You are on page 1of 61

Field Installation Guide

Foundation 2.1
26-Aug-2015

Notice
Copyright
Copyright 2015 Nutanix, Inc.
Nutanix, Inc.
1740 Technology Drive, Suite 150
San Jose, CA 95110
All rights reserved. This product is protected by U.S. and international copyright and intellectual property
laws. Nutanix is a trademark of Nutanix, Inc. in the United States and/or other jurisdictions. All other marks
and names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies.

License
The provision of this software to you does not grant any licenses or other rights under any Microsoft
patents with respect to anything other than the file server implementation portion of the binaries for this
software, including no licenses or any other rights in any hardware or any devices or software that are used
to communicate with or in connection with this software.

Conventions
Convention

Description

variable_value

The action depends on a value that is unique to your environment.

ncli> command

The commands are executed in the Nutanix nCLI.

user@host$ command

The commands are executed as a non-privileged user (such as nutanix)


in the system shell.

root@host# command

The commands are executed as the root user in the vSphere or Acropolis
host shell.

> command

The commands are executed in the Hyper-V host shell.

output

The information is displayed as output from a command or in a log file.

Default Cluster Credentials


Interface

Target

Username

Password

Nutanix web console

Nutanix Controller VM

admin

admin

vSphere client

ESXi host

root

nutanix/4u

Copyright | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 2

Interface

Target

Username

Password

SSH client or console

ESXi host

root

nutanix/4u

SSH client or console

Acropolis host

root

nutanix/4u

SSH client or console

Hyper-V host

Administrator

nutanix/4u

SSH client

Nutanix Controller VM

nutanix

nutanix/4u

Version
Last modified: August 26, 2015 (2015-08-26 16:25:24 GMT-7)

Copyright | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 3

Contents
Release Notes................................................................................................................... 5

1: Field Installation Overview..................................................................... 7

Imaging Nodes..................................................................................................................................... 7
Summary: Imaging a Cluster.................................................................................................... 7
Summary: Imaging a Node.......................................................................................................8
Supported Hypervisors.........................................................................................................................8

2: Preparing Installation Environment.......................................................9

Preparing a Workstation...................................................................................................................... 9
Setting Up the Network..................................................................................................................... 13

3: Imaging a Cluster.................................................................................. 15

Configuring Global Parameters......................................................................................................... 16


Configuring Node Parameters........................................................................................................... 18
Configuring Image Parameters..........................................................................................................22
Configuring Cluster Parameters........................................................................................................ 23
Monitoring Progress........................................................................................................................... 25
Cleaning Up After Installation............................................................................................................28

4: Imaging a Node..................................................................................... 29

Installing a Hypervisor....................................................................................................................... 29
Installing ESXi......................................................................................................................... 32
Installing Hyper-V.................................................................................................................... 33
Installing KVM......................................................................................................................... 37
Installing the Controller VM............................................................................................................... 44

5: Downloading Installation Files.............................................................48

Foundation Files.................................................................................................................................50
Phoenix Files......................................................................................................................................51

6: Hypervisor ISO Images......................................................................... 52


7: Setting IPMI Static IP Address.............................................................54
8: Troubleshooting.....................................................................................56
Fixing IPMI Configuration Problems.................................................................................................. 56
Fixing Imaging Problems................................................................................................................... 57
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)...................................................................................................58

Release Notes
Foundation Release 2.1.2
This release includes the following enhancements and changes:

Support for the NX-9060-G4 platform.


Support for the Acropolis hypervisor (AHV) 20150616 installer. (This installer is not supported in earlier
Foundation releases.)
Resolved an issue where an ESX install would intermittently fail at first boot complaining about a
missing datastore1" [ENG-36019].
You can upgrade from Foundation 2.1.x to 2.1.2 using the steps described for a 2.0.x to 2.1 upgrade in
the "Foundation Release 2.1" section.

Foundation Release 2.1.1.1


This release includes a fix to support the Firefox and Safari browsers during the cluster creation step
[ENG-33759]. Foundation 2.1.1 works properly with Chrome and Internet Explorer, so Foundation 2.1.1.1 is
needed only if you are using Firefox or Safari. In addition, the instructions for installing the Hyper-V or KVM
hypervisor on a single node using a Phoenix ISO (instead of using Foundation and a NOS tarball to image
a single node) have been updated in this guide (see Installing Hyper-V on page 33 or Installing KVM on
page 37).
Foundation Release 2.1.1
This release includes the following enhancements and changes:

Support for three new platforms: NX-3175-G4, 1065S and 1065-G4


Support for ESXi 6.0 as the hypervisor (see Hypervisor ISO Images on page 52).
Expanded support for clusters with NX-6035C nodes (always imaged with KVM) to allow either Hyper-V
or ESXi imaging of the other nodes. (Previously, only ESXi was supported.)
Additional bug fixes for a smoother imaging experience.
You can upgrade from Foundation 2.1 to 2.1.1 using the steps described for a 2.0.x to 2.1 upgrade in
the following section.
Always use the latest version of Foundation when possible. The latest version provides the highest
feature maturity and latest hardware support. For example, only Foundation 2.1.1 (or later) supports the
firmware version (4.42) used in quad-port Haswell models.

Foundation Release 2.1


This release includes the following enhancements and changes:

Added support for the NX-6035C. Foundation will image the NX-6035C using KVM in parallel with ESXi
imaging on other nodes.
Foundation now installs NOS using the upgrade tarball rather than a Phoenix ISO, and it supports any
NOS version greater than 3.5. You can download the Foundation files and the NOS tarball from the
support portal (see Downloading Installation Files on page 48).
Foundation now installs KVM using a Nutanix KVM ISO. The ISO is included in Foundation by default
at /home/nutanix/foundation/isos/hypervisor/kvm, and future updates will be made available on the
support portal.
Foundation supports KVM on NOS version 4.1 or later; it does not support KVM on earlier NOS
versions.
Previous versions of Foundation used a 24 GB virtual disk, but Foundation 2.1 uses a 30 GB virtual
disk.
Release Notes | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 5

There is a new procedure when using Phoenix to install KVM on a node (see Installing a Hypervisor on
page 29).
Because Foundation 2.1 includes a new OVF file, it is recommended that all users install Foundation
2.1 from scratch (see Preparing a Workstation on page 9). However, it is possible to upgrade
to version 2.1 from version 2.0.x using the following steps. (Upgrading from a pre-2.0 version is not
supported.)
1. Copy the Foundation tarball (foundation-version#.tar.gz) from the support portal to /home/nutanix
in your VM.
2. Navigate to /home/nutanix.
3. Enter the following five commands:
$
$
$
$
$

sudo service foundation_service stop


rm -rf foundation
tar xzf foundation-version#.tar.gz
sudo yum install python-scp
sudo service foundation_service restart

If the first command (foundation_service stop) is skipped or the commands are not run in order, the
user may get bizarre errors after upgrading. To fix this situation, enter the following two commands:
$ sudo pkill -9 foundation
$ sudo service foundation_service restart

Release Notes | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 6

1
Field Installation Overview
Nutanix installs the KVM hypervisor and the Nutanix Operating System (NOS) Controller VM at the factory
before shipping a node to a customer. To use a different hypervisor (ESXi or Hyper-V) on factory nodes
or to use any hypervisor on bare metal nodes, the nodes must be imaged in the field. This guide provides
step-by-step instructions on how to image nodes (install a hypervisor and then the NOS Controller VM)
after they have been physically installed at a site and configure the nodes into one or more clusters.
Note: Only Nutanix sales engineers, support engineers, and partners are authorized to perform
a field installation. Field installation can be used to cleanly install new nodes (blocks) in a cluster
or to install a different hypervisor on a single node. It should not be used to upgrade the
hypervisor or switch hypervisors of nodes in an existing cluster. (You can use the Foundation
tool to re-image nodes in an existing cluster that you no longer want by first destroying the cluster.)

Imaging Nodes
A field installation can be performed for a cluster (multiple nodes that can be configured as one or more
clusters) or a single node.

Summary: Imaging a Cluster


Details of these steps are in Preparing Installation Environment on page 9 (step 1) and Imaging a
Cluster on page 15 (step 2).
1. Set up the installation environment as follows:
a. Download Foundation (multi-node installation tool), NOS package, and hypervisor ISO image files to
a workstation. When installing ESXi or Hyper-V, the customer must provide a hypervisor ISO image
file.
b. Install Oracle VM VirtualBox on the workstation and configure the Foundation VM.
c. Connect the Ethernet ports on the nodes to a switch.
2. Open the Foundation GUI on the workstation and configure the following:
a. Specify global parameters (IPMI, hypervisor, and Controller VM addresses and credential
information).
b. Identify the nodes to image (configure discovered nodes and add bare metal nodes as desired).
c. Select the hypervisor ISO image and NOS package files to use.
d. [optional] Create cluster(s) and assign nodes to the cluster(s).
e. Start the imaging process and monitor progress.

Field Installation Overview | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 7

Summary: Imaging a Node


Details of these steps are in Imaging a Node on page 29.
Note: You can use either Foundation (cluster procedure above) or this procedure using a tool
called Phoenix to image a single node.
1. Download Foundation and NOS tarballs to a workstation. If installing ESXi or Hyper-V as the hypervisor,
also download an ESXi or Hyper-V ISO image.
2. Create a Phoenix ISO image file (derived from the Foundation and NOS tarballs).
3. Sign into the IPMI web console for that node, attach a hypervisor ISO image file, provide required node
information, and then restart the node.
4. Repeat step 3 for the Phoenix ISO image file.

Supported Hypervisors
Foundation supports imaging an ESXi, Hyper-V, or KVM hypervisor on any Nutanix hardware model except
for the following:

Foundation does not support the NX-2000 and NX-3000 series. (This refers to the original NX-3000
series only. The NX-3050/3060 series is supported.)
Hyper-V requires a 64 GB DOM.
NX-7000 series:

ESXi version 5.1 or later is supported; earlier ESXi versions are not supported.
Hyper-V standard and datacenter versions are supported; the free version is not supported.
Note: See Hypervisor ISO Images on page 52 for a list of supported ESXi and Hyper-V
versions.

Field Installation Overview | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 8

2
Preparing Installation Environment
Imaging is performed from a workstation with access to the IPMI interfaces of the nodes in the cluster.
Imaging a cluster in the field requires first installing certain tools on the workstation and then setting the
environment to run those tools. This requires two preparation tasks:
Video: Click here to see a video (MP4 format) demonstration of this procedure. (The video may
not reflect the latest features described in this section.)
1. Prepare the workstation. Preparing the workstation can be done on or off site at any time prior to
installation. This includes downloading ISO images, installing Oracle VM VirtualBox, and using
VirtualBox to configure various parameters on the Foundation VM (see Preparing a Workstation on
page 9).
2. Set up the network. The nodes and workstation must have network access to each other through a
switch at the site (see Setting Up the Network on page 13).

Preparing a Workstation
A workstation is needed to host the Foundation VM during imaging. To prepare the workstation, do the
following:
Note: You can perform these steps either before going to the installation site (if you use a portable
laptop) or at the site (if you can connect to the web).
1. Get a workstation (laptop or desktop computer) that you can use for the installation.
The workstation must have at least 3 GB of memory (Foundation VM size plus 1 GB), 25 GB of disk
space (preferably SSD), and a physical (wired) network adapter.
2. Go to the Foundation and NOS download pages in the Nutanix support portal (see Downloading
Installation Files on page 48) and download the following files to a temporary directory on the
workstation.

Foundation_VM_OVF-version#.tar. This tar file includes the following files:

Foundation_VM-version#.ovf. This is the Foundation VM OVF configuration file for the version#
release, for example Foundation_VM-2.1.ovf.

Foundation_VM-version#-disk1.vmdk. This is the Foundation VM VMDK file for the version#


release, for example Foundation_VM-2.1-disk1.vmdk.

VirtualBox-version#-[OSX|Win].[dmg|exe]. This is the Oracle VM VirtualBox installer for Mac


OS (VirtualBox-version#-OSX.dmg) or Windows (VirtualBox-version#-Win.exe). Oracle VM

VirtualBox is a free open source tool used to create a virtualized environment on the workstation.
Note: Links to the VirtualBox files may not appear on the download page for every
Foundation version. (The Foundation 2.0 download page has links to the VirtualBox files.)

nutanix_installer_package-version#.tar.gz. This is the tarball used for imaging the desired NOS

release. Go to the NOS Releases download page on the support portal to download this file. (You
can download all the other files from the Foundation download page.)

Preparing Installation Environment | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 9

3. Go to the download location and extract Foundation_VM_OVF-version#.tar by entering the following


command:
$ tar -xf Foundation_VM_OVF-version#.tar

Note: This assumes the tar command is available. If it is not, use the corresponding tar utility
for your environment.
4. Open the Oracle VM VirtualBox installer and install Oracle VM VirtualBox using the default options.
See the Oracle VM VirtualBox User Manual for installation and start up instructions (https://
www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Documentation).
Note: This section describes how to use Oracle VM VirtualBox to create a virtual environment.
Optionally, you can use an alternate tool such as VMware vSphere in place of Oracle VM
VirtualBox.
5. Create a new folder called VirtualBox VMs in your home directory.
On a Windows system this is typically C:\Users\user_name\VirtualBox VMs.
6. Copy the Foundation_VM-version#.ovf and Foundation_VM-version#-disk1.vmdk files to the VirtualBox
VMs folder that you created in step 5.
7. Start Oracle VM VirtualBox.

Figure: VirtualBox Welcome Screen


8. Click the File option of the main menu and then select Import Appliance from the pull-down list.
9. Find and select the Foundation_VM-version#.ovf file, and then click Next.
10. Click the Import button.
11. In the left column of the main screen, select Foundation_VM-version# and click Start.
The Foundation VM console launches and the VM operating system boots.
12. At the login screen, login as the Nutanix user with the password nutanix/4u.
The Foundation VM desktop appears (after it loads).
13. If you want to enable file drag-and-drop functionality between your workstation and the Foundation VM,
install Oracle Additions as follows:

Preparing Installation Environment | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 10

a. On the VirtualBox window for the Foundation VM, select Devices > Insert Guest Additions CD
Image... from the menu.
A VBOXADDITIONS CD entry appears on the Foundation VM desktop.
b. Click OK when prompted to Open Autorun Prompt and then click Run.
c. Enter the root password (nutanix/4u) and then click Authenticate.
d. After the installation is complete, press the return key to close the VirtualBox Guest Additions
installation window.
e. Right-click the VBOXADDITIONS CD entry on the desktop and select Eject.
f. Reboot the Foundation VM by selecting System > Shutdown... > Restart from the Linux GUI.
Note: A reboot is necessary for the changes to take effect.
g. After the Foundation VM reboots, select Devices > Drag 'n' Drop > Bidirectional from the menu on
the VirtualBox window for the Foundation VM.
14. Open a terminal session and run the ifconfig command to determine if the Foundation VM was able to
get an IP address from the DHCP server.
If the Foundation VM has a valid IP address, skip to the next step. Otherwise, configure a static IP as
follows:
Note: Normally, the Foundation VM needs to be on a public network in order to copy selected
ISO files to the Foundation VM in the next two steps. This might require setting a static IP
address now and setting it again when the workstation is on a different (typically private)
network for the installation (see Imaging a Cluster on page 15).
a. Double click the set_foundation_ip_address icon on the Foundation VM desktop.

Figure: Foundation VM: Desktop


b. In the pop-up window, click the Run in Terminal button.

Preparing Installation Environment | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 11

Figure: Foundation VM: Terminal Window


c. In the Select Action box in the terminal window, select Device Configuration.
Note: Selections in the terminal window can be made using the indicated keys only. (Mouse
clicks do not work.)

Figure: Foundation VM: Action Box


d. In the Select a Device box, select eth0.

Figure: Foundation VM: Device Configuration Box


e. In the Network Configuration box, remove the asterisk in the Use DHCP field (which is set by
default), enter appropriate addresses in the Static IP, Netmask, and Default gateway IP fields, and
then click the OK button.

Preparing Installation Environment | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 12

Figure: Foundation VM: Network Configuration Box


f. Click the Save button in the Select a Device box and the Save & Quit button in the Select Action
box.
This save the configuration and closes the terminal window.
15. Copy nutanix_installer_package-version#.tar.gz (downloaded in step 2) to the /home/nutanix/
foundation/nos folder.
16. If you intend to install ESXi or Hyper-V as the hypervisor, download the hypervisor ISO image into the
appropriate folder for that hypervisor.

ESXi ISO image: /home/nutanix/foundation/isos/hypervisor/esx


Hyper-V ISO image: /home/nutanix/foundation/isos/hypervisor/hyperv
Note: Customers must provide a supported ESXi or Hyper-V ISO image (see Hypervisor ISO
Images on page 52). Customers do not have to provide a KVM image because Foundation
automatically puts a KVM ISO into /home/nutanix/foundation/isos/hypervisor/kvm.

Setting Up the Network


The network must be set up properly on site before imaging nodes through the Foundation tool. To set up
the network connections, do the following:
Note: You can connect to either a managed switch (routing tables) or a flat switch (no routing
tables). A flat switch is often recommended to protect against configuration errors that could affect
the production environment. Foundation includes a multi-homing feature that allows you to image
the nodes using production IP addresses despite being connected to a flat switch (see Imaging a
Cluster on page 15).
1. Connect the first 1 GbE network interface of each node to a 1GbE Ethernet switch. The IPMI LAN
interfaces of the nodes must be in failover mode (factory default setting).
The exact location of the port depends on the model type. See the hardware manual for your model
to determine the port location. The following figure illustrates the location on the back of an NX-3050
(middle RJ-45 interface).

Preparing Installation Environment | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 13

Figure: Port Locations (NX-3050)

Note: Unlike Nutanix systems, which only require that you connect the 1 GbE port, Dell
systems require that you connect both the iDRAC port (which is used instead of an IPMI port)
and one of the 1 GbE ports.

Figure: Port Locations (Dell System)


2. Connect the installation workstation (see Preparing a Workstation on page 9) to the same 1 GbE
switch as the nodes.

Preparing Installation Environment | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 14

3
Imaging a Cluster
This procedure describes how to install a selected hypervisor and the NOS Controller VM on multiple new
nodes and optionally configure the nodes into one or more clusters.
Before you begin:

Physically install the Nutanix cluster at your site. See the Physical Installation Guide for your model type
for installation instructions.
Set up the installation environment (see Preparing Installation Environment on page 9).
Note: If you changed the boot device order in the BIOS to boot from a USB flash drive, you will
get a Foundation timeout error if you do not change the boot order back to virtual CD-ROM in
the BIOS.
Note: If STP (spanning tree protocol) is enabled, it can cause Foundation to timeout during the
imaging process. Therefore, disable STP before starting Foundation.
Note: Avoid connecting any device (that is, plugging it into a USB port on a node) that presents
virtual media, such as CDROM. This could conflict with the foundation installation when it tries
to mount the virtual CDROM hosting the install ISO.

Have ready the appropriate global, node, and cluster parameter values needed for installation.
Note: If the Foundation VM IP address set previously was configured in one (typically public)
network environment and you are imaging the cluster on a different (typically private) network
in which the current address is no longer correct, repeat step 13 in Preparing a Workstation on
page 9 to configure a new static IP address for the Foundation VM.

To image the nodes and create a cluster(s), do the following:


Video: Click here to see a video (MP4 format) demonstration of this procedure. (The video may
not reflect the latest features described in this section.)
1. Start the Foundation VM and configure global parameters (see Configuring Global Parameters on
page 16).
2. Configure the nodes to image (see Configuring Node Parameters on page 18).
3. Select the images to use (see Configuring Image Parameters on page 22).
4. [optional] Configure one or more clusters to create and assign nodes to the clusters (see Configuring
Cluster Parameters on page 23).
5. Start the imaging process and monitor progress (see Monitoring Progress on page 25).
6. If a problem occurs during configuration or imaging, evaluate and resolve the problem (see
Troubleshooting on page 56).
7. [optional] Clean up the Foundation environment after completing the installation (see Cleaning Up After
Installation on page 28).

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 15

Configuring Global Parameters


Before you begin: Complete Imaging a Cluster on page 15.
Video: Click here to see a video (MP4 format) demonstration of this procedure, or click here to
see a video demonstration of the complete cluster imaging procedure. (The videos may not reflect
the latest features described in this section.)
1. Click the Nutanix Foundation icon on the Foundation VM desktop to start the Foundation GUI.
Note: See Preparing Installation Environment on page 9 if Oracle VM VirtualBox is not started
or the Foundation VM is not running currently. You can also start the Foundation GUI by
opening a web browser and entering http://localhost:8000/gui/index.html.

Figure: Foundation VM Desktop

The Global Configuration screen appears. Use this screen to configure network addresses.
Note: You can access help from the gear icon
pull-down menu (top right), but this
requires Internet access. If necessary, copy the help URL to a browser with Internet access.

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 16

Figure: Global Configuration Screen


2. In the top section of the screen, enter appropriate values for the IPMI, hypervisor, and Controller VM in
the indicated fields:
Note: The parameters in this section are global and will apply to all the imaged nodes.

Figure: Global Configuration Screen: IPMI, Hypervisor, and CVM Parameters

a. IPMI Netmask: Enter the IPMI netmask value.


b. IPMI Gateway: Enter an IP address for the gateway.
c. IPMI Username: Enter the IPMI user name. The default user name is ADMIN.
d. IPMI Password: Enter the IPMI password. The default password is ADMIN.
Check the show password box to display the password as you type it.
e. Hypervisor Netmask: Enter the hypervisor netmask value.
f. Hypervisor Gateway: Enter an IP address for the gateway.
g. DNS Server IP: Enter the IP address of the DNS server.
h. CVM Netmask: Enter the Controller VM netmask value.

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 17

i. CVM Gateway: Enter an IP address for the gateway.


j. CVM Memory: Select a memory size for the Controller VM from the pull-down list.
This field is set initially to default. (The default amount varies according to the node model type.)
The other options allow you to specify a memory size of 16 GB, 24 GB, 32 GB, or 64 GB. The
default setting represents the recommended amount for the model type. Assigning more memory
than the default might be appropriate when using advanced features such as deduplication or
compression. In addition, it is recommended that storage heavy nodes (those with 20 TB or more of
capacity) have at least 24 GB of memory.
Note: Use the default memory setting unless Nutanix support recommends a different
setting.
3. If you are using a flat switch (no routing tables) for installation and require access to multiple subnets,
check the Multi-Homing box in the bottom section of the screen.
When the box is checked, a line appears to enter Foundation VM virtual IP addresses. The purpose
of the multi-homing feature is to allow the Foundation VM to configure production IP addresses when
using a flat switch. Multi-homing assigns the Foundation VM virtual IP addresses on different subnets
so that you can use customer-specified IP addresses regardless of their subnet.

Enter unique IPMI, hypervisor, and Controller VM IP addresses. Make sure that the addresses
match the subnets specified for the nodes to be imaged (see Configuring Node Parameters on
page 18).
If this box is not checked, Foundation requires that either all IP addresses are on the same subnet or
that the configured IPMI, hypervisor, and Controller VM IP addresses are routable.

Figure: Global Configuration Screen: Multi-Homing


4. Click the Next button at the bottom of the screen to configure the nodes to be imaged (see Configuring
Node Parameters on page 18).

Configuring Node Parameters


Before you begin: Complete Configuring Global Parameters on page 16.
Video: Click here to see a video (MP4 format) demonstration of this procedure, or click here to
see a video demonstration of the complete cluster imaging procedure. (The videos may not reflect
the latest features described in this section.)
The Block & Node Config screen appears. This screen allows you to configure discovered nodes and
add other (bare metal) nodes to be imaged. Upon opening this screen, Foundation searches the network
for unconfigured Nutanix nodes (that is, factory prepared nodes that are not part of a cluster) and then
displays information about the discovered blocks and nodes. The discovery process can take several
minutes if there are many nodes on the network. Wait for the discovery process to complete before
proceeding. The message "Searching for nodes. This may take a while" appears during discovery.
Note: Foundation discovers nodes on the same subnet as the Foundation VM only. Any nodes
to be imaged that reside on a different subnet must be added explicitly (see step 2). In addition,

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 18

Foundation discovers unconfigured Nutanix nodes only. If you are running Foundation on a
preconfigured block with an existing cluster and you want Foundation to image those nodes, you
must first destroy the existing cluster in order for Foundation to discover those nodes.

Figure: Node Configuration Screen

1. Review the list of discovered nodes.


A table appears with a section for each discovered block that includes information about each node in
the block.

You can exclude a block by clicking the X on the far right of that block. The block disappears from
the display, and the nodes in that block will not be imaged. Clicking the X on the top line removes all
the displayed blocks.
To repeat the discovery process (search for unconfigured nodes again), click the Retry Discovery
button. You can reset all the global and node entries to the default state by selecting Reset
Configuration from the gear icon

pull-down menu.

2. To image additional (bare metal) nodes, click the Add Blocks button.
A window appears to add a new block. Do the following in the indicated fields:

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 19

Figure: Add Bare Metal Blocks Window

a. Number of Blocks: Enter the number of blocks to add.


b. Nodes per Block: Enter the number of nodes to add in each block.
All added blocks get the same number of nodes. To add multiple blocks with differing nodes per
block, add the blocks as separate actions.
c. Click the Create button.
The window closes and the new blocks appear at the end of the discovered blocks table.
3. Configure the fields for each node as follows:
a. Block ID: Do nothing in this field because it is a unique identifier for the block that is assigned
automatically.
b. Position: Uncheck the boxes for any nodes you do not want to be imaged.
The value (A, B, and so on) indicates the node placement in the block such as A, B, C, D for a fournode block. You can exclude the node in that block position from being imaged by unchecking the
appropriate box. You can check (or uncheck) all boxes by clicking Select All or (Unselect All) above
the table on the right.
c. IPMI Mac Address: For any nodes you added in step 2, enter the MAC address of the IPMI
interface in this field.
Foundation requires that you provide the MAC address for nodes it has not discovered. (This field is
read-only for discovered nodes and displays a value of "N/A" for those nodes.) The MAC address of
the IPMI interface normally appears on a label on the back of each node. (Make sure you enter the
MAC address from the label that starts with "IPMI:", not the one that starts with "LAN:".) The MAC
address appears in the standard form of six two-digit hexadecimal numbers separated by colons, for
example 00:25:90:D9:01:98.
Caution: Any existing data on the node will be destroyed during imaging. If you are using
the add node option to re-image a previously used node, do not proceed until you have
saved all the data on the node that you want to keep.

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 20

Figure: IPMI MAC Address Label


d. IPMI IP: Do one of the following in this field:
Note: If you are using a flat switch, the IP addresses must be on the same subnet as the
Foundation VM unless you configure multi-homing (see Configuring Global Parameters on
page 16).

To specify the IPMI addresses manually, go to the line for each node and enter (or update) the IP
address in that field.
To specify the IPMI addresses automatically, enter a starting IP address in the top line ("Start
IP address" field) of the IPMI IP column. The entered address is assigned to the IPMI port of
the first node, and consecutive IP addresses (starting from the entered address) are assigned
automatically to the remaining nodes. Discovered nodes are sorted first by block ID and then by
position, so IP assignments are sequential. If you do not want all addresses to be consecutive,
you can change the IP address for specific nodes by updating the address in the appropriate
fields for those nodes.
Note: Automatic assignment is not used for addresses ending in 0, 1, 254, or 255
because such addresses are commonly reserved by network administrators.

e. Hypervisor IP: Repeat the previous step for this field.


This sets the hypervisor IP addresses for all the nodes.
f. CVM IP: Repeat the previous step for this field.
This sets the Controller VM IP addresses for all the nodes.
Caution: The Nutanix high availability features require that both hypervisor and Controller
VM be in the same subnet. Putting them in different subnets reduces the failure protection
provided by Nutanix and can lead to other problems. Therefore, it is strongly recommended
that you keep both hypervisor and Controller VM in the same subnet.
g. Hypervisor Hostname: Do one of the following in this field:

A host name is automatically generated for each host ( NTNX-unique_identifier). If these names
are acceptable, do nothing in this field.
Caution: Windows computer names (used in Hyper-V) have a 15 character limit. The
automatically generated names might be longer than 15 characters, which would result
in the same truncated name for multiple hosts in a Windows environment. Therefore, do
not use automatically generated names longer than 15 characters when the hypervisor is
Hyper-V.

To specify the host names manually, go to the line for each node and enter the desired name in
that field.
To specify the host names automatically, enter a base name in the top line of the Hypervisor
Hostname column. The base name with a suffix of "-1" is assigned as the host name of the first
node, and the base name with "-2", "-3" and so on are assigned automatically as the host names
of the remaining nodes. You can specify different names for selected nodes by updating the entry
in the appropriate field for those nodes.

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 21

h. NX-6035C : Check this box for any node that is a model NX-6035C.
Model NX-6035C nodes are used for "cold" storage and run nothing but a Controller VM; user VMs
are not allowed. NX-6035C nodes run KVM (and so will be imaged with KVM) regardless of what
hypervisor runs on the other nodes in a cluster (see Configuring Image Parameters on page 22).
4. To check which IP addresses are active and reachable, click Ping Scan (above the table on the right).
This does a ping test to each IP address in the IPMI, hypervisor, and CVM IP fields. A

(returned

response) or
(no response) icon appears next to that field to indicate the ping test result for each
node. This feature is most useful when imaging a previously unconfigured set of nodes. None of
the selected IPs should be pingable. Successful pings usually indicate a conflict with the existing
infrastructure.
Note: When re-imaging a configured set of nodes using the same network configuration, failure
to ping indicates a networking issue.
5. Click the Next button at the bottom of the screen to select the images to use (see Configuring Image
Parameters on page 22).

Configuring Image Parameters


Before you begin: Complete Configuring Node Parameters on page 18.
Video: Click here to see a video (MP4 format) demonstration of this procedure, or click here to
see a video demonstration of the complete cluster imaging procedure. (The videos may not reflect
the latest features described in this section.)
The Node Imaging configuration screen appears. This screen is for selecting the NOS package and
hypervisor image to use when imaging the nodes.

Figure: Node Imaging Screen

1. Select the hypervisor to install from the pull-down list on the left.
The following choices are available:

ESX. Selecting ESX as the hypervisor displays the NOS Package and Hypervisor ISO Image fields
directly below.

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 22

Hyper-V. Selecting Hyper-V as the hypervisor displays the NOS Package, Hypervisor ISO Image,
and SKU fields.
Caution: Nodes must have a 64 GB DOM to install Hyper-V. Attempts to install Hyper-V on
nodes with less DOM capacity will fail.

KVM. Selecting KVM as the hypervisor displays the NOS Package and Hypervisor ISO Image fields.

2. In the NOS Package field, select the NOS package to use from the pull-down list.
Note: Click the Refresh NOS package link to display the current list of available images in
the ~/foundation/nos folder. If the desired NOS package does not appear in the list, you must
download it to the workstation (see Preparing Installation Environment on page 9).
3. In the Hypervisor ISO Image field, select the hypervisor ISO image to use from the pull-down list.
Note: Click the Refresh hypervisor image link to display the current list of available images
in the ~/foundation/isos/hypervisor/[esx|hyperv] folder. If the desired hypervisor ISO image
does not appear in the list, you must download it to the workstation (see Preparing Installation
Environment on page 9). Foundation automatically provides an ISO for KVM imaging in the ~/
foundation/isos/hypervisor/kvm folder.
4. [Hyper-V only] In the SKU field, select the Hyper-V version to use from the pull-down list.
Three Hyper-V versions are supported: free, standard, and datacenter. This field appears only when
you select Hyper-V.
5. When all the settings are correct, do one of the following:
To create a new cluster, click the Next button at the bottom of the screen (see Configuring Cluster
Parameters on page 23).
To start imaging immediately (bypassing cluster configuration), click the Run Installation button at
the top of the screen (see Monitoring Progress on page 25).

Configuring Cluster Parameters


Before you begin: Complete Configuring Image Parameters on page 22.
Video: Click here to see a video (MP4 format) demonstration of this procedure, or click here to
see a video demonstration of the complete cluster imaging procedure. (The videos may not reflect
the latest features described in this section.)
The Clusters configuration screen appears. This screen allows you to create one or more clusters and
assign nodes to those clusters. It also allows you to enable diagnostic and health tests after creating the
cluster(s).

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 23

Figure: Cluster Configuration Screen

1. To add a new cluster that will be created after imaging the nodes, click Create New Cluster in the
Cluster Creation section at the top of the screen.
This section includes a table that is empty initially. A blank line appears in the table for the new cluster.
Enter the following information in the indicated fields:
a. Cluster Name: Enter a cluster name.
b. External IP: Enter an external (virtual) IP address for the cluster.
This field sets a logical IP address that always points to an active Controller VM (provided the cluster
is up), which removes the need to enter the address of a specific Controller VM. This parameter is
required for Hyper-V clusters and is optional for ESXi and KVM clusters. (This applies to NOS 4.0 or
later; it is ignored when imaging an earlier NOS release.)
c. CVM DNS Servers: Enter the Controller VM DNS server IP address or URL.
Enter a comma separated list to specify multiple server addresses in this field (and the next two
fields).
d. CVM NTP Servers: Enter the Controller VM NTP server IP address or URL.
You must enter an NTP server that the Controller VMs can reach. If the NTP server is not reachable
or if the time on the Controller VMs is ahead of the current time, cluster services may fail to start.
Note: For Hyper-V clusters, the CVM NTP Servers parameter must be set to the Active
Directory domain controller.
e. Hypervisor NTP Servers: Enter the hypervisor NTP server IP address or URL.
Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 24

f. Max Redundancy Factor: Select a redundancy factor (2 or 3) for the cluster from the pull-down list.
This parameter specifies the number of times each piece of data is replicated in the cluster (either 2
or 3 copies). It sets how many simultaneous node failures the cluster can tolerate and the minimum
number of nodes required to support that protection.

Setting this to 2 means there will be two copies of data, and the cluster can tolerate the failure of
any single node or drive.
Setting this to 3 means there will be three copies of data, and the cluster can tolerate the failure
of any two nodes or drives in different blocks. A redundancy factor of 3 requires that the cluster
have at least five nodes, and it can be enabled only when the cluster is created. It is an option on
NOS release 4.0 or later. (In addition, containers must have replication factor 3 for guest VM data
to withstand the failure of two nodes.)

2. To run cluster diagnostic and/or health checks after creating a cluster, check the appropriate boxes in
the Post Image Testing section.
Check the Diagnostics box to run a diagnostic utility on the cluster. The diagnostic utility analyzes
several performance metrics on each node in the cluster. These metrics indicate whether the cluster
is performing properly. The results are stored in the ~/foundation/logs/diagnostics directory.
Check the NCC Testing box to run the Nutanix Cluster Check (NCC) test suite. This is a suite of
tests that check a variety of health metrics in the cluster. The results are stored in the ~/foundation/
logs/ncc directory. (This test is available on NOS 4.0 or later. Checking the box does nothing on an
earlier NOS release.)
3. To assign nodes to a new cluster (from step 1), check the boxes for each node in the Block and Nodes
field to be included in that cluster.
A section for each new cluster appears in the bottom of the screen. Each section includes all the nodes
to be imaged. You can assign a node to any of the clusters (or leave it unassigned), but a node cannot
be assigned to more than one cluster.
Note: This assignment is to a new cluster only. Uncheck the boxes for any nodes you want to
add to an existing cluster, which can be done through the web console or nCLI at a later time.
4. When all settings are correct, click the Run Installation button at the top of the screen to start the
installation process (see Monitoring Progress on page 25).

Monitoring Progress
Before you begin: Complete Configuring Cluster Parameters on page 23 (or Configuring Image
Parameters on page 22 if you are not creating a cluster).
Video: Click here to see a video (MP4 format) demonstration of this procedure, or click here to
see a video demonstration of the complete cluster imaging procedure. (The videos may not reflect
the latest features described in this section.)
When all the global, node, and cluster settings are correct, do the following:
1. Click the Run Installation button at the top of the screen.
Figure: Run Installation Button

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 25

This starts the installation process. First, the IPMI port addresses are configured. The IPMI port
configuration processing can take several minutes depending on the size of the cluster.

Figure: IPMI Configuration Status

Note: If the IPMI port configuration fails for one or more nodes in the cluster, the installation
process stops before imaging any of the nodes. To correct a port configuration problem, see
Fixing IPMI Configuration Problems on page 56.
2. Monitor the imaging and cluster creation progress.
If IPMI port addressing is successful, Foundation moves to node imaging and displays a progress
screen. The progress screen includes the following sections:

Progress bar at the top (blue during normal processing or red when there is a problem).
Cluster Creation Status section with a line for each cluster being created (status indicator, cluster
name, progress message, and log link).
Node Status section with a line for each node being imaged (status indicator, IPMI IP address,
progress message, and log link).

Figure: Foundation Progress Screen: Ongoing Installation

The status message for each node (in the Node Status section) displays the imaging percentage
complete and current step. Nodes are imaged in parallel, and the imaging process takes about 45
minutes. You can monitor overall progress by clicking the Log link at the top, which displays the
service.log contents in a separate tab or window. Click on the Log link for a node to display the log file
for that node in a separate tab or window.
Note: Simultaneous processing is limited to a maximum of 20 nodes. If the cluster contains
more than 20 nodes, the total processing time is about 45 minutes for each group of 20 nodes.

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 26

When installation moves to cluster creation, the status message for each cluster (in the Cluster
Creation Status section) displays the percentage complete and current step. Cluster creation
happens quickly, but this step could take some time if you selected the diagnostic and NCC postcreation tests. Click on the Log link for a cluster to display the log file for that cluster in a separate
tab or window.
When processing completes successfully, an "Installation Complete" message appears, along with a
green check mark in the Status field for each node and cluster. This means IPMI configuration and
imaging (both hypervisor and NOS Controller VM) across all the nodes in the cluster was successful,
and cluster creation was successful (if enabled).

Figure: Foundation Progress Screen: Successful Installation


3. If the progress bar turns red with a "There were errors in the installation" message and one or more
node or cluster entries have a red X in the status column, the installation failed at the node imaging or
cluster creation step. To correct such problems, see Fixing Imaging Problems on page 57. Clicking
the Back to config button returns you to the configuration screens to correct any entries. The default
per-node installation timeout is 30 minutes for ESXi or 60 minutes for Hyper-V and KVM, so you can
expect all the nodes (in each run of up to 20 nodes) to finish successfully or encounter a problem in that
amount of time.

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 27

Figure: Foundation Progress Screen: Failed Installation

Cleaning Up After Installation


Some information persists after imaging a cluster using Foundation. If you want to use the same
Foundation VM to image another cluster, the persistent information must be removed before attempting
another installation.
To remove the persistent information after an installation, go to a configuration screen and then click the
Reset Configuration option from the gear icon pull-down list in the upper right of the screen.
Clicking this button reinitializes the progress monitor, destroys the persisted configuration data, and
returns the Foundation environment to a fresh state.

Figure: Reset Configuration

Imaging a Cluster | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 28

4
Imaging a Node
This procedure describes how to install the NOS Controller VM and selected hypervisor on a new or
replacement node from an ISO image on a workstation (laptop or desktop machine).
Before you begin: If you are adding a new node, physically install that node at your site. See the Physical
Installation Guide for your model type for installation instructions.
Note: You can use Foundation to image a single node (see Imaging a Cluster on page 15),
so a separate procedure is not necessary or recommended. However, the following procedure
describes how to image a single node if you decide not to use Foundation.
Imaging a new or replacement node can be done either through the IPMI interface (network connection
required) or through a direct attached USB (no network connection required). In either case the installation
is divided into two steps:
1. Install the desired hypervisor version (see Installing a Hypervisor on page 29).
2. Install the NOS Controller VM and provision the hypervisor (see Installing the Controller VM on
page 44).

Installing a Hypervisor
This procedure describes how to install a hypervisor on a single node in a cluster in the field.
Caution: The node must have a 64 GB DOM to install Hyper-V. Attempts to install Hyper-V on a
node with less DOM capacity will fail.
To install a hypervisor on a new or replacement node in the field, do the following:
Video: Click here to see a video (MP4 format) demonstration of this procedure. (The video may
not reflect the latest features described in this section.)
1. Verify you have access to the IPMI interface for the node.
a. Connect the IPMI port on that node to the network if it is not already connected.
A 1 or 10 GbE port connection is not required for imaging the node.
b. Assign an IP address (static or DHCP) to the IPMI interface on the node if it is not already assigned.
To assign a static address, see Setting IPMI Static IP Address on page 54.
2. Download the NOS (nutanix_installer_package-version#.tar.gz) and Foundation
(foundation-version#.tar.gz) tarballs from the Nutanix support portal (see Downloading Installation
Files on page 48) to the /home/nutanix directory on the workstation. (Create this directory if it does
not exist currently.) If installing ESXi or Hyper-V, also download an ESXi or Hyper-V ISO image.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 29

Customers must provide the ESXi or Hyper-V ISO image. See Hypervisor ISO Images on page 52
for a list of supported ESXi and Hyper-V ISO images. The Foundation tarball (after unpacking in step 4)
provides a KVM ISO located in /home/nutanix/foundation/isos/hypervisor/kvm.
Note: If Foundation 2.1 or later is installed on the workstation currently, it is not necessary to
download foundation-version#.tar.gz.
3. If Foundation 2.1 or later is installed, skip to the next step. Otherwise, do the following:
$ cd /home/nutanix
$ rm -rf foundation
$ tar xzf foundation-version#.tar.gz

This removes the foundation directory if it is present and extracts the Foundation tarball (including a
new foundation directory).
4. Enter the following commands from /home/nutanix:
$ sudo pkill -9 foundation
$ gunzip nutanix_installer_package-version#.tar.gz

This kills the Foundation service if it is running and unpacks the NOS tarball.
Note: If either the tar or gunzip command is not available, use the corresponding tar or
gunzip utility for your environment.
5. Create the Phoenix ISO by entering the following commands:
$ cd /home/nutanix/foundation
$ ./foundation --generate_phoenix --nos_package=nutanix_installer_package-version#.tar

If nutanix_installer_package-version#.tar is not in the current directory, you must include the


path as part of the name. This command creates a Phoenix ISO image in the current directory called
phoenix-version#_NOS-version#.iso, which is the Phoenix ISO file to use when Installing the Controller
VM on page 44.
6. Open a Web browser to the IPMI IP address of the node to be imaged.
7. Enter the IPMI login credentials in the login screen.
The default value for both user name and password is ADMIN (upper case).

Figure: IPMI Console Login Screen

The IPMI console main screen appears.


Note: The following steps might vary depending on the IPMI version on the node.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 30

Figure: IPMI Console Screen


8. Select Console Redirection from the Remote Console drop-down list of the main menu, and then
click the Launch Console button.

Figure: IPMI Console: Remote Control Menu


9. Select Virtual Storage from the Virtual Media drop-down list of the remote console main menu.

Figure: IPMI Remote Console: Virtual Media Menu


10. Click the CDROM&ISO tab in the Virtual Storage window, select ISO File from the Logical Drive Type
field drop-down list, and click the Open Image button.

Figure: IPMI Virtual Storage Window


11. In the browse window, go to where the hypervisor ISO image was downloaded, select that file, and then
click the Open button.
12. Click the Plug In button and then the OK button to close the Virtual Storage window.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 31

13. In the remote console main menu, select Set Power Reset in the Power Control drop-down list.
This causes the system to reboot using the selected hypervisor image.

Figure: IPMI Remote Console: Power Control Menu


What to do next: Complete installation by following the steps for the hypervisor:

Installing ESXi on page 32


Installing Hyper-V on page 33
Installing KVM on page 37

Installing ESXi
Before you begin: Complete Installing a Hypervisor on page 29.
1. Click Continue at the installation screen and then accept the end user license agreement on the next
screen.

Figure: ESXi Installation Screen


2. On the Select a Disk screen, select the SATADOM as the storage device, click Continue, and then click
OK in the confirmation window.

Figure: ESXi Device Selection Screen


Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 32

3. In the keyboard layout screen, select a layout (such as US Default) and then click Continue.
4. In the root password screen, enter nutanix/4u as the root password.
Note: The root password must be nutanix/4u or the installation will fail.
5. Review the information on the Install Confirm screen and then click Install.

Figure: ESXi Installation Confirmation Screen

The installation begins and a dynamic progress bar appears.


6. When the Installation Complete screen appears, go back to the Virtual Storage screen, click the Plug
Out button, and then return to the Installation Complete screen and click Reboot.
What to do next: After the system reboots, you can install the NOS Controller VM and provision the
hypervisor (see Installing the Controller VM on page 44).

Installing Hyper-V
Before you begin: Complete Installing a Hypervisor on page 29.
1. Start the installation.
a. Press any key when the Press any key to boot from CD or DVD prompt appears.
b. Select Windows Setup [EMS Enabled] in the Windows Boot Manager screen.

Figure: Windows Boot Manager Screen


c. In the language selection screen, simply click the Next button.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 33

Figure: Hyper-V Language Screen


d. In the installation screen, select the Repair your computer option.
Note: Do not click the Install now button. It will be used later in the procedure.

Figure: Hyper-V Installation Screen


e. In the Choose an option screen, select Troubleshoot.

Figure: Hyper-V Choose Option Screen


f. In the Advanced options screen, select Command Prompt.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 34

Figure: Hyper-V Advanced Options Screen


2. Partition and format the DOM.
a. Start the disk partitioning utility.
> diskpart

b. List the disks to determine which one is the 60 GB SATA DOM.


list disk

c. Find the disk in the displayed list that is about 60 GB (only one disk will be that size). Select that disk
and then run the clean command:
select disk number
clean

d. Create and format a primary partition (size 1024 and file system fat32).
create partition primary size=1024
select partition 1
format fs=fat32 quick

e. Create and format a second primary partition (default size and file system ntfs).
create partition primary
select partition 2
format fs=ntfs quick

f. Assign the drive letter "C" to the DOM install partition volume.
list volume
list partition

This displays a table of logical volumes and their associated drive letter, size, and file system type.
Locate the volume with an NTFS file system and size of approximately 50 GB. If this volume (which
is the DOM install partition) is drive letter "C", go to the next step.
Otherwise, do one of the following:

If drive letter "C" is assigned currently to another volume, enter the following commands to
remove the current "C" drive volume and reassign "C" to the DOM install partition volume:
select volume cdrive_volume_id#
remove
select volume dom_install_volume_id#
assign letter=c

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 35

If drive letter "C" is not assigned currently, enter the following commands to assign "C" to the
DOM install partition volume:
select volume dom_install_volume_id#
assign letter=c

g. Exit the diskpart utility.


exit

3. Continue installation of the hypervisor.


a. Start the server setup utility.
> setup.exe

b. In the language selection screen that reappears, again just click the Next button.
c. In the install screen that reappears click the Install now button.
d. In the operating system screen, select Windows Server 2012 Datacenter (Server Core
Installation) and then click the Next button.

Figure: Hyper-V Operating System Screen


e. In the license terms screen, check the I accept the license terms box and then click the Next
button.
f. In the type of installation screen, select Custom: Install Windows only (advanced).

Figure: Hyper-V Install Type Screen


g. In the where to install screen, select Partition 2 (the NTFS partition) of the DOM disk you just
formatted and then click the Next button.
Ignore the warning about free space. The installation location is Drive 6 Partition 2 in the example.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 36

Figure: Hyper-V Install Disk Screen

The installation begins and a dynamic progress screen appears.

Figure: Hyper-V Progress Screen


h. After the installation is complete, manually boot the host.
4. After Windows boots up, click Ctrl-Alt-Delete and then log in as Administrator when prompted.
5. Change your password when prompted to nutanix/4u.
6. Install the NOS Controller VM and provision the hypervisor (see Installing the Controller VM on
page 44).
7. Open a command prompt and enter the following two commands:
> schtasks /create /sc onstart
firstboot /tr D:\firstboot.bat
> shutdown /r /t 0

/ru Administrator /rp "nutanix/4u" /tn `

This causes a reboot and the firstboot script to run, after which the host will reboot two more times.
This process can take substantial time (possibly 15 minutes) without any progress indicators. To monitor
progress, log into the VM after the initial reboot and enter the command notepad C:\Program Files
\Nutanix\Logs\first_boot.log. This displays a (static) snapshot of the log file. Repeat this command
as desired to see an updated version of the log file.
Note: A d:\firstboot_fail file appears when this process fails. If that file is not present, the
process is continuing (if slowly).

Installing KVM
Before you begin: Complete Installing a Hypervisor on page 29.
1. Select Install or Upgrade an Existing System in the welcome screen and then press the Enter key.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 37

Processing begins and messages appear as the installation progresses.

Figure: Welcome (Install Options) Screen


2. When the Disc Found box appears, click the Skip button.
Installation begins, and the Disc Found box disappears. (The background screen remains.) This step
takes some time (5-10 minutes) without any messages appearing during the installation process. Wait
until the CentOS 6 logo screen appears.

Figure: Disc Found Screen


3. In the CentOS 6 logo screen, click the Next button (lower right).

Figure: CentOS 6 Logo Screen


4. In the language screen, select the desired language and then the Next button.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 38

Figure: Language Screen


5. In the keyboard screen, select the desired language and then the Next button.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 39

Figure: Keyboard Screen


6. In the storage devices screen, click the Basic Storage Devices radio button and then the Next button.

Figure: Storage Devices Screen


7. If an existing installation screen appears, click the Fresh Installation radio button and then the Next
button.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 40

Figure: Installation Choice Screen


8. In the host name screen, enter a name for the node in the Hostname field and then click the Next
button.

Figure: Hostname Screen


9. In the timezone screen, select a city that resides in your timezone and then click the Next button.

Figure: Timezone Screen


10. In the root password screen, enter nutanix/4u as the root password.
Note: The root password must be nutanix/4u or the installation will fail.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 41

Figure: Root Password Screen


11. In the installation type screen, click the Create Custom Layout radio button and then click the Next
button.

Figure: Install Type Screen


12. In the select a device screen, select the entry for the SATADOM and configure the partitions as follows:
a. Select VolGroup (under LVM Volume Groups) and click the Delete button (lower right).
A pop-up appears to verify the action; click the Delete button in that pop-up to delete this volume
group.

Figure: Device Screen: VolGroup


b. Expand the sdb hard drive, select sdb2, and click the Delete button to delete this partition.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 42

Figure: Device Screen: sdb2 Partition


c. Select whichever device is the SATADOM and click the Edit button. In the Edit Partition pop-up
window, enter the following in the indicated fields and then click the OK button.

Mount Point: Enter / (slash) as the mount point (instead of /boot).


File System Type: Select ext4.
Allowable Drives: Check the sdb box (and uncheck all others).
Size: Leave the displayed value.
Additional Size Options: Click the Fill To maximum allowable size radio button.
Force to be a primary partition: Leave this unchecked.
Encrypt: Leave this unchecked.

Figure: Device Screen: sdb1 Partition


d. When the partition information is correct, click the Next button (lower right of screen).
A pop-up warning appears about potential data loss from reformatting the disk. Click the Write
changes to disk button (after verifying there is no data to save).

Figure: Reformatting Warning

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 43

The installation begins and progress tracking appears (an installation progress bar and then a listing of
packages as they are installed. Installation can take several minutes.
13. When the Installation Complete screen appears, go back to the Virtual Storage screen, click the Plug
Out button, and then return to the Installation Complete screen and click Reboot.

Figure: Installation Complete Screen


14. After the system reboots, enter the following command:
puppet apply -e 'include kvm'

15. Reboot the system again.


What to do next: After the system reboots, you can install the NOS Controller VM and provision the
hypervisor (see Installing the Controller VM on page 44).

Installing the Controller VM


This procedure describes how to install the NOS Controller VM and provision the hypervisor on a single
node in a cluster in the field.
Before you begin: Install a hypervisor on the node (see Installing a Hypervisor on page 29).
To install the Controller VM (and provision the hypervisor) on a new or replacement node, do the following:
Video: Click here to see a video (MP4 format) demonstration of this procedure. (The video may
not reflect the latest features described in this section.)
1. Verify you have access to the IPMI interface for the node.
a. Connect the IPMI port on that node to the network if it is not already connected.
A 1 or 10 GbE port connection is not required for imaging the node.
b. Assign an IP address (static or DHCP) to the IPMI interface on the node if it is not already assigned.
To assign a static address, see Setting IPMI Static IP Address on page 54.
2. Open a Web browser to the IPMI IP address of the node to be imaged.
3. Enter the IPMI login credentials in the login screen.
The default value for both user name and password is ADMIN (upper case).

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 44

Figure: IPMI Console Login Screen

The IPMI console main screen appears.


Note: The following steps might vary depending on the IPMI version on the node.

Figure: IPMI Console Screen


4. Select Console Redirection from the Remote Console drop-down list of the main menu, and then
click the Launch Console button.

Figure: IPMI Console Menu


5. Select Virtual Storage from the Virtual Media drop-down list of the remote console main menu.

Figure: IPMI Remote Console Menu (Virtual Media)


6. Click the CDROM&ISO tab in the Virtual Storage window, select ISO File from the Logical Drive Type
field drop-down list, and click the Open Image button.
Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 45

Figure: IPMI Virtual Storage Window


7. In the browse window, go to where the phoenix-version#_NOS-version#.iso file is located (see step 3 in
Installing a Hypervisor on page 29), select that file, and then click the Open button.
8. Click the Plug In button and then the OK button to close the Virtual Storage window.
9. In the remote console main menu, select Set Power Reset in the Power Control drop-down list.
This causes the system to reboot using the selected Phoenix image. The Nutanix Installer screen
appears after rebooting.

Figure: IPMI Remote Console Menu (Power Control)


10. Do the following in the Nutanix Installer configuration screen:
a. Review the values in the upper eight fields to verify they are correct, or update them if necessary.
Only the Block ID, Node Serial, and Node Cluster ID fields can be edited in this screen.
b. Do one of the following in the next three fields (check boxes):

If you are imaging a U-node, select both Configure Hypervisor (to provision the hypervisor) and
Clean CVM (to install the Controller VM).
Note: You must select both to install the Controller VM; selecting Clean CVM by itself
will fail.

If you are imaging an X-node, select Configure Hypervisor only. This provisions the hypervisor
without installing a new Controller VM.
If you are instructed to do so by Nutanix customer support, select Repair CVM. This option is for
repairing certain problem conditions. Ignore this option unless Nutanix customer support instructs
you to select it.

Nutanix ships two types of nodes from the factory, a U-node and an X-node. The U-node is fully
populated with disks and other components. This is the node type shipped from the factory when
you are adding a new node to a cluster. Both the hypervisor and Controller VM must be installed in a
new U-node. In contrast, an X-node does not contain disks or a NIC card. This is the node type that
is shipped from the factory when you need to replace an existing node because it has a hardware
failure or related problem (RMA request). In this case you transfer the disks and NIC from the old
node to the X-node, and then install the hypervisor only (not the Controller VM).

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 46

Caution: Do not select Clean CVM if you are replacing a node (X-node) because this
option cleans the disks as part of the process, which means existing data will be lost.
c. When all the fields are correct, click the Start button.

Figure: Nutanix Installer Screen

Installation begins and takes about 30 minutes.


11. After installation completes, go to the Virtual Storage window and click Plug Out in the CDROM&ISO
tab.
12. At the reboot prompt in the console, type Y to restart the node.

Figure: Installation Messages

The node restarts with the new image. After the node starts, additional configuration tasks run and
then the host restarts again. Wait until this stage completes (typically 15-30 minutes depending on the
hypervisor) before accessing the node.
Caution: Do not restart the host until the configuration is complete.

Imaging a Node | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 47

5
Downloading Installation Files
Nutanix maintains a support portal where you can download the Foundation and NOS (or Phoenix) files
required to do a field installation. To access the Nutanix support portal, do the following:
1. Open a web browser and go to http://portal.nutanix.com.
The login page is displayed.
2. Enter your support portal credentials to access the site.
3. In the initial screen, click Downloads from the main menu at the top and then select Foundation to
download Foundation-related files (or Phoenix to download Phoenix-related files).

Figure: Nutanix Support Portal Main Screen

The Foundation (or Phoenix) download page appears.


4. Use the filter options to display the files for a specific Foundation (or Phoenix) release.
Files for the latest release appear by default.

Typically, previous Foundation (or Phoenix) releases are removed from the portal when a newer
version is released. However, if an earlier release is still available, you can display the files for that
release by selecting the release number from the first pull-down list.
[Phoenix only] Select the desired hypervisor type (KVM, ESXi, or HyperV) from the second pulldown list.

Downloading Installation Files | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 48

Figure: Phoenix Download Screen


5. Download the appropriate files from this screen.
A table of files is displayed that includes the following columns.
Hypervisor [Phoenix only]
Displays the hypervisor name (KVM, HyperV, or ESXi).
Version
Displays the Foundation (or Phoenix) version number.
MD5
Displays the associated MD5 hash value to validate against after downloading the file.
Size
Displays the file size (in KB, GB, or MB).
Download
Displays the file name. Click on the file name to download that file.

Figure: Foundation Download Screen


6. To download a NOS release tarball, select Downloads > NOS Releases and click the button or link for
the desired release.

Downloading Installation Files | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 49

Clicking the Download version# button in the upper right of the screen downloads the latest
NOS release. You can download an earlier NOS release by clicking the appropriate Download
version# link under the ADDITIONAL RELEASES heading. The tarball to download is named
nutanix_installer_package-version#.tar.gz.

Figure: NOS Download Screen

Foundation Files
The following table describes the files required to install Foundation. Use the latest Foundation version
available unless instructed by Nutanix customer support to use an earlier version.
File Name

Description

VirtualBox-version#-OSX.dmg

This is the Oracle VM VirtualBox installer for Mac


OS where version# is a version and build number.

VirtualBox-version#-Win.exe

This is the Oracle VM VirtualBox installer for


Windows.

Foundation_VM-version#.ovf

This is the Foundation VM OVF configuration file


where version# is the Foundation version number.

Foundation_VM-version#-disk1.vmdk

This is the Foundation VM VMDK file.

Foundation_VM_OVF-version#.tar

This is a Foundation tar file that contains


the Foundation_VM-version#.ovf and
Foundation_VM-version#-disk1.vmdk files.
Foundation 2.1 (or later) packages the OVF and
VMDK files into this TAR file; it does not apply to
earlier versions.

Foundation-version#.tar.gz

This is a tarball used for upgrading when


Foundation is already installed (see Release Notes
on page 5).

Downloading Installation Files | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 50

File Name

Description

nutanix_installer_package-version#.tar.gz

This is the tarball used for imaging the desired


NOS release where version# is a version and build
number. Go to the NOS Releases download page
on the support portal to download this file. (You can
download all the other files from the Foundation
download page.)

Phoenix Files
The following table describes the Phoenix ISO files.
Note: Starting with release 2.1, Foundation no longer uses a Phoenix ISO file for imaging.
Phoenix ISO files are now used only for single node imaging (see Imaging a Node on page 29)
and are generated by the user from Foundation and NOS tarballs. The Phoenix ISOs available on
the support portal are only for those who are using an older version of Foundation (pre 2.1).
File Name

Description

phoenix-x.x_ESX_NOS-y.y.y.iso

This is the Phoenix ISO image for a selected NOS


version on the ESXi hypervisor where x.x is the
Phoenix version number and y.y.y is the NOS
version number. There is a separate file for each
supported NOS version.

phoenix-x.x_HYPERV_NOS-y.y.y.iso

This is the Phoenix ISO image for a selected NOS


version on the Hyper-V hypervisor. There is a
separate file for each supported NOS version.

phoenix-x.x_KVM_NOS-y.y.y.iso

This is the Phoenix ISO image for a selected NOS


version on the KVM hypervisor. There is a separate
file for each supported NOS version.

Downloading Installation Files | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 51

6
Hypervisor ISO Images
A KVM ISO image is included as part of Foundation. However, customers must provide an ESXi or HyperV ISO image for those hypervisors. Check with your VMware or Microsoft representative, or download an
ISO image from an appropriate VMware or Microsoft support site:

VMware Support: http://www.vmware.com/support.html


Microsoft Technet: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/dn205299.aspx
Microsoft EA portal: http://www.microsoft.com/licensing/licensing-options/enterprise.aspx
MSDN: http://msdn.microsoft.com/subscriptions/downloads/#FileId=57052
Only VMware ESXi 5.5 U2a or later is supported for installation on Nutanix Intel Haswell-based
platforms like NX-3060-G4 and NX-6035-G4.

The following tables list the supported ESXi and Hyper-V hypervisor images.
Note: These are the ISO images supported in Foundation, but some might no longer be available
from the download sites.

ESXi ISO Images


Version

File Name

MD5 Sum

5.0 U2

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-5.0.0.update02-914586.x86_64.iso

fa6a00a3f0dd0cd1a677f69a236611e2

5.0 U3

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-5.0.0.update03-1311175.x86_64.iso

391496b995db6d0cf27f0cf79927eca6

5.1 U1

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-5.1.0.update01-1065491.x86_64.iso

2cd15e433aaacc7638c706e013dd673a

5.1 U2

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-5.1.0.update02-1483097.x86_64.iso

6730d6085466c513c04e74a2c2e59dc8

5.1 U3

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-5.1.0.update03-2323236.x86_64.iso

3283ae6f5c82a8204442bd6ec38197b9

5.5

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-5.5.0-1331820.x86_64.iso

9aaa9e0daa424a7021c7dc13db7b9409

5.5 U2a

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-201410001-2143827.x86_64.iso

e7d63c6402d179af830b4c887ce2b872

5.5 U2d

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-201501001-2403361.x86_64.iso

1e0e128e678af54657e6bd3b5bf5f124

6.0

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-6.0.0-2494585.x86_64.iso

478e2c6f7a875dd3dacaaeb2b0b38228

Hypervisor ISO Images | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 52

Version

File Name

MD5 Sum

5.5 (Dell
custom)

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-5.5.0-1331820.x86_64Dell_Customized_A00.iso

b9661e44c791b86caf60f179b857a17d

5.5 U2 (Dell
custom)

VMware-VMvisorInstaller-5.5.0.update02-2068190.x86_64Dell_Customized-A00.iso

02887b626eaabb7d933e2a3fa580f1bc

Hyper-V ISO Images


Version

SKUs

Source
Site

File Name

MD5 Sum

Windows datacenter MSDN en_windows_server_


Server
standard
2012_r2_vl_x64_
2012 R2
dvd_3319595.iso

fb101ed6d7328aca6473158006630a9d

Windows datacenter MSDN en_windows_server_


Server
standard
2012_r2_vl_with_update_
2012
x64_dvd_4065221.iso
R2 with
update

b52450dd5ba8007e2934f5c6e6eda0ce

(SHA1: A73FC07C1B9F560F960F1
C4A5857FAC062041235)

Windows datacenter EA
Server
standard portal
2012 R2

SW_DVD9_Windows_
b52450dd5ba8007e2934f5c6e6eda0ce
Svr_Std_and_DataCtr_
2012_R2_64Bit_English_-3_MLF_
X19-53588.ISO

Windows datacenter EA
Server
standard portal
2012 R2

SW_DVD9_Windows_
9a00defab26a046045d939086df78460
Svr_Std_and_DataCtr_
2012_R2_64Bit_English_-4_MLF_X19-82891.ISO

Windows free
Server
2012 R2

Technet 9600.16384.WINBLUE_RTM.
130821-1623_ X64FRE_
SERVERHYPERCORE_ ENUS-IRM_SHV_X64FRE_ ENUS_DV5.ISO

9c9e0d82cb6301a4b88fd2f4c35caf80

Hypervisor ISO Images | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 53

7
Setting IPMI Static IP Address
You can assign a static IP address for an IPMI port by resetting the BIOS configuration.
To configure a static IP address for the IPMI port on a node, do the following:
1. Connect a VGA monitor and USB keyboard to the node.
2. Power on the node.
3. Press the Delete key during boot up when prompted to enter the BIOS setup mode.
The BIOS Setup Utility screen appears.
4. Click the IPMI tab to display the IPMI screen.

5. Select BMC Network Configuration and press the Enter key.


6. Select Update IPMI LAN Configuration, press Enter, and then select Yes in the pop-up window.

7. Select Configuration Address Source, press Enter, and then select Static in the pop-up window.

Setting IPMI Static IP Address | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 54

8. Select Station IP Address, press Enter, and then enter the IP address for the IPMI port on that node in
the pop-up window.

9. Select Subnet Mask, press Enter, and then enter the corresponding submask value in the pop-up
window.
10. Select Gateway IP Address, press Enter, and then enter the IP address for the node's network
gateway in the pop-up window.
11. When all the field entries are correct, press the F4 key to save the settings and exit the BIOS setup
mode.

Setting IPMI Static IP Address | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 55

8
Troubleshooting
This section provides guidance for fixing problems that might occur during a Foundation installation.

For help with IPMI configuration problems, see Fixing IPMI Configuration Problems on page 56.
For help with imaging problems, see Fixing Imaging Problems on page 57.
For answers to other common questions, see Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on page 58.

Fixing IPMI Configuration Problems


When the IPMI port configuration fails for one or more nodes in the cluster, or it works but type detection
fails and complains that it cannot reach an IPMI IP address, the installation process stops before imaging
any of the nodes. (Foundation will not go to the imaging step after an IPMI port configuration failure, but it
will try to configure the port address on all nodes before stopping.) Possible reasons for a failure include
the following:

One or more IPMI MAC addresses are invalid or there are conflicting IP addresses. Go to the Block &
Node Config screen and correct the IPMI MAC and IP addresses as needed (see Configuring Node
Parameters on page 18).
There is a user name/password mismatch. Go to the Global Configuration screen and correct the IPMI
username and password fields as needed (see Configuring Global Parameters on page 16).
One or more nodes are connected to the switch through the wrong network interface. Go to the back of
the nodes and verify that the first 1GbE network interface of each node is connected to the switch (see
Setting Up the Network on page 13).
The Foundation VM is not in the same broadcast domain as the Controller VMs for discovered nodes
or the IPMI interface for added (bare metal or undiscovered) nodes. This problem typically occurs
because (a) you are not using a flat switch, (b) some node IP addresses are not in the same subnet as
the Foundation VM, and (c) multi-homing was not configured.

If all the nodes are in the Foundation VM subnet, go to the Block & Node Config screen and correct
the IP addresses as needed (see Configuring Node Parameters on page 18).
If the nodes are in multiple subnets, go to the Global Configuration screen and configure multihoming (see Configuring Global Parameters on page 16).
The IPMI interface is not set to failover. You can check for this through the BIOS (see Setting IPMI
Static IP Address on page 54 to access the BIOS setup utility).

To identify and resolve IPMI port configuration problems, do the following:


1. Go to the Block & Node Config screen and review the problem IP address for the failed nodes (nodes
with a red X next to the IPMI address field).
Hovering the cursor over the address displays a pop-up message with troubleshooting information. This
can help you diagnose the problem. See the service.log file (in /home/nutanix/foundation/log) and
the individual node log files for more detailed information.

Troubleshooting | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 56

Figure: Foundation: IPMI Configuration Error


2. When you have corrected all the problems and are ready to try again, click the Configure IPMI button
at the top of the screen.
Figure: Configure IPMI Button
3. Repeat the preceding steps as necessary to fix all the IPMI configuration errors.
4. When all nodes have green check marks in the IPMI address column, click the Image Nodes button at
the top of the screen to begin the imaging step.
If you cannot fix the IPMI configuration problem for one or more of the nodes, you can bypass those
nodes and continue to the imaging step for the other nodes by clicking the Proceed button. In this case
you must configure the IPMI port address manually for each bypassed node (see Setting IPMI Static IP
Address on page 54).

Fixing Imaging Problems


When imaging fails for one or more nodes in the cluster, the progress bar turns red and a red check
appears next to the hypervisor address field for any node that was not imaged successfully. Possible
reasons for a failure include the following:

A type failure was detected. Check connectivity to the IPMI.


There were network connectivity issues such as the following:

The connection is dropping intermittently. If intermittent failures persist, look for conflicting IPs.
[Hyper-V only] SAMBA is not up. If Hyper-V complains that it failed to mount the install share, restart
SAMBA with the command " sudo service smb restart ".
Foundation ran out of disk space during the hypervisor or Phoenix preparation phase. Free up some
space by deleting extraneous ISO images. In addition, a Foundation crash could leave a /tmp/tmp*
directory that contains a copy of an ISO image which you can unmount (if necessary) and delete.
Foundation needs about 9 GB of free space for Hyper-V and about 3 GB for ESXi or KVM.
The host boots but complains it cannot reach the Foundation VM. The message varies per hypervisor.
For example, on ESXi you might see a "ks.cfg:line 12: "/.pre" script returned with an error" error
message. Make sure you have assigned the host an IP address on the same subnet as the Foundation
VM or you have configured multi-homing (see (see Configuring Global Parameters on page 16). Also
check for IP address conflicts.

To identify and resolve imaging problems, do the following:


1. See the individual log file for any failed nodes (in /home/nutanix/foundation/log) for information about
the problem.
2. When you have corrected the problems and are ready to try again, click the Image Nodes button at the
top of the screen.

Troubleshooting | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 57

Figure: Image Nodes Button


3. Repeat the preceding steps as necessary to fix all the imaging errors.
If you cannot fix the imaging problem for one or more of the nodes, you can image those nodes one at a
time (see Imaging a Node on page 29).

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)


This section provides answers to some common Foundation questions.
Installation Issues

What steps should I take when I encounter a problem?


Click the appropriate log link in the progress screen (see Monitoring Progress on page 25) to view the
relevant log file. In most cases the log file should provide some information about the problem near the
end of the file. If that information (plus the information in this troubleshooting section) is sufficient to
identify and solve the problem, fix the issue and then restart the imaging process.
If you were unable to fix the problem, open a Nutanix support case. You can do this from the Nutanix
support portal (https://portal.nutanix.com/#/page/cases/form%3FtargetAction=new). Upload relevant
log files as requested. The log files are located in /home/nutanix/foundation/log in your Foundation
VM. This directory contains a service.log file for Foundation-related log messages, a log file for
each node being imaged (named node_0.log, node_1.log, and so on), a log file for each cluster
being created (named cluster_0.log, cluster_1.log, and so on), and http.access and http.error
files for server-related log messages. Logs from past installations are stored in /home/nutanix/
foundation/log/archive. In addition, the state of the current install process is stored in /home/nutanix/
foundation/persisted_config.json. You can download the entire log archive from the following URL:
http://foundation_ip:8000/foundation/log_archive.tar

Foundation is not running, and the service log complains about permissions.
A crash or abrupt shutdown can cause Foundation to lock its PID file in a way that does not recover
automatically. Enter the following commands to fix this problem:
$
$
$
$
$

sudo /etc/init.d/foundation_service stop # Dont mind if this fails.


cd ~/foundation $ rm foundation.pid
touch foundation.pid
chmod g-w foundation.pid
sudo /etc/init.d/foundation_service start

When shutting down the Foundation VM, allow it to shutdown gracefully by using a command such as
"shutdown -h now" or by logging out and then powering down the VM.

My installation hangs, and the service log complains about type detection.
Verify that all of your IPMI IPs are reachable through Foundation. (On rare occasion the IPMI IP
assignment will take some time.) If you get a complaint about authentication, double-check your
password. If the problem persists, try resetting the BMC.

Installation fails with an error where Foundation cannot ping the configured IPMI IP addresses.
Verify that the LAN interface is set to failover mode in the IPMI settings for each node. You can find this
setting by logging into IPMI and going to Configuration > Network > Lan Interface. Verify that the
setting is Failover (not Dedicate).

Troubleshooting | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 58

The diagnostic box was checked to run after installation, but that test (diagnostics.py) does not
complete (hangs, fails, times out).
Running this test can result in timeouts or low IOPS if you are using 1G cables. Such cables might not
provide the performance necessary to run this test at a reasonable speed.

Foundation seems to be preparing the ISOs properly, but the nodes boot into <previous hypervisor>
and the install hangs.
The boot order for one or more nodes might be set incorrectly to select the USB over SATA DOM as the
first boot device instead of the CDROM. To fix this, boot the nodes into BIOS mode and either select
"restore optimized defaults" (F3 as of BIOS version 3.0.2) or give the CDROM boot priority. Reboot the
nodes and retry the installation.

I have misconfigured the IP addresses in the Foundation configuration page. How long is the timeout for
the call back function, and is there a way I can avoid the wait?
The call back timeout is 60 minutes. To stop the Foundation process and restart it, open up the terminal
in the Foundation VM and enter the following commands:
$
$
$
$

sudo /etc/init.d/foundation_service stop


cd ~/foundation/
mv persisted_config.json persisted_config.json.bak
sudo /etc/init.d/foundation_service start

Refresh the Foundation web page. If the nodes are still stuck, reboot them.

I need to reset a block to the default state.


Download the desired Phoenix ISO image for KVM from the support portal (see https://
portal.nutanix.com/#/page/phoenix/list). Boot each node in the block to that ISO and follow the prompts
until the re-imaging process is complete. You should then be able to use Foundation as usual.

The cluster create step is not working.


If you are installing NOS 3.5 or later, check the service.log file for messages about the problem. Next,
check the relevant cluster log (cluster_X.log) for cluster-specific messages. The cluster create step
in Foundation is not supported for earlier releases and will fail if you are using Foundation to image a
pre-3.5 NOS release. You must create the cluster manually (after imaging) for earlier NOS releases.

I want to re-image nodes that are part of an existing cluster.


Do a cluster destroy prior to discovery. (Nodes in an existing cluster are ignored during discovery.)

My Foundation VM is complaining that it is out of disk space. What can I delete to make room?
Unmount any temporarily-mounted file systems using the following commands:
$ sudo fusermount -u /home/nutanix/foundation/tmp/fuse
$ sudo umount /tmp/tmp*
$ sudo rm -rf /tmp/tmp*

If more space is needed, delete some of the Phoenix ISO images from the Foundation VM.

I keep seeing the message "tar: Exiting with failure status due to previous errors'tar rf /home/
nutanix/foundation/log/archive/log-archive-20140604-131859.tar -C /home/nutanix/foundation ./
persisted_config.json' failed; error ignored."
This is a benign message. Foundation archives your persisted configuration file (persisted_config.json)
alongside the logs. Occasionally, there is no configuration file to back up. This is expected, and you may
ignore this message with no ill consequences.

Imaging fails after changing the language pack.

Troubleshooting | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 59

Do not change the language pack. Only the default English language pack is supported. Changing the
language pack can cause some scripts to fail during Foundation imaging. Even after imaging, changing
the language pack can cause problems for NOS.

[Hyper-V] I cannot reach the CVM console via ssh. How do I get to its console?
See KB article 1701 (https://portal.nutanix.com/#/page/kbs/details%3FtargetId=kA0600000008fJhCAI).

[ESXi] Foundation is booting into pre-install Phoenix, but not the ESXi installer.
Check the BIOS version and verify it is supported. If it is not a supported version, upgrade it. See KB
article 1467 ( https://portal.nutanix.com/#/page/kbs/details%3FtargetId=kA0600000008dDxCAI).

Network and Workstation Issues

I am having trouble installing VirtualBox on my Mac.


Turning off the WiFi can sometimes resolve this problem. For help with VirtualBox issues, see https://
www.virtualbox.org/wiki/End-user_documentation.
There can be a problem when the USB Ethernet adapter is listed as a 10/100 interface instead of a 1G
interface. To support a 1G interface, it is recommend that MacBook Air users connect to the network
with a thunderbolt network adapter rather than a USB network adapter.

I get "This Kernel requires an x86-64 CPU, but only detected an i686 CPU" when trying to boot the VM
on VirtualBox.
The VM needs to be configured to expose a 64-bit CPU. For more information, see https://
forums.virtualbox.org/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=58767.

I am running the network setup script, but I do not see eth0 when I run ifconfig.
This can happen when you make changes to your VirtualBox network adapters. VirtualBox typically
creates a new interface (eth1, then eth2, and so on) to accommodate your new settings. To fix this, run
the following commands:
$ sudo rm /etc/udev/rules.d/70-persistent-net-rules
$ sudo shutdown -r now

This should reboot your machine and reset your adapter to eth0.

I have plugged in the Ethernet cables according to the directions and I can reach the IPMI interface, but
discovery is not finding the nodes to image.
Your Foundation VM must be in the same broadcast domain as the Controller VMs to receive their IPv6
link-local traffic. If you are installing on a flat 1G switch, ensure that the 10G cables are not plugged in.
(If they are, the Controller VMs might choose to direct their traffic over that interface and never reach
your Foundation VM.) If you are installing on a 10G switch, ensure that only the IPMI 10/100 port and
the 10G ports are connected.

The switch is dropping my IPMI connections in the middle of imaging.


If your network connection seems to be dropping out in the middle of imaging, try using an unmanaged
switch with spanning tree protocol disabled.

Foundation is stalled on the ping home phase.


The ping test will wait up to two minutes per NIC to receive a response, so a long delay in the ping
phase indicates a network connection issue. Check that your 10G cables are unplugged and your 1G
connection can reach Foundation.

How do I install on a 10/100 switch?

Troubleshooting | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 60

A 10/100 switch is not recommended, but it can be used for a few nodes. However, you may see
timeouts. It is highly recommend that you use a 1G or 10G switch if it is available to you.

Troubleshooting | Field Installation Guide | Foundation | 61

You might also like