The answer is to set the 'Number of failures to tolerate' to 1 (mirroring). This change is correct because the current default policy uses RAID-0 with no failure tolerance and 100% object space reservation, meaning each VM's objects are stored as a single copy on one host, leading to uneven capacity usage when VMs are deployed. By enabling RAID-1 mirroring with a failure tolerance of 1, vSAN creates two identical copies of each object and places them on different hosts, which naturally distributes storage consumption across the cluster and balances capacity. On the VMware Certified Professional Data Center Virtualization VCP-DCV exam, this scenario tests your understanding of how vSAN storage policy failure tolerance directly impacts data placement and capacity balance—a common trap is confusing object space reservation with replication. Remember the memory tip: "Mirror to balance, stripe to spread"—mirroring (FTT=1) forces copies onto separate hosts, evenly distributing the load.
VCP-DCV vSphere Architecture, Products and Solutions Practice Question
This VCP-DCV practice question tests your understanding of vsphere architecture, products and solutions. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A managed service provider manages multiple vSphere environments for various customers. One customer's cluster consists of 6 ESXi hosts (3 pairs of identical hardware) and uses vSAN as shared storage. The cluster runs over 100 VMs with varying workloads. The administrator notices that a specific host (Host-C) is using significantly more storage capacity than its peers, even though it hosts a similar number of VMs. The administrator suspects the vSAN storage policies are not configured optimally. Upon investigation, the administrator finds that all VMs use the default vSAN policy with 'RAID-0 (Mirroring) - No failure tolerance' and 'Object space reservation' set to 100%. Which change would most evenly distribute storage consumption across all hosts?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Set 'Number of failures to tolerate' to 1 (mirroring)
Option C is correct because changing the failure tolerance to 1 (RAID-1 mirroring) creates two copies of each object, which are placed on different hosts, balancing capacity. Option A would increase capacity usage. Option B would reduce availability. Option D would not change replication.
Key principle: NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Increase 'Object space reservation' to 200%? Explanation: Incorrect, reservation is for thick provisioning, not distribution.
Why it's wrong here
Space reservation does not affect replication or distribution.
✗
Change the policy to 'RAID-5/6 (Erasure Coding)' to reduce capacity overhead
Why it's wrong here
Erasure coding reduces capacity overhead but may not even distribution if failures to tolerate are set incorrectly.
✗
Enable deduplication and compression on the vSAN datastore
Why it's wrong here
Dedup and compression reduce overall capacity but do not directly distribute existing data evenly.
✓
Set 'Number of failures to tolerate' to 1 (mirroring)
Why this is correct
Mirroring creates a second replica on another host, distributing capacity more evenly.
Related concept
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: NAT rules depend on direction and matching traffic
NAT is not only about the public address. The inside/outside interface roles and the ACL or rule that matches traffic are just as important.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
NAT questions usually test address translation, overload/PAT behaviour, static mappings and whether the right traffic is being translated. Read the interface direction and address terms carefully.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
PAT allows many inside hosts to share one public address using ports.
Inside local and inside global describe the private and translated addresses.
NAT ACLs identify traffic for translation, not always security filtering.
TExam Day Tips
→Identify inside and outside interfaces first.
→Check whether the scenario needs static NAT, dynamic NAT or PAT.
→Do not confuse NAT matching ACLs with normal packet-filtering intent.
Key takeaway
NAT direction and interface roles matter as much as the IP address mapping. Inside/outside designation controls which traffic is translated.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A small business has 20 workstations on the 192.168.1.0/24 network and one public IP from its ISP. The router uses PAT (NAT overload) so all 20 devices share one public address using different source ports. NAT questions test whether you understand the four address terms and which direction each translation applies.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related VCP-DCV NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
vSphere Architecture, Products and Solutions — This question tests vSphere Architecture, Products and Solutions — Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Set 'Number of failures to tolerate' to 1 (mirroring) — Option C is correct because changing the failure tolerance to 1 (RAID-1 mirroring) creates two copies of each object, which are placed on different hosts, balancing capacity. Option A would increase capacity usage. Option B would reduce availability. Option D would not change replication.
What should I do if I get this VCP-DCV question wrong?
Review the four NAT address types (inside local, inside global, outside local, outside global), PAT port overload, and static vs dynamic NAT use cases. Then practise related VCP-DCV NAT questions on configuration and troubleshooting.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Static NAT maps one inside address to one outside address.
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Question Discussion
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