Nutanix NCP-DB - Nutanix Certified Professional - Database Automation (NCP-DB v6.10)

To deploy a database resilient cluster engine across three Nutanix clusters, the database engine must support high availability (HA) and distributed deployment capabilities that NDB can manage across multiple clusters. PostgreSQL is the only database engine listed that NDB supports for a resilient cluster deployment across multiple clusters. NDB’s HA features for PostgreSQL include automated failover, replication, and data consistency across geographically distributed clusters, making it suitable for a three-cluster scenario. This is achieved through PostgreSQL’s built-in streaming replication and NDB’s orchestration of HA policies.

Other options are not supported for this use case in NDB:

A. MariaDB: While MariaDB supports replication, NDB does not currently provide multi-cluster HA or resilient cluster deployment for MariaDB.

B. MySQL: Similar to MariaDB, MySQL lacks native multi-cluster HA support within NDB’s framework.

D. Oracle: Oracle databases can be managed by NDB, but multi-cluster resilient deployments are not natively supported; Oracle RAC (Real Application Clusters) requires specific configurations beyond NDB’s standard capabilities.

Thus, the verified answer is C, as PostgreSQL aligns with NDB’s multi-cluster resilience features.

Official Nutanix Database Automation References

Nutanix Database Management & Automation (NDMA) course, Module 4: High Availability and Disaster Recovery, Lesson 4.2: Configuring Multi-Cluster HA.

Nutanix Certified Professional - Database Automation (NCP-DB) v6.5 Knowledge Objectives, Section 4: Troubleshoot NDB Solutions, Objective 4.3: Configure HA Across Clusters (applicable to v6.10).

Nutanix NDB Administration Guide: "Supported Database Engines for HA" section, highlighting PostgreSQL multi-cluster support.

NDB supports PostgreSQL HA software profiles for provisioning PostgreSQL databases with high availability. PostgreSQL HA software profiles consist of three components: etcd, HAProxy, and Patroni.

etcd is a distributed key-value store that provides a reliable way to store configuration data across a cluster of machines. etcd is used by Patroni to store and synchronize the cluster state and configuration.

HAProxy is a load balancer that distributes incoming requests to the PostgreSQL nodes. HAProxy is used to expose a single endpoint for database connections even as the roles of the individual nodes change.

Patroni is a template for PostgreSQL high availability. Patroni is responsible for managing the state of the cluster and handling failover. Patroni uses etcd as the distributed configuration store and relies on HAProxy for load balancing.

Therefore, the software component that manages the state of the cluster and handles failover is Patroni.

References:

Nutanix Database Automation (NCP-DB) Course Details, Section 2.4: Provisioning PostgreSQL Databases

Nutanix Database Automation (NCP-DB) Certification Details, Objective 2.4: Provision PostgreSQL Databases

Nutanix Database Automation (NCP-DB) YouTube Playlist, Video 2.4: Provisioning PostgreSQL Databases

[Nutanix Database Automation (NCP-DB) User Guide], Section 2.4: Provision PostgreSQL Databases

[PostgreSQL High Availability: Under the Hood – Nutanix.dev]

The Nutanix Era platform provides a feature called Time Machine, which is designed to manage the lifecycle of database copies and clones1. When a new table is added to the source database, the administrator should perform a Log Catch-up using the source database’s Time Machine. This action ensures that the Time Machine captures the latest state of the source database, including the newly added table1. After performing the Log Catch-up, the administrator should refresh the clone database. The refresh operation updates the clone with the latest state captured by the Time Machine, thereby publishing the new table to the clone1.

When setting up a Time Machine for a newly-provisioned database in NDB, the GUI allows the administrator to configure the frequency of snapshots for data protection. The maximum number of snapshots per day that can be configured in the NDB GUI is 6. This limit ensures a balance between data granularity (for point-in-time recovery) and storage overhead, preventing excessive resource consumption. The administrator can schedule these snapshots at regular intervals (e.g., every 4 hours) within the Time Machine configuration wizard.

Other options are incorrect based on NDB’s design:

A. 4: This is below the maximum supported limit.

C. 8: Exceeds the GUI-configurable maximum.

D. 12: Far exceeds the limit, suggesting manual or unsupported customization.

Thus, the verified answer is B, aligning with NDB’s snapshot scheduling constraints.

Official Nutanix Database Automation References

Nutanix Database Management & Automation (NDMA) course, Module 5: Data Protection and Recovery, Lesson 5.1: Configuring Time Machine.

Nutanix Certified Professional - Database Automation (NCP-DB) v6.5 Knowledge Objectives, Section 5: Protect Databases Using NDB, Objective 5.1: Configure Time Machine Settings (applicable to v6.10).

Nutanix NDB Administration Guide: "Time Machine Snapshot Scheduling" section.

According to the Nutanix Database Automation (NCP-DB) course, the ports 3205 and 3260 are required for iSCSI connections between the NDB server and the Controller VMs1. Port 3205 is used for the NDB iSCSI initiator service, which initiates the iSCSI sessions and sends SCSI commands to the Controller VMs1. Port 3260 is used for the iSCSI target service, which listens for incoming iSCSI requests and provides access to the storage devices on the Controller VMs1. The other options are not related to iSCSI connections. Port 22 is used for SSH, port 9440 is used for Prism Central, port 80 is used for HTTP, port 443 is used for HTTPS, port 5985 is used for WinRM HTTP, and port 5986 is used for WinRM HTTPS2. References:

1: Nutanix Database Automation (NCP-DB) course, Module 2: Database Provisioning, Lesson 2.2: Database Engine Installation, slide 13

2: Nutanix NCP-DB Certification Exam Sample Questions, Question 18, Answer

 The correct answer is C because the NDB Database Agent service is responsible for scheduling and monitoring the NDB-related operations, such as provisioning, patching, cloning, and restoring databases. The NDB Database Agent service is deployed on the NDB server and on each of the database server VMs provisioned by NDB. It contains the tools required to perform each task and communicates with the NDB server through the NDB API. The other options are not correct because they describe different components or functions of the NDB solution. Option A is not correct because the transaction logs are not stored by the NDB Database Agent service, but by the NDB Time Machine service, which is a distributed file system that stores the database snapshots and logs. Option B is not correct because the source databases are not hosted by the NDB Database Agent service, but by the database server VMs, which are virtual machines that contain an instance of the database engine software and the database files. Option D is not correct because the NDB Database Agent service does not contain an instance of the database engine software, but only the tools required to perform the NDB-related operations. The database engine software is installed on the database server VMs, which are provisioned by NDB using the profiles defined by the administrator. References: Nutanix Database Management & Automation (NDMA) course, Nutanix Certified Professional - Database Automation (NCP-DB) certification, Nutanix NCP-DB Certification Exam Syllabus and Study Guide, Nutanix Support & Insights

To roll back an Oracle patch on a database server VM using NDB, the patch must have been applied using NDB in the first place. This is because NDB maintains a patch inventory and history for each database server VM and database that it manages. NDB uses this information to determine which patches can be rolled back and how to revert the changes made by the patch. If the patch was applied outside of NDB, NDB would not have the patch information and would not be able to roll back the patch. Therefore, the patch must have been applied using NDB for the rollback action to be successful. The other options are not required for the rollback action. The database does not need to be shut down or in read-only mode, as NDB can perform the rollback operation online. The patch does not need to be applied on Grid home only, as NDB can roll back patches applied on both Grid home and Database home. References:

Nutanix Certified Professional - Database Automation (NCP-DB) v6.5, Section 4 - Operate and Maintain an NDB Environment, Objective 4.4: Determine the correct method to apply Linux OS patches

Nutanix Database Management & Automation (NDMA) Course, Module 5: Nutanix Database Service (NDB) Patching, Lesson 5.1: Patching Overview, Topic: Patching Concepts

[Nutanix Database Service (NDB) User Guide], Chapter 7: Patching, Section: Rolling Back a Patch

 The database parameters profile is used to define the initialization variables for different types of database engines and workloads, such as OLTP and DW. The database parameters profile allows the database administrator to customize the configuration settings for each database engine, such as Oracle, SQL Server, PostgreSQL, and MySQL. The database parameters profile can also be applied to different database operations, such as provisioning, cloning, and patching. The database parameters profile helps to optimize the performance and functionality of the databases according to the specific requirements and best practices of each database engine and workload.

The software profile version is used to define the software version and edition for each database engine, such as Oracle 19c Enterprise Edition or SQL Server 2019 Standard Edition. The software profile version is required for provisioning new databases and patching existing databases. The software profile version helps to ensure the compatibility and compliance of the databases with the supported software versions and editions.

The network profile is used to define the network configuration and security settings for the database server VMs and the databases, such as the IP address, subnet mask, gateway, DNS, firewall rules, and SSL certificates. The network profile is required for registering new database server VMs and provisioning new databases. The network profile helps to ensure the connectivity and protection of the database server VMs and the databases within the network environment.

The compute profile is used to define the compute resources and storage policies for the database server VMs and the databases, such as the CPU, memory, disk size, disk type, compression, deduplication, and replication factor. The compute profile is required for provisioning new databases and cloning existing databases. The compute profile helps to ensure the availability and efficiency of the database server VMs and the databases within the Nutanix cluster.

References:

Nutanix Database Management & Automation Training Course, Module 4: Nutanix Era Configuration, Lesson 4.1: Nutanix Era Configuration, slides 6-9.

Nutanix Database Management & Automation Training Course, Module 5: Nutanix Era Operations, Lesson 5.1: Nutanix Era Operations, slides 5-8, 11-12, 15-16.

A Development team requesting updated data for a cloned MongoDB instance used as source data for a script needs the latest snapshot or point-in-time data. In NDB, the "Clone Refresh" task updates an existing clone with the most recent data from the source database, ensuring the development team has access to current information without recreating the clone. This is the most efficient approach for maintaining an updated clone.

Option A (Clone the DB from the latest point in time data) is incorrect because it creates a new clone, duplicating effort instead of refreshing the existing one.

Option B (Execute a clone update) is incorrect as "clone update" is not a standard NDB task; refresh is the correct term.

Option C (Provision a MongoDB instance) is incorrect because it provisions a new instance, not an update to the clone.

Option D is correct as Clone Refresh syncs the clone with the latest source data.

References

Nutanix Database Service (NDB) User Guide, Chapter 5: Configuring Time Machines, Section: Managing Clones and Refresh

Nutanix Certified Professional - Database Automation (NCP-DB) v6.5 Blueprint, Section 5: Protect Databases Using Time Machine

When cloning an SQL database with Transparent Data Encryption (TDE) enabled in NDB, the target server must handle the encryption keys to ensure the cloned database remains functional and secure. TDE uses a keystore (e.g., a bundle file containing the master key and certificate) to encrypt data. Two steps are required: (1) The administrator must back up the keystore bundle file from the source database server VM and transfer it to the target server, ensuring the clone can decrypt the data. (2) After the clone is created, the administrator must run the post-clone command script, which configures the TDE keys on the target server, completes the encryption setup, and activates the cloned database.

Option A (Backup the .cer and .pvk files from the source database server VM) is incorrect because TDE in SQL Server typically uses a keystore bundle, not separate .cer and .pvk files.

Option B (Backup the keystore bundle file from the source database server VM) is correct as it ensures the encryption keys are available on the target.

Option C (Run the pre-clone command script) is incorrect because pre-clone scripts are for preparation, not TDE-specific post-clone setup.

Option D (Run the post-clone command script) is correct as it finalizes the TDE configuration on the target server.

These steps ensure a successful TDE-enabled clone.

References

Nutanix Database Service (NDB) User Guide, Chapter 5: Configuring Time Machines, Section: Cloning TDE-Enabled Databases

Nutanix Support & Insights, Knowledge Base Article: "Cloning SQL Server with TDE in NDB"

Nutanix Certified Professional - Database Automation (NCP-DB) v6.5 Blueprint, Section 5: Protect Databases Using Time Machine