Matt Meyer

This week VMware announced their new product line, VMware Infrastructure 3.  If you are like me and hold the VMware Certified Professional (VCP) certification, you may be wondering if you will be required to re-certify.  I was informed today that VMware will NOT be retiring the current certification, but instead will create a new certification, VCP on Virtual Infrastructure 3 (VI3).  The current VCP certification will then be renamed to VCP on ESX Server 2.0.  This is meant to distinguish individuals who have been certified on the previous versions of VMware products and those certified on the products contained within Virtual Infrastructure 3.

VMware has also developed two new courses for Virtual Infrastructure 3.  Here is a summary for each new course:

VMware Infrastructure 3: Install and Configure – This is a 4-day course designed for students just starting with virtualization.  The course contains many of the same objectives as Virtual Infrastructure w / ESX Server & VirtualCenter, but will also cover the new features in VI3, High Availability (HA), Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS) and Virtual Cluster Backup (VCB). This course is scheduled to be available approximately 8 weeks after GA and there are no prerequisites to attend.

VMware Infrastructure 3: What’s New – This course is designed for system administrators and operational staff who support ESX Server 2.0.  This course is also meant to help current VCPs prepare for the new exam, and will contain only the new features in VI3.  This course is scheduled to be available approximately 3 weeks after GA.  Before a student can enroll in this course he/she is required to pass an online quiz to ensure the student is adequately prepared and will fully benefit from the course.

It is also worth noting, there will not be an upgrade exam.  Since the new VCP on VI3 is an entirely separate certification, all candidates whom wish to obtain the new certification will be required to pass the same exam regardless of their previous certification status.  The new exam is scheduled to be available approximately 12 weeks after GA.

Here is the VCP on VI3 certification track and the requirements:

Scenario A
Candidate is already VCP Certified
Recommended (not required) – Attend VMware Infrastructure 3: What’s New
Required – Pass VCP on VI3  Exam

Scenario B
Candidate has taken “Virtual Infrastructure w/ ESX Server…”, but is not certified
Required – Attend VMware Infrastructure 3: What’s New
Required – Pass VCP on VI3  Exam

Scenario C
Candidate has taken no VMware Authorized course
Required – Attend VMware Infrastructure 3: Install and Configure
Required – Pass VCP on VI3  Exam