ABSTRACT
A cloud computing environment consists of a large number of servers, virtual machines, storage devices, and network devices. It is important to manage these cloud computing components at a centralized location. vCenter is such software through which the administrator can manage the virtual information technology (IT) infrastructure. In addition, vCenter is used for managing advanced features such as High Availability (HA), Fault Tolerance, and Load Balancing. Components such as vCloud Networking and Security (vCNS) and vCloud Director in VMware vCloud Suite also depend on vCenter. vCenter can be used for creating, managing, and importing or exporting virtual machines. It can also be used for monitoring performance, taking snapshots, recovering failed virtual machines, and displaying error messages. This chapter explores some basics about vCenter. It also provides hands-on practice for installing and using vCenter. The components included in vCenter form an integrated service for managing VMware vCloud Suite and many other third-party services.
