DCIUCS - Introducing Cisco Unified Computing System

Course Description 

The Introducing Cisco Unified Computing System (DCIUCS) v1.0 is an introductory course that shows you how to deploy, secure, operate, and maintain the Cisco Unified Computing system (Cisco UCS^®) B-Series blade servers, Cisco UCS C-Series and S-Series rack servers, and Cisco HyperFlex™ product family for use in data centers. You will gain hands-on practice on basic Cisco UCS server configuration, performing backup and restore activities, and more.

How You'll Benefit

This course will help you:
Learn how to implement and maintain Cisco UCS servers
Gain knowledge and skills through Cisco’s unique combination of lessons and hands-on practice using enterprise-grade Cisco learning technologies, data center equipment, and software
Prepare for data center job roles

Who Should Enroll

Server administrators
Network engineers
Systems engineers
Consulting systems engineers
Technical solutions architects
Network administrators
Storage administrators
Network managers
Sales engineers
Cisco integrators and partners

Course Objectives

After taking this course, you should be able to:
Describe Cisco UCS server hardware
Describe Cisco UCS connectivity
Describe the Cisco HyperFlex Data Platform, its data writing and reading processes, and data optimization
Describe and configure Cisco UCS service profiles
Describe and configure Cisco UCS service profile templates
Describe and implement Internet Small Computer Systems Interface (iSCSI) on Cisco UCS
Describe and implement Cisco UCS firmware updates
Describe and implement Cisco UCS backups

Course Prerequisites

To fully benefit from this course, you should have the following knowledge and skills:
General knowledge of servers
Routing and switching
Storage area networking
Server virtualization

These Cisco courses are recommended to help you meet these prerequisites:
Implementing and Administering Cisco Solutions (CCNA^®)
Understanding Cisco Data Center Foundations (DCFNDU) v1.0
Implementing and Operating Cisco Data Center Core Technologies (DCCOR)

Course Outline

Describing Cisco UCS Server Hardware
Cisco UCS B-Series Blade Servers
Cisco UCS C-Series Rack Servers
Cisco UCS S-Series Rack Servers
Cisco Virtual Interface Cards
Hyperconvergence Overview
Cisco HyperFlex HX-Series Servers

Describing Cisco UCS Connectivity
Cisco UCS Fabric Interconnect
Cisco UCS B-Series Connectivity
Cisco UCS C-Series Connectivity
Cisco UCS S-Series Connectivity
Cisco HyperFlex Connectivity Architecture
Cisco HyperFlex Edge Connectivity
Cisco UCS Fabric Interconnect Ethernet End-Host Mode Compared to Switching Mode
Cisco UCS Fabric Interconnect Uplink Pinning
Cisco UCS C-Series Integration

Describing the Cisco HyperFlex HX Data Platform
Cisco HyperFlex HX Data Platform Software
Writing Data to Cisco HyperFlex HX Data Platform
Reading Data from Cisco HyperFlex HX Data Platform
Data Optimization in Cisco HyperFlex HX Data Platform

Configuring Cisco UCS Service Profiles
Portability Issue with Nonabstracted Identities
Cisco UCS Service Profile
Identity Pools
Server Pools
IP Pools

Configuring Cisco UCS Service Profile Templates
Service Profile Templates

Implementing iSCSI on Cisco UCS
iSCSI Addressing
iSCSI Support in Cisco UCS

Implementing Cisco UCS Firmware Updates
Update Cisco UCS C-Series Server Firmware
Download Tasks for the Infrastructure Image
Download Tasks for Cisco UCS B-Series Firmware Packages
Best Practices for Updating Firmware in Cisco UCS Manager
Firmware Upgrades Using Auto Install
Capability Catalog Updates
Host Firmware Packages
Driver Updates for Operating Systems and Hypervisors

Implementing Cisco UCS Backups
Compare Backup Options in Cisco UCS Manager
Compare Two Import Types
Policy Backup

Lab Outline

Explore Cisco UCS Manager GUI
Configure Server and Uplink Ports
Configure VLANs
Configure Basic Identity Pools
Configure a Cisco UCS Service Profile Using Pools
Configure a Service Profile Template
Configure an iSCSI Service Profile on Cisco UCS
Perform Backup and Restore Activities