{"id":10375,"date":"2022-04-14T06:30:02","date_gmt":"2022-04-13T20:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.penguinpunk.net\/blog\/?p=10375"},"modified":"2022-05-25T08:27:23","modified_gmt":"2022-05-24T22:27:23","slug":"vmware-cloud-on-aws-tmcham-part-3-sddc-lifecycle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.penguinpunk.net\/blog\/vmware-cloud-on-aws-tmcham-part-3-sddc-lifecycle\/","title":{"rendered":"VMware Cloud on AWS – TMCHAM – Part 3 – SDDC Lifecycle"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

In this episode of Things My Customers Have Asked Me (TMCHAM), I’m going to delve into some questions around the lifecycle of the VMware-managed VMware Cloud on AWS platform, and what customers need to know to make sense of it all.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The SDDC <\/strong><\/p>\n

If you talk to VMware folks about VMware Cloud on AWS, you’ll hear a lot of talk about software-defined data centres (SDDCs). This is the logical construct in place that you use within your Organization to manage your hosts and clusters, in much the same fashion as you would your on-premises workloads. Unlike most on-premises workloads, however, the feeding and watering of the SDDC, from a software currency perspective, is done by VMware.<\/p>\n

Release Notes<\/em><\/p>\n

If you’ve read the VMware Cloud on AWS Release Notes<\/a>, you’ll see something like this at the start:<\/p>\n

“Beginning with the SDDC version 1.11 release, odd-numbered releases of the SDDC software are optional and available for new SDDC deployments only. By default, all new SDDC deployments and upgrades will use the most recent even-numbered release. If you want to deploy an SDDC with an odd-numbered release version, contact your VMware TAM, sales, or customer success representative to make the request.”<\/p>\n

Updated on: 5\u00a0April\u00a0 2022<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Essential Release:<\/strong> VMware Cloud on AWS (SDDC Version 1.18) | 5\u00a0April 2022<\/p>\n

Optional Release:<\/strong> VMware Cloud on AWS (SDDC Version 1.17) | 19\u00a0November 2021<\/p>\n

Basically, when you deploy onto the platform, you’ll usually get put on what VMware calls an “Essential” release. From time to time, customers may have requirements that mean that they qualify to be deployed on an “Optional” release. This might be because they have a software integration requirement that hasn’t been handled in 1.16, for example, but is available for 1.17. It’s also important to note that each major release will have a variety of minor releases as well, depending on issues that need to be resolved or features that need to be rolled out. So you’ll also see references to 1.16v5 in places, for example.<\/p>\n

Upgrades and Maintenance<\/em><\/p>\n

So what happens when your SDDC is going to be upgraded? Well, we let you know in advance, and it’s done in phases, as you’d imagine.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

[image courtesy of VMware]<\/p>\n

You can read more about the process\u00a0here<\/a>, and there’s a blog post that covers the release cadence here<\/a>. VMware also does the rollout of releases in waves, so not every customer has the upgrade done at the same time. If you’re the type of customer that needs to be on the latest version of everything, or perhaps you have a real requirement to be near the front of the line, you should talk to your account team and they’ll liaise with the folks who can make it happen for you. When the upgrades are happening, you should be careful not to:<\/p>\n