Deploy on Nutanix

Introduction

This guide will take you through the steps necessary to install our appliances on your Nutanix cluster operating on the AHV hypervisor.

Superna supports deployment of our Core and Processing appliances on Nutanix AHV. Superna is “Nutanix Ready AHV” certified. For more information, please visit Nutanix’s Compatibility and Interoperability Matrix and enter “superna” in the “Type to Filter” search bar in the table.

Requirements

You will need the following information for the networking set-up of the VM. You should be able to get this information from your networking team.

• IP Address
• Netmask
• Gateway
• Hostname
• DNS Search Domains
• Name Servers
• NTP Servers

This guide will take you through the steps necessary to install our appliances on your Nutanix cluster operating on the AHV hypervisor.

Superna supports deployment of our Core and Processing appliances on Nutanix AHV. Superna is “Nutanix Ready AHV” certified. For more information, please visit Nutanix’s Compatibility and Interoperability Matrix and enter “superna” in the “Type to Filter” search bar in the table.

Deployment Steps

Upload the Image

To start, log in to Nutanix Prism

Before uploading, check the Images tab to confirm whether the release version you need is already available.

If the version you need is not available:

1. Obtain an image file (qcow2) from Superna's support portal.

   Follow the instructions in Download Superna Software.

2. Go to Compute & Storage > Images.

3. Select Add Image.

   

4. Upload the image file (+Add File).

   

5. Select Next.

6. Add a description for the image, then select Next.

   

7. Select Save (leave default settings).

The image will begin uploading in the background

This process takes some time, but you can track progress in View All Tasks.

warning

Do not refresh your screen during the upload.

Create the VM

Once the upload is complete,

1. Go to Compute & Storage > VMs.

2. Select Create VM.

3. Enter:

   • Name
   • Description
   • Cluster (Leave Default)
   • Number of VMs (# of nodes required)
   • vCPUs, cores, and memory

   Typical Eyeglass/ECA Settings (pre-2.11/4.1) include:

   • CPU: 4vCPU
   • Cores per CPU: 1
   • Memory: 16GB
   Deployment 2.11/4.1 or Later

   For deployment version 2.11/4.1 or later, please use these minimum specifications:

   • vCPUs: 4
   • Cores per vCPU: 4
   • Memory: 24 GB

   

4. Select Next

5. Under Disks:

   • Select Attach Disk

   

   • For Operation, select Clone from image
   • For Image, select the appropriate VM image for Eyeglass or ECA
   • Set Capacity to 30GB
   • Set Bus Type to IDE
   • Select Save
   Disk 1 Sizing for Deployment 2.11/4.1 or Later

   For deployment version 2.11/4.1 or later, please use the following Disk 1 sizing requirements:

   • Eyeglass: 38GB GB
   • ECA Nodes: 32 GB

   

6. Add a second disk (blank data drive):

   • Select Attach Disk
   • For Operation, select Allocate on Storage Container
   • Select a Storage Container
   • Set capacity to 80GB for releases 2.10/4.0 or earlier. For 2.11/4.1 or later, see the note below.
   • Select Save
   Disk 2 Sizing for Deployment 2.11/4.1 or Later

   For deployment version 2.11/4.1 or later, please use the following Disk 2 sizing requirements:

   • Eyeglass: 140 GB
   • ECA Nodes: 120 GB

   

7. Attach to Subnet

   Under Networks, select Attach to Subnet

   

   Leave the default settings, then select Save

   

8. Boot configuration

   Set Boot Config to Legacy BIOS

   The following warning may appear. Select Confirm to continue.

   

   Select Next to continue

9. Enter desired Management Settings, then select Next

   

   OEM Eyeglass Deployments Only

   For OEM Eyeglass deployments, an extra configuration step is required in the Management section of the VM creation wizard.

   1. Change Guest Customization Script Type to: cloud-init (Linux)
   2. Paste the following script into the configuration field:

   #cloud-config
   write_files:
   - path: /opt/superna/.ovf/local
      content: |
         {"branding": "DELL"}
      owner: root:root

   

10. Review the summary. If the information is correct, select Create VM.

You can follow the creation process in the Activity > Tasks screen.

The VMs will appear in Compute & Storage > VMs > List once the deployment is complete.

Launch the VM

1. Go to Compute & Storage > VMs > List.

2. Select the newly created VM.

3. Select Actions > Power On

   

VM Network Setup

These are necessary steps for any Nutanix deployment for Eyeglass or ECA nodes:

1. Access the VM through Launch Console or an SSH client of your choice. Use the default credentials for your appliance.

   From the VM List, select the appliance you would like to access.

   From the VM Management screen, either:

   • Select the Console tab on the horizontal toolbar under the VM Name (shown below)

   or

   • Select Launch Console under the Summary tab (shown below)

   

2. Elevate to root privileges using sudo -s

3. Check appliance boot status.

   Run the following command to monitor the appliance’s startup log:

   tail -f /var/log/superna-on-boot.log

   Wait until you see the following message in the output:

   "Please execute sudo spy-hypervisor-setup before attempting to use the appliance."

   Once this message appears, press Ctrl+C to stop the log and return to the command prompt.

4. Run initial setup script.

   Select the tab for the appliance you are deploying.

   Core Agent Appliance

   Run the following command to start the setup script:

   sudo spy-hypervisor-setup

   When prompted, enter the following network details:

   1. IP Address
   2. Netmask
   3. Gateway
   4. Hostname
   5. DNS Search Domains
   6. Name Servers
   7. NTP Servers

   These values should match the information provided by your networking team.

   Extended Cluster Appliance

   Important

   For multi-node ECA deployments, you must run this command on all non-primary nodes first, and then on the primary node (node 1) last.

   Run the following command to start the setup script:

   sudo -E spy-hypervisor-setup

   When prompted, enter the following network details:

   1. IP Address
   2. Netmask
   3. Gateway
   4. Hostname
   5. DNS Search Domains
   6. Name Servers
   7. NTP Servers

   These values should match the information provided by your networking team.

5. Extract Eyeglass UI Files (Only for Eyeglass on PowerScale, Version 2.10.0)

   This step is only required if you are:

   • Deploying the Core Agent Appliance,
   • On a PowerScale platform, and
   • Using version 2.10.0

   If you are deploying ECA, using a platform other than PowerScale, or running a different version — skip this step.

   If all the above apply, follow the branding-specific instructions below:

   For Superna branding, run the following commands:

   tar xvf /opt/data/branding/ui/EYEGLASS.tar.gz -C /srv/www/htdocs/eyeglass --strip-components=1

   tar xvf /opt/data/branding/ui/EYEGLASSwidgets.tar.gz -C /srv/www/htdocs/eyeglasswidgets --strip-components=1

   For Dell branding, run the following commands:

   tar xvf /opt/data/branding/ui/DELL.tar.gz -C /srv/www/htdocs/eyeglass --strip-components=1

   tar xvf /opt/data/branding/ui/DELLwidgets.tar.gz -C /srv/www/htdocs/eyeglasswidgets --strip-components=1

   Then run the setup script:

   sudo -E spy-hypervisor-setup

   These commands unpack the necessary files for the Eyeglass web interface based on your selected branding.

Create VM-level Snapshots

In some cases — such as before performing an upgrade — you may want to take a VM-level snapshot as a recovery point. This ensures you can roll back to a known good state if needed.

To create a snapshot:

1. In Nutanix Prism, go to Compute & Storage > VMs.

2. Locate and select the VM you want to snapshot from the VM List.

3. Select Action to open the drop-down menu.

4. Select Create Recovery Point.

   

This will generate a snapshot that can be used to restore the VM if needed.

Next Steps

Continue with the installation guide for the solution and environment you are deploying.