Nutanix NCP-MCI-6.10 Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Infrastructure (NCP-MCI v6.10) Exam Practice Test

NutanixIntelligent Operations Reports(Option D) provideweekly summariesof cluster health, performance, and resource consumption.

These reports includerecommendations for optimization, alerts, and forecasted resource usage trends.

Option A (Admin Center LCM)managesfirmware and software upgradesbut does not generate weekly performance reports.

Option B (Prism Central Syslog)is used forlogging and event tracking, not performance summaries.

Option C (Infrastructure VMs List)provides astatic list of VMsbut does not generate periodic reports.

When usingFQDN instead of a Virtual IP in a scale-out Prism Central deployment, Nutanixenables load balancing across multiple Prism Central instances.

Option A (Load balancing) is correctbecause it ensures that requests are distributed among multiple Prism Central nodes, improving performance and redundancy.

Option B (Resiliency) is incorrectbecause resiliency is achieved through HA and replication, not through FQDN configuration.

Option C (Segmentation) is incorrectbecause network segmentation is handled at the VLAN or security policy level.

Option D (SSL Certificate) is incorrectbecause SSL certificates can be applied regardless of whether FQDN or Virtual IP is used.

In Nutanix Prism Central, user-generated reports in Intelligent Operations are stored for a limited time and then deleted automatically.

Option C (Reports are automatically deleted after 24 hours) is correct:

Reportsdo not persist indefinitelyunless they arescheduled reports.

One-time reports expire after 24 hours.

Option A (Cluster Viewer deleted the report) is incorrect:

Cluster Viewerdoes not have permissions to delete reports.

Option B (Report was archived) is incorrect:

Nutanixdoes not automatically archive reports.

Option D (Report stored in Prism Element) is incorrect:

Reportsare generated and stored only in Prism Central, not Prism Element.

In a dark site deployment, LCM does not automatically fetch updates from the internet. The administrator must manually upload compatibility bundles.

Option B (The latest compatibility bundle has not been uploaded) is correct:

Thecompatibility bundlecontainsfirmware mappings, allowing LCM to detect the correct BIOS version.

Option A is incorrect:

AOSdoes not need to be upgraded firstfor a BIOS update.

Option C is incorrect:

TheBMC firmware does not always need updatingbefore BIOS updates.

Option D is incorrect:

In a dark site deployment,LCM does not rely on an internet connection, so webserver access is not required.

As per the Nutanix Prism Web Console Guide (v7.0), specifically at this page:

Expand Cluster - Node Discovery, it is clearly mentioned that:

“The expand cluster discovery step (finding nodes to add) requires that IPv6 multicast packets are allowed through the physical switch. Therefore, the expand cluster process does not work when IPv6 is disabled in your network.”

This directly confirms that for automatic discovery of new nodes, IPv6 multicast must be enabled and allowed on the physical switches connecting Nutanix nodes. This is a recent update in the cluster expansion discovery process that replaces the previous use of IPv4 multicast in earlier Nutanix AOS versions.

Metro Availability requires that VMs always read data from their primary site to maintain optimal performance and prevent remote data access latency.

Option C (Migrate the VM to its primary site and set appropriate rules) is correct:

If a VMfails over to the secondary sitebut is still running in the primary site, it will read data remotely, causinghigh latency and performance issues.

The solution is tomigrate the VM back to the primary siteand configureDRS rulesorhost affinity settingsto prevent unwanted movement.

Option A is incorrect:

The command listsactive Metro Availability protection domainsbut doesnot resolvethe issue.

Option B is incorrect:

Must-affinity rules can help, but they should be configuredafter migrating the VM back to the primary site.

Option D is incorrect:

RunningNCC health checkswill onlydiagnose the issue, not resolve it.

Storage Policies in Nutanix are applied through Categories, allowing policy-based automation and enforcement.

Option D (Assign the VM or VG to the same Category as the Storage Policy) is correct:

Nutanixapplies Storage Policies based on VM Categories, enablingflexibility in policy enforcement.

Option A is incorrect:

Storage Policies are not directly assigned at the VM or VG level—they apply through Categories.

Option B is incorrect:

Policies must be assigned toCategories, not directly to individual VMs/VGs.

Option C is incorrect:

Migrating to a storage container does not automatically apply a Storage Policy.

https://portal.nutanix.com/page/documents/details?targetId=Nutanix-Security-Guide-v6_10:mul-configure-data-in-transit-encryption-pc-t.html

"Ensure that port 2009 is open between the Prism Central instances for the KMS cluster to communicate."This is explicitly stated in the "Firewall rules for Data-in-Transit Encryption" section for Prism Central.

Technical Context:

Port 2009 is used by ZooKeeper (the coordination service for the KMS cluster) in Scale-Out Prism Central deployments.

DiTE in Prism Central relies on a dedicated KMS cluster that synchronizes encryption keys across PC instances using this port.

Firewall blocks on port 2009 break KMS quorum, preventing key exchange and causing DiTE to fail.

The Nutanix ECA course addresses data protection mechanisms, including how to safeguard disaster recovery (DR) snapshots from inadvertent or malicious deletion. Ensuring that DR snapshots are protected while providing notification requires a policy-based approach to control and monitor deletion actions. The ECA course emphasizes the use ofApproval Policiesin Prism Central to enforce oversight on critical operations like snapshot deletion.

Extract from Nutanix Enterprise Cloud Administration (ECA) Course Documents:

Module: Data Protection, Section: Approval Policies"Approval Policies in Prism Central allow administrators to enforce review and approval for operations such as snapshot deletion. By creating an Approval Policy for DR snapshots, administrators can ensure that deletion requests are reviewed by designated approvers, preventing unauthorized or accidental deletions and providing notifications to relevant stakeholders."

Module: Prism Central Management, Section: Policy Engine"To protect critical resources like DR snapshots, an Approval Policy can be applied to require approval for deletion actions. This ensures that no snapshot is deleted without explicit authorization, and notifications are sent to approvers to maintain oversight."

Explanation of Options:

A. Create and Apply an Approval PolicyThis is the correct answer. An Approval Policy in Prism Central is the best way to protect DR snapshots from inadvertent or malicious deletion. The policy requires designated approvers to review and authorize snapshot deletion requests, ensuring oversight and preventing unauthorized actions. Notifications are sent to approvers, meeting the requirement for awareness of deletion attempts. The ECA course highlights:"Approval Policies are ideal for protecting critical data assets, such as DR snapshots, by enforcing a mandatory review process before deletion."

B. Create and Apply an Alert PolicyThis is incorrect. Alert Policies in Nutanix are used to notify administrators of system events or thresholds (e.g., high CPU usage or disk failures) but do not prevent actions like snapshot deletion. While an Alert Policy could notify administrators after a deletion occurs, it does not provide proactive protection or require approval, failing to meet the question’s requirements. The ECA course states:"Alert Policies are reactive and designed to notify administrators of events, not to control or prevent actions like snapshot deletion."

C. Assign DR Admin Role to usersThis is incorrect. Assigning a DR Admin Role grants users permissions to manage DR operations, including snapshot deletion, but does not add protection or notification mechanisms. In fact, it could increase the risk of deletion by granting more users access. The ECA course notes:"The DR Admin Role provides administrative privileges for data protection tasks but does not enforce approval workflows or protect against unauthorized deletions."

D. Create a Playbook to alert on eventThis is incorrect. Playbooks in Nutanix Flow or Prism Central are used to automate responses to events (e.g., scaling resources or sending alerts), but they are not designed to prevent snapshot deletion or enforce approval workflows. A Playbook could alert administrators after a deletion event, but it lacks the proactive control provided by an Approval Policy. The ECA course clarifies:"Playbooks are suited for automated remediation or notifications but cannot enforce approval for actions like snapshot deletion."

Additional Context from ECA:

Approval Policy Workflow: In Prism Central, an Approval Policy can be created underPolicies > Approval Policies, specifying DR snapshots as the target resource and defining approvers. When a user attempts to delete a protected snapshot, the request is queued for approval, and notifications are sent to approvers via email or Prism Central’s interface.

Use Case: For DR snapshots, which are critical for recovery, Approval Policies ensure that only authorized personnel can approve deletions, reducing the risk of data loss.

Supporting Reference from Web Results:

The Nutanix Bible (https://www.nutanix.com/go/the-nutanix-bible) supports the ECA documentation: "Approval Policies in Prism Central provide granular control over operations like snapshot deletion, ensuring critical DR resources are protected through mandatory approval workflows."

The Nutanix ECA course covers migration options for VMs in multi-cluster environments, particularly when minimizing downtime is critical, such as during scheduled maintenance. The scenario involves two identical clusters with guest VMs using pass-through GPUs, managed by separate Prism Central instances, requiring a migration method that ensures minimal disruption.

Extract from Nutanix Enterprise Cloud Administration (ECA) Course Documents:

Module: VM Management, Section: Cross-Cluster Live Migration"Cross-Cluster Live Migration allows administrators to migrate VMs between clusters managed by different Prism Central instances with minimal downtime. This feature supports live migration of VMs with pass-through GPUs, ensuring continuous operation during maintenance activities."

Module: Cluster Management, Section: Migration Strategies"For scenarios requiring minimal downtime, such as planned maintenance, Cross-Cluster Live Migration is the preferred method. It enables seamless VM migration across clusters, even those managed by separate Prism Central instances, while maintaining VM availability."

Explanation of Options:

A. Run a Recovery Plan planned failoverThis is incorrect. A Recovery Plan planned failover is part of Nutanix’s disaster recovery (DR) solution, used to execute failover for Protection Domains in scenarios like site failure. It is not designed for routine maintenance migrations and may involve downtime, especially for VMs with pass-through GPUs, as failover requires VM restart on the target cluster. The ECA course states:"Recovery Plans are used for DR failover, not for live migrations during maintenance, and may result in downtime."

B. Use Cross-Cluster Live MigrationThis is the correct answer. Cross-Cluster Live Migration, introduced in later AOS versions, allows VMs to be migrated between clusters, even those managed by different Prism Central instances, with minimal downtime. The ECA course confirms that this feature supports VMs with pass-through GPUs, as the migration process preserves VM state and connectivity. This method is ideal for planned maintenance, ensuring VMs remain operational.

Supporting Extract:"Cross-Cluster Live Migration minimizes downtime by transferring VM state and data live, supporting complex configurations like pass-through GPUs, making it suitable for maintenance scenarios."

C. Perform a Nutanix Move migration planThis is incorrect. Nutanix Move is a tool for migrating VMs from non-Nutanix environments (e.g., VMware or Hyper-V) to a Nutanix cluster, not for migrations between Nutanix clusters. It is not optimized for live migrations within a Nutanix environment and may involve downtime. The ECA course notes:"Nutanix Move is designed for external-to-Nutanix migrations, not for intra-Nutanix cluster migrations, and is not suitable for minimizing downtime."

D. Migrate Asynchronous Protection DomainsThis is incorrect. Migrating Asynchronous Protection Domains involves replicating snapshots to a remote cluster for DR purposes, not live VM migration. This process is asynchronous, involves downtime during failover, and is not suitable for maintenance scenarios requiring minimal disruption. The ECA course clarifies:"Asynchronous Protection Domains are used for DR replication, not for live VM migration, and require VM restart during failover."

Additional Context from ECA:

Cross-Cluster Live Migration: This feature leverages Nutanix’s hypervisor-agnostic migration capabilities, ensuring that VMs with pass-through GPUs are migrated seamlessly. The process involves copying VM memory and state while keeping the VM running, minimizing downtime to seconds or less.

Maintenance Scenario: For scheduled maintenance, Cross-Cluster Live Migration ensures that VMs remain available, which is critical for GPU-intensive workloads that cannot tolerate extended downtime.

Supporting Reference from Web Results:

The Nutanix Support Portal (https://portal.nutanix.com) aligns with the ECA documentation: "Cross-Cluster Live Migration supports live VM migration between clusters, including those with pass-through GPUs, ensuring minimal downtime for maintenance tasks."

High SSD utilization in a hybrid cluster can lead to increased I/O latency as new writes may spill over to HDDs, reducing overall performance.

Option D (Average I/O latency in the cluster may increase) is correct:

If SSD usage isabove 75%,data tiering shifts to slower HDDs,increasing latency.

Option A is incorrect:

SSD failures are managed via redundancy policies (RF2/RF3), and high utilizationdoes not impact failure handling.

Option B is incorrect:

Metadata is stored separately, and high SSD usage does not mean metadata is at risk.

Option C is incorrect:

Clusters do not go into read-only mode due to high SSD utilization—they simply experienceperformance degradation.

Understanding the Issue

The administrator is investigating VM performance complaints and is analyzing CPU Ready Time data.

CPU Ready Time is a crucial metric in Nutanix and virtualization environments (AHV, ESXi, or Hyper-V).

It measures the amount of time a VM is waiting for CPU scheduling due to resource contention.

High CPU Ready Time indicates that VMs are ready to run but are waiting because the host lacks available CPU resources.

Analysis of the Exhibit

The graph shows CPU Ready Time spikes for multiple VMs.

Some VMs have CPU Ready Time exceeding 18% to 21.5%, which is very high.

A healthy CPU Ready Time should be below 5%.

Values above 10% indicate CPU contention, and anything above 20% is critical and requires immediate troubleshooting.

Evaluating the Answer Choices

❌(A) Check the number of vCPUs assigned to each CVM. (Incorrect)

CVMs (Controller VMs) have fixed CPU allocation, and modifying their vCPU count is not recommended unless advised by Nutanix Support.

The issue is related to VM CPU contention, not CVM configuration.

✅(B) Review host CPU utilization. (Correct Answer)

High CPU Ready Time suggests CPU overcommitment or host saturation.

The administrator should check host CPU usage in Prism Central to determine if the cluster is overloaded.

If host CPU usage is consistently above 85–90%, VMs are competing for CPU resources, leading to high CPU Ready Time.

❌(C) Assess cluster SSD capacity. (Incorrect)

SSD capacity impacts storage performance (latency, read/write speeds) but does not affect CPU Ready Time.

High CPU Ready Time is a CPU scheduling issue, not a storage bottleneck.

❌(D) Enable VM memory oversubscription. (Incorrect)

Memory oversubscription does not impact CPU scheduling.

Enabling memory oversubscription affects RAM allocation, but CPU Ready Time is strictly related to CPU contention.

Next Steps to Diagnose & Resolve the Issue

Review Host CPU Utilization:

Navigate to Prism Central → Analysis → CPU Usage per Host.

Identify hosts experiencing high CPU load.

Check VM vCPU Allocation:

Ensure that VMs do not have excessive vCPUs assigned, which can lead to scheduling inefficiencies.

Overprovisioning vCPUs can cause unnecessary contention.

Balance Workload Across Hosts:

Use Nutanix AHV DRS (Dynamic Scheduling) or VMware DRS to redistribute VMs across hosts.

Check if certain hosts are overloaded while others have spare CPU capacity.

Consider Scaling Out the Cluster:

If CPU usage is consistently high, adding more nodes may be required to reduce CPU contention.

Multicloud Infrastructure References & Best Practices

CPU Ready Time Best Practices:

Keep CPU Ready Time below 5%.

Avoid overcommitting vCPUs on heavily loaded hosts.

Monitor Prism Central Runway Metrics to predict future CPU resource needs.

Nutanix AHV CPU Scheduling Optimization:

Ensure proper VM sizing (avoid excessive vCPU allocation).

Balance workloads using Nutanix AHV DRS.

Nutanix storage containers allow administrators to configure capacity reservations and advertised limits for better resource management.

Option D (Set Reserved Capacity to 10 GiB and Advertised Capacity to 500 GiB) is correct:

Reserved Capacityensures that10 GiB is always available for this container and not consumed by other containers.

Advertised Capacitydefines alogical limit of 500 GiBto prevent over-allocation.

Option A is incorrect:

Advertised Capacity of 10 GiB is too lowand does not match the requirement of a500 GiB storage container.

Option B is incorrect:

Only setting Advertised Capacity does not guarantee Reserved Capacity, meaning other containers could consume the reserved space.

Option C is incorrect:

Setting only Reserved Capacity does not enforce an upper limit, which could lead to overprovisioning.

RF3 (Replication Factor 3) clusters require sufficient reserved capacity to tolerate failures without data loss.

Option C (Set Reserve Capacity for Failure to Auto Detect) is correct:

Auto Detect dynamically calculates the necessary reserved spacebased on cluster size and RF settings.

It ensures thatenough storage remains available in case of a node failure.

Option A (Set Reserve Storage Capacity to 20%) is incorrect:

The required storage reservationdepends on the number of nodes and RF level, not a fixed percentage.

Option B (Set Reserve Capacity for Failure to None) is incorrect:

Without reserved capacity,a node failure could lead to data unavailability.

Option D (Set Reserve Memory Capacity to 20%) is incorrect:

This setting applies toRAM, notstorage resiliency.

The Nutanix ECA course provides guidance on performance monitoring and troubleshooting for VMs, including metrics to analyze when determining whether additional vCPUs are needed. The scenario involves a VM experiencing performance issues, with the cluster performing well overall, suggesting the issue is VM-specific.

Extract from Nutanix Enterprise Cloud Administration (ECA) Course Documents:

Module: Performance Monitoring, Section: VM Performance Metrics"To determine if a VM requires additional vCPUs, analyze VM CPU Usage and VM CPU Ready Time. High CPU Usage indicates the VM is under heavy load, while high CPU Ready Time suggests the VM is waiting for CPU resources, both justifying additional vCPUs."

Module: Troubleshooting, Section: VM Performance Issues"When a VM experiences performance issues, VM CPU Usage and VM CPU Ready Time are critical metrics. CPU Usage shows demand, while CPU Ready Time indicates contention or scheduling delays, helping determine if more vCPUs are warranted."

Explanation of Options:

A. VM CPU UsageThis is correct. VM CPU Usage measures the percentage of CPU resources the VM is consuming. High CPU Usage (e.g., consistently above 80–90%) indicates that the VM is under heavy load and may benefit from additional vCPUs to handle the workload. The ECA course emphasizes:"VM CPU Usage is the primary metric to assess whether a VM’s CPU allocation is sufficient for its workload."

B. VM CPU Ready TimeThis is correct. VM CPU Ready Time measures the time a VM is ready to run but waiting for CPU resources from the hypervisor due to contention or oversubscription. High CPU Ready Time (e.g., above 5–10%) suggests that the VM is not getting enough CPU cycles, and adding vCPUs could alleviate the issue. The ECA course notes:"High VM CPU Ready Time indicates CPU contention, often resolved by adding vCPUs or optimizing resource allocation."

C. Host Memory Swap Out RateThis is incorrect. Host Memory Swap Out Rate indicates memory pressure on the host, causing memory pages to be swapped to disk. While this can affect VM performance, it is unrelated to CPU performance and does not justify adding vCPUs. The ECA course states:"Host Memory Swap Out Rate is relevant for memory-related issues, not CPU allocation decisions."

D. Host CPU UsageThis is incorrect. Host CPU Usage measures the overall CPU utilization of the host, not the specific VM. Since the cluster is performing well overall, high Host CPU Usage is unlikely, and it does not directly indicate whether the VM needs more vCPUs. The ECA course clarifies:"Host CPU Usage is a cluster-wide metric and less relevant for diagnosing VM-specific CPU performance issues."

Additional Context from ECA:

Performance Monitoring Tools: In Prism Element or Prism Central, VM CPU Usage and CPU Ready Time can be monitored underVM > Monitoror through dashboards. These metrics provide insight into the VM’s CPU demand and contention.

Adding vCPUs: The ECA course advises caution when adding vCPUs, as over-allocation can increase CPU Ready Time due to scheduling overhead. However, if both CPU Usage and Ready Time are high, adding vCPUs is justified.

Supporting Reference from Web Results:

The Nutanix Bible (https://www.nutanix.com/go/the-nutanix-bible) supports: "For VM performance issues, analyze VM CPU Usage and CPU Ready Time to determine if additional vCPUs are needed, as these metrics directly indicate CPU demand and contention."

VM templates in Nutanix are supported only when the VM’s disks reside on storage containers configured with Replication Factor 2 (RF2) or higher.

Option C (VM has disks on RF2 containers) is correct:

VM templates requirea minimum RF2 for fault tolerance.

RF1 containers do not meet Nutanix best practices for VM templates.

Option A is incorrect:

VMs protected by Protection Domains can be cloned, but this is different from creating a VM template.

Option B is incorrect:

Agent VMs (e.g., Witness VMs) or Prism Central cannot be used as VM templates.

Option D is incorrect:

Nutanix VM templates are natively supported on AHV, not ESXi.

TheBully VMs Listview in Prism Central’sIntelligent Operationsidentifies VMs that are consumingexcessive resources(CPU, memory, or storage IO) and causing resource starvation for other VMs.

From theNutanix ECA documentation:

“Bully VMs List identifies virtual machines with high resource consumption, enabling administrators to investigate and take action to prevent performance degradation in other VMs.”

The other options:

A (Constrained VMs): Shows VMs that are being starved of resources.

C (Inactive VMs): Shows VMs that are using little to no resources.

D (Overprovisioned VMs): Shows VMs with allocated resources beyond actual usage.

Windows Defender Credential Guard requires UEFI firmware and Secure Boot to function properly.

Option B (Enable UEFI with Secure Boot) is correct:

Credential Guardrequires a UEFI-based boot moderather thanLegacy BIOS.

Secure Boot ensures only trusted OS components load, reducing attack surface for credential theft.

Option A (Update vCPU to 8) is incorrect:

Increasing vCPUs does not impactCredential Guard compatibility.

Option C (Use Windows Server 2022) is incorrect:

Windows Server 2019supports Credential Guard; upgrading to 2022 isnot required.

Option D (Update Memory to 16GB) is incorrect:

Credential Guard has no minimum RAM requirementbeyond general OS needs.

When synchronous replication fails immediately between two clusters, it is often due to blocked communication across the required ports (2009 and 2020). These must be open manually if the clusters are in different subnets or if network policies block traffic.

From theNutanix Enterprise Cloud Administration (ECA)course materials:

“Replication communication relies on specific ports, which must be allowed through the firewall. If the clusters are in different subnets or if there are external firewalls, these ports must be explicitly opened.”

“The modify_firewall command is used to open or close ports on cluster nodes. For replication and remote site communication, eth1 is typically used for external replication traffic.”

Since eth1 is typically used for external connectivity and replication traffic, opening ports on this interface using modify_firewall resolves the communication block.

When creating a storage container in Nutanix, the administrator must configure the correctcapacity settings:

Option A (Prism Element with Advertised Capacity of 100 GiB) is correct:

Advertised Capacitydefineslogical limitsfor the container (i.e., how much space it reports as available).

Inline Compressioncan be enabled directly in Prism Element.

Option B (Create in Prism Element without Advertised Capacity)is incorrect:

Without specifyingAdvertised Capacity, the container may consume unlimited storage.

Option C (Create in Prism Central with Reserved Capacity)is incorrect:

Reserved Capacityapplies toQuality of Service (QoS) policies, not storage limits.

Option D (Create in Prism Central without capacity limits)is incorrect:

Prism Central can manage storage but does not directly enforceRF1 and compression policies.

By default, Nutanix Prism Central retains the last 10 instances of a report if no retention policy is configured.

Option B (10) is correct:

Nutanixstores up to 10 reports, after which older reports areautomatically deleted.

Options A (5), C (15), and D (20) are incorrect:

Whileretention policies can be customized, thedefault setting is 10 reports.

BMC (Baseboard Management Controller) updates can be applied per-node in Nutanix LCM, unlike AOS or AHV, which require cluster-wide upgrades.

Option B (BMC) is correct:

BMC firmwarecontrols remote management and power cycling of individual nodes.

Updating BMCdoes not impact the entire clusterand can be done per node.

Option A (AOS) is incorrect:

AOS upgrades affect the entire clusterand require cluster-wide consistency.

Option C (NCC) is incorrect:

NCC updatesapply across all nodes simultaneously, ensuring uniformity in checks.

Option D (AHV) is incorrect:

AHV updates require coordinated upgrades across hoststo maintain VM availability.

For NutanixDisaster Recovery (DR) protection policies, thefirst stepis to establish a connection between theProduction cluster and the DR site, which is done by creating anAvailability Zone (AZ) (Option B).

Availability Zones (AZs) define remote sites for replicationand are a requirement for configuring protection domains and disaster recovery plans.

Option A (Installing NGT)is not necessary for setting up replication but is useful for application-consistent snapshots.

Option C (Converting the source cluster to AHV)is not required, as Nutanix supports cross-hypervisor DR betweenESXi and AHV.

Option D (Creating a point-in-time snapshot)is a later step after setting up theAvailability Zone and Protection Policy.

When Life Cycle Manager (LCM) reports thata newer framework version is available, thecorrect actionis toperform an inventory scan (Option C).

Performing an inventory scan updates the available firmware/software versionsand allows LCM to download required updates.

Option A (Run an AOS upgrade)is unrelated to the LCM framework update process.

Option B (Run an AHV upgrade)is a separate component update and does not affect the LCM framework.

Option D (Download manually from a CVM)is not necessary because LCM updates are automatically pulled after an inventory scan.

Before performing any LCM (Life Cycle Manager) updates on a Nutanix cluster, it is essential to ensure that the AOS (Acropolis Operating System) is updated to the required or recommended version. AOS updates provide foundational enhancements, security patches, and compatibility improvements, which are critical for the successful execution of LCM updates.

From theNutanix Enterprise Cloud Administration (ECA)course materials:

“LCM updates depend on the underlying AOS version. Before proceeding with any hardware or software updates through LCM, administrators must ensure that the cluster is running a supported AOS version. This step ensures compatibility and prevents issues that can arise from dependencies between AOS and the update components.”

Additionally:

“AOS upgrades should be performed first to bring the cluster to a version that supports the desired LCM updates for components like BIOS, firmware, and hypervisors. This aligns the management stack with the latest features and security enhancements.”

Therefore, updating AOS before performing LCM updates is a mandatory prerequisite to ensure stability and supportability for the entire cluster lifecycle management process.

After a Prism Central upgrade, IAM authentication settings may require reconfiguration.

Option D (Log in with a local admin account) is correct:

If IAM authentication fails, thelocal admin account must be usedto check domain settings.

Option A (Ping the Domain Controller) is incorrect:

Network connectivity is important, but theissue is likely related to IAM settings, not network reachability.

Option B (Check firewall port 9441) is incorrect:

Port 9441 is used forSSO authentication, butport issues usually result in login delays, not complete failures.

Option C (Validate signing certificate) is incorrect:

While certificates can cause issues,local admin login should always work.

When performing aLife Cycle Manager (LCM) upgrade, therecommended way to stop the process is to use the “Stop Update” feature in LCM (Option D).

Option A (Cancel via Ergon ecli)is not a recommended approach since manually interfering with running tasks can cause inconsistencies.

Option B (lcm_task_cleanup.py script)is used for post-upgrade cleanup but does not stop ongoing updates.

Option C (Restarting Genesis)does not stop an LCM upgrade and can cause instability.