Course Outline
BIG-IP Architecture & Platform Management
- Networking fundamentals—covering the OSI model (L2–L7) and the role of L4/L7 load balancers; mapping IP addressing and subnetting to BIG-IP self IPs and VLANs.
- TMM traffic-processing architecture and traffic flow (client → virtual server → pool member); device modes, administrative partitions, and role-based access control (addressing segregation-of-duties in banking); licensing and module provisioning (LTM, AVR).
- Navigating TMUI for efficient GUI workflows; tmsh basics; configuration backup and restore using UCS archives; comparing hardware versus virtual editions and their suitability for bank datacenters.
- Lab “Get Traffic Flowing”—initial setup (VLANs, self IPs, routes), creating nodes, pools, and health monitors, building the first virtual server, verifying traffic to backend servers, and performing a UCS backup.
Core Load Balancing & SSL/TLS
- Networking fundamentals—TCP/UDP handshakes, port concepts; HTTP methods, headers, status codes, and keep-alive mechanisms.
- Virtual server types; design of pools, nodes, and monitors; load-balancing algorithms; TCP/HTTP profiles and connection reuse; application to internet-banking and API traffic patterns.
- SSL/TLS offload and certificate management (key/certificate import, chains, cipher policy aligned with banking security baselines); persistence methods (cookie, source-address) and their appropriate use cases; introduction to iRules with simple read-only examples (redirects, header insertion).
- Lab—Constructing an HTTPS virtual server with SSL offload for a simulated banking portal, configuring cookie persistence, validating the certificate chain in the browser, applying a simple redirect iRule, and observing monitor-driven pool member failover.
High Availability & Operations
- Networking fundamentals—VLANs, routing, ARP essentials; DNS resolution flow and record types; TLS handshake review.
- Device Service Clustering: establishing device trust, configuring sync-failover groups, config sync, traffic groups, and floating IPs; analyzing failover behavior and client experience; HA design considerations for banking (dual-datacenter patterns, zero-downtime maintenance).
- Operations in regulated environments: local and remote logging (syslog, SNMP), AVR traffic analytics, audit logging of administrative changes, upgrade and maintenance procedures, backup strategies, and disaster-recovery basics; brief overview of automation (iControl REST) and WAF (ASM/Advanced WAF) as future topics.
- Lab—Building an active/standby HA pair using the two dedicated BIG-IP VEs, establishing device trust and config sync, executing forced failover under live traffic, configuring remote syslog, reviewing audit logs, performing a final backup, and concluding with a course recap and Q&A.
Lab Environment
Each trainee receives a dedicated, isolated lab environment consisting of two BIG-IP Virtual Edition instances (to support the Day 3 HA exercise) and shared backend web servers simulating application tiers. Access is fully browser-based through a secure Guacamole gateway, requiring only a web browser and eliminating the need for VPN clients or local software installations—ideal for locked-down banking workstations. The environment is pre-built and verified before Day 1, ensuring every trainee completes Day 1 with functioning traffic through their own BIG-IP instance.
Requirements
No prior experience with F5 products is required.
While a basic understanding of TCP/IP is beneficial, it is not a prerequisite. Each day begins with concise networking primers covering the OSI model, TCP/HTTP, and DNS/TLS, tailored to the day's F5-specific content to ensure all team members, regardless of background, reach a common knowledge baseline.
Audience: Network engineers, security engineers, and application support and operations staff within banking and financial institutions.
Testimonials (1)
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