VMware Training

After 18 months of using ESX starting with v2.5.4 and upgrading through v3.0.2 to v3.5, where the only training I'd had was to watch the DVD training "Virtualize it With: VMware ESX Server 3.0" from the elias khnaser company, I've finally taken the VMware training course "VMware Infrastructure 3: Install and Configure".

After such a long time, was it worth it?

Absolutely!

Didn't I know most of it?

Yes, perhaps 85%. I must admit to gaining a certain satisfaction at realizing how much I already knew.

But then again its hard to really know DRS and HA from the manuals and training DVD when your environment is two sites each with a development (sort of - some of those VMs seem to be in production!) server and a single production server.So 4 ESX servers in all! I have more servers coming, so the timing made sense. I'll soon be running my production servers in a DRS cluster on each site. I'll be considering making them HA clusters too, although that isn't so clear cut.

The ability to discuss issues and ask questions in a class-room environment, where the answer can be "I do not know, but lets just try that..." and there is no fall out in terms of production system downtime, can be really useful.

Also you pick up the odd bit of wisdom such as that soak testing your memory beyond that performed by the bios startup is well worth the effort. Unless you are under-utilizing your server, ESX will exercise all your RAM in a way that most other OS simply will not. So a memory fault that might never have been discovered by another OS can be exposed in very short order. Much better to perform a thorough soak test before deployment, than have your VMs do it.


I suppose the other reason for undertaking the training is that it is a requirement for the VCP exam.

Ticksy, that!

Although in VMware's position I would have done the same.

I have taken the VCP mock exam of 20 questions and passed with 80%. I'm still really annoyed by the 4 questions that I answered incorrectly. In my defence two of the questions weren't particularly practical, but in the actual exam that won't cut it.