This article provides a quick overview on how to configure Nutanix. In particular for this scenario we are using the Nutanix Community Edition nested on VMware vSphere environment. Same considerations also apply when using VMware Workstation to create our testing environments.
At a first glance there’s not so much to do to configure Nutanix platform. Pretty much the main installer created the main configurations to get started. Of course we can update,edit or create new configuration to suit our needs. For example we can add or modify the number of physical disks to accommodate different tiers of storage. Create network configurations and even different types of storage containers we can use for different purposes. We’ll cover these ones in more details.
So to get started after installing Nutanix Community Edition we can leverage the “PRISM” component to manage our Nutanix cluster using a web based console.
To access the PRISM console we can simply browse to https://CVM_ADDRESS or https://CVM_ADDRESS:9440 in case connection is not redirected. Let’s accept the warning about the certificate and use PRISM to manage the Nutanix cluster.
Configure Nutanix Community Edition on VMware
First time we login to the PRISM console to configure Nutanix cluster we can use the admin account. By default the credentials are:
- User: admin
- Password: admin
After entering the default credentials the PRISM console will ask to create a new password as per screenshot below.
At this point if the name servers details are correct the Nutanix Controller VM will contact the Nutanix Next Portal to start the registration process.
At this point we can supply the same credentials we use to login to the Nutanix Next Portal to download a copy Nutanix Community Edition. Again let’s make sure DNS names are correctly configured. Failing this it will not be possible to proceed with the registration.
When the activation succeeds PRISM will now load the main page or home page. From this page we have access to the main menus covering all aspects to pretty much configure Nutanix cluster. We can also see the Hypervisor running is Acropolis along with the version number.
In a single pane we access to the most relevant information like available and consumed storage, number of Virtual Machines and status, the actual physical resources allocated to the cluster and their actual consumption and also details about the overall health and alerts.
We’ll cover these sections separately in dedicated articles.
In terms of initial configurations there is not much to do. From an “admin” perspective we can update the profile information plus downloading extra components we can use to manage multiple clusters.
From the settings wheel we have access to other settings we can configure. So for a first time configuration I would suggest the following as per screenshots below.
First is to change the Cluster Name by using the option Settings > Cluster Details. Let’s change this from Unnamed to something more meaningful.
Next is to provide at least a couple of NTP servers. We can easily do this from Settings > NTP Servers.
Another important part regards the updates to the Software components running on the Nutanix Cluster. Namely these are:
- AOS
- File Server
- Hypervisor
- Firmware
- NCC
- Foundation
- Container
In the case of Acropolis Operating System (AOS) at the time of writing is up to date. The Enable Automatic Download is an handy option as it will automatically fetch the latest version and offer the option to upgrade when ready.
The File Server component offer services providing access to advanced cluster features.
Hypervisor section shows the release currently installed. We can use this setting to update to new releases of AHV when available oruploade them directly.
Firmware section includes updated files to access different types of Storage operated by Nutanix cluster.
NCC section covers the Nutanix Control Check scripts which can be used to control, manage and verify health of lots of components.
So if click on download let’s give confirmation and proceed to get the latest version available.
And at this point we can progress with the upgrade of the NCC component.
The Upgrade Software routine checks for the current status.
The software upgrade begins and runs with no further action.
When clicking on open it is possible to see more in detail the actions for the sub-components.
In the Foundation section we can update the components required to help re-imaging the hypervisor components for supported Hardware running Nutanix software.
And finally the Container section not active at this point in time.
And this pretty much concludes a very quick overview of the initial steps to configure Nutanix Community Edition. We haven’t touched upon the Storage, Network and Virtual Machines configurations. We’ll cover all these topics in the next articles and it’s surprisingly easy to use them.
For now I would encourage everyone to try installing Nutanix CE. Before concluding let’s visit a link from Admin settings called “Nothing to do” before signing out. You might be surprised!
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