VMworld 2020 – Top 5 sessions you should not miss

Very hard to pick The top 5 sessions for VMworld 2020. Let's try. In fact, instead of picking only 5 sessions, I'll choose 5 different Products/Topics and each with a couple of sessions. This will be less restricted for me as content so I don't need to limit the session number….

As you know, VMworld 2020 is a digital event this year. VMware had to take an uneasy decision to make VMworld a virtual event online between September 29 and October 1. I'll miss my bodies, peer bloggers, and friends, won't be able to meet them physically, but that's the way it is this year.

Next year's location is already announced too. It is the same as it should be this year. Barcelona in Europe for me (fingers crossing). But let's get back to this year's VMworld and the virtual version, or digital version if you want. We are used to “virtual”, but not for VMworld… Anyway.

This year you'll be able to register for free, however, a paid option exists as well giving you an option to access VMware experts in roundtable sessions, 1-1 consultations with Experts, Extra Networking, Games, and Prize challenges. You'll get $100 off VMworld 2021 or Half price VCP exam voucher which is available during registration. Check the full details in my previous blog post here – VMworld 2020 Digital Event – Register for FREE Now

Session times are now available for scheduling! Sessions are listed chronologically and times display in your local browser time.

Note: Not all sessions are available for scheduling right now.

Register to VMworld 2020 for free by visiting this link.

Top 5 sessions you should not miss

VMworld General Session [GEN2859] – General session with Pat Gelsinger and Sanjay Poonen, with guest speakers. Great for inspiration as usually… -:)

VSAN

I always liked vSAN and had it in the lab since vSphere 5.5 in any form. Unfortunately, we moved to a really small place so for now I'm only keeping nested environment and as the box is also my video editing gear, I'm running VMware Workstation Pro and have nested vSphere environment with vSAN in there.

vSAN has more in and with vSAN file services, you can now have NFS and SMB !!! More to come with the latest release (under NDA for now). Here are some sessions for VSAN which I found useful.

The best for searching for a session is probably the search box. If you know the session number…. then bingo. If not you can put the speaker's name to see which session he/she has to offer. If

• vCenter Server 7 Deconstructed [HCP2328] – session with Emad Younis and Niels Hagoort. Emad is a cool guy… Niels certainly too, but I haven't met him personally, yet.
• Simplifying vSphere Lifecycle for Consistency and Easy Updates [HCP1937]
• Deep Dive: What's New with vCenter Server [HCP1100] – deep dive sessions (technical 300) are guaranteed to be with packed technical content. As vCenter is a key component of vSphere, this one is a must too.
• vCenter Performance Deep Dive [HCP1975] – performance is the nerve of the war. Get the most out of it!
• Upgrading to VMware vSphere 7 [HCP1934] – another session with Niels Hagoort. Love this guy's videos on the VMware site….
• 99 Problems, But A vSphere Upgrade Ain't One [HCP1830] – had to add this one with Emad Younic and Nigel Hickey too!! – “different scenarios, including upgrading from an end-of-life vSphere version to a supported version. Learn about new and different VMware tools that will help remove the complexity, provide minimal to no downtime, and roll back a vSphere upgrade.”

vSphere Storage

• What’s New in vSphere 7 Core Storage [HCI1689] – NVMe and NVMe Over Fabrics (NVMeOF), shared VMDKs and affinity manager…. don't know anything about those? This session is for you.
• Core Storage Best Practice Deep Dive: Configuring the New Storage Features [HCI1691] – Best practices with Cody Hosterman and Jason Massae. – “New core storage features were released with VMware vSphere 7, and setting them up correctly is critical to optimum performance and resilience. We will review the new and some common features, and the best configuration practices.”

vSphere 7.0 and Tanzu ++++ (Yes you're reading correctly)

• vSphere with Tanzu 101 for the vSphere Admin [KUB2162] – with Mike Foley. Mike's English is very clear so even an English newbie understands well. vSphere and Kubernetes shall be cool. – “We will discuss installation and configuration of vSphere with Tanzu, and go over the major components, such as vSphere pods, vSphere Supervisor Cluster and vSphere namespaces”
• vSphere with Tanzu Deep Dive [KUB2469] – this one about networking will complete the first one above, I think. “VMware vSphere with Tanzu. We will dive deep into the networking model. Learn about the benefits for VI admins and developers”
• vSphere with Tanzu: Deep Dive into Deployment and Management [KUB2594] – Let's get it! “vSphere with Tanzu and deploy a Tanzu Kubernetes cluster. DevOps Ready Infrastructure in 60 minutes.”
• Tanzu Kubernetes Grid Networking Concepts [KUB2334] –

Networking:

• Mastering vSphere Distributed Switch: Deep Dive [HCP1832] – Let's see, should be good one too…. “features like LLDP, VDS Health Check, or Netflow are valuable features that sometimes go unused. Also, the network admin is often not aware of the VDS or its features and the potential value the VDS brings to the datacenter operations“
• All Things Networking for VMware Cloud Providers [HCPS2625] – learn it !  – “we will walk through some of the key Kubernetes networking concepts enabled by VMware Tanzu Kubernetes Grid, and provide insights into the inner workings of Kubernetes networking. We will explore topics such as the role of the Container Network Interface, exposing services (ingress and load balancer) as well as restricting network traffic.”
• Update on NSX-T Switching: NSX on VDS (vSphere Distributed Switch) [VCNC1197] – “NSX-T 3.0 offers the option of running VMware NSX directly on the top of a VMware vSphere Distributed Switch (VDS).” should be cool….

Can't list them all. As you might notice, not all sessions are available for adding to the agenda. VMware is still working on the content and adding more capabilities. Check back if you can't add it to your agenda just yet.

I found it best to check the box for the “General & Premier passes” and either checkbox for the product you're searching for or type the keyword to the search form.

More from ESX Virtualization

• vSphere 7.0 Download Now Available
• How To Test Network Connectivity with netcat utility in VMware environments
• vSphere 7.0 Page [All details about vSphere and related products here]
• VMware vSphere 7.0 Announced – vCenter Server Details
• VMware vSphere 7.0 DRS Improvements – What's New
• Upgrade from ESXi 6.7 to 7.0 ESXi Free
• What is VMware Skyline?
• What is vCenter Server 7 Multi-Homing?

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