VMworld 2015: vCSA Best Practices

INF4528, William Lam, VMware

VCSA is on parity with Windows server in terms of scale and performance
VUM still requires a Windows server (future version will not)
FULL VUM capabilities in vSphere web client in 6.0 U1
Deployment types: Embedded (PSC and VC), or PSC as external
Multiple vCenters can point to one or more PSCs
PSCs can sit behind a load balancer for HA
The focus going forward for the vCenter is the VCSA platform
6.0 U1 will allow you to repoint an embedded vCenter to an external PSC
VCSA installation is guided by a GUI or can be fully scripted.
vSphere 6.0 U1 will support both vCenter server and ESXi (greenfield) as deployment targets.
Ensure DNS is reachable from both client desktop and VCSA .
Ensure NTP/time is properly configured and in sync
“U” releases are now in-place upgrades.
Ensure SSL certificates match both hostname and IP address
VCSA upgrade: may want to consider pruning vCenter historical stats

VCSA Configuration

VCSA Operations

Increase memory/CPU resources
Dynamic memory resize support
No longer require JVM tweaks
At boot time VCSA re-allocated memory
Increase disk capacity on live system.
VCSA has 11 VMDKs for different uses
Run a simple command line to expand within VCSA to use additional storage space
Patching and updates – Pulls updates from the internet. NEW: URL based patching is back.
Password expiration: VAMI UI or CLI. Root ages at 365 days.

VCSA Troubleshooting