Course Description
The Cisco ACI Troubleshooting and Operations Workshop (ACI-TSO) provides network engineers with the skills and insight into how best to troubleshoot and manage a new or existing ACI environment. The workshop is a combination of theory and lab exercises that configure, operate and troubleshoot the ACI environment. The majority of the time is hands-on and includes the use of a proprietary-developed orchestrator that builds trouble tickets for the students to explore and solve.
Course Details
Duration: 5 Days
Fee: Contact Us
Course Prerequisites
The following prerequisites are enforced for this training:
- Attendance of one of the following ACI training courses (or equivalent experience): o ACI course for Systems Engineers or Field Engineers
- ACI Deployment workshop
- Configuring Cisco Nexus 9000 in ACI Mode (DCAC9K)
- Students without ACI experience are recommend to not attend this training
Target Audience
This course is designed for Technical professionals who need to learn more about the Cisco Nexus 9000 Switch in ACI Mode.
The primary audience for this course includes:
- Systems, Field, and Security Engineers
- Network and Data Center Administrators
- Server Administrators
- Channel Partners, Resellers, and Cisco Customers
Course Goal
This course will allow attendees to gain experience with an extended set of skills required for day to day operations and troubleshooting needed to ensure that an ACI deployment is a success.
Course Objectives
After completing this course, the student should be able to:
- Articulate ACI Architecture and Concepts
- Identify common tasks needed to manage an ACI environment
- Describe (in detail) tools available to the Network Engineer in the ACI environment
- Detail how to interrogate ACI for existing and potential issues
- Assess common issues and identify potential solutions
- Evaluate external tools that enhance ACI operations
Course Outline
Module 1: ACI and Policy Review
- Review the policy and object model of ACI
- Provide a configuration refresher
- Lab: Build the Environment
Module 2: MIT Object Model
- Explore Management Information Tree and Classes/Objects that form ACI structure
- Lab: Explore MIT and Object Classes
Module 3: Validating ACI
- Review the GUI and CLI environment and identify were relevant information is obtained
- GUI messages and indicator
- Command line overview
- Health Scores
- Error/faults and logs
- Statistics
- Lab: Use tools to identify targeted information
Module 4: Tenant Validation and Troubleshooting
- Identify key issues and configuration errors in Tenant configuration
- Introduction
- Information Sources
- Invalid underlay mapping
- Policy Enforcement Contracts and Filters Validation
- VRF Policy Enforcement
- Network Validation
- Bridge Domains
- Traffic Flooding
- Connectivity Testing
- Lab: Explore and solve Trouble Tickets
Module 5: Access Policy Validation and Troubleshooting
- Identify key issues and configuration errors in Access Policy configuration
- Underlay/Access Policies review
- Interface and Leaf Policy Considerations
- VPC and PC Considerations
- Interface and VLAN Considerations
- Interface Operations
- Lab: Explore and solve Trouble Tickets
Module 6: ACI Visibility Tools
- Identify and explore key ACI Visibility tools
- Operations Tab – Visibility and Troubleshooting
- Using SPAN
- Atomic Counters
- Lab: Explore Operations Tab
- Lab: Configure SPAN session
Module 7: Cisco Network Assurance Engine Overview
- Overview CNAE operations and functions
- Lab: Explore CNAE
Module 8: External Connectivity Considerations
- Connectivity beyond ACI at both Layer 2 and Layer 3
- Explore common connectivity issues
- L2 External Operations
- Spanning Tree Considerations
- L3 Operations Overview
- External Routed Networks (L3 Outs)
- L3 Network EPG
- Advertising Routes Externally
- Lab: Explore and solve Trouble Tickets
Module 9: VMware Integration Considerations
- Connectivity options to VMware
- Explore AVE
- L2 External Operations
- Spanning Tree Considerations
- L3 Operations Overview
- External Routed Networks (L3 Outs)
- L3 Network EPG
- Advertising Routes Externally
- Lab: Explore and solve Trouble Tickets
Module 10: ACI Fabric Considerations
- Detail information on Fabric infrastructure
- initial setup and configuration tasks
- APIC information and Health
- Fabric Node details and information
Module 11: System Management
- Relevant topics needed to manage and own an ACI system
- Management interfaces
- Pod Policies
- SMNP, NTP, DNS, Syslog
- Configuration Management
- Upgrading the OS
- Hardware Information and Diagnostics Overview
- Lab: Setting up in-band Management interfaces
- Lab: Configuration backup/exporting and restoration
