VMware Cloud Foundation 9.0 Hands-On Labs – Get In and Get Dirty

It’s here. The VCF 9.0 release isn’t just about shiny slides and changelogs—it’s about real-world, hands-on skills. VMware’s rolled out a suite of interactive labs that let you test-drive everything from platform upgrades to Kubernetes integrations, without spinning up your own lab at 2am.

If you’ve been waiting for an excuse to upskill or pressure-test what VCF 9.0 can really do, this is your sign.

So, What’s in VCF 9.0?

This release isn’t some minor patch bump. We’re talking:

Enhanced multi-cloud operations
Memory tiering for NVMe
Live patching in production
vSAN updates that make ESA feel like NVMe was always its best friend
Improved lifecycle management without having to chant prayers to the update gods

Try It Before You Preach It: Available Labs

If you learn by breaking stuff (like most of us), these labs are your playground:

🧱 VCF 9.0 – Platform (HOL-2610-01-VCF-L)

Spin up infrastructure with the installer, configure virtual private clouds (VPCs), and route traffic with Transit Gateways. This lab’s all about building from the ground up.

🤖 VCF 9.0 – Automation (HOL-2610-02-VCF-L)

Step into the automation cockpit. Build tenants, provision VMs, spin up Kubernetes clusters—all through the new Provider Portal.

⚙️ VCF 9.0 – Operations (HOL-2610-03-VCF-L)

From vSAN capacity planning to cloud health visibility and cost chargeback—this one’s your go-to for managing the monster you just deployed.

🐳 VM + K8s – Living in Harmony (HOL-2633-01-VCF-L)

Learn how VMware is closing the gap between VMs and containers. Deploy vSphere Pods, supervisor clusters, and manage everything from one control plane. This is hybrid cloud reality, not buzzword bingo.

🧬 Deep Dive into vSphere in VCF 9.0 – (HOL-2630-01-VCF-L)

Unpack all the vSphere 8.0U3 goodies inside VCF 9.0. Unified licensing, smarter memory handling, zero-downtime patching, and support for multi-vendor clusters. Admins, rejoice.