What is the first step when configuring a NIC team for external network usage?

The first step when configuring a NIC team for external network usage involves setting up the Hyper-V Virtual Switch Manager. This step is crucial because the virtual switch acts as a bridge between the virtual machines hosted on Hyper-V and the external network.

Creating the NIC team is an important step that follows after configuring the virtual switch. The team allows multiple network interface cards to work together, improving bandwidth and providing redundancy. However, it’s essential to ensure that the virtual switch is properly configured to manage the traffic from the NIC team to the external network.

Connecting the NIC to the router is also significant, but this typically occurs after the virtual switch is set up, as the virtual switch will handle the communication between the NICs and the router.

Verifying the network connection in Network and Sharing Center is a troubleshooting step that usually occurs after the initial configuration to ensure that everything is working as expected. Therefore, having the virtual switch in place is indeed the foundational step that allows the NIC team to function correctly for external network usage.