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>For example: If I have a hardware server with 1 CPU, 4 cores, and 8 gb of RAM, can I run 4 simultaneous machines with 1 core and 2gb RAM assigned to each? Or does ESXI handle it by how much each one is being used?

If you don't want to overcommit the host at all (e.g. you want a hard guarentee that all of those VMs will always have 100% of their resources available, yes. Most people, however, expect to do some overcommitment. The extent to which you can do this is completely workload dependent, but it ranges from 1:1 on the lowend (your example) to 10:1 or even higher (e.g., you have 4 cores phsyically and you've built 40 cores worth of VMs, or 80GB worth of VM memory).

>I noticed that if I boot up a machine with 2gb of RAM assigned, it seems to allocated 2gb used in the ESXI summary page. To me, that implies I need that much physical RAM to really be there.

Allocated != Used (which does not equal 'Active', or 'Shared' or 'Granted', etc). Allocated is just the amount you put in when you configured the virtual machine. The most 'relevant' value for what you are looking for is probably 'Active' and/or 'Granted' - this is a better indication of what the VM is actually using currently.

>CPU seems different though. Do I need a core per PC, or could I assign 2 cores per PC and still run 4 PCs simultaneously without issues?

CPU and memory can be overallocated in the same ways. For every physical core in your system, you can allocate up to (I believe) 25 virtual cores. So your system could reasonable have 100 virtual CPUs running at the same time....Now, with a 25:1 virtualCore:physicalCore ratio, you have a pretty reasonable chance of some serious contention issues if all those VMs need to execute something at the same time, so you probably wont be able to actually achieve that but that brings your next question

>I guess a lot of this depends on how hard the machines are each being run as well.

Exactly. Some environments I've seen hit 20:1 ratios (vCore:pCore, or vMem:pMem), some maxed out at 3:1 based on their workload. You just have to try it and see (and VMware has tools to help try and estimate this).

>If someone could clarify this for me, or point me in the direction I can go for this info, that would be great! Thanks!

This is a good start. There's an in depth guide on memory management here: http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/perf-vsphere-memory_management.pdf

If you want proper documentation, 'Mastering vSphere 5.5' by my buddy Scott is very good, and almost the bible for this stuff: http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Scott-Lowe/dp/1118661141

Lastly, the VMware ICM (Install, Configure Manage) course is very good (albeit a bit pricy).

I read the VCP6 Official Study Guide mostly, and a few other sources. I also have 2 years of daily experienced with vSphere 5.1 - 6.5, this was helpful for my comfort with the product, but so much of what you are tested on are things you would never rely on memory for, you'd consult the KB for the correct, current answer.

VCP6-DCV Official Cert Guide

This one is super helpful as well

Veeam Unofficial VCP6-DCV Study Guide

I thought the hard parts of the test were the details of storage protocols, affinity rules and cascading resource reservations and limits.

Good luck!

Go get Scott Lowe's book. Read it at least twice. If you have the money, like mech said the VCA is a good start. At the very least Im pretty sure you can take their online "class" to learn the VCA material for free. Keep your eye out as well for free vouchers to take the VCA with as they do pop up from time to time!

Edit: http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Scott-Lowe/dp/0470890800

I'm with you, just starting on this. Luckily I have official vCAC training coming up but I've got a start with vCO. These videos are pretty good, although I'm still having some issues getting the examples in the AD Part to work.

 

http://www.cbtnuggets.com/it-training-videos/course/vmwr_vcenter_orchestrator_5_5

 

I also just got this book in the mail yesterday. I haven't read much but it looks promising. Note, after looking at this its for vCO 4.2 but alot of the concepts look like they line up. I'll try to post more about it after reading some.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Automating-vSphere-vCenter-Orchestrator-Technology/dp/0321799917

VirtualLanger.com has a great study guide. I know the guy personally, he's awesome.

Mastering VMware vSphere 5.5 by Scott Lowe. Should literally be your bible if you're going for DCV.

I used the 5.0 version of Scotts book AFTER failing fairly badly by using The Official VCP5 Certification guide.

VMware study guides and practice exams Also helpful. Be critical of anything you read though, it'll help you learn the material better. Here's my favorite email response I received, ever.

Shpadoinkles,
Thanks for your interest in VMware certifications ans sorry for the delay in getting back to you. You are correct, that item would have been accurate for vSphere 4 but not 5. I will change the item to reference the CIM Server service on the host.

Thanks,
Josh

After reading Scotts book, I had in depth enough knowledge that I realized one of the VMware practice questions had an incorrect answer. I challenged it and got it updated.

Finally, hands on time. This is the most important. You'll get questions like, "In this menu, if you select this option, what is no longer available?" And it'll be a menu option that is so rarely used you'll shake your head in confusion. I went in cocky the first time as I studied that Official Cert Guide like crazy. Took it camping with me, read it before bed, read it at work. Nothing prepares for that test like being in the GUI or command line.

Get on the waiting list for the ICS class at stanly community college its like $250 for an official vmware course (training partner) you can buy the lab books, take the class and you get access to a bunch of free vmware software esxi, workstation, cloud offerings as well as discount voucher codes.

https://vmware.stanly.edu/

Then pick up mastering vsphere 5.5 by scott lowe, and read that and the documentation.

http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Scott-Lowe/dp/1118661141

https://pubs.vmware.com/vsphere-55/index.jsp
(There is a zip file of the all the documentation you can get and they are pdfs. at the bottom of the contents section)

Sign up at vmware learning and they have a free practice exam, as well as materials for the vca you can run through.

https://mylearn.vmware.com/mgrReg/login.cfm?ui=Full

You can build a lab if you dont have one a laptop using vmware workstation just max out the ram, I recommend building the lab from scratch a couple times to get use to it then from there you can use autolab for working on learning to use the software without having to manually rebuild.

http://www.labguides.com/

Well, one thing to consider is that DRS doesn't seek to "balance out the load." At least not at its core. It's main purpose is to ensure that all VMs are getting the resources they need and that there isn't a large disparity. Frank Denneman has a good write up, a little old, but still applicable. His Clustering Deepdive book is also an excellent resource on understanding DRS.

Edit: Another good read on DRS.

Stanly has a wait list, but the price can't be beat.

I also think Pluralsight is very very good and worth trying to convince your company to sign up for. If not, it's probably worth it to sign yourself up for $30 a month or whatever it is now.


Lastly, for VMware, these are the two books people seem to swear by for the VCP:
http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Scott-Lowe/dp/0470890800/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_y (This is the vsphere 5 version, I believe there is a 5.5 version as well if you're interested)

and

http://www.amazon.com/Official-Certification-Guide-VMware-Press/dp/0789749319/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1394466897&sr=1-1&keywords=vmware+certification

• Jot down a list of areas you were unsure of during the test (i.e. vMotion requirements, HA, SSO, etc) and then research them more.
  
• Take the practice tests again. At the end of each one, look at the chapters you were lacking in the results and reread those areas.
  
  I would also pick up the Mastering vSphere 5.5 book and use that to fill in gaps on the areas you're not doing well with.
  
  Another training resource would be CBT Nuggets. They do a free 7 day trial, sign up when you have 7 days to spend going through their VCP550 material (don't forget to cancel if you don't want to continue with their videos).
  
  Then also lab lab lab. Everything that is explained in the book, you should be doing in a lab. Doing it will help you remember and it will also allow you to hit problems when you do it incorrectly (it happens). When you hit a problem, fixing it is very beneficial to learning about the technology. If you don't hit any problems, break stuff on purpose and fix it.
  
  You can get a trial of all the software and then use an OpenSource system for the NAS/SAN pieces (FreeNAS/Openfiler) or even use the free EMC vVNX appliance (resource hog though).
  
  Those were the steps I took for the test.

You're on the right track. Those practice exam questions are a huge help, because we take them directly from the exam material. They are worded and sometimes are actually from the live exams. I helped write this book and can attest that it aligns with the current VCP6-DCV exam perfectly. (I don't get any royalties from it, so not trying to push it, was already paid a set amount). Also make sure you are aware that vSphere Foundations is an online exam and non-proctored, whereas the VCP6-DCV Exam is at an exam center and proctored.

I got a lot of value out of this book. You'll need to understanding networking fairly well if you want to be a decent VMware engineer.

https://www.amazon.com/Networking-VMware-Administrators-Press-Technology/dp/0133511081

Chris Wahl has a great blog as well: http://wahlnetwork.com/

This article is the most up to date information on the subject you are likely to find out in the blogs. It's written specific to vSphere 6.5, which is the most recent major version of vSphere as of this writing. Tons of other information out there is old and, while it may not be wrong, it might have bits and pieces that have changed since they were written.

If you really want a deep dive on the subject and more details than what everyone in this thread is providing, I highly recommend you pick up a copy of the Host Resources Deep Dive for vSphere 6.5 that takes these topics as far as you want to understand them. NUMA is covered extensively in the book (I read it a while back) and will give you so many performance tuning options that you'll wish you had enough time to test them all. :)

• 1. Learn Networking - This is typically where installations are done incorrectly. Learn networking basics until you are solid then know the current best practices from the VMware Networking Guide.
     
• 2. RTFM - It's not the official manual but it might as well be.
     
• 3. Labs - Make use of the VMware HOL
     This should be a good start.

I used the blueprint and course materials to prep. I had an ESXi server at home, so I built nested ESXi hosts and attached them to an iSCSI NAS. This helped with understand DRS, HA, admission control, etc.

I also read this book: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/1118658442/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 and dogeared the corners of pages with key info.

I've heard the CBT Nuggets are also pretty good, if you have access to them.

vSphere Essentials will do what you need. Depending on how fast you're going to grow your virtual datacenter, you may want to look at the other options and consider the cost differences. I've never had to upgrade from Essentials, so no clue what that process is like.

Yes, the hypervisor is the same across the various versions.

Mastering VMware vSphere 5 by Scott Lowe.

Attend VMworld.

As a final note I'd get more RAM in your servers if I were you. Servers are memory hungry. I personally find that I always have plenty of CPU resources available but fall short on RAM. However, it really depends on the workload you're throwing at your cluster, so ymmv.

Have fun!

The textbook for the class I took absolutely sucked. I bought Mastering VSphere 6 ( Mastering VMware vSphere 6 https://www.amazon.com/dp/1118925157/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_UUXFAbVRY5J9X ) and it was perfect for me. It was a lifesaver when I was setting up my home network and I keep it on my shelf at work. Strongly recommend.

go get scott lowe's mastering vsphere 5.5. also go check out vmware's free learning videos. to get some good hands on experience check out vmware's free hands on labs. good luck.

Thanks. I appreciate that. I find the vmware site to be a behemoth. The designers could benefit from reading Don't Make Me Think.

Or maybe it's just me.

Pretty much did the exact same thing. I'm already planning on how I can make this into a self-service system. That vCO virtual appliance is awesome. Check out this for getting started: http://www.vcoteam.info/learn-vco/pimp-my-vcenter-orchestrator-virtual-appliance.html

Also I just picked up this book: http://www.amazon.com/Automating-vSphere-vCenter-Orchestrator-Technology/dp/0321799917

Managing and Optimizing VMware VSphere Deployments: Lessons Learned on the Virtualization Journey (IT Best Practices)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Managing-Optimizing-VMware-VSphere-Deployments/dp/0321820479

There is a Mastering vSphere 6 book Can confirm, I used the 5.5 version to get my VCP-DCV. Excellent reference book. Also agree the ICM class is so very basic that if you've installed a homelab, chances are you won't learn much new. When I took it I'd deployed several clusters already and didn't take much away.

Can confirm. I would also recommend some additional reading. Something like https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Nick-Marshall/dp/1118925157/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1464096815&sr=8-1&keywords=mastering+vsphere+6 will be a good start.

I think it was Mastering vSphere 5 - I am not sure - it was on Amazon. Honestly, I read the book and passed the test. my 5 years of experience pretty much helped me.

Disclaimer, I am not certified, you can't be without a registered class AND test. I have only passed the test and cannot afford the $3K class yet

Edit: Found it! http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Scott-Lowe/dp/0470890800/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1376012706&sr=8-1&keywords=mastering+vsphere+5

I can do all that now I think...In fact I'm going to build some useful functions using some of those requirements as those building blocks will be useful for many scripts

I found a good book too
http://www.amazon.co.uk/VMware-VSphere-PowerCLI-Reference-Administration/dp/0470890797/

Additionally, pick up VMware vSphere 5.1 Clustering Deepdive. It applies to 5.5 as well. Definitely a good book.

You need this book and this study guide. Good luck!

Use something like this. I picked the 32G as that allows you to install both esxi and vcenter on it.

It solves the issue of a dongle sticking out with the small form factor.

SanDisk 32GB Cruzer Fit USB Flash Drive - SDCZ33-032G-G35 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MPCJDXS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_EEf1CbYFA8V76

Links for anyone looking to purchase a copy of these books

 

Mastering VMware vSphere 5.5
Amazon |
Barnes and Noble |
Google Play |
iTunes |
O'Reilly |
Wiley

Mastering VMware vSphere 6
Amazon |
Barnes and Noble |
Google Play |
iTunes |
O'Reilly |
Wiley

 

Happy VMing!

I think the exam is $400. If you are a VMUG advantage member you get a discount. If you can take it at VMworld it is way cheaper.

How much real world experience do you have with a broad range of IT projects and how they are implemented over a lifecycle? I studied for a month, and took the exam expecting to fail but learn something. I passed, but I've been working in a F500 org for a long time in design and architecture. Some of the stuff on the exam is broad and hard to study, but is obvious if you have been around the block in a VAR or large org.

Paul McSharry wrote the official guide, it is a good first place to start:
http://www.amazon.com/VCAP5-DCD-Official-Cert-Guide-Certification/dp/078975018X

Scott Lowe has a pluralsight class out there that is a good resource as well.

The reason for the extra memory is well I figured I might as well just max out the motherboard from the start considering how cheap memory is in the first place and not worry about wanting to upgrade that down the line. I am planning on starting out with ESXI 5.0 anyway and picking up this book http://amzn.com/0470890800 as my go to reference manual outside of the google library.

I had no plan of using the onboard RAID hardware at all - I've already been warned by a friend (who builds clusters and borderline supercomputers for universities for a living) that the onboard RAID stuff will suck and that I should either buy a separate controller (just like you did) or use a software based configuration. Which brings me to my next question, what would you recommend for to purchase as a separate controller card?

When I said "the network" I meant the physical network. The virtual port will be the secondary's assigned virtual port of course.

The hosts can be connected to the same or to different physical switches, but they'd be connected to the same logical networks/vlans. In either case, the physical switchs will eventually see a frame from the VM on a physical port it had not before. When this happens the switch will add the source MAC address of the VM to it's forwarding table indicating that "this MAC exists on port N". Future frames destined for the VM's MAC will now be sent to this new port.

There is a NIC Teaming policy for each vSwitch called "Notify Switches" related to this. If this policy is enabled the destination host will send out frames with the MAC of the incoming VM so that the physical switches know ahead of time to start sending frames destined for the VM's MAC to the new physical port. This way when the VM stops executing on the source host and starts executing on the destination host, there will be a much smaller number of packets that potentially don't make it to the VM. I'm not sure if this settings applies to FT fail over events, but it would be easy to test with the right equipment in a lab.

If you're interested in knowing more about networking from the perspective of a VMware administrator check out this book. It starts from the very basics of networking (first 6 chapters) and then goes from there to vSphere specific topics. Would probably be a good read for you.

I read through, cover to cover, http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Scott-Lowe/dp/0470890800 & http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0789749319/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i02?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I also got a chance to go to VMWare Install, Configure and Manage 5.1 (I think that is the course name), but that didn't seem to have as much useful information as the books did.

Get one of these: http://www.amazon.com/HighPoint-4-Port-PCI-Express-RocketU-1144D/dp/B015CQ8DCS

Use PCI passthrough. Each port is connected to a separate PCIe USB controller. Best expansion card you can find for this task.

I am sure many people will add to this but what I find is the biggest gap is not having a good base of understanding of why all of this "Infrastructure" is needed.

There is so much content to learn and I am not even scratching the surface. There is much to learn and you are not alone.

Hands-on labs
https://labs.hol.vmware.com/HOL/catalogs/catalog/1212

Physical networking (My teacher)
https://www.pluralsight.com/authors/ross-bagurdes

Virtual Networking
https://www.amazon.com/Networking-VMware-Administrators-Press-Technology/dp/0133511081

Storage
https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Storage-Victor-ebook/dp/B00YSIL6HQ

vSAN
https://www.amazon.com/VMware-vSAN-6-7-Deep-Dive-ebook/dp/B07L8CNZ53

NSX
https://blogs.vmware.com/networkvirtualization/2018/10/nsx-vmworld-2018-europe-the-technical-geek-guide.html/

ESXi Deep dive
https://pages.rubrik.com/host-resources-deep-dive_request.html

vVols are making a comeback
https://blogs.vmware.com/virtualblocks/2019/07/25/vvols-vmworld-2019/

Project pacific
https://blogs.vmware.com/vsphere/2019/09/project-pacific-at-tech-field-day-extra-at-vmworld-2019.html

Good mentions
https://storagehub.vmware.com/
https://www.vmware.com/content/dam/digitalmarketing/vmware/en/pdf/techpaper/virtual_networking_concepts.pdf

And any VMware feature you need a walkthrough
https://featurewalkthrough.vmware.com/

Edit: adding newest deep dive for Pacific https://cormachogan.com/2019/11/22/project-pacific-vmworld-2019-deep-dive-updates/

Mastering VMware vSphere 5.5

It's a great book especially if you follow along on your own environment.

The vSphere Install/Config class is more for a person first coming into VMware. I did not learn much from the class whatsoever because I already had 3 years of experiencing in administration.

The book I did use was:

https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Scott-Lowe/dp/1118661141/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Not sure if there is a comparible one for vSphere 6.

Also the VMware VCP Exam Blue Print was a huge one. Make sure understand each bullet and you'll do fine on the exam.

>Have you worked on 5.0/5.5 for two years on a daily basis that is more than just start/stop/create VMs?

I inherited an ESX (not i) 4.1 environment and upgraded/rebuilt it on 5.1, but we haven't upgraded to 5.5 yet. Most of the day to day is like you say start/stop/create but I do have experience configuring the hosts, networking, iSCSI storage, evc/drs cluster, vCenter, backups (we dabbled in VDR briefly but now use Veeam) and I've done some labs at the last two VMworld conferences.

I've had a quick look at the blueprint and my biggest gaps are probably VUM, vDS and vCOPs, as we don't really have a big enough deployment (or the licensing) to leverage all of those.

>Are those books updated for 5.5 yet?

The Scott Lowe book has been updated for 5.5. Not sure about the official guide.

Purchase copies of both the Clustering Deep Dive and Host Resources Deep Dive books. You can also find digital copies from Rubrik for free at the following:

​

https://pages.rubrik.com/host-resources-deep-dive_request.html

https://pages.rubrik.com/clustering-deep-dive-ebook.html

​

If you're going to run vSAN there is also a vSAN Deep Dive book available.

​

Home, Licensing in your vSphere client will tell you what license type is applied if you're using vCenter.

Otherwise, if it's standalone, click on the host and go to the configuration tab, under "Software" and "Licensed Features".

I highly recommend the Sybex book by Brian Atkinson as well. You'll have to look to see if there's a newer version out.
http://www.amazon.com/VMware-Certified-Professional-vSphere-Study/dp/1118181123/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395248631&sr=8-1&keywords=vcp+vmware+certified+professional+on+vsphere+5+study+guide

EDIT: I missed that you are on vSphere 4.1. Maybe this one?
http://www.amazon.com/VMware-Certified-Professional-vSphere-Study/dp/0470569611/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1395248693&sr=8-2&keywords=vcp+vmware+certified+professional+on+vsphere+4+study+guide

I have years of expertise with VMWare deployment and administration.

I followed the VMWare blueprint for the exam and found this book was extremely helpful in explaining the concepts: Mastering VMware vSphere 6.7 https://www.amazon.com/dp/1119512948/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_rvwzDbRXBY74B

And once you’ve finished that and you’re ready for the Masters class:

VMware vSphere 6.5 Host Resources Deep Dive

Study guide

Starter book (verify you know current min/max values before you attempt a test)

Depending on where you live and how serious you are, Stanly Community College is probably your cheapest bet to get a real education with a shot at the DCV. Get on the waitlist now, it may take awhile to get in.

This is the one I used - highly recommended.

http://www.amazon.com/VMware-Certified-Professional-vSphere-Study/dp/1118181123/ref=sr_1_2/189-6632719-3410357?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1394146584&sr=1-2&keywords=vcp5

I think this one's pretty good. Haven't taken my VCP yet but have it coming up on the 27th.

https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Nick-Marshall/dp/1119512948

I'm taking the same class. I searched Reddit and found others who have taken it and asked them about it. Most of the replies were essentially that its self paced, don't have to turn in assignments by the end of each week just have to get them done before the end of the course, and its not enough to prepare you for the exam, you will still need to do a lot of studying and labs on your own. One of them recommended this book which I've already bought: http://www.amazon.com/VCP5-DCV-Certified-Professional-Data-Virtualization-vSphere/dp/1118658442/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411156183&sr=8-1&keywords=vcp+sybex

This book explains more than you ever want to know

https://www.amazon.com/Vmware-Vsphere-Host-Resources-Deep/dp/1540873064/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=vsphere+deep+dive&qid=1571948440&sr=8-1

The "VCP Bible" is called Mastering vSphere (insert version # here) and can be found here. The Mastering series is the definitive guides to VMware. If you want to learn it, or study for the VCP, that has it all. There is also tons of courses on Pluralsight.

There's also a book by Cody Bunch
Automating vSphere with VMware vCenter Orchestrator

http://www.amazon.com/Automating-vSphere-vCenter-Orchestrator-Technology/dp/0321799917

Get Mastering vSphere 6

https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-VMware-vSphere-Nick-Marshall/dp/1118925157

I'd pick up a copy of Mastering VMware vSphere 5.5, get a CBT Nuggets or Pluralsight subscription, and build a lab.

There aren't any VCAP 6.x level books out but in terms of the VCAP-Design exam, the 5.x book (https://www.amazon.com/VCAP5-DCD-Official-Cert-Guide-Certification/dp/078975018X) is still very relevant.

I can't say the same for the Admin 5.x book as quite a few things in the cli have changed between then and now.

Start with this book, Mastering VMware vSphere 5.5 and start looking for a VCP5-DCV class.

Here's a set of references I sent a customer just last week:

VCP5-DT:

• http://professionalvmware.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/DT_StudyNotes.pdf
  
• http://www.virtuallanger.com/vcp5-dt/
  
• http://www.amazon.com/VCP5-DT-Official-Cert-Guide-Certification/dp/0789750279

Can you post a link to the book you are referring to?

Edit: is this it?
https://www.amazon.com/VCP6-DCV-Official-2V0-621-VMware-Certification/dp/078975648X

I just passed it too, i read/noted everything in this + had my lab..

http://www.amazon.com/VMware-Certified-Professional-vSphere-Study/dp/1118181123

I used the Official Cert Guide, which came with some practice tests that mimic the VCP.

> http://www.amazon.com/VCP5-DT-Official-Cert-Guide-Certification/dp/0789750279

I am somewhat weary to try another one of these books. I say that because the DCV one was almost too basic. I ended up getting "Mastering vSphere 5" to pass my test.