Tanzu for Kubernetes Operations concepts and references

Tanzu for Kubernetes Operations (TKO) includes a set of Tanzu products and components that can be deployed on vSphere, VMware Cloud on AWS, natively on AWS, and on Azure. Depending on the platform on which you deploy TKO and the Tanzu products and components you use, you may come across various concepts.

On vSphere, when you enable vSphere with Tanzu, a Supervisor is automatically created. The Supervisor is a custom Kubernetes management cluster that is deeply integrated into vSphere with Tanzu. The Supervisor supports Tanzu Kubernetes Grid (TKG) and also performs infrastructure-level functions. On vSphere, you can deploy Tanzu Kubernetes Grid workload clusters that are deployed and managed by the Supervisor.

Alternatively, you can deploy Tanzu Kubernetes Grid standalone management clusters on vSphere to create and manage workload clusters. When you deploy Tanzu Kubernetes Grid, you will create a standalone management cluster. The standalone management cluster is a management cluster that runs as dedicated VMs. You can also deploy Tanzu Kubernetes Grid standalone management cluster on VMware Cloud on AWS, natively on AWS, and on Azure.

The following describes a few key concepts in a Tanzu for Kubernetes Operations deployment.

vSphere with Tanzu concepts

vSphere with Tanzu: vSphere with Tanzu transforms vSphere to a platform for running Kubernetes workloads natively on the hypervisor layer. When enabled on a vSphere cluster, vSphere with Tanzu provides the capability to run Kubernetes workloads directly on ESXi hosts and to create upstream Kubernetes clusters within dedicated resource pools. Also see, What is vSphere with Tanzu and Supervisor Architecture.
Supervisor: A Supervisor is enabled with vSphere with Tanzu. It is a custom Kubernetes management cluster optimized for vSphere. It provides the necessary components and resources for running workloads that include vSphere pods, VMs, and Tanzu Kubernetes clusters.
Tanzu Kubernetes Grid cluster: As a DevOps engineer, you can deploy and manage multiple upstream Kubernetes clusters on a Supervisor by using Tanzu Kubernetes Grid. It includes the components necessary to integrate with the underlying vSphere Namespace resources.

Tanzu Kubernetes Grid concepts

Tanzu Kubernetes Grid: VMware Tanzu Kubernetes Grid provides organizations with a consistent, upstream-compatible, regional Kubernetes substrate that is ready for end-user workloads and ecosystem integrations. Tanzu Kubernetes Grid is central to many of the offerings in the VMware Tanzu portfolio, and provides the Kubernetes runtime for VMware Tanzu for Kubernetes Operations.
Standalone management cluster: A standalone management cluster is a Kubernetes cluster that runs and operates Tanzu Kubernetes Grid. It is purpose-built for managing workload clusters and packaged services, and for running container networking and other system-level agents. Standalone management cluster is a management cluster that runs as dedicated VMs, to support TKG on multiple cloud infrastructures.
Workload clusters: Workload clusters are Tanzu Kubernetes clusters that are CNCF-conformant. They are deployed by the management cluster to run workloads. Workload clusters can run different versions of Kubernetes, depending on the needs of the applications they host.

Tanzu for Kubernetes Operations products and concepts

Tanzu Mission Control: VMware Tanzu Mission Control is a GUI-based SaaS platform. You can use Tanzu Mission control as the control center to operate and secure your Kubernetes infrastructure and modern applications across multiple teams and clouds.

See also About VMware Tanzu Mission Control Concepts.
NSX Advanced Load Balancer: Formerly known as AVI, NSX Advanced Load Balancer provides a centrally managed, dynamic pool of load balancing resources.
Tanzu Service Mesh: VMware Tanzu Service Mesh is VMware’s enterprise-class service mesh solution that provides consistent control and security for microservices, end users, and data—across all your clusters and clouds environments.

See also Tanzu Service Mesh Key Concepts.
VMware Cloud: VMware provides several services to manage and secure your cloud environment. The VMware Cloud Services Console lets you to manage your entire VMware Cloud services portfolio across hybrid and native public clouds, including SaaS platforms, such as Tanzu Mission Control, in the Tanzu portfolio.
VMware Cloud account: You will need a VMware Cloud account to access VMware SaaS platforms, such as Tanzu Mission Control, in the Tanzu portfolio. Work with your account team to set up your VMware Cloud account and your access to the VMware Cloud Services Console.