Category: VMware & Cloud
-
Cloud Compute: VMs and Instances Explained (Cloud for Beginners, Part 5)
A plain-English guide to cloud compute for freshers: what a VM instance is, vCPU and memory, burstable CPU credits, the launch-stop-terminate lifecycle, and what a small instance really costs across AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud.
-
IaaS, PaaS and SaaS Explained in Plain English (Cloud for Beginners, Part 4)
IaaS, PaaS and SaaS are three points on one line: how much of the cloud stack you manage versus the provider. A fresher-friendly guide with AWS, Azure and Google Cloud examples you can try on a free tier.
-
On-Premises vs Cloud: What Actually Changes (Cloud for Beginners, Part 3)
On-prem means you own and run the servers; cloud means you rent them. Here is what actually changes, with real cost numbers, the egress trap, and when on-prem still wins.
-
How to break into a VMware career: certs, interviews and your first job (VMware for Beginners, Part 18)
A practical, no-fluff guide for freshers on breaking into a VMware career in 2026: which certification to start with, the interview questions that trip people up, and what actually gets you hired.
-
Build a free VMware home lab: ESXi, vCenter and nested labs (VMware for Beginners, Part 17)
The tools are free again. Here is how a fresher builds a real VMware home lab on one laptop, what hardware actually matters, and a first lab you can finish this weekend.
-
Why Companies Moved to the Cloud (Cloud for Beginners, Part 2)
Speed, elasticity and paying only for what you use are the real reasons companies moved to the cloud, plus the honest part: when it is cheaper to buy your own servers.
-
Where VMware fits in 2026: still everywhere, now subscription-only (VMware for Beginners, Part 16)
VMware in 2026 under Broadcom: the same technology, a shorter product list, subscription and per-core pricing, and an honest look at where it still beats Proxmox, Nutanix and Hyper-V for freshers.
-
Common VMware mistakes beginners make, and how to avoid them (VMware for Beginners, Part 15)
The mistakes that trip up almost every new VMware admin: oversizing vCPUs, treating snapshots as backups, filling datastores, and skipping VMware Tools. Here is why each one bites, with real numbers and a home-lab task to see it for yourself.
-
VMware backups vs snapshots: what freshers get wrong (VMware for Beginners, Part 14)
A snapshot is a save-point that depends on the original VM; a backup is an independent copy stored somewhere else. Mix them up and you can lose data. Here is the difference, in plain English, with a home-lab task and a real interview question.
-
Create and manage a virtual machine in vSphere, step by step (VMware for Beginners, Part 13)
The seven-page New Virtual Machine wizard takes two minutes; the choices inside it take judgment. How to size, provision, install, and manage a VM the right way from day one.
-
Resource management in vSphere: shares, limits and reservations (VMware for Beginners, Part 12)
Shares, limits and reservations decide which VM wins when an ESXi host runs short. Here is what each control really does, the defaults that trip up freshers, and how to set them without hurting performance.
-
vSphere DRS: how a cluster balances its own load (VMware for Beginners, Part 11)
DRS is the part of vCenter that spreads VMs evenly across your ESXi hosts and quietly fixes imbalance with vMotion. Here is how it decides, what to leave on default, and the gotchas that trip up freshers.
Architect’s Toolkit
PJ’s Tools
- Infra 360 Hub – All Series
- VCF 9 Interactive Walkthroughs
- VCF Design Cheatsheet
- VCF Upgrade Planner
- VCF 9 Series Hub
- VCF Deployment Hub
- AI Stack Hub
- AI Infra Sizing & Cost Calculator
- LLM & RAG Cost Calculator
- DrJhaGPT – Ask Pranay
VMware Cloud Foundation
- VCF Documentation
- VCF 9 Planning & Preparation Workbook
- VCF Bill of Materials (BoM)
- VMware Compatibility Guide
- VMware Interoperability Matrix
- VMware Configuration Maximums
- VMware Ports & Protocols
- VMware Hands-on Labs
- RVTools Download
Nutanix
AI & Cloud-Native Platform
- NVIDIA Build (Model Catalog)
- NVIDIA AI Enterprise Reference Architecture
- NVIDIA NIM Performance Benchmarking
- NVIDIA NGC Catalog
- NeMo Microservices Helm Chart
- Helm Charts Repository
- Hugging Face Models
Architecture & Design
About the Author
Dr Pranay Jha
Dr. Pranay Jha is a Cloud and AI Consultant with 18+ years of experience in hybrid cloud, virtualization, and enterprise infrastructure transformation. He specializes in VMware technologies, multi-cloud strategy, and Generative AI solutions. He holds a PhD in Computer Applications with research focused on Cloud and AI, has published multiple research papers, and has been a VMware vExpert since 2016 and a VMUG Community Leader.
You May Have Missed
DrJha