EMC D-VXB-DY-A-24 Dell VxBlock Deploy Achievement Exam Practice Test

In a VxBlock system, the NSX Controller resides in the Management cluster. The Management cluster is responsible for housing management components and services, ensuring centralized control and management of the NSX environment.

References:

Dell EMC VxBlock system documentation.

VMware NSX deployment and architecture guides.

Review VxBlock 1000 Installation: After completing the installation of a VxBlock 1000 system, it is crucial to validate the entire configuration to ensure all components are correctly set up and operational1.

Validate Configuration: This includes checking the network setup, ensuring storage processors are online, verifying that management hosts are installed correctly, and confirming that the compute and virtualization layers are configured as per the design specifications1.

Use Validation Tools: The Logical Configuration Survey (LCS) and Test Plan are typically used to validate a VxBlock 1000 installation, ensuring that all system elements are pre-integrated, pre-configured, and tested before being put into operation1.

Ensure System Readiness: The validation process is essential to confirm that the system is ready for production use and that any potential issues are addressed before the system is handed over to the customer1.

Match each team member with their RACI role as follows:

Project Manager: Primary point of contact; manages overall project and communications

Assessment Team Lead: Ensures proper assessment execution and validates upgrade sequence plan

Assessment Team: Communicates upgrade progress and issues to the PM

Delivery Manager: Transitions requirements and upgrade plan to the upgrade team

Upgrade Team: Point of contact for internal escalations

Project Manager: Primary point of contact; manages overall project and communications

The Project Manager is responsible for overseeing the entire project, coordinating all activities, and serving as the main point of contact for stakeholders.

Assessment Team Lead: Ensures proper assessment execution and validates upgrade sequence plan

The Assessment Team Lead oversees the assessment phase, ensuring that the evaluation is thorough and that the upgrade sequence is properly planned and validated.

Assessment Team: Communicates upgrade progress and issues to the PM

The Assessment Team members are responsible for executing the assessment tasks and reporting progress and any issues encountered to the Project Manager.

Delivery Manager: Transitions requirements and upgrade plan to the upgrade team

The Delivery Manager is responsible for ensuring that all requirements and the upgrade plan are effectively communicated and handed over to the upgrade team for execution.

Upgrade Team: Point of contact for internal escalations

The Upgrade Team handles the actual upgrade process and serves as the primary point of contact for any internal escalations that may arise during the upgrade.

References:

Dell EMC project management and RACI documentation.

Industry best practices for defining roles and responsibilities in a RACI matrix.

Review XtremIO X2 Specifications: The XtremIO X2 storage array is designed to support a scale-out architecture, allowing for the addition of multiple X-Bricks to increase capacity and performance1.

Identify Maximum X-Bricks: According to the specifications, a single XtremIO X2 array can be scaled out to a maximum of 8 X-Bricks1.

Understand Capacity Expansion: This scale-out capability enables the XtremIO X2 array to reach a large physical capacity, accommodating the storage needs of various applications and workloads1.

Reference Official Documentation: The Official Dell VxBlock Deploy Achievement document would align with this information, providing details on the scalability options for the XtremIO X2 storage array1.

For40 DAEs, the maximum number of supported 2.5 inch drives is500 disks.

For6 DAEs, the maximum number of supported 2.5 inch drives is250 disks.

For20 DAEs, the maximum number of supported 2.5 inch drives is1000 disks.

For10 DAEs, the maximum number of supported 2.5 inch drives is150 disks.

Review the Dell Unity System Specifications: The Dell Unity system’s Drive Array Enclosures (DAEs) have different capacities, which determine the number of drives they can support1.

Match DAE Capacity to Drive Support: Each DAE capacity has a corresponding maximum number of supported drives, as outlined in the Dell VxBlock Deploy Achievement document1.

Verify with Official Documentation: Cross-reference the information with the official Dell documentation to ensure the accuracy of the drive support for each DAE capacity1.

SMARTPOOL is a licensed feature of Isilon OneFS. It enables the automated tiering of data across different types of storage media within the cluster, optimizing performance and storage efficiency based on data usage patterns.

References:

Dell EMC Isilon OneFS documentation.

Technical resources on Isilon features and licensing.

Identify the VTEP’s role: The VTEP, or VXLAN Tunnel Endpoint, is responsible for encapsulating and de-encapsulating the network traffic sent over the VXLAN1.

Understand NSX Components: The NSX Controller is a key component of the VMware NSX network virtualization platform.It is responsible for the control plane, managing the state of virtual networks and overlay transport zones1.

Communication with VTEP: The NSX Controller communicates with the VTEP to manage the overlay network and ensure that traffic is correctly routed and encapsulated across the network infrastructure1.

Role of other NSX Components: While the NSX Edge provides routing services and the NSX Manager is the centralized management component, it is the NSX Controller that directly manages the state of the virtual network and communicates with the VTEPs1.

Review ACI Fabric Topology: The ACI fabric topology is based on a spine-leaf architecture, which is a scalable, two-layer network topology composed of spine switches and leaf switches1.

Understand Spine-Leaf Benefits: This topology provides high-bandwidth connectivity between leaf switches and spine switches, allowing for efficient data flow across the network1.

Recognize ACI Fabric Design: In an ACI fabric, each leaf switch connects to every spine switch, creating a non-blocking, high-throughput network that supports east-west traffic patterns typical in modern data centers1.

Reference Official Documentation: The Official Dell VxBlock Deploy Achievement document would align with Cisco’s guidelines on ACI fabric, which specify the spine-leaf topology as the standard for ACI deployments1.

Based on the Dell VxBlock Deploy Achievement document, the roles and their responsibilities are matched as follows:

Implementation Specialist: Connect system to power and network1.

Architect: Create the logical configuration survey1.

Customer Engineer: Deliver the remote knowledge transfer1.

Project Manager: Plan and coordinate engagement related activities1.

Implementation Specialist: This role is typically responsible for the physical aspects of the deployment, such as connecting the system to power sources and the network1.

Architect: The Architect’s responsibility includes designing and creating surveys that capture the logical configuration of the system1.

Customer Engineer: This role often involves interfacing with the customer and providing knowledge transfer to ensure they understand the system1.

Project Manager: The Project Manager oversees the project, planning, and coordinating all activities related to the engagement1.

The label on the cable indicates two parts: “M91A-01:01” and “U61A-01:09”. The first part of the label “M91A” refers to a specific type of equipment as per the exhibit. According to the exhibit, “M9” corresponds to “MDS 9xxx”, which is a Cisco Multilayer Director Switch. The second part of the label, “U61A”, does not directly match any category in the provided list; however, it seems to be an internal reference that could be related to user-specific configurations or locations.

Since we are looking for the target equipment type and not where it was mistakenly connected, we focus on the first part of the cable label. The numbers following “M91A” indicate slot and port information. Therefore, based on this labeling system and referring to the exhibit provided, which lists various EMC and Cisco equipment types along with their corresponding codes (like AP for APIC Appliance or CN for Cust. Network), we can deduce that “M91A” stands for “MDS 9xxx”. The subsequent numbers “-01:01” suggest Slot 1, Port 1.

To convert existing VxBlock Nexus 9396PX switches to ACI mode, a major physical connectivity change involves connecting the switch directly to the APIC (Application Policy Infrastructure Controller) to download the ACI software. Afterward, the existing Nexus 9396PX switches should be connected to a spine Nexus 93180YC switch as part of the ACI fabric setup.

References:

Cisco ACI deployment guides.

Dell EMC VxBlock system integration documentation.

Review Cisco ACI Deployment: When deploying a VxBlock system with Cisco ACI, it’s important to consider the physical connectivity and redundancy within the fabric1.

Consider Uplinks for Leaf Switches: For leaf switches in a Cisco ACI fabric, having a minimum of two uplinks is recommended to ensure redundancy and resiliency1.

Understand Fabric Load Balancing: While VXLAN is used within Cisco ACI for fabric load balancing, the consideration here is specifically about the physical uplinks from the leaf switches1.

Reference Official Documentation: The Official Dell VxBlock Deploy Achievement document provides guidelines for deploying VxBlock systems with Cisco ACI, including considerations for leaf switch connectivity1.

The Distributed Logical Router (DLR) is the NSX component that abstracts the physical network and provides access-level switching in the hypervisor. The DLR enables routing between different virtual networks and operates at the hypervisor level, providing high-performance distributed routing capabilities.

References:

VMware NSX documentation.

Technical resources on NSX architecture and components.

Review VxBlock 1000 Documentation: The VxBlock 1000 documentation provides specific details on the hardware installation and configuration, including the management switches1.

Identify the Fiber Uplink Port: The fiber uplink port is used to connect the Management switches to the customer’s network, providing a high-speed link for network traffic1.

Confirm Port Configuration: The Official Dell VxBlock Deploy Achievement document would specify the exact Ethernet port to be used for the fiber uplink, which is typically Ethernet 1/32 in the context of VxBlock 1000 systems1.

Validate with Technical Specifications: Ensure that the port configuration aligns with the technical specifications and requirements of the VxBlock 1000 system1.

1.

Access SolVe Online: SolVe Online is Dell EMC’s online tool that provides step-by-step procedures and support for various products, including VxBlock Systems1.

Navigate to VxBlock Section: Within SolVe Online, navigate to the section dedicated to VxBlock Systems to find resources specific to these models1.

Locate Test Plan: Look for the Test Plan associated with the specific VxBlock model you are working with.The Test Plan is typically available in the form of downloadable documents or guides1.

Download Test Plan: Once located, download the Test Plan for the specific VxBlock model to use as a reference for deployment or troubleshooting1.

Verify with Documentation: Ensure that the downloaded Test Plan matches the model and version of the VxBlock System you are using by cross-referencing with the official documentation1.

 VxBlock Central

 Network

 Storage

 Compute

 Virtualization

In the Dell EMC RCM (Release Certification Matrix) Workbook upgrade plan, the sequence of upgrading VxBlock components is designed to ensure system stability and minimize disruptions. Here’s the detailed reasoning for the correct sequence:

VxBlock Central:

Explanation: VxBlock Central is the management and orchestration layer of the VxBlock system. Upgrading this first ensures that the management tools are compatible with the new versions of the other components and can properly coordinate and monitor the upgrade process.

Review Cisco ACI Components: Cisco Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI) is a comprehensive networking solution for data centers, which includes specific components designed to work within its architecture1.

Identify Non-ACI Component: Among the options provided, NSX Manager is not part of the Cisco ACI solution.NSX Manager is a component of VMware’s NSX network virtualization platform, which is separate from Cisco’s ACI1.

Understand ACI Architecture: The Cisco ACI architecture is designed around the Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC) and the Nexus 9000 series switches, which work together to provide a policy-driven solution that automates network provisioning and control1.

Recognize ACI Specific Entities: The ACI Policy Model and Nexus 9000 Series Switches are integral parts of the Cisco ACI solution, supporting its intent-based networking framework1.

Review VxBlock 1000 UCS Domain Management: The UCS domain is managed via Fabric Interconnect A, which acts as the cluster lead and is critical for operations1.

Understand vMotion Process: vMotion is a VMware feature that allows for the live migration of virtual machines from one host to another without downtime1.

Identify Impact of FI A Power Disconnection: If the power to Fabric Interconnect A is disconnected during a vMotion process, the vMotion session being managed by FI A will fail because it loses its management connection1.

Recognize Automatic Retry Mechanism: Although vMotion fails when FI A is powered off, it is typically designed to retry the operation once the managing FI comes back online1.

Reference Official Dell Documentation: The Official Dell VxBlock Deploy Achievement document would confirm that the expected result of such a scenario is the failure of the vMotion process due to the power disconnection of the managing Fabric Interconnect1.

During an RCM (Release Certification Matrix) Assessment for VxBlock, the Element Manager is used to collect component information. Element Managers are specialized tools designed to gather detailed data and status information from individual components within the VxBlock system. These tools provide granular insights into the configuration and health of the system, facilitating the RCM assessment process.

References:

Dell EMC VxBlock System documentation.

Industry best practices for system assessments and management.

Understand VxLAN: VxLAN, or Virtual Extensible LAN, is a network virtualization technology that encapsulates Layer 2 Ethernet frames within Layer 3 UDP packets1.

Identify Encapsulation Process: This encapsulation allows for the creation of a virtualized Layer 2 network over an existing Layer 3 infrastructure, enabling greater scalability and flexibility in network design1.

Recognize VxLAN Functionality: By encapsulating Layer 2 frames in UDP packets, VxLAN extends Layer 2 networks over Layer 3 networks, which is particularly useful in cloud computing and data center environments1.

Reference Official Documentation: The Official Dell VxBlock Deploy Achievement document would align with this understanding of VxLAN, highlighting its role in network virtualization and the encapsulation process1.

Understand Isilon Storage: Isilon storage systems are designed to provide a scalable solution for file-based data applications and workflows1.

Identify the File System Architecture: The Isilon storage uses a single volume, single namespace, single file system architecture known as OneFS.This architecture is inherently distributed, allowing for easy scaling from tens of terabytes to tens of petabytes1.

Recognize the Benefits of a Distributed Architecture: The distributed nature of the OneFS file system architecture allows Isilon storage systems to deliver increased performance and scalability, which is essential for handling large volumes of file-based data1.

Map to VxBlock 1000: In the context of the VxBlock 1000, the Isilon storage with its distributed file system architecture integrates with the converged infrastructure to support high-performance workloads and efficient data management2.