75minutedefense,respondtoquestionsposedbypanelists Workthroughadesignproblemposedbythepanelists,intheformatofanoraldiscussion.(30minutes) Workthroughatroubleshootingproblemposedbythepanelists,intheformatofanoraldiscussion.(15minutes)

Thesetasksareperformedasseparatetimedsectionsofthedefense. CandidatesshouldprepareashortPowerPointpresentationforapproximatelythefirst15minutesofthedefensethatprovides anexecutivesummaryofthedesign.Importantdiagramsfromthedesignmaybeincludedinthispresentationforquick reference.Donotattempttoreproduceeverydetailofthedesigninthispresentation;focusonwhatismostrelevanttothe requirements,constraints,andassumptionsunderlyingthedesign,aswellasyourdesignchoices.

VMwaredoesnotdisclosetheprecisemechanismbywhichthedefenseisscored.Instead,itoffersthefollowingguidanceto candidates: Lookforopportunitiestodisplaythethoughtprocessbehindyourdesigndecisions. Keepinmindthemappingbetweenthedesignclientsrequirementsandthepresenteddesign,andshowtheir interrelationduringthedefense. LookforopportunitiestodisplayyourexpertlevelunderstandingofVMwarebestpractices,whichincludesbothyour understandingofwhytheyareconsideredbestpracticesandalsowhentocontravenethem.

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VCDX4

2.3:HowObjectivesRelatetoComponentsoftheDesignDefense
Section3ofthisdocumentlistsobjectivesforthedesigndefense.Theysummarizewhatthedefenseexerciseisintendedto measure.Theseobjectivesaredevelopedbysubjectmatterexperts,includingbutnotlimitedtoVCDXcertifiedpersonnel,to identifycomponentsofenterprisescalevSpheredesignwork. Inadditiontotheobjectiveslistedinthisdocument,candidatesmaybeaskedquestionsthatrelatetotheobjectivesofVCDX4s prerequisitecertifications.

2.4:Languages
AlldefensesareconductedinEnglish.CandidatesshouldnotassumeanytimeextensionsfornonnativespeakersofEnglish.

2.5:TimeLimit
Thetotaltimeforthedefensesession,excludingbreaks,willbe120minutes.

2.6:SchedulingaDefense
CandidateswhoseapplicationsareacceptedwillbeinvitedtoworkwithVMwarescertificationteamtoselectanopportunity todefend.TypicallyVMwarewillpublishalistofupcomingopportunitiesworldwidetodefend.

2.7:RetakePolicies
Ifacandidatesapplicationisrejected,itmayberesubmittedafteracertaininterval.Thisintervalwillvarydependingonthe deficienciesoftheapplicationandisatVMwaressolediscretion.Paymentofanewapplicationfeewillberequiredwith resubmission. Ifacandidatesdefenseisscoredasnotpassing,heorshemayrescheduleforafutureopportunitytodefend.Paymentofa newdefensefeewillberequired. Ineithercase,thecandidatewillbetoldgenerallywhichareasofhisorherapplicationordefensewereinsufficient.VMware willnotdisclosetheprecisescoringofapplicationsanddefenses. Innocasemayacandidatehavemultiplesubmissionsunderreviewatthesametime.

2.8:ApplicantIntegrity
VMwarereservestherighttorefusecertifyingacandidatewhoviolatesintegritypolicies.Allthefollowingareconsidered breachesofintegrityandaregroundsfordisqualificationorrevocation: Presentingothersworkasyourown,orallowingtheappearanceofplagiarismtoarise. Disclosingspecificquestionsaskedorexercisespresentedduringthedesignsession,whetherorally,byemail,Twitter, blogs,oranyotherformofdissemination. Submittinganapplicationorattemptingtopresentadefenseunderafalseidentity. Falsifyingprofessionalcredentials.

Immediatelybeforebeginningtheirdefenses,candidateswillhavetheirphototakenandtwogovernmentissuedphotoIDs checked.

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VMware Certified Design Expert on vSphere 4 Design Defense Blueprint

VCDX4

Formoredetailsonexamsecuritypolicy,seethedocumententitledVCDX4ApplicantIntegrityPolicy,postedintheVCDXarea ofVMwareswebsite.VMwarereservestherighttorevisethispolicyfromtimetotime.Themostrecentrevisionisoperative forallcandidatesthroughouttheirapplicationprocess.

Section3:ObjectivesCoveredintheVCDXDesignDefense
3.1:CustomerRequirements

Collectthecustomerrequirements,constraints,andassumptions;mapthemintooneormoreinfrastructuredesignqualities: availability,manageability,performance,recoverability,andscalability.Thesequalitiesaredefinedasfollows: Availability Requirementstodeliverhighlyavailableoperation,asmeasuredbypercentuptimeofrelevantcomponents. Manageability Requirementsforeaseofmanagingtheenvironmentandmaintainingnormaloperations.Subqualitiesmay includescalabilityandflexibility. Performance Requiredstandardsofresponsivenessofcomponentsofthedesignedenvironment.

Recoverability Requirementsfortheabilitytorecoverfromanunexpectedincidentthataffectstheavailabilityofan environment. Security Requirementsforoveralldatacontrol,confidentiality,integrity,accessibility,governance,andriskmanagement, oftenincludingtheabilitytodemonstrateorachievecompliancewithregulation.

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VCDX4

3.2:SolutionArchitecture

Buildrelationshipmodelsamongthedesignentitiestocreatesolutionsbasedonthemappingofrequirements,constraints,and assumptionstothefollowinginfrastructuredesignqualities. Availability Includesbutnotlimitedtoconsiderationsandanalysisof singlepointsoffailure(SPOFs) redundancyoptions accessibility Manageability Includesbutnotlimitedtoconsiderationsandanalysisof monitoring administrationease maintenance updates scalabilityandcapacityplanning

Performance Includesbutnotlimitedtoconsiderationsandanalysisof demandpatterns potentialbottlenecks resourcemanagement capacityplanning workloadbalancing Recoverability Includesbutnotlimitedtoconsiderationsandanalysisof Security Includesbutnotlimitedtoconsiderationsandanalysisof potentialdataandcomponentloss acceptabledowntime methodsforrestoringcomponentsandservice

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VCDX4

permissions userroles componentaccess networksecurity monitoring

3.3:EngineeringSpecifications

Proposedetailedspecificationsforthetechnologystack,showingthecomponentsmappingtotheentitiesinthelogicaldesign. Someexamplesarelistedbelow;theyareforillustrativepurposesonly.Thislistisnotintendedtobeexhaustive.

VirtualDatacenterManagement VirtualMachines toolsandproceduresformaintainingnormaloperations

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VCDX4

sizingandspecifications environmentsandvirtualmachinecolocationpolicies

ComputeResources hostspecifications clusterspecifications environments(suchasproduction,test/dev) StorageResources sizingandspecifications mappingtocomputeresources backupandrecoveryorreplicationmethodsofvirtualmachinesandhosts NetworkResources sizingandspecifications mappingtocomputeresources

3.4:ImplementationGuidanceofSubmittedDesign
TherequirementthatimplementationguidancebeincludedinVCDX4designsubmissionsreflectsVMwaresbeliefthatVCDX caliberenterprisearchitectsareawareof,andrespondto,thechallengesofdeployingandmanagingtheirdesigns. Deploymentplan Createaworkableplanformovingfromhardwareandsoftwarecomponentstoadeployedsystemthatcouldbe handedofftootherpersonnel. Installationguide Defineinstallationproceduresforusebyotherpersonnel. Standardoperatingprocedures Defineroutineoperationalproceduresforusebyotherpersonnel. Acceptancetestplan Defineatestplanthatconfirmsthatthecustomer'srequirementsweremet.

3.5:ObjectivesRelatedtotheDefenseSessionsInteractiveExercises
ThepresenceofthedefensesessionintheVCDX4processreflectsVMwaresbeliefthatVCDXcaliberenterprisearchitectsare capableofexplaininganddefendingtheirdesignchoices.Enterprisearchitectsareoftenrequiredtodosoinaformatofthe designclientschoice,nottheirown.Theformatofthedefensesession,asoutlinedinthisdocument,isintendedtoprovidea common,uniformchallengetocandidatesthatsimulatesthevariousformsofdefensearealdesignclientmightdemandofan architect. DesignJudgmentandTechnique Throughoutthedefense,showhowselectionsweremadeamongreasonablealternatives,aswellashowthefinal designmetrequirementsandconstraints.Identifyassumptions.Ifimproperdesigndecisionsweremade,explainwhy andhowtheycouldhavebeenimproved.Iftypicalbestpracticeswerecontravened,justifythedecisionstodoso.

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VCDX4

SuccessfulInteractiveDesignExercise Respondinteractivelytoapresentationofrequirementsandconstraintstoshowtheabilitytoproduceadesignwhich satisfiesacustomer'sneeds. SuccessfulInteractiveTroubleshootingExercise Respondinteractivelytoapresentationofacustomerproblemtoshowanalyticalskillsanddeepproductknowledge, especiallyanunderstandingofhowthecomponentsworkandinteract.

Foralltheaboveobjectives:
KnowledgeandSkills Determinetherelevantinformationrequiredtounderstandthecurrentcustomerenvironment.Knowwhat questionstoask. Givenadesignrequirementanddatasetwithinamultisiteenvironment,determinewhichcomponentstoinclude inadesign. Givenresultsofrequirementgatheringactivities,identifythebusinessrequirements. Givenbusinessrequirements,analyzeanddeterminetheimpactoftherequirementsonthedesign. Succinctlyandclearlyexplaindesignrationale

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VCDX4

Section4:VCDXPathsandSuggestedCourses
4.1:VCDX4PathOptions
AllpathstoVCDX4,includingupgradepaths,requireachievementof,orupgradeto,VCP4.

TheVCAP4DCDexamcanbetakenbeforeoraftertheVCAP4DCAexam.

4.2:SuggestedCourses
NocourseworkisrequiredforVCDX4beyondthoseassociatedwithitsprerequisitecredentials(VCP4,VCAP4DCA,andVCAP4 DCD).Seethosecredentialsforcoursesuggestions.

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Section5:AdditionalResources
5.1:VCDXCommunity
VMwareprovidesanonlinecommunityforVCDXcandidates.Thiscommunitycontainsvaluableinformationfromother candidatesandexistingVCDXpersonnel,andismoderatedbyVMwarecertificationstaff. Thecommunityislocatedat:http://communities.vmware.com/community/vmtn/certedu/certification/vcdx/

5.2:BuildingaVMwarevSphereTestEnvironment
AllVMwareproducts,includingVMwarevSphere4,canbedownloadedandevaluatedfor60days.Ifyouhavetheequipment toinstallacopyofESX/ESXi4.x,youcaninstallESXinaVM.ThiswouldallowyoutoinstallmultiplecopiesofESXandacopyof vCenterServer.Forsharedstorage,obtainavirtualappliancethatcontainsaniSCSItarget.Severaloftheseareavailableon theappliancemarketplace.

5.3:DefenseRehearsal
Candidateswhoareinvitedtodefendshouldrehearsebeforetheirappearance.Hereareguidelinesformakingthisrehearsal mosteffective. MakeyourpresentationtoanaudienceofpeoplewhounderstandVMwaretechnologyanddesignprocesses. Requirethatyouraudiencereadyoursubmissionbeforethesession. Encourageaudiencememberstoaskquestionsatanytimeduringyourpresentation. Encourageaudiencememberstodemandjustificationofwhyimportantdecisionsweremade. Haveawhiteboardatyourdisposalandmakefrequentuseofit.Youcanalsodirectaudiencememberstolookat particularpagesinyoursubmission. Manageyourtime.Enforceastrict75minutetimelimit. AlldiscussionshouldbeinEnglish.

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