VMware Cloud Foundation is a turnkey platform that can deliver cloud benefits to on-premises, full-stack hyper-converged infrastructure deployments. In addition to bringing simplified management and a scalable, consistent architecture to your on-premises environment, subscription licensing with VMware Cloud Foundation+ and VMware Cloud Foundation-Subscription can make costs predictable and more manageable.
To help you integrate VMware Cloud Foundation into your environment, VMware Success 360 includes a Success Pathway for building a private cloud with VMware Cloud Foundation. This pathway is composed of tasks and Accelerators to help you deploy and operationalize VMware Cloud Foundation. This is the final blog in our series featuring VMware Success 360™ Success Pathways.
Task 1: Deployment of VMware Cloud Foundation
The first step is to learn about and deploy a VMware Cloud Foundation instance in your environment. VMware Cloud Foundation at its core is an automation engine for deploying VMware vSphere, VMware vSAN, and VMware NSX components in a prescriptive way. This task provides the necessary details for you to be comfortable with the process to be able to perform a deployment.
You can choose from one or more of the following Accelerators:
- VMware Cloud Foundation Deployment Interactive Simulations – A set of three interactive simulations that showcase how VMware Cloud Foundation deploys the infrastructure to operate your software-defined data center (SDDC).
- VMware Cloud Foundation Deployment On-Demand Webinar – This webinar provides a walkthrough of the foundational constructs and prerequisites for how VMware Cloud Foundation is deployed, discusses the Cloud Builder Appliance, shows how to edit the deployment parameters sheet, and shows a deployment of VMware Cloud Foundation.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Deployment Guided Workshop – A VMware subject matter expert (SME) provides a walkthrough of the foundational constructs and prerequisites for how VMware Cloud Foundation is deployed. It discusses the Cloud Builder Appliance, shows how to edit the deployment parameters sheet, and shows an actual deployment of VMware Cloud Foundation. This live workshop allows you to ask questions and get additional information specific to your environment.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Deployment Build Workshop – A VMware SME performs a base deployment of VMware Cloud Foundation in your environment (available on request).
Task 2: Learn about VMware Cloud Foundation subscription licensing based on the type of licensing used
Once VMware Cloud Foundation has been deployed, the next step is to understand and license the environment for subscription licensing. This includes licensing for VMware Cloud Foundation+ and/or VMware Cloud Universal (which includes VMware Cloud Foundation-Subscription).
You can choose from one or more of the following Accelerators:
- VMware Cloud Universal Reference Documents – These resources describe the VMware Cloud Universal platform as well as suggested greenfield and brownfield architectures.
- VMware Cloud Universal On-Demand Webinar – This webinar provides a walkthrough of VMware Cloud Universal subscription licensing and usage of the VMware Cloud Console.
- VMware Cloud Universal Guided Workshop – A VMware SME provides a walkthrough of the VMware Cloud Universal subscription licensing model and usage of the VMware Cloud Console. This live workshop also allows you to ask questions and get additional information specific to your environment.
- VMware Cloud Foundation+ Solution Resource Documents – These documents provide a high-level overview of the VMware Cloud Foundation+ solution.
- VMware Cloud Foundation+ Activation On-Demand Webinar – This webinar provides a walkthrough of the VMware Cloud Foundation+ subscription licensing model. It provides details on how to deploy the gateway appliance for use with the VMware Cloud and a walkthrough of the features available.
- VMware Cloud Foundation+ Activation Guided Workshop – A VMware SME provides a walkthrough of the VMware Cloud Foundation+ subscription licensing model, how to deploy the gateway appliance for use with the VMware Cloud, and the features available. This live workshop allows you to ask questions and get additional information specific to your environment.
Task 3: Validate the VMware Cloud Foundation use case
To better understand how VMware Cloud Foundation can be used in your environment to meet your specific goals, you may want to review typical use cases.
You can choose from one or more of the following Accelerators:
- VMware Cloud Foundation – Use Cases On-Demand Webinar – This webinar provides a walkthrough of common use cases for VMware Cloud Foundation.
- VMware Cloud Foundation – Use Cases Guided Workshop – A VMware SME provides a walkthrough of common use cases for VMware Cloud Foundation and discusses details specific to your environment. This live workshop allows you to ask questions and get additional information.
Task 4: Learn about VMware Cloud Foundation networking
Since VMware NSX is a foundational component in VMware Cloud Foundation, the administrator must understand how to deploy and configure the networking components.
You can choose from one or more of the following Accelerators:
- VMware Cloud Foundation Networking Interactive Simulation – This interactive simulation shows how to deploy edge network components in VMware Cloud Foundation.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Networking On-Demand Webinar – This webinar provides a walkthrough of the foundational networking constructs for VMware Cloud Foundation to prepare your administrator to functionally operate the environment.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Networking Guided Workshop – A VMware SME provides a walkthrough of the foundational networking constructs for VMware Cloud Foundation. This will prepare your administrator for how to functionally operate the environment. This live workshop allows you to ask questions and get additional information specific to your environment.
Task 5: Learn about managing hosts in VMware Cloud Foundation
This task is about learning how to manage hosts in the VMware Cloud Foundation Environment. To be able to add hosts in the environment, they must first be commissioned into the SDDC Manager so the automation workflows can run.
You can choose from one or more of the following Accelerators:
- VMware Cloud Foundation Managing Hosts and Workload Domains Interactive Simulation – This interactive simulation shows how VMware Cloud Foundation simplifies and automates the management of hosts and workload domains in your SDDC.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Managing Hosts and Workload Domains On-Demand Webinar – This webinar provides a walkthrough of how hosts are added and consumed with workload domains in VMware Cloud Foundation. This will prepare your administrator for how to functionally operate the environment.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Managing Hosts and Workload Domains Guided Workshop – A VMware SME provides a walkthrough and demonstrations of how hosts are added and consumed with workload domains in VMware Cloud Foundation. This will prepare your administrator for how to functionally operate the environment. This live workshop allows you to ask questions and get additional information specific to your environment.
Task 6: Learn about lifecycle management of VMware Cloud Foundation
This task discusses the VMware Cloud Foundation Lifecycle Management procedures that are used with SDDC Manager to automate the operation of your SDDC.
You can choose from one or more of the following Accelerators:
- VMware Cloud Foundation Lifecycle Management Interactive Simulation – This interactive simulation shows how VMware Cloud Foundation Lifecycle Management simplifies and automates the operation of your SDDC.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Lifecycle Management and Maintenance Procedures On-Demand Webinar – This webinar provides a walkthrough of lifecycle management and operational maintenance procedures for VMware Cloud Foundation using demos. This will prepare your administrator for how to functionally operate the environment.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Lifecycle Management and Maintenance Procedures Guided Workshop – A VMware SME provides a walkthrough of lifecycle management and operational maintenance procedures for VMware Cloud Foundation using demos. This will prepare your administrator for how to functionally operate the environment. This live workshop allows you to ask questions and get additional information specific to your environment.
Task 7: Learn about security with VMware Cloud Foundation
This task provides information on the security automation provided in SDDC Manager. There is a big push in the industry for automation to ease the administrative burden. VMware has taken a secure by default stance for our products, and thus, they are secure out of the box. VMware Cloud Foundation takes this a step further providing ways to automate certificates and password management through SDDC Manager.
You can choose from one or more of the following Accelerators:
- VMware Cloud Foundation Security Reference Architecture – This provides a reference architecture on how VMware Cloud Foundation can secure an environment.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Security On-Demand Webinar – This webinar provides a walkthrough of typical security considerations and practices for VMware Cloud Foundation using demos. This will prepare your administrator on how to functionally operate the environment while making sure it is secure.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Security Guided Workshop – A VMware SME provides a walkthrough of typical security considerations and practices for VMware Cloud Foundation using demos. This will prepare your administrator for how to functionally operate the environment while making sure it is secure. This live workshop allows you to ask questions and get additional information specific to your environment.
Task 8: Migration strategy for VMware Cloud Foundation
To start consuming your infrastructure you need to migrate your workloads there. This task walks through how to plan, assess, and develop your migration strategy.
You can choose from one or more of the following Accelerators:
- VMware Cloud Foundation Workload Migration Strategies Whitepaper – This whitepaper focuses on supported solutions for migrating workloads to VMware Cloud Foundation from existing VMware vSphere environments.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Migration Strategy On-Demand Webinar – This webinar provides a walkthrough of how to plan, assess, and develop a migration strategy to bring workloads into a VMware Cloud Foundation environment.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Migration Strategy Guided Workshop – A VMware SME provides a walkthrough of how to plan, assess, and develop a migration strategy to bring workloads into a VMware Cloud Foundation environment. This live workshop allows you to ask questions and get additional information specific to your environment.
Task 9: Optimize VMware Cloud Foundation for performance
The final task is optimizing the environment for optimal performance. This task walks through how the environment can be benchmarked and is performant as possible.
You can choose from one or more of the following Accelerators:
- VMware Cloud Foundation Scaling Whitepaper – This whitepaper provides guidelines for extending the supported number of managed tenant workloads in an SDDC.
- VMware Cloud Foundation On-Demand Webinar – This webinar provides a walkthrough of monitoring and benchmarking, scaling, and performing maintenance for a VMware Cloud Foundation deployment.
- VMware Cloud Foundation Guided Workshop – A VMware SME provides a walkthrough of monitoring and benchmarking, scaling, and performing maintenance for a VMware Cloud Foundation deployment. This live workshop allows you to ask questions and get additional information specific to your environment.
Why is this important?
When all is said and done, the Private Cloud with VMware Cloud Foundation (Subscription Licensing) Success Pathway is a good starting point to be able to build knowledge of the VMware Cloud Foundation product, how to deploy it, and the changes in processes that must occur when using it in your environment.
Want to catch up on our series featuring VMware Success 360 Success Pathways? Read our blogs on how to Enable Remote Work with VMware Horizon and Mobility Management with VMware Workspace One UEM Success Pathways.
