Free Practice Questions for Nutanix NCP-MCA Exam

Comprehensive and Detailed Explanation

Nutanix Calm supports OS customization throughGuest Customization, which:

AppliesSysprepfor Windows

Injects configuration files

Sets hostnames, time zones, networking, and more

Runs scripts post-deployment

Sysprep is specifically executed duringWindows Guest Customization.

Therefore,Option C: Guest Customizationis correct.

In Nutanix Self-Service (Calm), to protect sensitive data (such as passwords, keys, or personal tokens) from being displayed in plain text in the UI and Audit Logs, the developer must configure them asSecret Variables.

Secret Configuration:When defining a variable in a Blueprint or Runbook, there is a specific checkbox option to mark the variable as "Secret" (often indicated by a lock icon).

Behavior:Once a variable is marked as Secret, the Self-Service engine automaticallymasksthe value (replacing it with asterisks *****) in all Audit Log outputs, task details, and the user interface. It is passed securely to the script execution environment but is never echoed back to the console logs in readable form.

Macros like jsonEncode (Option D) affect formatting, not security masking.

To provide users with access to Nutanix Self-Service (formerly Calm), an administrator must configure Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) within the context of a Project.

Access to Self-Service is not global; it is defined at the Project level.1An administrator must:

Add the user (or their Active Directory group) to a Project.

Assign a Roleto that user within the project.

Project Admin:Full control over the project.2

Developer:Can create blueprints and applications.

Consumer:Can only launch blueprints available in the Marketplace.3

Operator:Can perform day-2 operations on existing applications.4

Without an assigned role in a project, a user cannot access the Self-Service portal features or view any blueprints.

In Self-Service, anOperatorrole can:

Create blueprints

Modify blueprints

Add tasks (shell, PowerShell, script, package installs, etc.)

Use project-provided resources (images, networks, credentials)

To deploy a Linux VM with NGINX:

Asingle-VM blueprintis sufficient.

Developer must selectLinux substrate.

Installation of NGINX occurs througha shell taskin the blueprint’s package or service.

No additional permissions are required for an Operator to perform these actions.

Therefore, the correct answer isC.

To "compile a list" of entities using Intelligent Operations (X-Play) without manually tracking them, the administrator should leverage theCategorizationfeature, which acts as a dynamic tagging system.

Trigger (Event):The restoration of a VM from a snapshot generates a systemEvent(e.g., "VM Restored" or "Clone from Snapshot"). The Playbook must be configured with theEvent Triggerto detect this specific action immediately when it occurs.

Action (Assign Category):The Playbook should then execute theAssign Categoryaction. The administrator can define a specific category, such as Recovery:Restored.

Result:As the administrator restores the VMs (either manually or via script), the Playbook automatically tags each one with the Recovery:Restored category. The administrator can then simply filter the Prism Central VM list by this category to see the compiled list of all recovered VMs.

Options B and D are incorrect because a successful snapshot restoration is anEvent, not anAlert(which indicates a fault or threshold breach). Option C is incorrect because a Time Trigger cannot react to the specific action of a restore operation.

To configure access to a new cloud target (such as Oracle Cloud, AWS, Azure, or GCP) within Nutanix Self-Service (formerly Calm), the administrator must define the connection in theProviderssection.

Providers (Settings):This is the foundational configuration area where connection details, API endpoints, and authentication credentials for external infrastructure are defined. Before any Project, Environment, or Blueprint can utilize a new cloud, the "Account" or "Provider" definition must be created here.

Workflow:The administrator navigates to theProviders(or "Cloud Providers") tab, selects the provider type (using a plugin or generic provider if Oracle Cloud is not natively listed in the version), and inputs the necessary region and credential information.

Differentiation:

Environments (B)are subsets of a provider assigned to a specific Project.

Marketplace (A)is for publishing applications, not configuring infrastructure connections.

When a Playbook fails to fire despite an Alert occurring, the most common and "likely" cause is a mismatch in theTriggerconfiguration logic.

Trigger Precision:X-Play Triggers are precise. If the administrator selected theAlerttrigger, they must select asingle specificAlert Policy (e.g., "Host High Memory"). If the high-severity alert that occurred was "VM High Memory" (a different policy), the Playbook will not trigger, even if both are "High Severity."

Alerts Matching Criteria:To coverallhigh-severity alerts, the administrator must use theAlerts Matching Criteriatrigger and filter by Severity == Critical. If they used the specific "Alert" trigger or configured the criteria incorrectly (e.g., wrong entity type), the system is "working as implemented" (ignoring non-matching events), but the logic does not match the user's intent.

Autopilot (Option C):While X-Play has an Autopilot feature for KPI optimization, it is not a mandatory requirement for standard alert-based remediation playbooks to function.

The image typically shows the distinction between the "Alert" trigger (Select one policy) and "Alerts Matching Criteria" trigger (Select filters like Severity/Entity), illustrating how a configuration error here leads to the issue described in Question 40.

To satisfy specific ordering requirements around IP assignment (before VM existence) and Security Group assignment (after VM existence but before use), the administrator usesPre-createandPost-createtasks.

Pre-Create Task (IP Address):This task executesbeforethe VM provisioning call is made to the provider. The developer uses this phase (e.g., an HTTP task or Script) to request a specific IP from an external IPAM solution. The IP is stored in a variable and passed to the VM configuration.

VM Provisioning:The VM is created (using the IP from step 1) but is configured in the blueprint to stay in aPowered Offstate initially.

Post-Create Task (Security Group):This task executesimmediately afterthe VM resource is created (so the VM UUID/NIC exists) but before the application logic starts. The developer uses this phase to make an API call (e.g., to Flow or NSX) to place the VM into the required Security Group.

Power On:A subsequent task (or manual action) powers on the VM, ensuring it boots up with the correct IP and within the correct security boundary.

Option C is the only combination that covers both the "Before Creation" and "After Creation" phases required.

In Nutanix Prism Central Disaster Recovery, when a Prism Central instance fails over to a recovered site, several automation components—including Playbooks—must be revalidated. Nutanix documentation clearly states:

Playbooks store encrypted credentials locally in the Prism Central database.

When Prism Central is recovered on a DR site, the credential encryption keys donottransfer.

As a result,any credentials previously stored in Playbooks become invalidand must be manually re-entered.

This requirement ensures that the scripts, tasks, remediation sequences, and integrations invoked by the Playbook can authenticate properly after recovery.

Therefore:

Playbookscannot automatically use previously stored credentialsafter a DR failover.

Administrators mustre-enter all credentialsin enabled Playbooks so the automation continues functioning.

Hence, OptionCis correct.

Options A and D are incorrect because Playbooks donotautomatically retain functional credentials after DR recovery.

Option B is incorrect because the presence or absence of a credential provider does not change the need to re-enter credentials.

Nutanix Disaster Recovery usesProtection Policiesto automate replication. These policies are applied to VMs dynamically based onCategories. To protecteveryVM from both blueprints described, the administrator must select a category that iscommon to bothsets of VMs.

Blueprint 1 Categories:OSType: Windows, AppType:IIS

Blueprint 2 Categories:OSType: Windows, Environment:Dev

Commonality:The category OSType: Windows is assigned in both blueprints.

Configuration:By creating a Protection Policy that targets the category OSType: Windows, any VM deployed fromeitherblueprint will automatically inherit this tag. Consequently, the Disaster Recovery engine will immediately detect the new VM and begin replicating it according to the policy (Asynchronous, 1 hour) without manual intervention.

Options B and D would only protect a subset of the VMs (only IIS servers or only Dev workstations, respectively).