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Deploying VMware validated solutions

Deploying VMware validated solutions

A VMware validated solution is a technically validated implementation that is built and tested by VMware and VMware partners to help you resolve common business use cases. VMware validated solutions are operational, cost-effective, performant, reliable, and secure.

Each solution contains a detailed design, implementation, and operational guidance. The following information provides a summary of the validated solutions on your VMware Cloud Foundation for VPC instance with some IBM Cloud® specific design and installation considerations and notes.

If you are provisioning VMware Aria® Suite components with Lifecycle Manager, review the following changes for VMware Aria® Suite v8.18 and later.

  1. You must download all product support packs and their product and patch binary files from the Broadcom Support Portal. To do that, contact IBM Cloud Support and provide the list of binary files that you need with their version details. For more information about product and version support, see VMware Product Interoperability Matrix.

  2. Before you deploy the Aria Suite Lifecycle components to Lifecycle Manager, upload the binary files provided by IBM Cloud Support.

  3. In VMware Aria Suite Lifecycle, map the binary files to each VMware Aria Suite product. For more information, see Configure product binaries.

Identity and Access Management for VCF for VPC

The Identity and Access Management for VCF for VPC validated solution provides detailed design, implementation, configuration, and operation guidance on the use of Active Directory as an identity provider and authentication source, and on the use of role-based access control (RBAC) in VCF for VPC SDDC Manager™, VMware vCenter Server®, VMware ESXi™, and VMware NSX™.

This solution is intended for cloud architects and administrators who are familiar with VMware software and a role-based access control solution by using a central identity provider for VCF for VPC.

Solution-added products for this VMware validated solution include VMware Workspace ONE Access.

To deploy the Identity and Access Management for VCF for VPC validated solution in IBM Cloud, follow the process in Identity and Access Management for VCF for VPC.

Use VMware Aria® Suite Lifecycle Manager (formerly VMware vRealize® Suite Lifecycle Manager) to deploy this VMware validated solution. Aria Suite Lifecycle Manager is deployed as part of the automation.

Developer Ready Infrastructure for VCF for VPC

The Developer Ready Infrastructure for VCF for VPC validated solution provides design, implementation, and operational guidance for a workload domain that runs vSphere with Tanzu workloads (TKG Runtime) in the Software-Defined Data Center (SDDC).

This solution is intended for cloud architects and administrators who are familiar with using VMware software to deploy and manage a workload domain that runs vSphere with Tanzu workloads in the SDDC.

The solution does not include any new solution-added products, but the VMware documentation provides a fast and efficient path to automating the Developer Ready Infrastructure for VCF for VPC implementation.

To deploy the Developer Ready Infrastructure for VCF for VPC validated solution in IBM Cloud, follow the process in Developer Ready Infrastructure for VCF for VPC.

Important notes

  • Use Aria Suite Lifecycle Manager (formerly vRealize Suite Lifecycle Manager) to deploy this VMware validated solution. Aria Suite Lifecycle Manager is deployed as part of the automation.
  • When you are deploying TKG Runtime in a VCF for VPC instance with IBM Cloud, ensure that your edge cluster nodes appliance size is either Large or Extra Large. Currently, only the Active Standby edge cluster is supported in IBM Cloud.
  • To get the NSX edge cluster visible in compatible list under the SDDC Kubernetes deployment, before you deploy the TKG runtime, follow the steps in Unable to get the NSX edge cluster visible in compatible list under the SDDC Kubernetes deployment.

Intelligent Logging and Analytics for VCF for VPC

The Intelligent Logging and Analytics for VCF for VPC validated solution provides information on the use of a log analysis tool that delivers highly scalable log management with intuitive and actionable dashboards, sophisticated analytics, and broad third-party extensibility. The solution provides deep operational visibility and fast troubleshooting for your VCF for VPC instance and workloads that are running on it.

Solution-added products for this VMware validated solutions include Aria Operations™ for Logs (formerly vRealize Log Insight). Aria Suite Lifecycle Manager (formerly vRealize Suite Lifecycle Manager) is deployed as part of the initial provisioning for your VCF for VPC instance, and you use this deployment method to deploy Intelligent Logging and Analytics for VCF for VPC.

To deploy the Intelligent Logging and Analytics for VCF for VPC validated solution in IBM Cloud, follow the process in Intelligent Logging and Analytics for VCF for VPC.

Use Aria Suite Lifecycle Manager (formerly vRealize Suite Lifecycle Manager) to deploy this VMware validated solution. Aria Suite Lifecycle Manager is deployed as part of the automation.

Intelligent Operations Management for VCF for VPC

The Intelligent Operations Management for VCF for VPC validated solution provides instructions for implementing a centralized monitoring and alerting platform to deliver proactive management of system failures through a single interface to review and act on events and alerts for your VCF for VPC instance and workloads that are running on it.

This solution is intended for cloud architects and administrators who are familiar with and want to use VMware software and to provide a centralized monitoring and alerting platform to deliver proactive management of system failures.

Solution-added products for this VMware validated solutions include Aria Operations Manager (formerly vRealize Operations Manager). Aria Suite Lifecycle Manager (formerly vRealize Suite Lifecycle Manager) is deployed as part of the initial provisioning of your VCF for VPC instance. You can use this method to deploy Intelligent Operations Management for VCF for VPC.

To deploy the Intelligent Operations Management for VCF for VPC validated solution in IBM Cloud, follow the process in Intelligent Logging and Analytics for VCF for VPC.

Use Aria Suite Lifecycle Manager (formerly vRealize Suite Lifecycle Manager) to deploy this VMware validated solution. Aria Suite Lifecycle Manager is deployed as part of the automation.

Private Cloud Automation for VCF for VPC

The Private Cloud Automation for VCF for VPC validated solution provides information about the use of Aria Automation (formerly vRealize Automation) for cloud automation services with the VCF for VPC platform.

This solution is intended for cloud architects and administrators who are familiar with implementation of cloud automation services that can use VCF for VPC.

Solution-added products for this VMware validated solution include Aria Automation (formerly vRealize Automation).

To deploy the Private Cloud Automation for VCF for VPC validated solution in IBM Cloud, see Private Cloud Automation for VCF for VPC.

Important notes

Advanced Load Balancing for VCF for VPC

Deploying VMware Avi Load Balancer (formerly NSX Advanced Load Balancer) Controllers require new IBM Cloud® Virtual Private Cloud (IBM Cloud VPC) bare metal server VLAN interfaces and changes to IBM Cloud VPC default routing tables. This configuration task is manual and it requires understanding of the IBM Cloud VPC and its routing concepts.

The Advanced Load Balancing for VCF for VPC validated solution provides information on the use of Avi Load Balancer as a load-balancing solution for VCF for VPC.

This solution is intended for cloud architects and administrators who want to use Avi Load Balancer for load balancing in VCF for VPC.

Solution-added products for VMware validated solutions include Avi Load Balancer.

To deploy the Advanced Load Balancing for VCF for VPC validated solution in IBM Cloud, see Advanced Load Balancing for VCF for VPC.

Notes

  • Broadcom recommends that you use VMware Avi Load Balancer for load balancing.
  • Avi Load Balancer is available as an add-on to the VMware Cloud Foundation license. For more information, see VMware Avi Load Balancer add-on.
  • Avi Load Balancer Controllers implement the control plane for the Avi Load Balancer. For high availability, it is typically deployed as a 3-node cluster. In a VCF for VPC, Avi Load Balancer Controllers run as VMs in the management domain.
  • Deploying the Controller cluster nodes on the VCF for VPC management network requires 4 new IBM Cloud bare metal server VLAN interfaces on the management network as shown in the following table. To create VLAN interfaces, see Managing network interfaces for bare metal servers on IBM Cloud VPC.
  • Avi Load Balancer Service Engine implements the data plane for the Avi Load Balancer. The Avi Load Balancer SEs perform load balancing for the configured applications. The Avi Load Balancer Controller cluster provides load-balancing services and it also manages the service engines that are deployed in the VI workload domain that is managed by the NSX-T Data Center.
  • A new overlay management network is required to deploy the Service Engines in the VI workload domain's overlay with connectivity to the management domain's management network. This solution might require an IBM Cloud VPC egress and ingress routes with a workload domain's Tier 0 Gateway HA VIP as the next hop.

The following table shows the VLAN interfaces for Avi Load Balancer Controllers.

VLAN interfaces for Avi Load Balancer Controllers
Interface name Interface type VLAN ID Subnet Allow float NSX interface Distributed port group name
vlan-nic-avi-0 vlan 1611 vpc-mgmt-subnet true Avi Load Balancer Controller 1 pg-mgmt
vlan-nic-avi-1 vlan 1611 vpc-mgmt-subnet true Avi Load Balancer Controller 2 pg-mgmt
vlan-nic-avi-2 vlan 1611 vpc-mgmt-subnet true Avi Load Balancer Controller 3 pg-mgmt
vlan-nic-avi-vip vlan 1611 vpc-mgmt-subnet true Avi Load Balancer Controller VIP pg-mgmt