# Installing and using the Parallel Virtual Cluster suite ### Changelog #### 0.4 * PVC supports manual or Ansible bootstrapping of nodes * PVC supports both virtual-manager-only and virtual-manager+networking operating modes ## Building The repository contains the required elements to build Debian packages for PVC. It is not handled like a normal Python package but instead the debs contain the raw files placed in Debianized places. 1. Run `build-deb.sh`; you will need `dpkg-buildpackage` installed. 1. The output packages for the node daemon and clients will be located in the parent directory. 1. Copy the `.deb` files to the target systems or add them to a custom repository accessible to the future nodes. ## Base System Setup PVC requires Debian GNU/Linux 10.X ("Buster") or later, using `systemd`, to operate correctly. Before proceeding with the manual or Ansible setup, you must have prepared a set of initial hosts with the base system. 1. Using the Debian GNU/Linux 10.X installer or a method of your choice, prepare 1, 3, or 5 physical hosts. This initial set will act as coordinators for the cluster, after which more nodes can be added. Name the hosts "[name]1", "[name]2", etc.; "name" can be anything you wish, though "node", "hv", or "pvc" are most descriptive. 1. Create an SSH configuration and sudo-capable user for login on each node. Key-based authentication is strongly recommended to avoid entering passwords later. 1. Configure the systems with a basic network interface conforming to the [network requirements](/architecture/networking). Normally, the PVC "upstream" network will be used to configure and bootstrap the nodes, however you can use another network should you wish. For a simple deployment, an access vLAN with a single IP is sufficient. Bonding/failover is optional but recommended. 1. Configure DNS or `/etc/hosts` entries for all nodes so that they may resolve each others' FQDNs. This is especially important for the Ansible installation method since the `ansible_fqdn` value is used extensively. 1. Ensure you can log in to the systems, that they can access the Internet, and that the user can execute arbitrary commands with `sudo`. ## Ansible PVC includes a set of Ansible roles and playbooks for deploying PVC nodes. Using these automates the manual deployments steps and ends with a working set of initial coordinator nodes. It can then also be used to deploy subsequent nodes as well or update the cluster configuration. By default, the Ansible role makes use of the official PVC Debian repository, though you may use an alternate repository or locally-built `.deb` files via configuration options. 1. Configure a set of `group_vars` and a host inventory for the role, based on the `defaults/example.yml` configuration. This example includes all possible options on a simple 3-node coordinator set in the most simple possible deployment. Modify the hostnames, IP addresses, passwords, and other such information as required for your deployment. Refer to the [Ansible role configuration documentation](/ansible/configuration) for a detailed breakdown of the various options. 1. Execute the `bootstrap.yml` playbook against the set of initial coordinators deployed in the last section. The playbook operates in parallel mode for the initial section to configure the base resources, then squentially to configure the actual PVC daemon and bring up the cluster. 1. The `bootstrap.yml` playbook will reboot the nodes at the appropriate times. Once they return to service, the PVC cluster will be ready to use or modify further. 1. To perform future updates to the cluster configuration, such as adding additional nodes or changing configuration variables, execute the `update.yml` playbook instead. This playbook is very similar to the `bootstrap.yml` playbook but with tweaks to prevent unneccessary disruption to the core cluster. ## Manual ### Virtual Manager only 1. On the first 3 physical servers, deploy Zookeeper (Debian packages `zookeeper` and `zookeeperd`) in a cluster configuration. After this, Zookeeper should be available on port `2181` on all 3 nodes. 1. Install the PVC packages generated in the previous section. Use `apt -f install` to correct dependency issues. The `pvcd` service will fail to start; this is expected. 1. Create the `/etc/pvc/pvcd.yaml` daemon configuration file, using the template available at `/etc/pvc/pvcd.sample.yaml`. An example configuration for a virtual manager only cluster's first host would be: --- pvc: node: node1 functions: enable_hypervisor: True enable_networking: False enable_storage: False cluster: coordinators: - node1 - node2 - node3 system: fencing: intervals: keepalive_interval: 5 fence_intervals: 6 suicide_intervals: 0 actions: successful_fence: migrate failed_fence: None ipmi: host: node1-lom # Ensure this is reachable from the nodes user: myipmiuser pass: myipmiPassw0rd migration: target_selector: mem configuration: directories: dynamic_directory: "/run/pvc" log_directory: "/var/log/pvc" logging: file_logging: True stdout_logging: True 1. Start the PVC daemon (`systemctl start pvcd`) on the first node. On startup, the daemon will connect to the Zookeeper cluster and automatically add itself to the configuration. Verify it is running with `journalctl -u pvcd -o cat` and that it is sending keepalives to the cluster. 1. Use the client CLI on the first node to verify the node is up and running: $ pvc node list Name St: Daemon Coordinator Domain Res: VMs CPUs Load Mem (M): Total Used Free VMs node1 run primary flushed 0 24 0.41 91508 2620 88888 0 The `Daemon` mode should be `run`, and on initial startup the `Domain` mode will be `flushed` to prevent VMs being immediately provisioned or migrated to the new node. 1. Start the PVC daemon on the other nodes as well, verifying their status in the same way as the first node. 1. Use the client CLI on the first node to set the first node into ready state: $ pvc node ready node1 Restoring hypervisor node1 to active service. The `Domain` state for the node will now be `ready`. 1. Repeat the previous step for the other two nodes. The cluster is now ready to handle virtual machines. 1. Provision a KVM virtual machine using whatever tools or methods you choose, and obtain the Libvirt `.xml` domain definition file. Note that virtual network bridges should use the form `vmbrXXX`, where `XXX` is the vLAN ID or another numeric identifier. 1. Define the VM in the cluster using the CLI tool: $ pvc vm define --target node1 path/to/test1.xml Adding new VM with Name "test1" and UUID "5115d00f-9f11-4899-9edf-5a35bf76d6b4" to database. 1. Verify that the new VM is present: $ pvc vm list Name UUID State Networks RAM (M) vCPUs Node Migrated test1 5115d00f-9f11-4899-9edf-5a35bf76d6b4 stop 101 1024 1 node1 no 1. Start the new VM and verify it is running: $ pvc vm start test1 Starting VM "5115d00f-9f11-4899-9edf-5a35bf76d6b4". $ pvc vm info test1 Virtual machine information: UUID: 5115d00f-9f11-4899-9edf-5a35bf76d6b4 Name: test1 Description: Testing host Memory (M): 1024 vCPUs: 1 Topology (S/C/T): 1/1/1 State: start Current Node: node1 Previous Node: N/A Networks: 101 [invalid] Congratulations, you have deployed a simple PVC cluster! Add any further VMs or nodes you require using the same procedure, though additional nodes do not need to be in the `coordinators:` list. ### With virtual networking support In addition to a virtual manager only setup, PVC v0.4 supports a setup with virtual networking support as well. This configuration enables management of both simple bridged and managed networking within the cluster, and requires additional setup steps. 1. Perform the first 4 steps of the previous section. 1. Deploy a Patroni PostgreSQL cluster among the coordinators. Follow the [PowerDNS guide](https://doc.powerdns.com/md/authoritative/backend-generic-pgsql/#default-schema) to create a PowerDNS authoritative database schema on the cluster. 1. Configure the `/etc/pvc/pvcd.yaml` file based on the `/etc/pvc/pvcd.sample.yaml` file, this time not removing any major sections. Fill in the required values for the MySQL DNS database, the various interfaces and networks, and set `enable_networking: True`. 1. Proceed with the remainder of the previous section. 1. Configure networks with the `pvc network` CLI utility: $ pvc network add 1001 -p bridged -d test-net-1 Network "test-net-1" added successfully! $ pvc network add 1002 -p managed -d test-net-2 -i 10.200.0.0/24 -g 10.200.0.1 Network "test-net-2" added successfully! $ pvc network list VNI Description Type Domain IPv6 DHCPv6 IPv4 DHCPv4 1001 test1 bridged None False False False False 1002 test2 managed test2 False False True False 1. Configure any static ACLs, enable DHCP, or perform other network management functions using the CLI utility. See `pvc network -h` for the high-level commands available.