1. NSX Control Plane Responsibilities
* The control plane is responsible for programming and distributing network configurations to the data plane.
* It ensures that forwarding decisions are precomputed and pushed to transport nodes (ESXi/KVM hosts).
* It does not forward traffic itself but instructs the data plane on how to do so.
2. Why "Configures the Data Plane" is the Correct Answer (B)
* NSX Control Plane manages configuration and route distribution.
* Uses Central Control Plane (CCP) to compute forwarding decisions.
* Uses Local Control Plane (LCP) to communicate with Transport Nodes.
3. Why Other Options are Incorrect
* (A - Provides APIs):
* NSX APIs belong to the management plane, not the control plane.
* (C - Handles Access Control):
* Security policies are enforced in the data plane, not the control plane.
* (D - Forwards Traffic):
* The data plane is responsible for forwarding packets, not the control plane.
4. NSX Control Plane Design Considerations
* Ensure NSX Managers (which include the control plane) are deployed in a 3-node cluster for high availability.
* BGP and OSPF routes should be dynamically distributed to transport nodes via the control plane.
* Monitor NSX Manager performance to ensure routing convergence times are optimal.
VMware NSX 4.x Reference:
* NSX-T Control Plane Architecture and Best Practices
* NSX-T Routing and Forwarding Table Optimization