This chapter will cover the design considerations that should be taken into account when designing the management layer of the virtual infrastructure. We will look at the different components that make up vCenter, how to size them correctly, and how to ensure compatibility between the VMware products that are deployed in the environment. This chapter will also cover the different deployment options for vCenter and its components, as well as the importance of the availability, recoverability, and security of these components.
The following diagram displays how management design is integrated into the design process:
Questions that the architect should ask and answer during the management design process include the following:
- What components are necessary to manage the virtual environment?
- How will management components be deployed?
- What resources are required to support the management components?
- What impact will the loss of a management component have on the environment?
- How can we recover from the loss of a management component?
- How can we upgrade and patch management components?
In this chapter, we will cover the following recipes:
- Identifying vCenter components and dependencies
- Selecting a vCenter deployment option
- Determining vCenter resource requirements
- Selecting a database for the vCenter deployment
- Determining database interoperability
- Choosing a vCenter deployment topology
- Designing for management availability
- Designing a separate management cluster
- Configuring vCenter mail, SNMP, and alarms
- Using Enhanced Linked Mode
- Using the VMware Product Interoperability Matrix
- Backing up vCenter Server components
- Planning vCenter HA to increase vCenter availability
- Upgrading vCenter Server
- Designing a vSphere Update Manager Deployment