The VMware NSX reference design guide has been a trusted source for NSX implementers to ensure a smooth and successful deployment. The NSX design guide has been incorporated as a baseline in industry recognized and validated architectures such as VCE VxBlock, Federation Enterprise Hybrid Cloud and the VMware Validated Designs.

We are introducing a new updated version of the NSX design guide  just in time for the holiday break to add to your yearend reading list. This design guide incorporates tons of feedback we have received from our readers and is based on the learnings of over 200+ production customer deployments of NSX.

The updated design guide provides a detailed overview of how NSX works, the components and core design principles.

NSX Design Guide Update Image

The main updates include:

Routing Design

We are diving deeper into distributed routing and edge routing best practices. NSX connectivity options from the virtual to physical infrastructure are often left to interpretation which generates confusion with established best practice. While NSX offers multiple options for connectivity we are taking the position of offering more prescriptive guidance in this document. The reader will get a better understanding of the design principles and availability guidance.

Security Policy Design

We are expanding the guidance around security and micro-segmentation. The document covers NSX services composer and how it can be applied to develop a zero trust security model and stay aligned with best practices consideration around security groups, tags and security policy. 

Sizing Guidance

We expanded the design considerations to provide recommendations on what a small, medium and large scale deployment could look like. In a smaller deployment you can consolidate the number of hosts and size the environment appropriately to meet the design requirements.

Overall the design guide has been expanded to cover vSphere 6.0 and NSX 6.2 designs. Cross vCenter NSX designs will be covered in a supporting document which will published in the near future.

Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year from the NSX team!