Spring Reading Pre-Review

It’s that time of year again, when all the hard work various folks in the community turn into tangible products. In this round we’ve some second editions of some popular books. Let’s dive right in:

VCP4 Exam Cram

Elias Khnaser (@ekhnaser)

The VCP4 Exam Cram volume looks to be about the only game in town with regard to the VCP4. I’m not entirely sure why that is, but the book does a wonderful job of setting out each VCP4 Blueprint objective, and attacking it. It then provides sample Q/A you can work through. A desk reference, as well as a CD loaded with additional prep material.

Summary: An amazing little exam prep package for the price. Well worth your time if you will be taking the VCP4.

VMware ESX and ESXi in the Enterprise

Edward L. Haletky (@texiwill)

We have had Ed on a BrownBag prior. Additionally I’ve reviewed his vSphere security book here. As impressed as I have been with both of these and having met Ed at VMworld, I’ve anticipated this book and have high expectations for it.

VMware ESX and ESXi in the Enterprise is a 2nd edition updated to include ESX 3.5, and vSphere 4.x… including 4.1… here’s a rundown of what’s inside:

•    Assess VMware datacenter and infrastructure hardware requirements
•    Understand technical, licensing, and management differences between ESX/ESXi 3.5 and 4.x
•    Plan installation for your environment and identify potential “gotchas”
•    Select, configure, utilize, and support storage cost-effectively
•    Manage key operational issues associated with virtual infrastructure
•    Adapt existing network and security infrastructure to virtualization
•    Configure ESX from host connections
•    Configure ESX Server from Virtual Centers or hosts
•    Create, modify, and manage VMs (with detailed Windows, Linux, and NetWare examples)
•    Troubleshoot VM issues with eDirectory, private labs, firewalls, and clusters
•    Utilize vSphere 4.1’s improved Dynamic Resource Load Balancing (DRLB)
•    Implement disaster recovery, business continuity, and backup
•    Plan for vApps and the future of virtualization

Summary: If you admin vSphere environments, this looks like it should be on your mandatory reading list.

Disclaimer:

The disclaimer here is three fold:

1. This is a pre-review. Meaning, I’ve only read the summaries, table of contents, and major section headers so far. A more detailed review will happen as I get deeper into the books.
2. The links above are Amazon Affiliate links.
3. I have received review copies of each of these books from their respective publisher. The understanding with the publisher is that I read and review these books honestly… good or bad. However, like anything on the internet, take this with a grain of salt, read other reviews, etc.