Hyper-V datacenter platform

Architecture

Built a three-host Hyper-V failover cluster with separate management, server, storage, and application networks. Cisco trunking and VLAN-aware virtual switches carry the lab networks; iSCSI uses a dedicated storage VLAN.

The home network remains on the AT&T gateway. pfSense WAN is a host on that network and separates the routed lab networks behind it.

VM placement and lifecycle

Distributed the Kubernetes control planes across all three physical hosts and placed workers on separate hosts as standalone VMs. Documented VM creation, network assignment, storage, cluster operations, and recovery ordering.

Hyper-V is now the lab virtualization platform. VMware and OpenStack remain historical projects, with retired configuration preserved for reference.

TPM and guarded-host troubleshooting

Upgraded two hosts to TPM 2.0 and checked TPM state and local HGS attestation. Local attestation was observed passing; TPM readiness and restart state were inspected independently rather than treating attestation as proof of full shielded-VM deployment.

Operational outcome

The lab provides a practical environment for Windows and Linux lifecycle work, clustered infrastructure, and distributed application placement. Host redundancy, Kubernetes API failover, and application recovery are validated as separate layers.