Deploy StorNext Connect on an Installed and Configured System

Caution: DO NOT use this process if your system is running StorNext 6.2 or later. For systems running StorNext 6.2 or later, see Enable StorNext Connect.

For successful post-deployment of StorNext Connect on single-server node systems, you must configure an HAFS on the system. Using the StorNext Connect Install App, the array would have been configured with 1 HAFS LUN, 1 metadata LUN and 1 data LUN, using a "converged", or "combo" QXS OBC (one-button configuration) profile.

Caution: StorNext Connect deployment will fail without the HAFS being configured on the array.

The single server node must also be converted to operate in HA mode (open the StorNext GUI, and select Tools > High Availability > Convert to enable the StorNext high availability (HA) feature. The system must have an HAFS LUN, and be converted to HA for single-node systems - to make them "HA-ready", which allows an upgade to a second/failover server node in the future. In addition, if you do not use one of the standard Xcellis-supported profiles mentioned above, future expansion will have to be done manually, and not using provisioning commands included in the Service Menu (for systems running StorNext releases earlier than 6.1).

If you have not already installed your hardware, follow the installation instructions below.

  1. Verify your system meets all the minimum requirements. See Planning and Compatibility on the StorNext Connect Doc Center for details.
  2. Log in and download the Legacy Connect Installer file for your system from the myStorNext website at https://mystornext.quantum.com.

  3. Deploy StorNext Connect on the appliance.

    Use the following information to deploy StorNext Connect on a Quantum appliance that has been previously installed and configured.

    Use the same laptop that you used to download the StorNext Connect Install file. At the Upload Install step (internally, this is called the bootstrap), you will use a "Choose file" window to point to the downloaded file. If it is not possible to use the same laptop, you must perform a file transfer from the download laptop to the bootstrap laptop, typically by using a USB drive.

    Install StorNext Connect as close to the time of downloading the Install file as possible so that you use the latest available file and the latest version of the Install app.

    Make sure the Quantum appliance is upgraded to the latest supported software and firmware. See Upgrade the System (Upgrade Firmware) for instructions.

    Quantum strongly recommends using an NTP server. If NTP is not configured, and client stats are transmitted with a time that is later than the time on the StorNext Connect system, the stats are discarded and StorNext Connect does not report accurate monitoring stats.

    Verify that NTP is set up on the appliance (both nodes of a dual-node appliance) and on all clients in the workspace, and that they are configured to use the same NTP server.

    If the NTP server is not set up, Quantum recommends the following steps to set up and start the NTP server time on the appliance server (MDC) node(s) and the clients in the workspace.

    1. Ensure that your local NTP server or public NTP server entry exists in the /etc/ntp.conf file of each host.

      Example

      server us.pool.ntp.org

    2. Ping the selected NTP server to make sure it is accessible.

      ping <NTP server IP address or hostname>

    3. Verify the NTP server entry exists in the /etc/ntp/step-tickers file. If not, add your server.

      Example

      us.pool.ntp.org

    4. Restart the ntpd service:

      service ntpd restart

    5. Verify the ntpd service is running:

      service ntpd status

    StorNext Connect installation requires the appliance to be in a high availability (HA) state, even if the appliance is a single-node system. A dual-node system should be in a normal HA state, where Node 1 is operating as primary and Node 2 is operating as secondary.

    Enter the snhamgr status command on the appliance (MDC Node 2 of a dual-node system) to verify it is in the appropriate HA state.

    Dual-Node Example

    The system's nodes are configured as an HA pair, and MDC Node 2 is not the HA primary. In this example, when logged into the command line of "MDC#2", you can see that the status of node 1, the other (remote) server node is "primary".

    MDC2# snhamgr status

    LocalMode=default

    LocalStatus=running

    RemoteMode=default

    RemoteStatus=primary

    Single-Node Example

    The system is configured for high availability, and the server node is operating as the primary. From the following example, you can see that the local single-server node is "primary", but the snhamgr status command returns a status of "peerdown", meaning the server node is "HA"-ready, but the other server node is currently in an "unknown" state.

    MDC# snhamgr status

    LocalMode=single

    LocalStatus=primary

    RemoteMode=peerdown

    RemoteStatus=unknown

    Complete the following steps on the Quantum appliance that will host the StorNext Connect system. The Install application handles additional preparation of the appliance. As a result, you are expected to use the latest version of the Install app when installing StorNext Connect.

    1. For appliances with a platform version of 5.4.x and later (Connector version 17 and later), skip this step.

      Replace the 10.1.1.2 IP address in the /opt/quantum/connector/etc/connecthostname file on the MDC(s) with the StorNext Connect system's (MDC Node 2 of a dual-node appliance) metadata IP address.

      Example

      192.168.1.6

      Note: As of Connector version 17, if the IP/hostname in /opt/quantum/connector/etc/connecthostname is not valid, the /usr/cvfs/config/ha_peer file contents are used instead.

    2. Change the httpd configuration to enable Apache HTTP Server ports for StorNext Connect, which is needed to use the StorNext Connect Install file.

      For appliances with StorNext 5.4.x or later, you can enable HTTP ports through the StorNext GUI:

      1. In StorNext, open Tools > StorNext Connect Ports.
      2. Click Enable to open the HTTP ports, and then click Yes to confirm.

        After the ports are enabled, you cannot disable them from the StorNext GUI.

      OR

      For appliances with StorNext versions prior to 5.4.x, enable HTTP ports through the command line on the StorNext Connect system (MDC Node 2 of a dual-server node system):

      1. Edit the /etc/httpd/conf/httpd.conf file.

        There should be a single active (uncommented) "Listen" line.

        Example

        Listen 80

        All other "Listen" lines should be commented out.

        Example

        # Listen 10.17.21.2:80

        # Listen 169.254.21.2:80

      2. Restart Apache web service using the following command:
        service httpd restart

    Gather the current name and IP addresses of any QXS RAID Chassis. If the login information for these disk arrays has been changed from factory defaults, also gather this information. QXS storage information will be requested during the Install application sequence.

    You can select a check box to skip the configuration of a QXS RAID Chassis; for example, if your network has not been configured yet or includes replacement disk arrays. Until the QXS RAID Chassis is configured, whether through the Install application or manually, it will not be monitored in StorNext Connect.

    Note: Ignore the tooltips in the Install application for the QXS storage name and IP addresses during deployment of StorNext Connect to operational Quantum appliances.

    Note: Use a supported browser so that the myStorNext website and StorNext Connect display and work properly. See Supported Browsers and Device Operating Systems for a list of supported browsers.

    1. Open a browser to the appliance's (MDC Node 2 of a dual-node system) management/public IP address. This opens the StorNext Connect GUI to the StorNext Connect Install Welcome screen (Upload Install step).
    2. Upload the Legacy Connect Installer file you downloaded earlier. This may take several minutes.

      Note: Install StorNext Connect as close to the time of downloading the Legacy Connect Installer file as possible so that you use the latest available file and the latest version of StorNext Connect software and applications.

      When the upload completes, you will see a login screen.

    3. Log in using the same credentials you used to log into the myStorNext website.
    4. Follow the steps to complete the StorNext Connect installation.

    Upon successful completion of the StorNext Connect installation, the StorNext Connect Dashboard is displayed.

    If a dual-node system is in a failover HA state, where Node 2 is operating as the primary, when you start the StorNext Connect installation, the snc_disable.py script runs to prevent StorNext Connect from being co-located on the same server node as StorNext. The browser window shows a message with a link labeled "Enable StorNext Connect."

    Caution: Do not click the "Enable StorNext Connect" link.

    Complete the following workaround to restore the system to a normal HA state before continuing with the StorNext Connect installation.

    1. Open an SSH connection to Node 2.
    2. Enter the following command to restore the system to a normal HA state:
      service cvfs restart
    3. Wait for the process to complete, and enter the following command to verify Node 2 is operating as secondary:
      snhamgr status
    4. Close the SSH session for the node.
    5. Refresh the browser window.
    6. Continue the StorNext Connect installation.

    Verify that both of the Xcellis Workflow Director nodes have the latest Connector version by going to the Discover Components application and clicking the Add or update Connectors link. Verify that the numbers in the Connector Release column for each node match. If the Connector release numbers for the nodes do not match, follow the steps below to update the Connector on Node 1.

    1. Open an SSH connection to Node 1.

    2. Enter the following commands to update the Connector on Node 1:

      mkdir /tmp/anyname

      cd /tmp/anyname

      scp stornext@node2:/var/www/html/connect-1.1.0/discover/content/snconnect_client-RedHat7_x86_64-16-27332626.tar.gz .

      tar -zxvf snconnect_client-RedHat7*

      ./snconnect_client/install_connector.sh <node2 ip addr>

    3. Enter the following command to verify the Connector version:

      /opt/quantum/connector/plugins/system/snconnect_client_version.py

    4. Close the SSH session for the node.
    5. Using the StorNext Connect GUI, click Rediscover in the Discover Components application to update system information.
  4. Update all applications (see Manage Applications).
  5. Install or update the Connector (see Install the Connector on Clients or Update the Connector on Clients).
  6. Perform any additional tasks in Post-Deployment Tasks.