Cisco ACI Test Drive

ACI-TD Length: 2 days Format: Lecture/Lab Course Version: 1.1

Why Firefly
For over a decade, Firefly has been at the leading edge of every wave of data center innovation, from storage area
networking to server fabrics, virtualization, and converged infrastructure, and to the growing surge of innovation in data
center networking that is now culminating in Software-Defined Networking (SDN). Our mission is to help vendors, resellers,
and consumers collaborate to accelerate time-to-value for these solutions. As part of that mission, technology consumers
across all verticals and market segments have relied on the Firefly Test Drive program to help them navigate the choppy
waters of technology change and make smarter, more informed purchasing decisions.

Course Description Learning Objectives

This Firefly Test Drive introduces customers to the Explain ACI and the policy-driven data center.
Cisco Application-Centric Infrastructure (ACI)
Explain the ACI fabric.
architecture for next-generation networks. Cisco ACI is a
major paradigm shift in networkingleveraging and Identify Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switch hardware
building on core concepts in Software-Defined components.
Networking (SDN) within an application-focused
Configure the ACI controller.
management model. This model is a critical step in
addressing current challenges with virtualized and cloud Configure L4 to L7 service integration with ACI.
computing architectures.
Configure APIC hypervisor integration.
This course focuses on developing an understanding of Configure L2 and L3 border leaf connectivity to external
the ACI logical, policy-driven architecture, and how ACI networks.
can be implemented adjacent to a traditional
infrastructure or in a greenfield deployment. The goal of
this workshop is to help you understand how you can
apply these new technologies to optimize the scalability,
agility, performance, and operational efficiency of your
networks.

The ACITD course includes hands-on labs, in which you

will configure the ACI fabric, tenants, and contracts that
underlie the ACI policy-driven architecture.

Who Should Attend

This course is tailored for end-user systems architects
and senior IT personnel who are evaluating the suitability
of ACI for their environment.

Prerequisites
IT professionals who already possess a working
knowledge of data center networks will gain the most
from this course.

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Cisco ACI Test Drive

Lesson 1: Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switch Lesson 4: APIC Configuration

ACI Explain the APIC
Describe ACI and why it is needed Describe the configuration of endpoint groups and
Review ACI concepts and principles endpoints
Differentiate between the policy and the network Describe application profiles
Define application logic through policy Describe the configuration of contracts, subjects, and
filters
List the advantages of policy-driven data center
design Describe tenants
Describe contexts
Describe Bridge Domains
Lesson 2: The ACI Fabric
Describe leaf and spine single-site topology
Describe fabric initialization and discovery using LLDP Lesson 5: Configuring Layer 4 Through Layer
Describe the use of overlays in ACI 7 Services
Describe unicast forwarding Describe service insertion and redirection
Describe multicast forwarding Implement service graphs
Describe flowlet dynamic load-balancing Configure Application Profiles specific to Layer 4 to Layer
7 services
Discuss health scores
Describe the ACI programmability options of Layer 4 to
Discuss faults and events
Layer 7 services

Lesson 3: Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switch

Hardware Lesson 6: Configuring APIC Hypervisor
Describe Cisco Nexus 9000 Series Switches
Integration
Describe policy coordination with VM managers
Describe Cisco Nexus 9500 Series Chassis
Describe the Cisco Application Virtual Switch
Describe Cisco Nexus 9500 Series Supervisor
modules and system controllers Describe Management Networks (mgmt Tenant)
Describe Cisco Nexus 9500 Series fabric modules Configure ACI integration with VMware
Describe Cisco Nexus 9500 Series line card modules
Describe Cisco Nexus 9500 Series fans and power
Lesson 7: Configuring ACI Connectivity to
supplies
Outside Networks
Describe Cisco Nexus 9300 Series Switches
Review inside and outside network policies
Describe Cisco Nexus 9000 Series FEX support in
the ACI Configure a Layer 3 connection outside the network

Describe the optics supported by the Cisco Nexus Configure a Layer 2 connection outside the network
9000 Series Switches in ACI mode Discuss migration from external networks to ACI

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Cisco ACI Test Drive

Labs

Lab 1: Fabric Discovery

Lab 2: Building Basic Network Constructs

Lab 3: Building Policy Filters and Contracts

Lab 4: Deploying a 2-Tier Application Profile

Lab 5: Exploring Monitoring and Troubleshooting

Viewing Faults, Events, Log Retention Policy

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