Understanding Cisco Data Center Foundations (DCFNDU 1.1)

After taking this course, you should be able to:

• Describe the foundations of data center networking
• Describe Cisco Nexus products and explain the basic Cisco NX-OS functionalities and tools
• Describe Layer 3 first-hop redundancy
• Describe Cisco Fabric Extender (FEX) connectivity
• Describe Ethernet port channels and virtual port channel (VPCs)
• Introduce switch virtualization, machine virtualization, and network virtualization
• Compare storage connectivity options in the data center
• Describe Fibre Channel communication between the initiator server and the target storage
• Describe Fibre Channel zone types and their uses
• Describe N-Port Virtualization (NPV) and N-Port Identifier Virtualization (NPIV)
• Describe data center Ethernet enhancements that provide a lossless fabric
• Describe Fibre Channel over Ethernet FCoE
• Describe data center server connectivity
• Describe Cisco UCS Manager
• Describe the purpose and advantages of APIs
• Describe Cisco ACI
• Describe the basic concepts of cloud computing

To fully benefit from this course, you should have the following knowledge and skills:

• Good understanding of networking protocols
• Good understanding of the VMware environment
• Basic knowledge of Microsoft Windows operating systems

These are the recommended Cisco courses that may help you meet these prerequisites:

• Implementing and Administering Cisco Solutions (CCNA®)
• Introducing Cisco Data Center Networking (DCICN)
• Introducing Cisco Data Center Technologies (DCICT)

• Data center administrators
• Data center engineers
• Systems engineers
• Server administrators
• Network managers
• Cisco integrators and partners

• Describing the Data Center Network Architectures
  • Cisco Data Center Architecture Overview
  • Three-Tier Network: Core, Aggregation, and Access
  • Spine-and-Leaf Network
  • Two-Tier Storage Network
• Describing the Cisco Nexus Family and Cisco NX-OS Software
  • Cisco Nexus Data Center Product Overview
  • Cisco NX-OS Software Architecture
  • Cisco NX-OS Software CLI Tools
  • Cisco NX-OS Virtual Routing and Forwarding
• Describing Layer 3 First-Hop Redundancy
  • Default Gateway Redundancy
  • Hot Standby Router Protocol
  • Virtual Router Redundancy Protocol
  • Gateway Load Balancing Protocol
• Describing Cisco FEX
  • Server Deployment Models
  • Cisco FEX Technology
  • Cisco FEX Traffic Forwarding
  • Cisco Adapter FEX
• Describing Port Channels and VPCs
  • Ethernet Port Channels
  • Virtual Port Channels
  • Supported VPC Topologies
• Describing Switch Virtualization
  • Cisco Nexus Switch Basic Components
  • Virtual Routing and Forwarding
  • Cisco Nexus 7000 Virtual Device Contexts (VDCs)
  • VDC Types
  • VDC Resource Allocation
  • VDC Management
• Describing Machine Virtualization
  • Virtual Machines
  • Hypervisor
  • VM Manager
• Describing Network Virtualization
  • Overlay Network Protocols
  • Virtual Extensible LAN (VXLAN) Overlay
  • VXLAN Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) Ethernet VPN (EVPN) Control Plane
  • VXLAN Data Plane
  • Cisco Nexus 1000VE Series Virtual Switch
  • VMware vSphere Virtual Switches
• Introducing Basic Data Center Storage Concepts
  • Storage Connectivity Options in the Data Center
  • Fibre Channel Storage Networking
  • Virtual Storage Area Network (VSAN) Configuration and Verification
• Describing Fibre Channel Communication Between the Initiator Server and the Target Storage
  • Fibre Channel Layered Model
  • Fabric Login (FLOGI) Process
  • Fibre Channel Flow Control
• Describing Fibre Channel Zone Types and Their Uses
  • Fibre Channel Zoning
  • Zoning Configuration
  • Zoning Management
• Describing Cisco NPV Mode and NPIV
  • Cisco NPV Mode
  • NPIV Mode
• Describing Data Center Ethernet Enhancements
  • Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) Data Center Bridging
  • Priority Flow Control
  • Enhanced Transmission Selection
  • Data Center Bridging Exchange (DCBX) Protocol
  • Congestion Notification
• Describing FCoE
  • Cisco Unified Fabric
  • FCoE Architecture
  • FCoE Initialization Protocol
  • FCoE Adapters
• Describing Cisco UCS Components
  • Physical Cisco UCS Components
  • Cisco Fabric Interconnect Product Overview
  • Cisco I/O Module (IOM) Product Overview
  • Cisco UCS Mini
  • Cisco Integrated Management Controller (IMC) Supervisor
  • Cisco Intersight™
• Describing Cisco UCS Manager
  • Cisco UCS Manager Overview
  • Identity and Resource Pools for Hardware Abstraction
  • Service Profiles and Service Profile Templates
  • Cisco UCS Central Overview
  • Cisco HyperFlex™ Overview
• Using APIs
  • Common Programmability Protocols and Methods
  • How to Choose Models and Processes
• Describing Cisco ACI
  • Cisco ACI Overview
  • Multitier Applications in Cisco ACI
  • Cisco ACI Features
  • VXLAN in Cisco ACI
  • Unicast Traffic in Cisco ACI
  • Multicast Traffic in Cisco ACI
  • Cisco ACI Programmability
  • Common Programming Tools and Orchestration Options
• Describing Cloud Computing
  • Cloud Computing Overview
  • Cloud Deployment Models
  • Cloud Computing Services

Lab Outline

• Explore the Cisco NX-OS CLI
• Explore Topology Discovery
• Configure Hot Standby Router Protocol (HSRP)
• Configure the Cisco Nexus 2000 FEX
• Configure VPCs
• Configure VPCs with Cisco FEX
• Configure Virtual Routing and Forwarding (VRF)
• Explore the Virtual Device Contexts (VDC) Elements
• Install VMware Elastic Sky X Integrated (ESXi) and vCenter
• Configure VSANs
• Validate FLOGI and FCNS
• Configure Zoning
• Configure Unified Ports on a Cisco Nexus Switch and Implement FCoE
• Explore the Cisco UCS Server Environment
• Configure a Cisco UCS Server Profile
• Configure Cisco NX-OS with APIs
• Explore the Cisco UCS Manager XML API Management Information Tree