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Managing UCP systems attached to linked vCenters

UCP systems can leverage the VMware vCenter Enhanced Linked Mode to enable you to view and manage multisite and multirack VMware infrastructure and link multiple vCenter servers together for increased visibility.

NoteEnhanced Linked Mode requires the advanced UCP Advisor license.

The following image represents the system architecture for linked vCenters:

System architecture for linked vCenters

After you register the primary vCenter in the Enhanced Linked Mode, you can register the UCP Advisor plugin for the remaining linked vCenters individually. When you launch UCP Advisor, you will see the systems in the primary vCenter that you are logged into in the Registered Systems pane, and you will see all of the systems discovered in the linked vCenters in the Discovered Systems pane. You can view and perform all UCP Advisor operations on the inventory in the discovered systems in the same way that you do for the registered systems.

ImportantUCP Advisor and the remote Gateway VM must be able to access all of the devices managed in the management domain and the workload domains.
You can attach a single vCenter to a UCP system at a given point in time. However, you can attach a vCenter to different UCP systems.UCP systems displayed as Registered Systems from the primary vCenter.UCP systems displayed as Registered Systems from the linked vCenter.

Managing UCP systems attached to linked vCenters in UCP Advisor standalone mode

You can use UCP Advisor in standalone mode to manage UCP systems attached to linked vCenters configured in Enhanced Linked Mode.

Before you begin

  • Install and deploy UCP Advisor on the primary vCenter management node. See Hitachi Unified Compute Platform (UCP) Advisor Software Installation Guide.
  • Configure the vCenters for Enhanced Linked Mode.
  • Configure Active Directory or create local vCenter users in UCP Advisor. See Adding vCenter users to UCP Advisor.

Procedure

  1. In the address bar of a web browser, enter the UCP Advisor Master Node IP address.

    UCP Advisor login screen
  2. Enter your username and password, and then click Log In.

    The initial dashboard is displayed showing the approximate physical location of your UCP systems. You can click any system to open it.
  3. From the main menu, click Systems to display your UCP systems.

    UCP Advisor systems page view

Next steps

Registering linked vCenters in UCP Advisor standalone mode

You must register your linked vCenters with UCP Advisor so that you can attach them to your UCP systems to perform vCenter-related operations.

Before you begin

Verify that the user for the vCenter that you are registering is added as a local UCP Advisor user or as an Active Directory user with ucpAdmin role privileges. See Adding vCenter users to UCP Advisor.

Procedure

  1. Click Settings VMware Integration.

  2. Click Register vCenter, and then enter the following:

    • vCenter Address

      Enter the IP address or FQDN of the primary linked vCenter configured in Enhanced Linked Mode.

    • Username and Password

      Enter the username and password for the primary vCenter.

    • Register UCP Advisor Plugin

      Select this option to also register and enable access to UCP Advisor in plugin mode.

    Register vCenter
  3. Click Submit.

Editing linked vCenters in UCP Advisor standalone mode

In UCP Advisor standalone mode, you can edit the username and password of a linked vCenter.

Procedure

  1. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  2. From the Actions menu of the linked vCenter that you want to edit, select Edit vCenter.

    NoteThe Linked Mode column on the vCenter tab indicates if a vCenter is linked.
  3. Edit the credentials, and then click Submit.

    Edit vCenter information

Attaching a linked vCenter to UCP systems in UCP Advisor standalone mode

In UCP Advisor standalone mode, you can attach a linked vCenter to your UCP systems to perform vCenter-related operations.

Before you begin

Procedure

  1. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  2. From the Actions menu of the linked vCenter that you want to attach, select Attach vCenter to UCP System.

    Attach vCenter to UCP System option
  3. From the Destination System list, select the UCP system where you want to attach the vCenter.

    Attach vCenter window
  4. Click Submit.

    NoteYou can attach only one UCP system at a time. Repeat the above steps to attach additional UCP systems.
  5. Click the Refresh icon to update the vCenter information.

    vCenter attached to the UCP system

Detaching a linked vCenter from UCP systems in UCP Advisor standalone mode

In UCP Advisor standalone mode, you can detach one or more UCP systems from a linked vCenter in a single operation.

Procedure

  1. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  2. From the Actions menu of the linked vCenter that you want to detach, select Detach vCenter from UCP System.

    Detach vCenter from UCP systems option
  3. Select the UCP systems that you want detach from the linked vCenter, and then click Submit.

    Detach vCenter from UCP systems
  4. Click the Refresh icon to update the vCenter information.

    vCenters detached from UCP systems.

Registering the UCP Advisor plugin with a linked vCenter in UCP Advisor standalone mode

In UCP Advisor standalone mode, you can register the UCP Advisor plugin with a linked vCenter when registering the vCenter with UCP Advisor, or later using the Actions menu.

Procedure

  1. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  2. From the Actions menu of the linked vCenter where you want to register UCP Advisor as a plugin, select Register UCP Advisor Plugin.

  3. Click the Refresh icon to update the vCenter details.

Next steps

Log on to VMware vSphere Client and verify that the UCP Advisor plugin appears under Menu Shortcuts Plugins.

Unregistering the UCP Advisor plugin from a linked vCenter in UCP Advisor standalone mode

In UCP Advisor standalone mode, you can unregister the UCP Advisor plugin from a linked vCenter.

Before you begin

Verify that the UCP Advisor plugin is registered to the linked vCenter.

Procedure

  1. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  2. From the Actions menu of the linked vCenter where you want to unregister UCP Advisor as a plugin., select Unregister UCP Advisor Plugin.

  3. Enter Remove, and then click Submit.

    Unregister UCP Advisor plugin
  4. Click the Refresh icon to update the vCenter details.

    NoteUnregistering the UCP Advisor plugin from a linked vCenter removes the plugin from that vCenter only. You must unregister the UCP Advisor plugin from any remaining linked vCenters individually.

Deleting a linked vCenter instance in UCP Advisor standalone mode

In UCP Advisor standalone mode, you can delete a linked vCenter instance that is registered with UCP Advisor.

Before you begin

Procedure

  1. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  2. From the Actions menu of the linked vCenter instance that you want to delete, select Delete vCenter Instance.

    Deleter vCenter option
  3. Verify that the linked vCenter instance that you want to delete is listed as the item being deleted.

  4. Enter Delete, and then click Submit.

    Deleter vCenter window
  5. Click the Refresh icon to update the vCenter details.

    vCenter instance deleted
    NoteDeleting a vCenter instance deletes the selected linked vCenter only. You must delete any remaining vCenter instances individually.

Managing UCP systems attached to linked vCenters using the UCP Advisor plugin mode

You can use the UCP Advisor plugin mode to manage UCP systems attached to linked vCenters configured in the Enhanced Linked Mode.

Before you begin

  • Install and deploy the UCP Advisor software on the primary vCenter management node. See Hitachi Unified Compute Platform (UCP) Advisor Software Installation Guide.
  • Configure the vCenters in Enhanced Linked Mode.
  • Configure Active Directory or create local vCenter users in UCP Advisor. See Adding vCenter users to UCP Advisor.
NoteIf you want to manage a UCP system as a Registered system, then log on to the vCenter server that is attached to that UCP system. If you want to manage a UCP system as a Discovered system, then log on to any other linked vCenter server.

Procedure

  1. Click Launch vSphere Client.

    Launch vSphere Client
  2. Log on to the vSphere Client.

    Log on to vSphere client
  3. Click Shortcuts Plugins UCP Advisor.

    UCP Plugin in vSphere Client
  4. Log on to UCP Advisor using the vCenter credentials as registered in UCP Advisor.

    Note
    • If prompted, accept the UCP Advisor REST API certificate. See Accessing the UCP Advisor plugin.
    • If you use a Google Chrome browser to access the UCP Advisor plugin from a vCenter, and when you refresh the browser, you will be logged out of your UCP Advisor plugin session. Re-login to the UCP Advisor plugin to continue your UCP Advisor operations.

Registering linked vCenters in UCP Advisor plugin mode

You must register your linked vCenters with UCP Advisor so that you can attach it to your UCP systems to perform vCenter-related operations.

Before you begin

Verify that vCenter local users or the vCenter Active Directory users are added in UCP Advisor with ucpAdmin role privileges. See Adding vCenter users to UCP Advisor.

Procedure

  1. Click Settings VMware Integration.

  2. Click Register vCenter, and then enter the following:

    • vCenter Address

      Enter the IP address or FQDN of the primary linked vCenter configured in Enhanced Linked Mode.

    • Username and Password

      Enter the username and password for the primary vCenter.

    • Register UCP Advisor Plugin

      Select this option to also register and enable access to UCP Advisor as a plugin within VMware vCenter server.

    Register vCenter
  3. Click Submit.

Editing linked vCenters in UCP Advisor plugin mode

In UCP Advisor plugin mode you can edit the username and password of a linked vCenter.

  1. Log on to the UCP Advisor plugin from the vCenter that you want to edit.

  2. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  3. From the Actions menu of the linked vCenter that you want to edit, select Edit vCenter.

    NoteFor a linked vCenter, the Linked Mode column is set to Yes.

    Edit vCenter option

  4. Edit the information, and then click Submit.

    Edit vCenter information

Adding a UCP system in UCP Advisor plugin mode

In most cases, the UCP systems and devices required for your site were added and onboarded during the UCP Advisor deployment phase of your installation, but you can add new systems, as needed.

Procedure

  1. Log on to the UCP Advisor plugin from the vCenter where you want to create a UCP system.

  2. Click Systems Create System.

  3. Enter the following information:

    • System Name

      Enter a common name used to refer to the UCP system that you want to add.

    • Model

      Select a UCP system model: UCP CI (converged infrastructure), UCP HC (hyperconverged), UCP RS (rack scale), or Logical UCP.

    • Serial Number

      Enter the serial number or descriptor ID for the UCP system.

      NoteThe UCP system ID is the number assigned to the system. For UCP CI systems, the 5-digit serial number is required (UCP-CI-00000). The serial number is located on a white rectangular label affixed in the top-left corner of the front of the rack. GUID-D58C540D-B6C3-4482-AC83-D9D8365FA906-low.png
    • Infrastructure Gateway Address

      Enter the IP address or host name for the UCP Advisor Master Node VM.

      NoteIf you are deploying UCP Advisor in multiple sites, then enter the IP address or host name for the UCP Advisor Gateway VM.
    • Region

      Select the region where the system is physically located.

    • Country

      Select the country where the system is physically located.

    • Zip Code

      Enter the postal zip code where the system is physically located.

  4. Click Submit. You can monitor the status of the task on the Task console.

  5. Configure the Infrastructure Gateway host credentials for the new system.

    1. Open the system you just created.

    2. On the Summary tab, click the Infrastructure Gateway Edit icon, and then enter the Infrastructure Gateway host credentials.

      NoteFor a single-site deployment, enter the credentials for the Master Node VM. For a multisite deployment, enter the credentials for the external Gateway VM
      Entering gateway credentials
    3. Click Submit.

      NoteWhen you create a UCP system in the UCP Advisor plugin mode, the UCP system is attached to that vCenter by default.
      UCP system attached to the vCenter.

Next steps

Add storage, compute, or network devices to the new UCP system.

Detaching a linked vCenter from UCP systems in UCP Advisor plugin mode

In UCP Advisor plugin mode, you can detach UCP systems from a linked vCenter.

  1. Log on to the UCP Advisor plugin from the vCenter that you want to detach from the UCP system.

  2. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  3. From the Actions menu of the linked vCenter that you want to detach, select Detach vCenter from UCP System.

    Detach vCenter option as displayed from the vCenter plugin
  4. Select the UCP systems that you want detach from the linked vCenter, and then click Submit.

    Detach vCenter from UCP systems
    Note
  5. Click the Refresh icon to update the vCenter information.

Registering the UCP Advisor plugin with a linked vCenter in UCP Advisor plugin mode

You can register UCP Advisor plugin with a linked vCenter while registering your vCenter with UCP Advisor, or later using the Actions menu.

Procedure

  1. Log on to the UCP Advisor plugin from the vCenter for which you want to register the UCP Advisor plugin.

  2. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  3. Browse to the linked vCenter where you want to register UCP Advisor as a plugin.

  4. From the Actions menu, select Register UCP Advisor Plugin.

    Register UCP Advisor plugin
  5. Click the Refresh icon to update the information.

Next steps

Log on to VMware vSphere Client and verify that the UCP Advisor plugin appears in under Menu Shortcuts Plugins.

Unregistering the UCP Advisor plugin from a linked vCenter in UCP Advisor plugin mode

You can unregister UCP Advisor plugin from a linked vCenter.

Before you begin

Verify that the UCP Advisor plugin is registered to the linked vCenter.

Procedure

  1. Log on to the UCP Advisor plugin from the vCenter where you want to unregister the UCP Advisor plugin.

  2. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  3. Browse to the linked vCenter where you want to unregister UCP Advisor as a plugin.

  4. From the Actions menu, select Unregister UCP Advisor Plugin.

  5. Enter Remove, and then click Submit.

    Unregister UCP Advisor plugin
  6. Click the Refresh icon to update the vCenter information.

    NoteUnregistering the UCP Advisor plugin from a linked vCenter removes the plugin from that vCenter only. You must unregister the UCP Advisor plugin from any remaining linked vCenters individually.

Deleting a linked vCenter instance in UCP Advisor plugin mode

You can delete a linked vCenter instance that is registered with UCP Advisor.

Before you begin

Procedure

  1. Log on to the UCP Advisor plugin from the vCenter where you want to delete the vCenter instance.

  2. Click Settings VMware Integration vCenter.

  3. From the Actions menu of the linked vCenter instance that you want to delete, select Delete vCenter Instance.

    Delete vCenter instance
  4. Verify that the linked vCenter instance that you want to delete is listed as the item being deleted.

  5. Enter Delete, and then click Submit.

    Deleter vCenter window
  6. Click the Refresh icon to update the vCenter information.

    vCenter instance deleted
    NoteDeleting a vCenter instance deletes the selected linked vCenter only. You must delete any remaining vCenter instances individually.

 

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