Dell EMC XC Xpress Hyper-Converged Appliance Deployment Guide for Hyper-V This document contains deployment information for the Dell EMC XC430 Xpress.
Revisions Date Description June 2017 Initial release September 2017 Updated Fabric Manager name. Added information about application aware VSS backups. Restricted document to XC Xpress. The information in this publication is provided “as is.” Dell Inc. makes no representations or warranties of any kind with respect to the information in this publication, and specifically disclaims implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.
Table of contents Revisions.............................................................................................................................................................................2 1 2 Overview.......................................................................................................................................................................6 1.1 Documentation resources...................................................................................................
6.6.2 Dell Support Assist ...........................................................................................................................................32 7 Managing your cluster using Prism ............................................................................................................................33 7.1.1 Joining cluster and hosts to the domain ...........................................................................................................34 7.
B.2.1 Ensure management workstation is connected on the same production network. ..........................................51 C B.3 Cluster creation does not complete successfully .............................................................................................52 B.4 Unable to connect external networks/sites including websites, or PULSE ......................................................53 B.5 Resolving ping issues .......................................................................
1 Overview The Dell EMC XC430 Xpress system is a hyper-converged appliance based on the Dell EMC XC430 paired with Nutanix software. The Dell EMC XC430 Xpress hardware platform supports two Intel Xeon v4 processors, up to 12 DIMMs, and one SSD and three HDDs.
1.3 About XC430 Xpress IT infrastructure The XC430 Xpress appliance is designed so that a small IT staff can install and manage the entire IT infrastructure. In this context, we have a management network and a production network. Warning: Network Communication between the Controller VM (CVM) and the host appliance leverages the 192.168.5.x IP subnet on a private virtual network. You cannot use the 192.168.5.x IP subnet for your production or iDRAC management networks.
2 Installing hardware You must have filled out the Deployment Checklist, prior to any of the following tasks. 2.1 Installation summary The following tasks outline the XC Xpress installation process and the details of each task follow below. 1. Unpack the Dell EMC XC430 appliances. 2. Install Dell EMC XC430 Xpress appliance into the rack. For more information about installing the server into the rack, see the rack documentation included with your solution. 3.
Connections for a Dell EMC XC430 Xpress with 1Gbe switch. 1. Management network (iDRAC network) 2.3.2 2.Production network Dell EMC XC430 Xpress with 10 Gbe switch Use this for 10 Gbe configurations. Connections for a Dell EMC XC430 Xpress with 10Gbe 1. Management network (iDRAC network) 2.4 2.
Note: Dell EMC recommends printing and filling out this Deployment checklist prior to deploying this solution.
3 Configuring iDRAC for remote network access (Recommended) Use the following optional procedure to configure iDRAC network settings to enable remote access. This task assumes you have: Note: After you have assigned an IP Address to the iDRAC, you can open a browser and browse to the IP assigned to the iDRAC. Monitor, keyboard and mouse temporarily connected to the Xpress appliance. Alternatively, connect using KVM over IP IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Gateway: optionally, a DNS server IP address 1.
c. Set Enable IPMI Over LAN to Enabled. Note: It is not required to set the iDRAC IP information at this time. You can do it during cluster creation. 6. Scroll down the iDRAC Settings menu and configure the IPv4 Settings. This is where you can configure your iDRAC IP addresses. 7. To return to the iDRAC Settings page, click Back. 8. To return to the System Setup page, click Finish. 9. To save changes, click Yes. 10. After it reports that the settings were saved successfully, click Yes.
3.1 Logging in to Dell iDRAC (Recommended) Use the following procedure to launch a virtual console: Note: This procedure may require Java Runtime Environment (JRE) is installed on the management workstation you are using to remotely manage the connected appliances. If the management workstation does not launch with default settings, select Settings and select the Java option. You can use Java version 8 (1.8.0) or later. 1.
4 Getting ready for cluster setup The next steps are done using a management workstation, not the appliance. Connect the management workstation for cluster set up to the same production network subnet where the XC Xpress appliance resides. Before you start this section, make sure you have completed the Deployment checklist and read the prerequisites sections in the Appendix. If you have any issues, see the Troubleshooting sections prior to calling Technical Support.
Microsoft and Dell End User License Agreement b. On the Microsoft Windows Settings page, to accept the Microsoft and Dell End User License Agreement, click I Accept. 3. After the system accepts the agreement, Windows continues the startup process. Repeat this step on all appliances. The startup process automatically logs you into Windows with Administrative credentials (default credentials: User: administrator credential and Password: nutanix/4u. These credentials are in lowercase.
First Time Boot Scripts dialog box. a. In the first Nutanix First Time Boot Scripts dialog (seen in Figure 5), to begin first boot scripts, click OK, or wait 6 seconds for automatic start. Installation process time may vary depending on configuration. You can just let this run until the final screen displays. Warning: Do not interact with the system during First Time Boot Scripts and reboot process. This process can take up to 30 minutes and two or three reboots may occur depending on your configuration.
Screen you see when you have successfully completed the First Time Boot Script. b. When the First Time Boot Scripts process finishes, you should see a screen (Figure 6) that prompts you to sign into the Window’s Hyper-V appliance. Select the Macro tab, and then click Ctrl-Alt-Del. Note: For iDRAC console, do not use your keyboard to type Ctrl-Alt-Del. c. Log in using credentials: The default user name is administrator and the default password is nutanix/4u.
Screen that flashes and disappears after six seconds. d. After the pop up message displays saying the process is complete, click OK or wait six seconds and it automatically continues. Figure 8 below displays the screen that appears when the entire process has completed successfully.
Final screen you see when the entire process has completed successfully. e. If you want to verify the process completed successfully, you can open the log file. At the bottom of the screen (Figure 8) click the File Explorer icon. f. Navigate to C:\Program Files\Nutanix\Logs. The file name is first_boot.txt.
Log report verifying a successfully run First Time Boot Script Wizard. g. Double click to open the log file. h. Scroll to the bottom of the file and read the success message. The message reads, Marking first boot script run as success. Note: If at any time the Nutanix First Time Boot Scripts wizard reports that the installation has failed, see the Troubleshooting section before you contact Dell Support to determine the reason for failure.
Note: Java version 8 (1.8.0) or later is required to use the Foundations Applet. 1. On the Windows Control panel, open the Java (32-bit) applet. 2. On the Security tab, click High and add an exception for the local applets by adding the following to the site list: file:/ You must set Java to high, to lower security settings. 3. Click OK. 4.
To set up your Nutanix Support Portal, complete the following tasks: 1. Go to the Nutanix Support Portal at http://portal.nutanix.com and click Register Now. 2. Register by typing data in appropriate boxes. 3. In the Serial Number box, type the Service Tag number of your Dell EMC XC430 Xpress. Note: To find the Service Tag of your Dell EMC XC430 Xpress, see the Locating The Service Tag section in this document. 4. After the Customer Portal account is created, you can manage your licenses. 4.4.
3. To download the Foundations Applet, on the Foundation page, click the discovery applet link. 4. A file called FoundationApplet-offline.zip is downloaded locally to your system. 5. Save this download to a folder on your management workstation. 4.6 Downloading Fabric Manager and User’s Guide Fabric Manager is a network validation tool. To download the tool to your management workstation: 1. 2. 3. 4. Go to https://dell.com/xcseriesmanuals From the dialog box, select the XC430 Xpress appliance.
5 About Fabric Manager Fabric Manager validates and reports the requirements that verify network readiness and ensures a smooth deployment. Run the tool using the management workstation. This tool confirms if your network switch is a validated switch and validates network configuration settings are ready to begin deployment. At this point, run Fabric Manager to validate your switch. For more information about Fabric Manager, see the Fabric Manager for XC Xpress User’s Guide found at Dell.
6 About cluster creation The following tasks outline the details of creating the cluster using Nutanix Foundation. For the sections below refer to the Deployment Checklist for required information. 6.1 Discovering appliances with Nutanix Foundation Applet The Nutanix Foundation Applet provides a graphical user interface for discovering the XC430 Xpress appliances. 1. Make sure that the first time boot scripts have completed. 2.
Nutanix Foundation Launcher dialog box showing Serial Numbers and Status. 6. Select a single XC Xpress appliance with the Status “Free” in the Foundation Applet, and click Launch Foundation. 6.2 Displaying discovered appliances After you have discovered the XC Xpress appliances using the Foundation Applet, the browser displays all discovered XC appliances. Note: XC and XC Xpress Series appliances cannot exist in the same cluster.
View all discovered XC Xpress appliance. 1. Select the check box next to the Service Tag for the Xpress appliance that you want to be a part of this cluster. The network interfaces are automatically checked. NOTE: The maximum number of appliances for an XC430 Xpress cluster is four (4). NOTE: The default redundancy factor is 2 and cannot be changed with XC Xpress configurations. 2. To proceed click Next.
6.3 Defining the cluster For the sections below refer to the Deployment checklist for required information. New Cluster Setup screen. 1. On the New Cluster Setup screen, under Cluster Information, do the following: a. In the Cluster Name box, type a name for the cluster. b. In the IP Address box, type an IP address for the cluster. c. Do not configure IPMI. d. In the NTP Server Address box, type the NTP server address. e. In the DNS Server IP box, type the DNS server IP address. f. Select a time zone. 2.
2. On the Node Setup page under Manual Input, manually enter the IP addresses and hostnames for each appliance. Node Setup screen. 3. Click Validate Network. 4. If network validation fails, check if you have duplicate IP addresses. Correct any errors and click Validate Network again. 6.5 Selecting images 1. On the Select Imaging Type dialog box, click Single Hypervisor. Note: The Multi Hypervisor option is not supported on Xpress.
Only select Single Hypervisor on the Image Selection screen. 2. Click Continue. Image Selection screen. 3. On the Image Selection screen, click Skip. Note: The Hypervisor is factory installed and should not be changed.
Important: Carefully proceed through the Select Image section. Your hypervisor preferences were factory installed and the image selection process should be skipped. 6.6 Creating a cluster The imaging process is shown under Cluster Creation Status on the Cluster Creation progress screen. Observe the image process under Cluster Creation Status. This process takes approximately 15 minutes depending on the configuration. Use the log link to monitor the cluster creation progress.
Cluster creation successful screen. 1. Click Prism, and a new web browser launches. 2. If cluster creations fails, see the Troubleshooting section prior to contacting Dell EMC support. Note: If you enabled PULSE, your cluster must be able to connect to the external Pulse servers for automatic case creation. If applicable with your network layout, configure your HTTP proxy settings for external communication. 6.6.
7 Managing your cluster using Prism Important: Congratulations on creating your cluster. Dell EMC recommends that you log in to Prism and use 1-click update to install the latest recommended AOS version. Updating prior to putting your newly created cluster in production is strongly recommended. To see how to use Prism to update your AOS, see the Acropolis Administrators Guide. Nutanix Prism is the one-click infrastructure management interface for XC clusters.
Password credentials Follow your password security procedures to save your password. You cannot log in without the proper password. 7.1.1 Joining cluster and hosts to the domain After you log in to Prism, you must join cluster and hosts to the domain and configure the failover cluster. 1. Open Nutanix Prism. 2. In Prism, click the Gear icon.
3. Select Join Cluster and Hosts to the Domain. 3. In the Join Cluster and Hosts to the Domain dialog box, do the following: a. In the Full Domain Name box, type the full domain name.
b. c. d. e. f. g. h. In the Name server IP Address box, type the name server IP address. In the Cluster Name box, verify the cluster name. In the Cluster Virtual IP Address box, verify the cluster virtual IP address. In the Prefix box, type in the prefix. In the Logon Name (Domain\Username) box, type your username. In the Password box, type your password. Click Join. Note: After you click Join, the appliances are rebooted. The GUI will display error messages and they can be disregarded.
7.2 Running virtual machines on the Nutanix Distributed File System storage container only A default storage pool container is already created for you and by default presents the storage to all the hosts on the same subnet. You also have the option to create your own containers. See Nutanix Administrators guide for details. To view your default storage pool and host presentation, do the following: 1. In Nutanix Prism, click Home. 2. In the drop-down menu, select Storage. 3.
At this point, you have completed your installation. For more information about configuring or monitoring with the Nutanix web console, view the Web Console Guide and Administration Guide documents on the Nutanix documentation portal. For a complete list of Nutanix documentation and a URL to their customer portal, see the Dell EMC XC430 Xpress Support Matrix found at Dell.com/xcseriesmanuals. You can find recommended documents in the Documentation section in the Support Matrix. 7.
8 Getting Help 8.1 Contacting Dell Dell provides several online and telephone-based support and service options. If you do not have an active internet connection, you can find contact information on your purchase invoice, packing slip, bill, or Dell product catalog. Availability varies by country and product, and some services may not be available in your area. To contact Dell for sales, technical assistance, or customer-service issues: 1. Go to Dell.com/support. 2.
8.4 Quick Resource Locator Use the Quick Resource Locator (QRL) to get immediate access to system information and how-to videos. This can be done by visiting Dell.com/QRL or by using your smartphone or tablet and a model-specific Quick Resource (QR) code located in your documentation. To try out the QR code, scan the following image.
A Installation prerequisites A.1 Hyper-V installation requirements The Dell EMC Xpress solution requires the following steps. Detail of each step are in the following sections. Windows Active Directory Domain Name Server (DNS) System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM) (Optional) Domain Accounts NOTE: You can find an exhaustive set of Hyper-V installation requirements in the Hyper-V Administration for Acropolis. A.
A.3 About Network Time Protocol (NTP) Accurate time on the hypervisor and the Controller VM (CVM) on all XC clusters, regardless of the hypervisor type (ESXi, KVM, or Hyper-V) being run. Syncing to three or five external Stratum One time sources, the same as used by your Active Directory (AD) servers. A.3.1 Hyper-V clusters must have accurate time relative to the AD domain to which they are joined.
a. To add an NTP server, in the NTP Server box, type the server IP address or fully qualified host name and then click Add. The name or address is added to the HOST NAME OR IP ADDRESS list (below the NTP Server field). b. To delete an NTP server entry, in the Servers list, click the delete (x) icon for that server. c. In the dialog box that appears to verify the action; click OK. The server is removed from the list. 4. Click Close. A.
A.6 Domain accounts Use the following outline to understand the prerequisites for the domain accounts. Note: You may fulfill the domain accounts here with a single domain account, which meets the privileges of all designated permissions. A.7 A domain account with minimum permissions for joining the XC hosts to the domain; credentials are not stored. This account must have local administrator rights on the XC hosts.
Note: The management (iDRAC) network may be a separate network from the Host network (Controller and Hypervisor). A.7.2 Production network Dell EMC recommends a redundant Top of Rack (TOR) switches for the production network. The selection depends on the Network Daughter Cards (NDCs) selected for the Dell EMC XC430 Xpress. For a list of recommended requirements for NDC and NIC cabling, see the Dell EMC XC430 Xpress Support Matrix.
A.9 Databases Disk management utilities (third-party disk defragmentation or partitioning tools) Setting up the HTTP proxy in Prism The HTTP proxy is required for PULSE and it is also required for external connections. 1. 2. 3. 4. Log in to Prism. Click the Gear icon. Select HTTP Proxy. Select New Proxy. Fill out the required information. Note: username and password are only require if the proxy server requires it. 5. Click Save. A.10 Setting up the name Server (DNS) in Prism 1. 2. 3. 4.
5. Click Close. A.11 Bare metal recovery To maintain a fast and efficient bare metal recovery option, Dell EMC recommends leveraging the Rapid Appliance System Recovery (RASR) tool. After deployment, use the following steps to create a RASR USB disk and safely store it as part of your disaster recovery planning. Warning: Creating a RASR USB disk destroys all data on the USB disk.
To create a RASR USB disk: 1. Insert a USB disk device that is 16 GB or greater into one of the appliance’s available USB slots. 2. From the Windows 2012 R2 desktop, double-click the Make RASR USB disk icon. This launches a utility that creates the RASR USB disk. Important: The USB disk contains factory installed configuration information specific for this appliance and must not be used in another appliance. As a best practice, clearly label the newly created USB disk with the appliance’s Service Tag.
B Application aware VSS backups When performing application-aware VSS Backups (Volume Shadow Copy Service) for virtual machines on a Hyper-V host, the backups might fail on a Nutanix share if more than 1000 files exist in the container. The Nutanix NFS master may experience a timeout triggered by the creation of a list of "disk shadow" files after the snapshot is taken. B.1 Solution Create a new container on the Nutanix cluster and storage-migrate the VMs to this new container.
C Introduction to troubleshooting Use this troubleshooting section to resolve any issues you may encounter during deployment. Use these steps before you call Dell EMC Customer Support. C.1 Foundation Applet issues C.1.1 Unable to launch the Nutanix Foundation Applet from management workstation. Error in launching the Nutanix Foundation Applet. 1. Ensure Nutanix recommended JRE is installed on management workstation. See Downloading Java Runtime Environment. 2.
C.2 Desired appliances are not discovered in Foundation Launcher. Appliances are not discovered using Foundation Launcher. C.2.1 Ensure management workstation is connected on the same production network. 1. Ensure all network cables are connected. For more information, see Installing hardware. 2. If using the 10 Gbe switch, ensure the correct Small Form factor Pluggable (SFP) is connected. For supported cabling, see Dell EMC XC430 Xpress Series Support Matrix. 3.
7. After the First time Boot Script (FTBU) completes successfully wait five minutes before you launch the Nutanix Foundation Applet. You can find the Nutanix First Time Boot Script procedure in section 4.1. Note: The wait allows the CVM to complete boot up sequence on the appliance. 8. Run Fabric Manager on management workstation to identify any other potential network issues affecting discovery process. 9.
Example of a log showing when a cluster does not create successfully. C.4 Unable to connect external networks/sites including websites, or PULSE 1. Verify HTTP proxy is configured in Prism. Prism is a Nutanix based software where you centrally manage your infrastructure. For more information on managing your HTTP proxy see section “Setting up the HTTP proxy in Prism” in the Dell EMC XC430 Xpress Hyper-Converged Deployment Guide. 2. Verify DNS (Name Server) is configured in Prism.
11. Repeat steps for ICMPv6, selecting ICMPv6 for Protocol Type instead of ICMPv4. C.6 Why can’t I discover my appliances Reasons you cannot discover appliances include: IPv6 not enabled on management station Firewall on management workstation blocking ports Switch is filtering the ports Management station on a different VLAN or subnet than appliances Make sure you open the ports. Verify HTTP proxy is configured in Nutanix Prism.
D Deployment checklist Use this worksheet to collect your deployment data prior to installation. For more information about Xpress documentation, including Acropolis guides, see the Xpress Support Matrix at www.dell.com/xcseriesmanuals and select your Xpress appliance. D.1 Default / set up cluster credentials The default cluster credentials for the system differ from those stated at the beginning of all Nutanix documentation. See Table 2 for default cluster credentials, which are specific to the system.
Network IP addresses (Per Cluster) WARNING: Network Communication between the Controller VM (CVM) and the host appliance leverages the 192.168.5.x IP subnet on a private virtual network. You cannot use the 192.168.5.0.x IP subnet for your production or iDRAC management networks.
Downloads Nutanix Foundation Applet downloaded Download the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 8 (1.8.0) or later Download Google Chrome (Optional) Download Fabric Manager for XC Xpress Credentials Use your corporate security policies to manage passwords. This is a list to show you what you need during the deployment process.
Nutanix management account users User name User name User name User name Registration and configuration options Nutanix Portal Registration Configured iDRAC (all appliances) Configured DNS Configured NTP Update Acropolis (1-click update) Note: Dell EMC recommends updating the AOS version prior to putting your newly created cluster in production. To see how to use Prism to update your AOS, see the Nutanix Acropolis Administrator’s Guide.
