3. vCloud Management Architecture : 3.1 Management Cluster
   
3.1 Management Cluster
The management cluster hosts the necessary vCloud infrastructure components. Separating infrastructure components from resources used for end-user workloads improves manageability of the vCloud infrastructure.
Figure 4. vCloud Management Cluster
 
Core management cluster components include the following:
*vCenter Server or VMware vCenter Server Appliance™.
*vCenter Server database.
*vCloud Director cells.
*vCloud Director database.
*vCloud Networking and Security Manager (one per resource group vCenter Server).
*vCenter Chargeback Manager.
*vCenter Chargeback database.
*VMware vCenter Update Manager™.
*vCenter Orchestrator.
*VMware vCloud Networking and Security Edge gateway appliances deployed by vCloud Director through vCloud Networking and Security Manager as needed, residing in the resource groups, not in the management cluster.
The following management cluster components are optional:
*VMware vCenter Server Heartbeat™.
*vCloud Automation Center.
*vCloud Connector.
*VMware vFabric RabbitMQ™.
*vFabric Application Director.
*VMware vFabric Hyperic® HQ.
*VMware vSphere Management Assistant.
*vCenter Operations Manager.
*vCenter Configuration Manager.
*vCenter Infrastructure Navigator.
*vCenter Site Recovery Manager.
*Databases for optional components.
Optional components are not required by the service definition but are highly recommended to increase the operational efficiency of the solution.
The management cluster can also include virtual machines or have access to servers that provide infrastructure services such as directory (LDAP), timekeeping (NTP), networking (DNS, DHCP), logging (syslog), and security. See Service Definitions for detailed sizing considerations.
Component databases, if running on the same platform, can be placed on the same properly sized database server. For example, the databases used by vCloud Director, vCenter Server, and vCenter Chargeback Manager can run on the same database server with separate database instances for each component.
Both the management cluster and resource groups reside at the same physical site to provide a consistent level of service. This minimizes latency issues that might arise in a multisite environment if workloads move between sites over a slower or less reliable network. See Section 8, Multisite Considerations for considerations associated with connecting vCloud instances at different sites.