NCP-MCA Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) v6.5 Exam Questions and Answers

The image shows a failed status for an SSH_VM_Task, which is manually triggered. Since the task involves SSH, it’s likely that the IP Address SSH action has a timeout of 5 minutes, causing the playbook to fail if it cannot complete within this time frame. The IP Address SSH action is used to execute commands on a remote VM using SSH. It requires the IP address, username, password, and command to run as inputs. The timeout parameter specifies how long the action will wait for the command to finish before aborting. If the timeout is too short, the action may fail due to network latency, slow execution, or other factors. References:

• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) 6.5 Exam, page 16, section 1.3.2.2: “Playbooks”
• [Nutanix University: NCP-MCA 6.5 Exam Prep - Playbooks], video 4: “Playbooks”

Playbooks are a collection of tasks that can be executed on demand or based on a trigger. There are two types of triggers available for executing Playbooks: manual and alert. A manual trigger allows you to run a Playbook on demand from the Prism Central UI or the Calm API. An alert trigger allows you to run a Playbook automatically when a specific alert is generated by Prism Central or a third-party system. Report and audit are not valid trigger types for Playbooks. References: Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA), page 9; Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA), section 1.

The administrator should use a trigger based on an event when creating a playbook to automate the scaling of the VDI solution. An event trigger is a type of trigger that executes a playbook when a specific event occurs in the Nutanix environment or in a third-party system. An event trigger can be configured to listen to events from various sources, such as Prism alerts, Calm actions, or external webhooks. In this scenario, the administrator can use an event trigger to listen to the webhook from the third-party monitoring tool and execute a playbook that creates additional resources and adds them to the VDI solution.

A trigger based on a REST API is not the best option, because it requires the administrator to manually invoke the playbook using an API call. This is not as efficient or reliable as using an event trigger that automatically executes the playbook when the capacity threshold is reached.

A trigger based on an email is also not the best option, because it requires the administrator to configure an email server and a mailbox to receive the notification from the third-party tool. This adds complexity and overhead to the automation process and may not be as secure or timely as using an event trigger.

A trigger based on an alert is a valid option, but it depends on the availability and compatibility of the Prism alert system with the third-party tool. If the third-party tool can send alerts to Prism, then the administrator can use an alert trigger to execute the playbook. However, if the third-party tool does not integrate with Prism, then the administrator cannot use an alert trigger and has to use an event trigger instead.

References:

• Nutanix Calm User Guide: Chapter 8: X-Play
• Nutanix Calm DSL User Guide: Chapter 5: Playbooks
• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide: Section 1: Describe and Differentiate Automation Concepts and Principles

According to the Nutanix Calm Administration Guide1, the minimum system requirements for Prism Central are 32 GB of RAM and 8 vCPUs. If the production Prism Central has less than the minimum RAM, it may affect the performance of Calm and other services running on Prism Cen

The hercules.log file is the log file for the Calm service, which is responsible for managing the integration with various cloud providers, including Azure. The administrator can check this log file to troubleshoot any issues related to the Azure integration, such as authentication, configuration, or communication errors. The other log files are not relevant for the Azure integration. The sytx.log file is the log file for the Sytx service, which is responsible for managing the Calm UI and API. The durga.log file is the log file for the Durga service, which is responsible for managing the Calm Marketplace and blueprints. The arjun.log file is the log file for the Arjun service, which is responsible for managing the Calm runbooks and playbooks.

References:

• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) v6.5, Section 2 - Deploy and Configure Nutanix Calm and Related Components, Objective 2.4 - Identify required configuration settings for a Nutanix Calm deployment
• [Troubleshooting Calm | Nutanix Community]

 The styx.log file contains the logs related to blueprint packaging and deployment. It can be accessed by SSHing to Prism Central and navigating to the /home/calm/log directory. The other options are not relevant for blueprint package failures, as they show the application status, audit events, or service logs. References: Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) 6.5 Exam Blueprint Guide, page 9; Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA), section 3; NCP-MCA Exam Dumps - Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud …, question 63.

 The Snapshot tab allows you to view the captured snapshots, restore applications from snapshots, and delete the snapshots for an application. Use this tab to create snapshots of single VM applications that are running with Nutanix as the provider1. You can also view the date and time, and the name of the snapshot, and perform actions like Delete, Clone, Restore2. The AMIS tab is for Amazon Machine Images, the Recovery point tab is for Calm applications, and the Manage tab is for day 2 actions3. References: Nutanix Support & Insights, List VMs with snapshots on Nutanix AHV, Nutanix Calm: Introducing Snapshot and Restore Actions

In the context of deploying an application with Calm, if a customer receives an error for a Linux VM, it could be due to the absence of network adapters selected for the Address box in the Connection section within the blueprint. This means that there is no specified network connection for the VM, leading to a failure in script execution. References: Ifound some references from Nutanix Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Learning documents or resources that might be helpful for you:

• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide: This is the official exam blueprint guide that covers the objectives, topics, and skills required for the certification. It also provides some sample questions and answers. The question you asked is similar to the one in section 3.1.1.
• Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA): This is a training course that teaches you the skills needed to install, configure, operate, and manage Nutanix X-Play and Nutanix Calm. It includes topics such as blueprint creation, connection configuration, and script execution.
• Nutanix Calm User Guide: This is a user guide that explains how to use Nutanix Calm to automate the deployment and management of applications across different environments. It includes topics such as connection settings, blueprint validation, and error handling.

According to the Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA) course1, one of the prerequisites for using X-Play to automate tasks on VMs is to have SSH enabled and configured on the target VMs. This allows X-Play to connect to the VMs and execute commands or scripts remotely. If the SSH service is not running on the VMs, then X-Play will fail to connect and perform the actions, resulting in the error message shown in the exhibit. The other options are not likely to cause this error, as they are either unrelated to X-Play (A and B) or not required for X-Play to work ©. References: Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA) course

 In order to enable the developer to complete the requested task, AWS and Azure Providers need to be created (Option A). This is because, in the context of Nutanix Calm, providers are integrations with public and private cloud infrastructures. The developer is trying to deploy an application on AWS and Azure clouds but currently only has Nutanix as a configured provider. After creating the providers, they need to be added to the project (Option B) so that applications can be deployed on them. Option C is incorrect because environments are not required for multicloud deployments. Option D is also incorrect because Calm version 3.2.x is not relevant to the question.

References: The information can be verified from Nutanix official training and certification documents available at Nutanix Training & Certification. You can also check out the Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) 6.5 Exam guide for more details on the exam objectives and format. Additionally, you can watch the Nutanix Calm - Multicloud Automation playlist on YouTube for some video tutorials on Nutanix Calm features and functionalities.

An administrator can look to view a list of executed playbooks in two locations: Executions and Plays. The Executions page shows the status and details of all the playbooks that have been executed across all the projects. The Plays page shows the status and details of all the playbooks that have been executed within a specific project. The Lists page shows the predefined and custom lists that can be used as inputs for playbooks. The Dashboard page shows the overview and statistics of the X-Play service. References:

• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) v6.5, Section 3 - Validate Blueprints, Runbooks, Playbooks, and Automation Settings, page 4
• Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA), Module 5 - X-Play, Lesson 5.3 - Playbook Management, page 2
• Nutanix Calm User Guide, X-Play, Executions

Test Script is a feature of Nutanix Cloud Manager (NCM) Self-Service that allows users to test or validate scripts before deployment. Test Script enables users to run scripts on a VM without creating a blueprint or a runbook. Users can select a VM, choose a script type, enter the script content, and execute the script. The output of the script is displayed in the Test Script window. Test Script can be used to troubleshoot errors, verify functionality, or preview the results of a script before using it in a blueprint or a runbook. References: Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide, page 14, section 3.1. Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA) course, module 3, lesson 4. Validate Your Nutanix Cloud Manager Self-Service Skills + Access Special Offer.

 A Playbook is a set of actions that are triggered by an event or a schedule. To run a Playbook, it must be enabled first. If a Playbook is not enabled, it will not respond to any events or schedules, and no Plays will be recorded for it. Therefore, the most likely cause of the issue is that the administrator forgot to enable the Playbook after building it. References: Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide, page 13, section 3.2. Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA) course, module 4, lesson 2.

 In the context of Nutanix Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA), the order of actions in a playbook is crucial for its successful execution. In this case, the playbook is designed to execute a script to fix a known problem in an application but keeps failing because it attempts to power off the VM and take a snapshot before executing the script. The correct order should be to execute the script first, then power off the VM if necessary, and finally take a snapshot. References: I found some references from Nutanix Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Learning documents or resources that might be helpful for you:

• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) 6.5 Exam: This is the official exam blueprint guide that covers the objectives, topics, and skills required for the certification. It also provides some sample questions and answers.
• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide: This is another version of the exam blueprint guide that has similar content as the previous one.
• Free Questions for NCP-MCA by certscare - p2pexams.com: This is a PDF document that contains 11 questions and answers for the NCP-MCA exam. The question you asked is one of them, and the answer is the same as mine.

A Prism Admin or Super Admin role can perform the following operations related to X-Play and Nutanix Calm12:

• Create, read, update, or delete an action template in the action gallery
• Create, read, update, delete, enable, and run playbooks
• Create, read, update, delete, enable, and run blueprints and runbooks
• Manage applications and projects
• Configure endpoints and plug-ins
• Access the library and categories Option A is incorrect because the action gallery does not support automation of action templates. Option C is incorrect because only a Prism Admin or Super Admin role can enable and run playbooks, not a Prism User role3. References:
• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) v6.5
• Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA)
• Prism user permissions – what are the options?

To enable scaling for a blueprint, the developer needs to add scaling actions to the application profile. Scaling actions are scripts that define how to scale out (add more instances) or scale in(remove instances) of an application tier. The developer can also specify the minimum and maximum number of instances allowed for each tier, and the scaling policy (manual or automatic) based on metrics or schedules. The developer can access the application profile from the Blueprint Editor by clicking on the application name and then selecting the Actions tab. References: Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA) course, Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) 6.5 Exam Guide, [Nutanix Calm User Guide]

 A Playbook is a collection of tasks that can be executed based on a trigger, such as a time, a webhook, or a manual action. A Playbook can be used to automate workflows across different systems and services, such as Nutanix Prism, VMs, hosts, and external APIs. A Playbook can also use variables, conditions, and loops to customize the execution logic and data.

In this scenario, the administrator wants to automate the batch processing application on the Linux VM, which can only be controlled by a command on the VM console. The application should run only outside of business hours, and the VM should send REST API calls to Prism to report its status.

The best way to configure a Playbook for this process is to use a Time Trigger, which allows the administrator to specify a schedule for the Playbook execution, such as daily, weekly, or monthly. The Time Trigger can also be configured to run only on certain days or hours, such as weekdays or nights. This way, the administrator can ensure that the Playbook runs only outside of business hours, without requiring any manual intervention.

The Playbook should then have two VM SSH tasks, one to initiate the batch processing application, and one to terminate it. A VM SSH task is a task that executes a command or script on a target VM using SSH. A VM SSH task can be used to control applications or services that do not have a programmatic interface, such as the batch processing application in this scenario. The VM SSH task can also use variables to pass data to or from the command or script, such as the VM name, IP address, or output.

The Playbook should also have a Wait for Some Time task, which is a task that pauses the Playbook execution for a specified duration or until a condition is met. A Wait for Some Time task can be used to ensure that the batch processing application has enough time to complete its work, or to wait for a certain event or state to occur, such as a file creation, a service status, or a VM power state.

The Playbook should also have two REST API tasks, one before and one after the Wait for Some Time task. A REST API task is a task that executes an HTTP request to a specified URL, with optional headers, body, and authentication. A REST API task can be used to interact with external systems or services that expose an API, such as Nutanix Prism inthis scenario. The REST API task can also use variables to pass data to or from the HTTP request, such as the VM name, IP address, or response.

The REST API tasks should be configured to send the VM status to Prism, such as the start and end time of the batch processing, the CPU and memory usage, or the output of the application. This way, the administrator can monitor and manage the VM and the application from Prism, without having to connect to the VM console.

The Playbook configuration should look something like this:

• Time Trigger: Set the schedule to run daily, only on weekdays, and only at night (e.g., 10 PM to 6 AM).
• VM SSH: Set the target VM to the Linux VM, and set the command or script to initiate the batch processing application (e.g., ./batch.sh start).
• REST API: Set the URL to the Prism API endpoint, and set the HTTP method, headers, body, and authentication as required. Use variables to pass the VM name, IP address, and start time of the batch processing to the HTTP request (e.g., {"vm_name": "{{vm_name}}", "vm_ip": "{{vm_ip}}", "start_time": "{{start_time}}"}).
• Wait for Some Time: Set the duration to the expected time for the batch processing to finish, or set a condition to wait until a certain event or state occurs (e.g., wait until file /tmp/batch.done exists).
• REST API: Set the URL to the Prism API endpoint, and set the HTTP method, headers, body, and authentication as required. Use variables to pass the VM name, IP address, end time, and output of the batch processing to the HTTP request (e.g., {"vm_name": "{{vm_name}}", "vm_ip": "{{vm_ip}}", "end_time": "{{end_time}}", "output": "{{output}}"}).
• VM SSH: Set the target VM to the Linux VM, and set the command or script to terminate the batch processing application (e.g., ./batch.sh stop).

References: 

https://www.nutanix.com/content/dam/nutanix/resources/datasheets/ds-ncp-mca-6-5.pdf

https://www.nutanix.com/content/dam/nutanix/resources/support/ds-ncp-mca.pdf

To ensure the VMs are properly remediated, the Playbook actions should be added in the following order: Take a VM Snapshot, VM add Memory, Resolve Alert. This is because Memory Hot Add allows the administrator to increase the memory allocation of a running VM without powering it off. Taking a VM snapshot before adding memory provides a backup point in case of any issues. Resolving the alert after adding memory clears the notification and updates the status of the VM. Powering off the VM is not necessary and may cause downtime or disruption to the applications running on the VM. References: Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide, page 11; Nutanix Calm SaaS User Guide, section 4.2.3.

When configuring Calm to use Kubernetes as a provider, the administrator can choose between two Kubernetes types: Karbon and Vanilla. Karbon is Nutanix’s own Kubernetes distribution that is integrated with Prism and AHV. Vanilla is any other Kubernetes distribution that is not Karbon, such as OpenShift, Rancher, or EKS. The administrator needs to provide the Kubernetes API endpoint and credentials for the Vanilla type, while the Karbon type is automatically discovered by Calm. References: Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide, page 14; Nutanix NCP-MCA Questions, question 102.

The administrator should use a conditional playbook and create a playbook using alert to accomplish this task. A conditional playbook is a type of playbook that allows the administrator to define different actions based on certain conditions or criteria1. A playbook using alert is a type of playbook that is triggered by an alert policy that monitors the VM status2. By using these two features, the administrator can create a playbook that checks if the rebooted VM is the mission-critical VM and sends a notification to the on-call administrator, or else sends an email to the Operations team.

References:

• Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA) course, Module 3: Nutanix X-Play, Lesson 2: Nutanix X-Play Playbooks, Topic: Conditional Playbooks
• Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA) course, Module 4: Nutanix Calm Governance, Lesson 2: Nutanix Calm Alerts, Topic: Alert Policies and Playbooks
• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) v6.5 Exam Blueprint Guide, Section 1: Describe and Differentiate Automation Concepts and Principles, Objective 1.3: Define the components of X-Play

Runbooks are a feature of Calm that allows for the creation of task-based automation against dynamic lists of Windows or Linux VMs. A runbook is a collection of tasks that can be executed on one or more VMs or services. A task is a unit of automation that can perform actions such as executing commands, running scripts, invoking APIs, or sending notifications. A runbook can be triggered manually, on a schedule, or based on an event. Runbooks can be used to automate common operations such as backup, restore, patching, scaling, or troubleshooting. References: Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide, page 16; Nutanix Calm User Guide, section 3.4.

Calm Runbooks are a way to automate workflows that span across multiple applications, services, or platforms. They can be used to perform actions such as provisioning, scaling, backup, restore, etc. Calm Runbooks can be added to the Library and reused in different Blueprints or Projects. A Post VM Delete Task is a special type of Task that is executed after a VM is deleted from a Blueprint. By creating Calm Runbooks for each of the manual steps required to decommission a VM, and adding them to the Library, the administrator can simplify the VM Decommission Process by consuming them inside of a Post VM Delete Task. This way, the application owners only need to delete the application from the Calm project, and the rest of the steps will be automated by the Runbooks. References:

• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide, page 16, section 4.3.1
• Nutanix Calm Runbooks
• Nutanix Calm Library
• Nutanix Calm Tasks

To deploy blueprints to Calm SaaS and execute them, the administrator must first configure a site-to-site VPN tunnel and a tunnel entity in the environment where the blueprint will be deployed. A site-to-site VPN tunnel is a secure connection between two networks over the internet that allows Calm SaaS to communicate with the on-premises or cloud environment. A tunnel entity is a logical representation of the VPN tunnel in Calm SaaS that contains the tunnel configuration and credentials. The administrator must also register the environment and the provider accounts in Calm SaaS before deploying the blueprints. References: Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide, page 9; Nutanix Calm SaaS User Guide, section 3.1.1 and 3.1.2.

When configuring Playbooks to automate the scaling of CPU and memory resources for VMs, the administrator should consider the following prerequisites:

• CPU can be added to a powered on VM if the guest OS supports it. This is also known as hot-plug CPU. The administrator should check the compatibility of the guest OS and the hypervisor before enabling this feature. For example, Windows Server 2019 supports hot-plug CPU on AHV, ESXi, and Hyper-V, but not on XenServer1.
• Memory can be removed from a powered on VM if the guest OS supports it. This is also known as hot-unplug memory. The administrator should check the compatibility of the guest OS and the hypervisor before enabling this feature. For example, Linux supports hot-unplug memory on AHV, ESXi, and XenServer, but not on Hyper-V2.
• VM must be powered off to add CPU if the guest OS does not support hot-plug CPU. This is also known as cold-plug CPU. The administrator should plan for the downtime required to power off and power on the VM after adding CPU.
• VM must be powered off to reduce memory if the guest OS does not support hot-unplug memory. This is also known as cold-unplug memory. The administrator should plan for the downtime required to power off and power on the VM after reducing memory. References: Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA), page 10; Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA), section 3; Nutanix Support Portal - Guest OS Compatibility Matrix

The Calm Marketplace acts as an application store, providing end users with a catalog of available applications. By default, Calm comes pre-seeded with validated Blueprints for multiple open source and enterprise applications. These are the set of pre-seeded application Blueprints. Additionally, Marketplace Manager acts as a staging area for publishing default and user-created Blueprints to your local Marketplace. These are the published and versioned Blueprints. The other two options, library of executable tasks and store of all Blueprints created in Calm, are not features of the Calm Marketplace. References: Calm: Marketplace - Read the Docs and Calm: Marketplace - Read the Docs

The easiest way to automate the VM utilization and resource allocation is to use a playbook that has been already tested and validated in a test environment. A playbook is a collection of actions that can be triggered by events or schedules to perform various tasks on the Nutanix platform. By importing the playbook from the test environment to the production environment, the administrator can save time and effort in creating anew playbook from scratch. The administrator only needs to adjust the values of the playbook parameters, such as the VM name, the CPU and memory thresholds, the VCPU and memory increments, and the notification settings, to match the production environment. The playbook can then be executed manually or automatically based on the desired frequency and conditions.

References:

• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) v6.5, Section 3 - Validate Blueprints, Runbooks, Playbooks, and Automation Settings, Objective 3.3 - Determine the correct method to validate required Playbook configurations
• Nutanix Multicloud Automation Administration (NMCAA), Module 4 - X-Play, Lesson 4.2 - Playbooks
• How to create and execute playbooks in Prism Central | Nutanix Community

https://portal.nutanix.com/page/documents/details?targetId=Nutanix-Calm-Admin-Operations-Guide-v3_6_2:nuc-macros-variables-overview-c.html

The error message in the exhibit indicates a mismatch between the number of network settings and the number of NICs on the VM. This is a common validation error when saving Calm Blueprints for VMware, where it is essential to ensure that these configurations match to avoid issues with VM deployment and operation1. References: 1: Nutanix NCP-MCA Certification Exam Sample Questions2

Protection Domains are a Nutanix feature that allows you to replicate data across clusters or to a remote site. You can use Protection Domains to replicate images from one cluster to another, and then use them for workload automation. This is one of the methods documented in the Nutanix Solutions Portal for Citrix MCS on Nutanix AHV1. Alternatively, you can also use Prism Central to manage multiple clusters and use Protection Policies to replicate images across clusters2. However, this option is not listed in the question, so the best answer is A. References:

• 1: Multi Cluster Image Replication for Citrix MCS on Nutanix
• 2: Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide

Nutanix Calm is a cloud-agnostic automation and orchestration solution that can be deployed on Nutanix AHV or any public cloud platform, such as AWS, Azure, or GCP. Calm can also manage applications across multiple cloud environments, including hybrid clouds. Calm cannot be deployed on vSphere Essential Edition or VMware ESXi, as these are not supported hypervisors for Calm. However, Calm can manage existing VMs on vSphere or ESXi clusters through the VMware provider. References:

• Nutanix Calm Configuration and Training1
• Nutanix Calm Admin and Operations Guide2

To create and execute a scaling action using Calm, the administrator should create the action under the service profile section of the blueprint and the application profile section of the blueprint. The service profile section defines the properties and actions of each service in the blueprint, such as the VM configuration, the scripts to run, and the scaling parameters. The application profile section defines the properties and actions of the entire application, such as the number of instances, the dependencies, and the scaling triggers. The administrator can then execute the scaling action in the Overview tab or the Services tab of the application, depending on the scope of the scaling action. References:

• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation, Page 18
• Nutanix Calm User Guide
• Nutanix Calm User Guide
• Nutanix Calm User Guide
• Nutanix Calm User Guide

The best option to automate the installation of the local agent on all Linux VMs is to create an Endpoint that includes all Linux VMs and include the Endpoint in a Runbook that executes a shell script for agent installation. This way, the administrator can leverage the Calm Runbook feature, which allows orchestrating tasks across multiple VMs without the need of a blueprint or an application. The administrator can also filter the VMs by name, tag, or other criteria to select the target VMs for the Endpoint. The shell script can be added as a task in the Runbook and run on the selected Endpoint.

Option A is not correct because a Brownfield deployment is used to create an application from existing VMs and an existing blueprint. It is not suitable for automating tasks across multiple VMs without a blueprint. Moreover, a Brownfield deployment cannot attach to post-Calm created VMs, as they are already managed by Calm.

Option C is not correct because creating a new golden image and deploying all VMs again is a very time-consuming and disruptive process. It also requires the administrator to migrate the data and configuration of the existing VMs to the new ones. This option does not leverage the Calm automation capabilities and is not recommended. References: Nutanix Calm Runbooks & API Automation, Nutanix Support & Insights, Calm 3.0 is Here!, Nutanix Cloud Manager

The error message indicates that the password parameter is not a secret parameter, which means it is not encrypted and stored securely in the Calm database. This can happen when a Playbook is cloned from another Playbook that has a password parameter defined as a secret parameter. The cloned Playbook will inherit the password value from the original Playbook, but it will not be a secret parameter. To resolve this issue, the administrator needs to either delete the password parameter and create a new one as a secret parameter, or edit the password parameter and mark it as a secret parameter. References:

• Nutanix Certified Professional - Multicloud Automation (NCP-MCA) Exam Blueprint Guide, page 15, section 4.2.1
• Nutanix Calm Playbooks
• Nutanix Calm Parameters