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VMware vSphere ESXi– Installing and configuring a virtual SMU

Installing the vSphere ESXi host and client

If the vSphere ESXi host is not already installed and operational, install the vSphere ESXi host onto the bare-metal host machine for your VM.

NoteFor SMU-OS-2.2.ova, the vSphere ESXi host must be version 5.1 or later. For SMU-OS-3.0.ova, the vSphere ESXi host must be version 6.5 (Update 3) or later.

Use a Web browser to access the vSphere Client which manages the vSphere ESXi host, and operates its virtual machines.

Deploying the SMU OS

Deploy and map the pre-configured SMU OS template.

Procedure

  1. Using a Web browser, log into the vSphere Client.

  2. Right-click in the required location in the left-hand task bar and select Deploy OVF template.

  3. Browse to the location of the SMU OS OVA file. Click Next.

  4. Specify a unique virtual machine name and target location. Click Next.

  5. Select the destination computer resource (host). Click Next.

  6. Review the details and click Next.

  7. Select the following virtual disk format: Thin Provision.

  8. Select the storage (data store) and click Next.

  9. Select the destination network (network card). Click Next.

  10. Click Finish. The virtual image is deployed.

Increasing memory and CPU resource allocations

Before you add extra managed servers or clusters to the virtual SMU, increase the memory and the CPU resource allocations to reserve sufficient resources for each VM.

NoteThe exact user interface may differ from the screenshots shown below, depending on the version of the vSphere client in use.

The following example is for four managed servers.

Procedure

  1. Power off the VM.

  2. In the vSphere Client, right-click the VM and select Edit Settings to open the Virtual Machine properties dialog box.

  3. Under Virtual Hardware, select CPU:

    1. Either set the CPU option to four or set the Cores per Socket option to two to make a total of four sockets.

    2. (Optional) Although CPU reservation is not required, you should increase the CPU reservation if the host supports it.

    3. (Optional) If other VMs on the host can starve the virtual SMU of resources, you can set Shares for CPU (and Hard Disk) to High. This prioritizes the virtual SMU over VMs with a Normal or Low setting.

    Virtual Hardware: CPU
  4. Under Virtual Hardware, select Memory:

    1. Increase the memory value to 4GB.

    2. (Optional Best Practice*) Set the reservation to 4096GB.

    3. (Optional) If other VMs on the host can starve the virtual SMU of resources, you can set Shares for Memory to High.

    Virtual Hardware: Memory
  5. Click OK to save your changes, and then close the dialog box.

  6. Right-click the VM and select Edit Settings again to verify that your memory and CPU settings are correct.

*Best Practice

Although resource reservations are not required, it is best to reserve a portion of the host's physical RAM to guarantee the responsiveness of the virtual SMU and its quorum device. Ultimately, if you oversubscribe the host, do so responsibly to ensure that the virtual SMU is not starved of resources.

The critical virtual SMU requirement is that the quorum device must respond to cluster heartbeats (over UDP) within five seconds to prevent the possibility of dependent and degraded HNAS clusters rebooting. Resource reservations are just one way of achieving this requirement. VMware also provides other mechanisms to ensure VM responsiveness and to protect against resource starvation.

Installing the SMU software

The SMU software is a virtual solution that runs on the vSphere ESXi server. After you install the SMU OS template, set up and connect the SMU software image to the newly created guest virtual machine.

  1. Click on the datastore icon in the left-hand task bar.

    GUID-31BADA62-2D37-440B-B4F9-98748CE346F8-low.png
  2. Select a datastore which is visible to the new SMU VM and click on the Files tab.

  3. Upload the SMU software ISO file.

  4. Right-click the new SMU VM and select Edit Settings to open the Virtual Machine properties dialog box.

    1. Under Virtual Hardware, select the CD/DVD drive.

    2. Select Datastore ISO File, and then click Browse.

    3. Select the recently uploaded SMU software ISO file, and then click Open.

    4. Verify that the Connect At Power On check box is selected, and then click OK.

      CD/DVD
  5. Power on the new SMU VM. and then launch a console.

  6. Log in as root.

    The default SMU passwords for root and admin can be obtained by service partners and employees via the support site "Hitachi NAS Upgrade, Deployment and Procedures Documentation".

    NoteThe default password for root used by the CentOS Stream 8 template differs from that previously used by the CentOS 6 template.
  7. Run mount /media/cdrom or mount /media/cdrecorder on Centos 6).

  8. Run /media/cdrom/autorun or /media/cdrecorder/autorun on CentOS 6) to start the installation. Note that the installation may take a few minutes to complete, after which the system reboots.

Configuring the SMU software

After you have installed the virtual SMU software, configure the virtual SMU network settings.

  1. In the console, log in as root.

  2. Run smu-config, and then follow the prompts to configure the network.

  3. Review all of the settings, and then type Y to confirm.

    The script sets up the network interfaces and the default properties, and then the SMU reboots.
  4. On your laptop or desktop, open a web browser and point it to one of the SMU IP addresses.

  5. Log in to NAS Manager as admin.

    The NAS Manager GUI opens.GUID-E37CBBD0-5D58-4273-A331-4A0084EB0D4C-low.png
  6. Before you set up the server, navigate to Home SMU Administration SMU Setup Wizard to configure the SMU settings.

    Note

    For more information about using the SMU Setup Wizard, see the

    Server and Cluster Administration Guide.

Installing VMware Tools

VMware Tools is an optional package that provides useful tools for managing the virtual SMU. The main benefit of VMware Tools is its ability to shut down or restart the VM cleanly.

Without VMware tools installed, the hard Power Off option is equivalent to removing the power cords from the outlet. However, with VMware Tools installed, Power Off provides a cleaner shutdown.
TipFor an alternative cleaner shutdown, either enter the shutdown -h command from a console session, or in NAS Manager, navigate to Home SMU Administration SMU Shutdown / Restart, and then click shut down.
Note You may need to reinstall VMware Tools each time the SMU software is updated.

Procedure

  1. Power on the VM.

  2. Right-click on the SMU VM and select Guest OS > Install VMware Tools....

  3. Read the text and then click Mount.

  4. Launch the console.

  5. Log in as root.

  6. Run mount /media/cdrom (or mount /media/cdrecorder on CentOS 6).

  7. To change to the /tmp directory and then extract the contents of the tar file into a new directory called vmware-tools-distrib, run:

    cd /tmp; tar –zxpf /media/cdrom/VMwareTools*.tar.gz (or tar –zxpf /media/cdrecorder/VMwareTools*.tar.gz on CentOS 6).
  8. To change the directory to vmware-tools-distrib and then start the installer, run:

    cd vmware-tools-distrib; ./vmware-install.pl
  9. Follow the prompts and confirm the default settings.

  10. When the script is complete, type reboot.

  11. To confirm that VMware Tools has installed, click the VM Summary tab.

Adding an optional eth1

You can add an optional eth1 in addition to the default single eth0.

In general, SMUs need only a single Network Interface Card (NIC). Add a second NIC only if there a clear requirement for it.

Before you begin, make sure that a separate distributed virtual switch is configured.

Procedure

  1. Power off the VM.

  2. In the vSphere Client, right-click the VM and select Edit Settings to open the virtual machine properties dialog box.

  3. On the Virtual Hardware tab, click Add New Device.

  4. Select Network Adapter.

  5. Select the name of the separate distributed virtual switch from the drop-down list.

  6. Under Adapter Type, from the drop-down list, select E1000.

  7. Click OK.

    After restarting the SMU VM, login to NAS Manager and configure an IP address for the eth1 port under Home > SMU Administration > SMU Network Configuration. The recommended IP is 192.0.2.1 (or 192.0.2.253 for a standby SMU)

    NoteYou should always explicitly assign a static IP address to the port. Although an address may have been assigned by DHCP, you should not rely on that as the SMU will not be correctly configured to use DHCP assigned addresses.

 

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