What’s New in VMware Cloud Foundation 5.2.1: Learn the Key Enhancements and How to Use Them

Learning Objectives

• Understand and explain the new features in VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 5.2.1.
• Perform a Reduced Downtime Upgrade (RDU) for vCenter Server.
• Differentiate between vLCM baseline and image-based cluster management.
• Configure vSAN capacity-based licensing within the SDDC Manager UI.
• Set up AI-ready infrastructure using the vSphere Client workflow.

​Overview: Why VCF 5.2.1 Matters

​VMware Cloud Foundation 5.2.1 brings a suite of enhancements aimed at making lifecycle management more efficient, improving flexibility in cluster upgrades, and preparing your infrastructure for AI and modern apps. If you're running a hybrid environment, or prepping for GPU-enabled workloads, this is a release you’ll want to master.

1. Reduced Downtime Upgrade (RDU) for vCenter

​What is it?

RDU introduces a new upgrade path for vCenter where the existing vCenter is replaced by a freshly deployed one, with settings and configuration migrated over.

​Why it Matters:

• In traditional upgrades, downtime is longer as services stop/start.
• In RDU, VMware leverages vSphere’s ability to re-point and re-register services to minimize this.
• Your critical VMs stay up, and the management plane is down for under 5 minutes.

​How to Use It:

• From the SDDC Manager, select your management domain.
• Choose to upgrade the vCenter Server.
• If eligible, the “Reduced Downtime Upgrade” path will appear.
• Validate prechecks and follow the guided workflow.

​Considerations:

• Works only with supported topologies.
• Backup the existing vCenter before proceeding.
• DNS and certificate mismatches can delay migration—run validations ahead.

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2. In-Place NSX Upgrades Without Host Maintenance Mode

​Why it Matters:

• In previous releases, NSX upgrades required full host evacuations, which delayed operations and introduced scheduling issues.
• With this, patches are applied live and agents reboot gracefully when possible.

​Implementation Steps:

• Confirm your cluster uses vLCM baselines (not images).
• Navigate to SDDC Manager > Workload Domains > NSX Upgrade.
• Select the new upgrade mode and execute.

​Best Practice:

​Use this feature for large edge clusters or time-sensitive workloads that can’t afford full rolling evacuations.

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3. Mixed vLCM Cluster Support (Image + Baseline)

​What’s New?

​VCF 5.2.1 allows both vSphere Lifecycle Manager (vLCM) image-based and baseline-based clusters within the same workload domain.

​Why it Matters:

• Enables gradual adoption of image-based updates.
• You can continue running legacy clusters while testing new profiles in greenfield areas.

​Use Case: Mixing Baseline & Image-Based vLCM Clusters in a Single Workload Domain

In VMware Cloud Foundation 5.2.1, administrators now have the flexibility to manage baseline-based and image-based clusters side by side within the same workload domain. This unlocks new opportunities for incremental modernization, without needing a disruptive, domain-wide shift.

Scenario Overview

• Cluster A:
  • Consists of older ESXi hosts that are still using vSphere Lifecycle Manager (vLCM) baselines.
  • These hosts may not yet be validated or compatible with newer image-based upgrade workflows or vSAN Express Storage Architecture (ESA).
  • Admins prefer to keep using baselines temporarily to avoid host reprovisioning or hardware upgrades.
• Cluster B:
  • Composed of newer hardware that supports vLCM image-based lifecycle management.
  • Running vSAN ESA, which is only available when using image-based cluster management.
  • Benefits from faster upgrades, better consistency, and hardware-specific custom ISOs.

Why This Matters

In previous versions of VCF, all clusters within a workload domain had to use the same lifecycle approach—either baselines or images. This made it difficult to adopt image-based updates without migrating or rebuilding older clusters.

​With VCF 5.2.1:

• You can start introducing image-based clusters gradually.
• Avoid major downtime or configuration changes for legacy clusters.
• Align new applications to ESA-backed, modern clusters.
• Maintain operational simplicity under a single SDDC Manager control plane.

Real-World Example:
Let’s say your production domain supports:

• A mission-critical app that runs on older Dell R640s using vLCM baselines, due to firmware constraints.
• A new AI workload that runs on Dell R6625s with NVIDIA GPUs, deployed with vLCM images and vSAN ESA for higher throughput.

With VCF 5.2.1, both cluster types can be:

• Individually upgraded using their appropriate method.
• Monitored and managed together in the same workload domain UI.
• Segregated logically with tags or policies, but without needing separate domains or SDDC silos.

Technical Tips:

• When deploying a new cluster, vLCM management type is selected at deployment time.
• Use tags or naming conventions to distinguish baseline vs. image clusters.
• Remember: only image-based clusters can utilize hardware compatibility checks and vendor custom images in vLCM.

Admin Tips:

• Maintain separate host profiles and validation policies for each.
• Use tags to differentiate cluster types visually in SDDC Manager.

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4. vSAN TiB-Based Licensing (“License Now” Option)

​What it Is:

​You can now license vSAN by storage capacity (per TiB) instead of per-CPU.

Why it Matters:

• Many orgs over-provision CPU to meet storage needs.
• This model allows granular scaling of capacity, especially in ROBO and edge use cases.

​How to Apply:

• Go to SDDC Manager > Administration > Licenses.
• Click “Apply License” and select per-TiB vSAN license.
• Assign to desired workload domain or cluster.

​Tip:

​If you don’t have the license key yet, use “License Later” and assign via the vSphere Client.

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5. AI-Ready Infrastructure Deployment via vSphere Client

​New Feature:

​The vSphere Client now includes a guided workflow to set up VMware Private AI Foundation infrastructure.

​Why it Matters:

• Speeds up GPU-based deployment for AI workloads.
• Combines setup steps from vCenter, NSX, and SDDC Manager into one simplified wizard.

​Lab Exercise:

• Ensure your hosts have NVIDIA A100 or L40S GPUs installed and visible to ESXi.
• Open vSphere Client > Private AI Setup.
• Follow the prompts to configure:
  • vSphere with Tanzu
  • GPU pass-through or vGPU
  • NSX segments and firewall policies
  • Aria integrations (if needed)

​Caveats:

• You need Enterprise Plus + Tanzu + NSX licenses.
• vGPU requires supported NVIDIA VIBs installed.

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6. Centralized Password & Certificate Management in vSphere

​What’s New:

​You can now manage all certificates and system passwords from the vSphere Client under Administration.

​Why it Matters:

• Previously required juggling between SDDC Manager, NSX-T UI, and CLI scripts.
• Now you can rotate certs, manage integrated CAs, and update credentials from one pane of glass.

Try It:

• Open vSphere Client > Administration > System Configuration.
• Review certificate expiry dates, rotate or import new bundles.
• Click Passwords to manage domain joins, local root credentials, and admin service accounts.

​Best Practice:

​Enable alerts for certificate expiration to avoid service outages or API failures.

​Hands-On Lab Challenge

Use a nested test lab or a dev cluster to:

• Create a mixed workload domain with one image-based and one baseline cluster.
• Deploy a basic Private AI-ready host with a virtual GPU using passthrough.
• Apply a per-TiB vSAN license to a single cluster and monitor utilization over time.

​Additional Resources

• VMware Cloud Foundation 5.2.1 Release Notes
• Private AI Foundation Overview
• vLCM Baseline vs. Image Comparison Guide