By: David Davis
Just about the only qualification to learn about vCloud Director is whether or not you have vSphere knowledge, as vCD builds on top of your vSphere infrastructure. vCloud Director allows your end users or customers to consume the virtual infrastructure with maximum agility (that means it makes your life, and theirs, easier). Whether you are a vSphere admin at a medium-size company or at a large service provider, it’s the perfect tie to get started learning vCloud Director!
So how do you get started learning about vCloud Director? Sure, you can work through the vCD Evaluation guide and other documentation. And, yes, VMware education has their flagship classroom (or online) 4 day class on vCloud Director (Deploy and Manage the VMware vCloud 1.5). But let’s say that you are just getting started and don’t have much money in your budget to learn about vCloud Director. What are your options?
Video-based training (or CBT) is the best option! It’s self-paced so you can learn on your own schedule. In some cases, it’s portable so you can learn on the go (on your iPad while on the plane or train). And, once you have it, your video-based training option is always available for you to come back to and reference when you are using the product (unlike most classroom training that is a one-time event).
Here are two CBT options that are available to users interested in learning more about vCloud Director:
- TrainSignal vCloud Director Essentials (1.5) – I spent the last few months creating a 5 hour
vCloud Director Essentials video training course. I designed this course to give you a solid foundation on vCloud Director concepts/terminology and then show you how to install and configure vCD. It was enjoyable showing the two different ways to install vCD – using the new virtual appliance (for proof of concepts & labs) as well as the production method (installing Linux, installing vCD, connecting it to a database, etc). Once installed, I walk you through creating provider virtual data centers, organization, and vApps. And when you choose video training from TrainSignal, you get it in both streaming video over the web as well as a DVD for offline viewing on your laptop or iPad. The course was tech edited, and one of the videos (vCloud Director in the Real World) was created by Jake Robinson of Bluelock (a vCloud Datacenter provider). I hope you enjoy my course and I welcome your feedback!
- VMware vCloud Director Fundamentals (1.5) – VMware’s self-paced 3.5 hour vCloud Director
training is another great option that offers a base introduction to cloud computing and the vCloud architecture. It shows you how to analyze your license needs, how to configure vSphere and cloud resources, and how to create and manage vCloud Director networks. It’s broken down into 6 modules – overview, architecture & components, installation & configuration, administration, networking, and user administration.
Additionally, VMware Education has a couple of CBT courses available that are based on vCloud Director 1.0. They are:
Now is the time to start learning about vCloud Director (and other vCloud components). vCloud Director continues to improve and be adopted by providers and enterprises around the world. It’s likely that VMware will soon have a certification around vCloud Director (a partner competency is already in beta) and your enterprise could really take advantage of what infrastructure clouds can provide. Get started today!
David Davis is a VMware Evangelist and vSphere Video Training Author for TrainSignal. He has achieved CCIE, VCP, VCAP-DCA, and vExpert level status over his 18+ years in the IT industry. David has authored hundreds of articles on the Internet and over 10 video training courses for TrainSignal.com including the popular vSphere video training package. Learn more about David at his blog or on Twitter and check out a sample of his new vSphere 5 video training course over at TrainSignal.com.
You left out the flagship course for admins:
VMware vCloud: Deploy and Manage 1.5 (http://tinyurl.com/bugczvk)
WAY too overpriced. Why pay that much for vCD when CCNA costs the same? Also – IMO – trainsignal promotes too much of a “monkey-see monkey-do” approach – which cheapens what the rest of us have gone through to actually LEARN the ‘whats’ and ‘whys’ of how these things work….
Thank you for reading and thanks for your comment about my post covering video training options for vCloud Director. Sorry that you feel that video training is too overpriced. Certainly, self-study is always an option for everyone. VMware has good documentation that you can try to recreate on your own. However, most of the VMware Admins I talk to at VMUGs, via Twitter, and email are excited to have quick and easy training on advanced topics like vCloud Director, vSphere Troubleshooting, and PowerCLI. I have been told that my training has been invaluable in their studies, saving them countless hours and headaches. Plus, I think if you watched the course, you’ll see that with an advanced product like vCD, there is a lot more to “getting started” than just clicking next, like some Windows products. In all the courses I create, I always try to stress the “why” over just the “how” and throw in my real-world experiences with the product.
I don’t know how to begin comparing an entry level Cisco cert (the CCNA) to learning about vCloud Director – they are two totally different animals.
I wish you the best in whatever topic you choose to learn and I welcome your feedback directly via email – david ((at)) trainsignal.com
Thanks again,
David Davis
Hi David Davis,
Thank you ver much for the CBT Provided by you however i can not click on the link below: TrainSignal vCloud Director Essentials (1.5).
Is there any issue with the link and can you please provide a full link here?
Hello David,
We are a hosting company and we would like to deploy vCloud Director and its components. We were looking to find training or certifications around vCloud Director, we’re looking forward to deploy it on our company’s infrastructure. Can you please provide us with a direct link to a certification, training or something that may help us improve and deploy it?
Thanks in advance.