VMware Skyline Collector Tech Preview of Disconnected Mode

Products

• VMware

Issue/Introduction

The purpose of this article is to provide additional information about the Tech Preview of 'Disconnected Mode' within the VMware Skyline Advisor service.

Symptoms:
When setting up VMware Skyline Advisor, the option to select a 'Disconnected Mode' is available. During the Tech Preview period, this must only be used with the explicit guidance and recommendation of your VMware Technical Adoption Manager (TAM) or VMware Solution Engineer (SE)

Cause

This feature is currently in Tech Preview with limited functionality, with the goal to expand for broader general use by end customers at some time in the future.

Your VMware Technical Adoption Manager (TAM) or Solution Engineer (SE) will provide instructions on how to configure the VMware Skyline Collector for 'Disconnected Mode' operations during the Tech Preview period.

During the Tech Preview period the following limitations are in place:

• Only available to customers operating air-gapped environments in coordination with your VMware TAM or VMware SE.
• Any Collectors configured for ‘Disconnected Mode’ cannot be reconfigured to the standard connected mode of operating. Any VMware Skyline Advisor service deployed to your Cloud Services Organization can be either 'Connected' (default, recommended) or 'Disconnected' (Tech Preview) based on if you choose the recommended connected option during initial setup or the Tech Preview 'Disconnected' option.  This selection cannot be undone.
• Upgrading of the VMware Skyline Collector configured for ‘Disconnected Mode’ is not supported.
• To use ‘Disconnected Mode’ The VMware Skyline Advisor service must not have any ‘Connected Mode’ Collectors registered within your VMware Cloud Services Platform (CSP) Organization.
  • You may create a separate CSP organization to deploy the Skyline Advisor Service for the purpose of using ‘Disconnected Mode’ during the Tech Preview period if you already have an existing Skyline Advisor service in operation with 'Connected Mode' Collectors registered.
• Skyline's many features including findings, recommendations, and reports will not be processed or provided for 'Disconnected Mode' deployments during the Tech Preview period.
• When the feature exits Tech Preview, you will be required to deploy a new Skyline Collector in order to utilize the service in either connected or disconnected modes of operation. We recommend creating a dedicated Cloud Services (CSP) organization for the purposes of using 'Disconnected Mode' while the feature is in Tech Preview.

Resolution

Please reach out to your VMware Technical Adoption Manager (TAM) or VMware Solution Engineer (SE) for guidance on the use of 'Disconnected Mode' during the tech preview period. 

Additional Information

Impact/Risks:

To get the optimal experience, continue to utilize the fully connected default deployment of VMware Skyline Advisor and the VMware Skyline Collectors in your VMware environments.