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VCF 9.1.1 - Simplified vSphere Kubernetes Service (VKS) using VLAN-Backed VPCs without NSX Tunnel Endpoints (TEPs)

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As part of the VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 9.1.1 release, consuming NSX Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) has gotten simpler, especially for environments using traditional VLAN-backed networks. In VCF 9.1.0, users already had the ability to configure a VPC using a Distributed Transit Gateway (DTGW) and Distributed VLAN through the NSX Virtual Network Appliance (VNA), but this still required configuring NSX Tunnel Endpoints (TEPs) on each ESX host.

With VCF 9.1.1, the networking workflow has been further simplified with a new VLAN-backed VPC option. While it still uses DTGW and VNA, TEPs are no longer required, removing additional network requirements such as a larger MTU. As a result, environments that previously could not meet the networking requirements to configure a VPC can now deploy and consume services such as vSphere Kubernetes Service (VKS) and VCF Automation (VCFA).

It is also important to understand the different VPC consumption options and their constraints. The following table summarizes the capabilities and limitations of each option.


Note: DTGW with TEP was possible with VCF 9.0.0 but there was no support for VCFA until VCF 9.1.0.

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VCF 9.1 - Understanding VCF Converge & Import Scenarios for vCenter Server Without NSX

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When converging or importing a vCenter Server environment that does not already include NSX, VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) will automatically deploy NSX as part of the converge or import workflow. While the deployed NSX version will be compatible with the existing environment, it may have implications for future VCF upgrade paths.

The current behavior in VCF 9.1.0 is to deploy the latest NSX version that is compatible with the source vCenter Server version. However, depending on when the converge or import workflow is performed, that NSX version could be a back-in-time release that does not have a direct upgrade path to the current version of VCF.

Below is an example to help illustrate the current behavior. Let us assume we are starting with a vCenter Server 8.0 Update 3c environment. As of this blog post, the Interoperability Matrix, which is the source used to determine component compatibility, shows NSX 4.2.4.1 as the latest compatible version.


Reference: https://interopmatrix.broadcom.com/Interoperability?col=912,&row=2,18560&isHidePatch=false&isHideLegacyReleases=false

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VCF 9.1 - Quick Tip: Optimized Workflow for Configuring Distributed Transit Gateway (DTGW) with NSX Virtual Network Appliance (VNA)

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With VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 9.1, the Distributed Transit Gateway (DTGW) connectivity model now supports NSX stateful network services through the Virtual Network Appliance (VNA) cluster. This makes it easy for VI Admins to provision Virtual Private Clouds (VPCs), which can then be used to deploy vSphere Kubernetes Service (VKS) workloads using either vCenter Server or VCF Automation (VCFA).

One of the most underappreciated benefits is the ability to complete various NSX workflows including an entire VNA cluster deployment and DTGW configuration directly from vCenter Server, without having to switch to the NSX Manager UI. While NSX Manager still provides the underlying micro-frontend interfaces that are integrated into the vSphere UI, I appreciate having the flexibility to perform these workflows from either the vCenter Server or NSX Manager interface, depending on your roles and responsibilities within an organization.

While there are a number of community blog posts covering DTGW and VNA deployments, they typically start in the vSphere UI for the initial VNA deployment before switching to the NSX Manager UI to complete the remaining configuration, which is perfectly valid. Personally, I prefer using the vSphere UI for as many workflows as possible, especially since enabling vSphere Supervisor and vSphere Kubernetes Service (VKS) is also performed through the vSphere UI.

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