Configuring vRealize Automation (vRA) 8.0 for Use with Existing vSphere Templates

In the previous post, we deployed all of the vRealize Suite products and are now ready to configure vRealize Automation (vRA) 8.0 for use with our existing vSphere templates. As mentioned earlier, vRA 8.0 is a fundamental change from 7.x and consists of four main components: Cloud Assembly, Service Broker, Code Stream, and Orchestrator. In this post, we will focus on the basic configuration steps to get vRA 8.0 up and running with our existing vSphere templates.

Getting Started with vRA 8.0

To start, log in to the vRA homepage using the vIDM configuration user created earlier, “configadmin”. You will be greeted with the vRA Portal. Select the “Launch Quickstart” button to create a sample blueprint, assign it to a service, and publish it to the catalog based on a vSphere template which you select.

Basic Configuration

In the Basic Configuration section, select a vCenter template, and the quickstart wizard will create your first blueprint, release it to a catalog, and then deploy it for the first time. Select the vCenter template, datastore, and network before choosing between DHCP and Static IP. If choosing Static IP, provide details of the network IP range, default gateway, DNS servers, and optionally a Customization Spec to use. Select Save and Next Step.

Governance Policies

Next, select the Default Lease duration and machine naming standard. By default, the lease will be 1 week, and we will keep this as is. Select Edit next to the Machine Name and change the Machine Name Prefix from Requestor Name – 001 to Project Name – 001. Then, select Next Step.

Confirm the Summary page looks correct, and optionally disable the “Automatically deploy my template when Quickstart completes” option and the “Add sample NSX-V blueprints to the catalog”. Now run the Quickstart!

Once the wizard is complete, verify everything is successful before closing the wizard and moving on. Congratulations, you have the basic vRA 8.0 constructs in place now for your existing vSphere template. The page will redirect you back to the vRA Services page. Check out the next post to learn about the different Services.

Key Takeaways

* vRA 8.0 consists of four main components: Cloud Assembly, Service Broker, Code Stream, and Orchestrator.

* To get started with vRA 8.0, log in to the vRA homepage using the vIDM configuration user created earlier, “configadmin”.

* Select a vCenter template, and the quickstart wizard will create your first blueprint, release it to a catalog, and then deploy it for the first time.

* Select the Default Lease duration and machine naming standard, and optionally disable the “Automatically deploy my template when Quickstart completes” option and the “Add sample NSX-V blueprints to the catalog”.

* Once the wizard is complete, verify everything is successful before closing the wizard and moving on.