This four-week learning program is designed to prepare you thoroughly for the VMware 3V0-22.25 Advanced Deploy exam by combining deep technical study with structured practice, progressive reinforcement, and real-world scenario analysis. The curriculum follows a logical progression: foundational architecture, core platform technologies, design principles, deployment and administration workflows, and finally advanced troubleshooting and optimization. Each day includes clear goals, defined study content, and detailed, actionable tasks supported by Pomodoro-based focus sessions and spaced-repetition review cycles. By following this plan, you will build strong conceptual understanding, practical diagnostic skills, and the design reasoning required to confidently analyze and operate VMware environments at an expert level.
Week 1 Study Plan
Focus: IT Architecture Foundations, vSphere Compute, vCenter and Cluster Features, Lifecycle Management
Daily workload: 6–8 Pomodoros (25 min study + 5 min break)
Day 1: IT Architecture Foundations
Learning Goals:
Understand the role of virtualization within enterprise IT architecture.
Build a clear conceptual model of conceptual, logical, and physical architecture.
Learn how business requirements translate into technical design requirements.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
Architectural layers: conceptual, logical, physical.
Multi-tier and microservices architectures mapped to vSphere and VCF.
Functional and non-functional requirements.
Constraints, assumptions, and risks in design.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a detailed explanation of conceptual, logical, and physical architecture. For each layer, produce at least three VMware-related examples.
Create a written comparison between multi-tier and microservices architectures. Explain how each maps onto vSphere clusters, NSX segments, and vSAN or external storage.
Construct a scenario for a fictional application. For this scenario, document:
Six functional requirements
Six non-functional requirements
Four constraints
Four assumptions
Four risks
For each requirement you wrote, explain what VMware design element it influences (cluster size, storage policy, network topology, HA configuration, etc.).
Complete a 15-minute end-of-day review summarizing the most important architectural principles in your own words.
Day 2: ESXi Compute Architecture
Learning Goals:
Understand how ESXi manages CPU and schedules vCPUs onto physical CPUs.
Learn NUMA, vNUMA, CPU Ready, Co-Stop, oversubscription mechanics.
Understand memory reclamation mechanisms including ballooning and swapping.
Study Content (4–5 Pomodoros):
ESXi CPU scheduling, hyper-threading, and ready time.
NUMA and vNUMA structure and alignment considerations.
Memory ballooning, swapping, reservation, and TPS.
Oversubscription strategies for CPU and memory.
Tasks (3 Pomodoros):
Write a complete explanation of CPU Ready, including thresholds, symptoms in applications, and corrective actions.
Produce a NUMA alignment case study. Example: a VM with 20 vCPUs running on a dual-socket server. Document how ESXi maps the VM’s NUMA nodes and what performance problems occur if misaligned.
Create a detailed memory troubleshooting workflow describing:
How to detect ballooning
How to detect swapping
How to determine whether the issue is host-level or cluster-level
Actions that resolve each condition
Create a written guideline titled “Best Practices for CPU and Memory Oversubscription in Production Clusters.”
Conduct a short review of Day 1 content to reinforce forgetting-curve retention.
Day 3: vCenter Server Architecture and Inventory
Learning Goals:
Understand the architecture and function of vCenter Server and SSO.
Learn the hierarchical structure of vCenter inventory.
Understand how RBAC works in vCenter and how permissions influence operations.
Study Content (3–4 Pomodoros):
vCenter deployment architecture, SSO domain, identity sources.
Datacenter, cluster, host, VM, folder, and resource pool roles.
RBAC: roles, privileges, and assignment scopes.
Differences in permissions at various inventory levels.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a hierarchical diagram (text-only description) of the entire vCenter inventory. For each inventory object, describe:
Purpose
Typical configurations
Operational responsibilities
Create a mapping document showing how permissions propagate within folders and clusters. Explain three scenarios where permission inheritance may lead to unexpected access levels.
Write a detailed explanation of the difference between identity sources (Active Directory, LDAP, SAML/OIDC) and how they integrate into vCenter.
Conduct a 15-minute review covering ESXi CPU and memory topics learned on Day 2.
Day 4: HA, DRS, and FT in Depth
Learning Goals:
Understand internal HA mechanisms such as master election and restart priorities.
Learn DRS algorithms and how clusters balance workloads.
Understand FT constraints and appropriate use cases.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
HA architecture: heartbeats, datastore heartbeats, failover behavior.
HA Admission Control policies and impact on cluster design.
DRS decision-making logic and automation modes.
FT operation, requirements, and performance considerations.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a step-by-step narrative describing what happens during an ESXi host failure in an HA-enabled cluster, from the moment the host stops responding to the restart of affected VMs.
Create a decision table showing how HA Admission Control behaves under different policies (percentage-based, slot-based, disabled).
Write a detailed explanation of how DRS analyzes workload imbalance. Include:
What metrics it uses
What conditions can block vMotion
Examples of VMs that cannot be moved
Document a structured comparison between HA and FT. Add examples of three workloads and justify whether HA or FT is the appropriate protection method.
Perform a forgetting-curve review of Day 1 and Day 2 (20 minutes each).
Day 5: Lifecycle Manager and Upgrade Workflows
Learning Goals:
Understand image-based and baseline-based LCM workflows.
Learn full SDDC upgrade ordering and compatibility checks.
Understand firmware/driver integration and validation.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
vSphere Lifecycle Manager architecture.
Cluster image composition and host remediation.
vCenter → ESXi → NSX → vSAN upgrade order.
Hardware Compatibility Guide and interoperability matrix use.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Create a comprehensive document titled “End-to-End Upgrade Workflow for a VMware Environment.” This should include:
All upgrade stages
Preconditions
Cross-component compatibility checks
Remediation steps
Build a compatibility-checking exercise where you identify mismatched firmware and drivers from a hypothetical example. Explain exactly how you determine incompatibilities.
Write a remediation checklist covering:
Evacuation of hosts
Staging updates
Remediation sequence
Post-remediation validation tests
Perform a 15-minute review of HA and DRS content.
Day 6: Integrated Practice and Applied Understanding
Learning Goals:
Strengthen conceptual understanding through applied exercises.
Reinforce troubleshooting thinking across compute and availability domains.
Study Content (3–4 Pomodoros):
Review architectural principles from Days 1–5.
Review compute resource mechanisms.
Review vCenter, HA, DRS, FT, and LCM.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Produce an integrated written summary connecting all the following concepts:
Business requirements
Cluster design
HA/DRS behavior
Oversubscription
Lifecycle management
Create three realistic troubleshooting scenarios. For each scenario:
Describe symptoms
Identify the affected subsystem
Create a diagnostic workflow
Propose corrective actions
Write a complete design explanation for a small three-host cluster environment. Include:
Availability strategy
CPU sizing logic
Memory policy
Storage design assumptions
Expected upgrade process
Perform a forgetting-curve review for Days 3 and 4.
Day 7: Weekly Review, Reinforcement, and Knowledge Consolidation
Learning Goals:
Solidify all Week 1 knowledge for long-term retention.
Identify weak areas and reinforce them through targeted study.
Prepare a foundation for Week 2 (vSAN and NSX).
Study Content (4–5 Pomodoros):
Review all diagrams and workflow documents created this week.
Review ESXi CPU/memory mechanisms.
Review HA, DRS, FT.
Review Lifecycle Manager workflows.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Create a document titled “Week 1 Master Summary,” containing:
Short definitions of every concept learned
Three detailed diagrams
Two troubleshooting workflows
One full upgrade workflow
Conduct a 25-question self-exam you write yourself. For each incorrect answer, write a correction explanation describing why the original thinking was wrong.
Perform your 7-day forgetting-curve review of Day 1 content.
Create a list of your weakest points from this week and write the steps you will take next week to reinforce them.
Prepare a preview outline for Week 2 to ensure readiness for vSAN and NSX topics.
Week 2 Study Plan
Focus: vSAN architecture, SPBM, NSX networking, NSX security, troubleshooting foundations
Daily workload: 6–8 Pomodoros (25 minutes study + 5 minutes break)
Day 8: vSAN Architecture and Fundamentals
Learning Goals:
Understand vSAN as a hyperconverged storage platform and how it aggregates disks.
Learn disk group structure, cache versus capacity tiers, and storage object formation.
Build a foundational understanding of vSAN networking and data paths.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
vSAN architecture: datastore abstraction, object-based storage.
Disk groups, cache tier vs capacity tier roles.
vSAN network requirements: MTU, unicast traffic, redundancy.
vSAN cluster roles: witness, fault domains, failure handling.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a complete explanation of how vSAN converts local disks into distributed storage objects. Include the meaning of components, objects, and witnesses.
Describe in detail the function of cache vs capacity tiers. Provide examples of how reads and writes behave differently.
Create a written description of a vSAN disk group layout for a six-host cluster. Specify:
Number of cache disks and capacity disks
Expected placement of components across hosts
Consequences of losing one cache device
Develop a vSAN network validation checklist covering: VLANs, MTU, multicast/unicast (depending on vSAN version), NIC teaming, and bandwidth requirements.
Conduct a 10-minute review of selected Week 1 topics according to the forgetting curve (especially Day 2 or Day 3 content).
Day 9: Storage Policies and Data Placement (SPBM)
Learning Goals:
Understand how SPBM affects availability, performance, and data placement.
Learn FTT, RAID1/5/6 policies, stripe width, object rebuild logic.
Learn the compliance and healing mechanisms for storage policies.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
SPBM architecture and policy structure.
FTT parameters and RAID choices.
Stripe width, checksum, force provisioning.
Object compliance and resync behavior.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a detailed comparison between RAID1, RAID5, and RAID6 for vSAN including capacity overhead, performance behavior, minimum host count requirements, and recovery characteristics.
Create three application profiles (database server, application server, analytics system). For each:
Select an appropriate storage policy
Justify FTT choice
Justify stripe width and RAID type
Create a full workflow explanation of what happens when a host fails in a vSAN cluster. Include:
Object component visibility
Rebuild triggers
How vSAN ensures compliance after recovery
Create a small exercise for yourself: design policies for five hypothetical VMs with different requirements, and document the reason behind each policy decision.
Perform a forgetting-curve review of Day 8 content (20 minutes).
Day 10: NSX Architecture and Transport Concepts
Learning Goals:
Understand NSX Manager, transport nodes, and edge node roles.
Learn Transport Zones, overlays, TEP interfaces, and Geneve encapsulation.
Understand how NSX integrates with vSphere Distributed Switches.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
NSX Manager cluster purpose and lifecycle.
ESXi hosts as transport nodes.
Transport Zone types and their function.
Geneve overlay behavior and TEP communication.
Edge node roles in north-south routing.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a comprehensive explanation of the NSX Manager cluster, including control plane responsibilities, failover behavior, and how multiple managers stay synchronized.
Create a transport node onboarding workflow. Include steps such as VDS preparation, N-VDS considerations (if applicable), assigning TEPs, and validating connectivity.
Explain why overlay networks require consistent MTU in the underlay. Provide three operational issues caused by MTU mismatches.
Describe the difference between overlay segments and VLAN segments, and provide three scenarios where each is appropriate.
Conduct a forgetting-curve review for Day 9 content (20 minutes).
Day 11: NSX Routing (T0/T1), Distributed Routing, and Edge Nodes
Learning Goals:
Understand T1 and T0 gateways and how routing is distributed across ESXi hosts.
Learn the difference between distributed routing and centralized services.
Understand how north-south traffic flows through edge nodes.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
Distributed routing architecture.
T1 gateway responsibilities and stateless nature.
T0 gateway responsibilities, uplinks, and services.
Edge cluster design considerations.
Traffic paths for east-west and north-south flows.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a full explanation describing how distributed routing works at the hypervisor level and how packets avoid hairpinning.
Describe the difference between T1 and T0 gateways in a structured table covering:
Function
Routing role
Service support
Failure handling
Create two traffic flow examples:
VM-to-VM east-west traffic
VM-to-internet north-south traffic
For each flow, document exactly which NSX components are involved.
Write a design recommendation guide discussing when to use multiple T1 routers, when to collapse tiers, and when to separate them for security or operational reasons.
Perform forgetting-curve review of Day 10 topics (20 minutes).
Day 12: NSX Distributed Firewall and Security Architecture
Learning Goals:
Understand NSX Distributed Firewall functionality and enforcement model.
Learn how micro-segmentation works and how rules are evaluated.
Understand security groups, tags, and policy structure.
Learn troubleshooting techniques for DFW issues.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
DFW rule evaluation order.
Identity-based, tag-based, and group-based firewalling.
Logging, rule hit counts, and packet flow evaluation.
Gateway firewall overview and differences from DFW.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Document the entire DFW rule evaluation process in your own words, including layer precedence, applied-to behavior, and rule matching.
Create a micro-segmentation design for a three-tier application and document:
Security groups
Tags
Rule sets
Allowed and denied flows
Write a troubleshooting workflow for a scenario where a VM cannot communicate with another VM. Include steps covering:
NSX Manager rule verification
Group membership
Rule hit count analysis
Packet capture or Traceflow
Write a comparison between DFW and Gateway Firewall describing exactly when each should be used and why.
Conduct forgetting-curve review of Day 11.
Day 13: vSAN and NSX Integrated Practice
Learning Goals:
Strengthen combined storage and network understanding.
Practice analyzing scenarios that involve multiple subsystems.
Reinforce cross-domain troubleshooting thinking.
Study Content (3–4 Pomodoros):
Review vSAN architecture and SPBM.
Review NSX overlay and routing models.
Review DFW and segmentation concepts.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write three multi-domain scenarios that involve both storage and networking. For each scenario, identify the affected subsystem and document how you would isolate the issue.
Create a design document for a small environment including:
vSAN storage policies for three workloads
NSX segment design for three application tiers
High-level routing and firewall rules
Write an essay explaining how vSAN and NSX together create a software-defined data center. Include at least eight detailed points.
Perform forgetting-curve reviews for Day 8, 9, and 10.
Day 14: Week 2 Review and Consolidation
Learning Goals:
Complete retention and reinforcement of all Week 2 topics.
Identify any weak areas for follow-up in Week 3.
Consolidate all written materials into a long-term reference.
Study Content (4–5 Pomodoros):
Review of vSAN architecture and object concepts.
Review SPBM policies and RAID/FTT designs.
Review NSX routing, overlays, and firewall structures.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Create a document titled “Week 2 Master Summary” containing:
All storage policies learned this week
NSX routing diagrams
DFW rule structures
Troubleshooting workflows
Conduct a 25–30 question self-assessment covering vSAN and NSX.
Perform your 7-day forgetting-curve review of Day 8 content to reinforce long-term memory.
Create a list of weak areas from Week 2 and write a plan on how to strengthen them in Week 3.
Prepare an outline for Week 3 topics (Plan and Design, Deployment, Availability, Security).
Week 3 Study Plan
Focus: Requirements Analysis, Capacity Planning, Logical/Physical Design, Security/Access Design, Deployment and Administration
Daily workload: 6–8 Pomodoros (25 min study + 5 min break)
Day 15: Requirements Gathering, Analysis, and Interpretation
Learning Goals:
Understand how to interpret business and technical requirements for VMware design.
Learn the full structure of requirements: functional, non-functional, constraints, assumptions, and risks.
Build the ability to convert business requirements into actionable design decisions.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
Functional vs non-functional requirements.
Availability, performance, scalability, manageability, recoverability categories.
Constraints: budget, existing hardware, licensing, geography.
Assumptions and risks: purpose and documentation.
Requirement-to-design mapping.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Select a sample workload (for example, an internal CRM system). Build a complete requirements document including:
Eight functional requirements
Eight non-functional requirements
Five constraints
Five assumptions
Five risks
For each requirement, document exactly how it affects design. Provide at least ten mappings such as:
Availability target leads to N+1 cluster design
Compliance requirement leads to NSX micro-segmentation
Growth rate influences storage and compute sizing
Write two versions of a design justification:
One aimed at technical architects
One aimed at business stakeholders
Perform forgetting-curve review for selected Week 2 content (20 minutes).
Day 16: Capacity and Sizing (Compute, Memory, Storage, Network)
Learning Goals:
Understand how to size clusters for CPU, memory, and storage.
Learn vSAN capacity calculation including RAID overhead and FTT policies.
Learn bandwidth planning for vMotion, vSAN, and overlay networks.
Study Content (4–5 Pomodoros):
Compute sizing: vCPU/pCPU ratios, NUMA alignment, oversubscription guidelines.
Memory sizing: reservations, active memory, host headroom, HA overhead.
Storage sizing: RAID1/5/6 overhead, usable capacity, resync overhead, slack space.
Network sizing: bandwidth for vMotion, vSAN, NSX overlays, uplink redundancy.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Perform a full compute sizing exercise for a cluster hosting:
150 application VMs
Expected growth of 20%
Known CPU/memory profiles
Create a documented sizing calculation including oversubscription reasoning.
Perform a vSAN capacity planning exercise:
Define total raw capacity
Convert to usable space under RAID1 and RAID5
Include slack space and resync buffer
Provide final usable capacity values
Create a network sizing document that evaluates required bandwidth for:
vMotion under peak conditions
vSAN traffic patterns
NSX overlay traffic
Design an alternative configuration with more hosts but smaller size. Write a comparison of trade-offs (blast radius, resiliency, cost, DRS behavior).
Perform forgetting-curve review of Day 15.
Day 17: Logical and Physical Design
Learning Goals:
Understand how to construct logical and physical diagrams for VMware environments.
Learn how decisions around compute, storage, and network layer interact in topology.
Understand workload domain design and cluster separation.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
Logical design: clusters, networks, security zones, workload domains.
Physical design: hosts, racks, storage arrays, ToR switches, cabling.
Network topology: LAG, MLAG, spine-leaf, NSX overlays on underlay.
Storage topology: vSAN fault domains, stretched cluster requirements.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Create a full logical design for a two-cluster environment:
Management cluster
Workload cluster
Include compute separation, network segmentation, storage tiers, and RBAC.
Create a physical design describing:
Host model and configuration
Cabling layout
TOR switches
Uplink structures
Document three different cluster topology patterns (for example: large cluster, small cluster, stretched cluster). For each, explain use cases and trade-offs.
Write a design explanation for integrating NSX into an existing environment. Describe dependencies and required underlay changes.
Perform forgetting-curve review of Day 16.
Day 18: Availability Design and Disaster Recovery
Learning Goals:
Learn availability strategies such as N+1, N+2, and multi-failure protection.
Understand HA, DRS, FT interactions with design decisions.
Learn principles of DR design including RPO/RTO and failover/runbook planning.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
Availability models: host redundancy, power redundancy, network redundancy.
HA design implications: admission control, resource headroom.
DR design: site recovery, stretched clusters, replication types.
Application-consistent vs crash-consistent backups.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a detailed explanation of N+1 and N+2 host redundancy including how they impact cluster sizing and admission control.
Conduct a DR design exercise:
Create RPO and RTO definitions for three example workloads
Design a DR topology using storage-based replication or vSphere Replication
Write a runbook outlining failover steps
Create a scenario where a cluster cannot meet availability requirements due to constraints. Document how to redesign the cluster to satisfy requirements.
Write a comparative analysis of stretched cluster vs two separate clusters with replication.
Perform forgetting-curve review of Day 17.
Day 19: Security and Access Design
Learning Goals:
Understand identity integrations, RBAC, least-privilege models.
Learn NSX segmentation and firewall zone design.
Build strategies for compliance, encryption, and logging.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
Identity integration: AD, LDAP, SAML/OIDC.
RBAC across vCenter, NSX, and vSAN.
Segmentation strategies using NSX DFW and zones.
Compliance requirements: logging, encryption, auditability.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Build a complete RBAC model for a virtualized environment with three operational teams. Document roles, privileges, and scope boundaries.
Design a segmentation plan for a multi-tier application:
Define zones
Define firewall rules
Define tag-based grouping
Write a compliance design outline explaining how VMware components can satisfy controls related to:
Logging
Encryption
Access review
Create a troubleshooting workflow for identifying misconfigured access rules.
Perform forgetting-curve review of Day 18.
Day 20: Deployment and Administration Design
Learning Goals:
Understand installation pipelines for ESXi, vCenter, NSX, vSAN.
Learn configuration consistency methods such as Host Profiles and desired-state images.
Learn operational workflows for upgrades, expansion, and host replacement.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
Deployment methods: ISO, scripted install, Auto Deploy.
Host Profiles for configuration standardization.
NSX deployment stages.
vSAN enablement and validation.
Lifecycle workflows for Day-0, Day-1, Day-2 operations.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a complete deployment plan for ESXi hosts including:
Installation method
Network configuration
Joining vCenter
Applying Host Profiles
Document the full vCenter deployment process including sizing decisions and identity integration.
Create a vSAN deployment checklist from cluster creation to policy application.
Write an operational workflow describing how to add two new hosts to an existing cluster while maintaining compliance with lifecycle images.
Perform forgetting-curve review of Day 19.
Day 21: Week 3 Review and Synthesis
Learning Goals:
Reinforce all Week 3 topics for long-term retention.
Integrate design thinking across all layers.
Prepare for Week 4, which focuses on troubleshooting and optimization.
Study Content (4–5 Pomodoros):
Requirements mapping
Capacity and sizing logic
Logical and physical topology
Availability, DR, and RBAC
Deployment architecture
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Create a consolidated “Week 3 Master Summary” containing:
A complete requirements mapping table
Two capacity planning examples
Logical and physical design diagrams
Availability and DR design patterns
Conduct a 30-question design and deployment self-assessment. Document why each incorrect answer was wrong.
Perform your 7-day forgetting-curve review of Day 15 content.
Write a short document titled “My Design Principles for VMware Environments,” summarizing everything learned.
Week 4 Study Plan
Focus: Troubleshooting Methodology, Compute/Memory Troubleshooting, vSAN Troubleshooting, NSX Troubleshooting, Platform Optimization, Exam Scenario Preparation
Daily workload: 6–9 Pomodoros
Day 22: Troubleshooting Methodology and Diagnostic Framework
Learning Goals:
Understand the structure of a professional troubleshooting workflow.
Learn how to isolate problems across compute, storage, network, and management layers.
Build a standard method for analyzing symptoms and validating hypotheses.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
Troubleshooting methodology: symptom identification, scoping, hypothesis testing.
Distinguishing symptoms from root causes.
Using vSphere UI alarms, tasks & events, logs.
Using external tools: centralized logging, monitoring platforms.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a complete troubleshooting methodology document that includes:
How to begin when only symptoms are known
How to decide which subsystem to investigate first
How to evaluate environmental versus VM-level problems
Create a classification table of issues into four domains:
Compute
Storage
Network
Management plane
For each domain, list at least eight example symptoms.
Write three troubleshooting scenarios. For each scenario, document:
Initial symptoms
Four possible hypotheses
Data you would collect
The most likely root cause
Corrective actions
Perform forgetting-curve review of Day 20 (20 minutes).
Day 23: Compute and Memory Troubleshooting
Learning Goals:
Diagnose CPU and memory performance issues in ESXi hosts and VMs.
Learn how to use esxtop/resxtop effectively.
Understand how oversubscription, NUMA misalignment, and ballooning/swapping manifest as performance degradation.
Study Content (4–5 Pomodoros):
CPU Ready, Co-Stop, Contention, Scheduling delays.
NUMA and vNUMA troubleshooting and diagnostics.
Memory pressure indicators: ballooning, swapping, compaction.
esxtop metrics interpretation.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Produce an interpretive guide for esxtop covering:
CPU metrics (PCPU%, %READY, %CSTP)
Memory metrics (SWCUR, SWR/s, MCTLSZ)
Provide descriptions, thresholds, and recommended corrective actions.
Build a compute troubleshooting checklist with at least 15 detailed steps.
Create three case studies:
High CPU ready scenario
NUMA misalignment scenario
Active memory saturation scenario
For each case study, document detection steps, interpretation, and final resolution.
Perform forgetting-curve review of Day 21 content (20 minutes).
Day 24: vSAN Troubleshooting and Optimization
Learning Goals:
Learn to diagnose vSAN latency, congestion, and resync issues.
Become comfortable interpreting vSAN Health and vSAN Performance Service data.
Understand how policy compliance, object failures, and network conditions affect storage behavior.
Study Content (4–5 Pomodoros):
vSAN Health alarms and their meaning.
Object component failures and resync triggers.
Congestion signals and IO queueing.
Troubleshooting high latency.
Storage policy impact on rebuild behavior.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a detailed analysis guide describing what each of the following vSAN issues looks like:
Cluster congestion
Component absent vs degraded
Slow disk group
Network partition
Disk claiming issues
Build a vSAN troubleshooting decision tree. Each branch should show:
What symptom initiates the path
What diagnostic command or UI screen to check
What conclusions can be drawn
Write two full-length scenarios:
Scenario A: A host fails unexpectedly, causing large-scale resync.
Scenario B: Latency spikes only during specific workloads.
For each scenario, document:How you identify signs of the problem
Which data you collect
How you isolate the root cause
Recommended remediation steps
Perform forgetting-curve review for Day 22.
Day 25: NSX Troubleshooting: Networking, Routing, and Firewall
Learning Goals:
Understand how to diagnose overlay connectivity, TEP issues, and MTU mismatches.
Learn to troubleshoot T1/T0 routing, edge node connectivity, and north-south flows.
Learn how to resolve firewall blocking or rule order issues.
Study Content (4–5 Pomodoros):
Overlay troubleshooting: verifying TEP communication, MTU validation.
Traceflow, Packet Capture, Port Mirroring.
DFW troubleshooting: applied-to, rule hit counts, grouping errors.
Routing path validation for T1/T0.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a connectivity troubleshooting workflow for overlay networks including:
TEP validation
MTU verification
Underlay switch checks
Common root causes
Create a routing troubleshooting guide that explains how to diagnose:
Incorrect route advertisement
Misconfigured T0 uplinks
Edge cluster failure
Write three firewall troubleshooting scenarios involving DFW. For each scenario document:
Identified symptoms
Rules that may be causing blockage
Methods to verify rule hits
Resolution steps
Perform forgetting-curve review of Day 23.
Day 26: Platform Stability, Optimization, and Drift Control
Learning Goals:
Learn how to maintain long-term environment stability.
Understand capacity monitoring, forecasting, and proactive remediation.
Understand configuration drift and how to eliminate it.
Study Content (4 Pomodoros):
Health monitoring across vSphere, vSAN, NSX.
Capacity forecasting and alerting thresholds.
Host Profiles, vLCM image compliance, drift remediation.
Best practices for long-term scaling and operational hygiene.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Write a complete platform stability guide including:
Monitoring categories
Thresholds you would configure
Actions taken when approaching resource limits
Create a drift-management document describing:
How to detect host drift
How to detect NSX configuration drift
How to ensure compliance using lifecycle images and Host Profiles
Perform a capacity analysis exercise:
Choose an example cluster
Analyze CPU, memory, storage, and network trends
Document what expansion triggers you would set
Perform forgetting-curve review for Day 24.
Day 27: Integrated Troubleshooting Scenarios (Full SDDC)
Learning Goals:
Combine compute, storage, and network troubleshooting into complete diagnostic workflows.
Strengthen exam readiness by analyzing complex multi-layer scenarios.
Develop the ability to quickly isolate issues with incomplete information.
Study Content (3–4 Pomodoros):
Multi-domain troubleshooting.
Environmental vs workload-specific analysis.
Pattern recognition for common VMware issues.
Tasks (4 Pomodoros):
Write four multi-domain troubleshooting scenarios. Each must include:
Compute symptoms
Storage symptoms
Network symptoms
Management plane alarms
Document how to isolate which subsystem is the actual root cause.
Write a structured troubleshooting protocol you would use under exam pressure. It should include:
First questions to ask
First metrics to check
How to reduce the problem space quickly
Create an exam-style environment diagram (text-based) and then write:
Five likely issues
Probable root causes
Diagnostic steps
Perform forgetting-curve review for Day 25.
Day 28: Week 4 Review and Final Exam Preparation
Learning Goals:
Consolidate all troubleshooting and optimization knowledge.
Build a rapid reasoning framework for the exam.
Prepare final summary documents for ongoing reference.
Study Content (4–5 Pomodoros):
Compute, memory, vSAN, NSX troubleshooting review.
Stability and optimization review.
Multi-domain scenario synthesis.
Tasks (3–4 Pomodoros):
Create the “Week 4 Master Summary,” including:
Troubleshooting workflows for compute, storage, network
Patterns that frequently appear in 3V0-22.25 exam questions
Stability and capacity optimization principles
Complete a 40-question self-assessment covering all troubleshooting domains.
Perform your 7-day forgetting-curve review of Day 22 content.
Create the final document titled “My VMware Troubleshooting Framework,” which will serve as a quick-reference guide before the exam.
Identify any remaining weak areas and produce a final mini-plan for the next 7–14 days before taking the test.