In VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 5.2, VMware Aria Automation (formerly vRealize Automation) enhances the platform by providing self-service, automation, and multi-site management capabilities. The architect must determine which requirements (REQ01-REQ05) are directly satisfied by the design decisions (DD01 and DD02). Let’s evaluate each requirement against the decisions:
Design Decisions:
DD01: Clustered deployment of Aria Automation
A clustered deployment ensures high availability and scalability of Aria Automation, supporting multiple users and workloads with resilience.
DD02: Integration between Aria Automation and multiple geo-located vCenter Servers
This enables centralized management of distributed vSphere environments (e.g., across availability zones or regions), facilitating network and resource orchestration.
Evaluation of Requirements:
Option A: REQ01 - The solution must support the private cloud cybersecurity industry and local standards and controls
This requirement focuses on cybersecurity and compliance (e.g., encryption, access controls, auditing). While Aria Automation supports role-based access control (RBAC) and integrates with secure VCF components, neither DD01 nor DD02 directly addresses cybersecurity standards or local controls. These are typically met by VCF’s baseline security features (e.g., NSX, vSphere hardening), not specifically by Aria Automation’s clustering or vCenter integration. Thus, REQ01 is not directly satisfied by the stated decisions.
Option B: REQ02 - The solution must ensure that the cloud services are transitioned to operation teams
This requirement implies operational handoff, training, or automation to enable operations teams to manage services. Aria Automation’s clustering (DD01) improves reliability, and vCenter integration (DD02) centralizes management, but neither explicitly ensures a transition process (e.g., documentation, runbooks). This is more about operational processes than the technical decisions provided, so REQ02 is not directly satisfied.
Option C: REQ03 - The solution must provide a self-service portal
This is correct. Aria Automation’s primary function in VCF 5.2 is to provide a self-service portal for users to provision and manage resources (e.g., VMs, applications). A clustered deployment (DD01) ensures theportal’s availability and scalability, supporting multiple users concurrently. Integration with vCenter Servers (DD02) enhances its capability to deploy resources across sites, but DD01 alone directly satisfies REQ03 by enabling a robust self-service experience. Thus, REQ03 is satisfied.
Option D: REQ04 - The solution must provide the ability to consume storage based on policies
This requirement involves policy-driven storage management (e.g., vSAN storage policies). Aria Automation supports storage policies via integration with vSphere/vSAN, allowing users to define storage profiles (e.g., performance, capacity). However, this capability is inherent to vSphere/vSAN integration, not uniquely tied to clustering (DD01) or geo-located vCenter integration (DD02). While Aria Automation facilitates this, the design decisions don’t specifically address storage policy consumption as a primary outcome, making REQ04 less directly satisfied compared to others.
Option E: REQ05 - The solution should provide the ability to extend networks between different availability zones
This is correct. Integrating Aria Automation with multiple geo-located vCenter Servers (DD02) enables management of distributed environments, including network extension across availability zones. In VCF 5.2, this leverages NSX-T for Layer 2 stretching (e.g., via HCX or NSX Federation), orchestrated through Aria Automation. DD02 directly supports this by connecting disparate vCenters, allowing network policies and extensions to be applied across zones. Clustering (DD01) supports scalability but isn’t the key factor—DD02 is the primary enabler. Thus, REQ05 is satisfied.
Conclusion:
The two requirements satisfied by the design decisions are:
REQ03 (C): A clustered Aria Automation deployment (DD01) directly provides a reliable self-service portal.
REQ05 (E): Integration with multiple geo-located vCenter Servers (DD02) enables network extension across availability zones.While REQ04 is partially supported, REQ03 and REQ05 are the most directly tied to the stated decisions in the VCF 5.2 context.
References:
VMware Cloud Foundation 5.2 Architecture and Deployment Guide (Section: Aria Automation Integration)
VMware Aria Automation 8.10 Documentation (integrated in VCF 5.2): Self-Service Portal and Multi-Site Management
VMware NSX-T 3.2 Reference Design (integrated in VCF 5.2): Network Extension Capabilities
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