VMware vCenter Server Heartbeat - 6.6 Administrator’s Guide

vCenter Server Heartbeat

Administrator's Guide

VMware vCenter Server Heartbeat 6.6

This document supports the version of each product listed
and supports all subsequent versions until the document is
replaced by a new edition.To check for more recent editions
of this document, see http://www.vmw are.com/support/pubs.

EN-001239-00

vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

You can find the most up-to-date technical documentation on the VMware Web site at:

http://www.vmware.com/support/

The VMware Web site also provides the latest product updates.
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marks and names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies.

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2 VMware, Inc.

Contents

About This Book 5

Introduction 7

1

vCenter Server Heartbeat Concepts 7
vCenter Server Heartbeat Protection 9
vCenter Server Heartbeat Communications 12
vCenter Server Heartbeat Failover Processes 14

vCenter Server Heartbeat Monitoring 19

2

Supported vCenter Server Heartbeat Clients 19
vCenter Server Heartbeat Console 20
vSphere Web Client Plug-in 25
vSphere Client Plug-in 27
Server Monitoring 29
Network Monitoring 30
Application Monitoring 34
Performance Monitoring 35
Monitoring Data Replication 36

Managing vCenter Server Heartbeat 39

3

Server Configuration Wizard 39
Managing Heartbeat Settings 48
Managing Application Protection 53
Managing Services 56
Managing Tasks 58
Managing Rules 61
Managing Plug-ins 62
Managing Data Protection 63

Maintaining vCenter Server Heartbeat 71

4

Common Administrative Tasks in vCenter Server Heartbeat 71
Controlled Shutdown 72
Application Maintenance Mode 72
Reviewing Event Logs 74
Checking for Orphaned Files 75
Applying Patches with vCenter Server Heartbeat Installed 76
Shutting Down Windows 78

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

vCenter Server Heartbeat Diagnostics 79

5

Collecting Diagnostic Logs 79
Two Active or Two Passive Nodes 80
Synchronization Failures 82
Registry Status is Out-of-Sync 85
Channel Drops 85
Subnet or Routing Issues 89
MaxDiskUsage Errors 90
Application Slowdown 94

Glossary 97

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About This Book

To help you protect your VMware vCenter Server installation, the vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator
Guide provides information about monitoring, managing, maintaining, and diagnosing issues along with the
architecture, configuration, and protection offered by vCenter Server Heartbeat.

Intended Audience

This guide is intended for IT Administrators with a working knowledge of networking to include configuration
and domain administration on Windows™ 2008 and 2012 platforms, notably in Active Directory and DNS.

VMware Technical Publications Glossary

VMware Technical Publications provides a glossary of terms that might be unfamiliar to you. For definitions of
terms as they are used in VMware technical documentation go to www.vmware.com/support/pubs.

Overview of Content

This book is designed to provide guidance on the configuration and administration of vCenter Server Heartbeat,
and is organized into the following sections:

Preface — About This Book (this chapter) provides an overview of this guide and the conventions used

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throughout.
Chapter 1 — Introduction presents an overview of vCenter Server Heartbeat concepts including the

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architecture, communications, and failover processes.
Chapter 2 — vCenter Server Heartbeat Monitoring describes monitoring operations and how to view the

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operational status of vCenter Server Heartbeat and protected vCenter Server components.
Chapter 3 — Managing vCenter Server Heartbeat provides instructions and procedures to configure

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vCenter Server Heartbeat to provide protection to vCenter Server and its components and services.
Chapter 4 — Maintaining vCenter Server Heartbeat discusses common procedures to perform the day-to-day

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operations such as applying updates, hotfixes, and patches to y our vCenter Server Heartbeat installation.
Chapter 5 — vCenter Server Heartbeat Diagnostics identifies techniques to diagnose common issues and

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unexpected behaviors.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

Document Feedback

VMware welcomes your suggestions for improving our documentation and invites you to send your feedback
to [e-mail].

Abbreviations Used in Figures

DescriptionAbbreviation

VMware ChannelChannel
Network Interface CardNIC
Physical to PhysicalP2P
Physical to VirtualP2V
Virtual to VirtualV2V

Technical Support and Educational Resources

The following sections describe the technical support resources available to y ou.To access the current version
of this book and other books, go to www.vmware.com/support/pubs.

Online and Telephone Support

Go to www.vmware.com/support to submit technical support requests, view your product and contract
information, and register your products.

Go to www.vmware.com/support/phone_support.html to find out how to use telephone support for the fastest
response on priority 1 issues (applies to customers with appropriate support contracts).

Support Offerings

Go to www.vmw are.com/support/services to find out how VMware support offerings can help meet your business
needs.

VMware Professional Services

Go to www.vmw are.com/services to access information about educational classes, certification programs, and
consulting services.VMware Education Services courses offer extensive hands-on labs, case study e xamples,
and course materials designed for use as on-the-job reference tools. Courses are available onsite, in the
classroom, and live online. For onsite pilot programs and implementation best practices, VMware Consulting
Services provides offerings to help you assess, plan, build, and manage your virtual environment.

6 VMware, Inc.

This chapter includes the following topics:

“vCenter Server Heartbeat Concepts,” on page 7

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“vCenter Server Heartbeat Protection,” on page 9

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“vCenter Server Heartbeat Communications,” on page 12

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“vCenter Server Heartbeat Failover Processes,” on page 14

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Concepts

vCenter Server Heartbeat is a Windows based service specifically designed to provide High Availability (HA)
or Disaster Recovery (DR) protection for vCenter Server configurations.

Architecture Overview

1Introduction

vCenter Server Heartbeat is deployed in an “Active–Passive” architecture enabling configuration for either

“High Availability (HA)” in a Local Area Netw ork (LAN)/Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) or “Disaster Recovery
(DR)” in a Wide Area Network (WAN) for vCenter Server, View Composer and/or SQL Server.

Server Identity

vCenter Server Heartbeat software is installed on an existing production server instance (virtual or physical)
known as the “Primary” node which runs the protected applications (vCenter Server , Vie w and/or SQL Server).
An additional server instance (virtual or physical), known as the “Secondary” node, operates as a ready standby
to provide service in the event of an application, system, or hardware f ailure.The terms Primary and Secondary
refer to the “Identity” of each node and do not change over the life of the node.

Active / Passive Roles

The “Role” of a node describes what the node is currently doing.

Active Node – If the node is currently running protected applications, the node is said to be “Active”.The

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active node will always host the running instance of protected applications. Only one node can be active
at any one time.

Passive Node – The “Passive” node acts as the ready standby f or the active node. Protected applications

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are not running on the passive node.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

IP Addressing

“Public IP Address” – a static IP address used by clients to access protected applications hosted on the

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active node.

“Management IP Address” – a unique permanent static IP address assigned to each node (Primary and

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Secondary) that is used for management of the node when the node is in the passive role.

Figure 1- 1. Architecture Overview

Managing the Primary and Secondary Servers

vCenter Server Heartbeat pairs are managed using standard network, domain policy, and domain management
procedures with each node (both Primary and Secondary) assigned a unique domain name. Each domain
name differs from the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) used by the original vCenter or SQL servers.
Additionally, a Management IP address on each node ensures that the Administrator can access the node
even when it is passive thereby allowing use of 3rd party monitoring tools and maintenance operations.

Failover Overview

The role of the nodes can be changed by a process known as “F ailover” that is initiated automatically b y vCenter
Server Heartbeat or manually by the administrator.

vCenter Server Heartbeat uses failover to ensure that vCenter Server and its components are continuously
available should a critical failure occur such as vSphere ESX host network failure.When a failover occurs,
clients continue to connect to vCenter Server.View, or SQL Server using the vCenter Server service name
which is the original and unique fully qualified domain name that was used previously by clients.

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Chapter 1 Introduction

During installation, the service name is configured in vCenter Server Heartbeat which continues to resolve to
the Public IP address in DNS regardless of which node is hosting the Public IP address.

Failover in a LAN – When deployed in a LAN environment, the Public IP address is moved between the

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Primary and Secondary nodes as roles change from active to passive so that the protected applications
are available to clients only when the node assumes the active role. When vCenter Server Heartbeat is
started, the Public IP address is added to the active node.When a failover occurs, the Public IP address
is removed from the active node as it becomes passiv e and then added to the passive node which is being
made active. vCenter Server Heartbeat does not require updates to DNS during the failov er; ho we v er, the
DNS server must be preconfigured with the Management IP addresses.

Failov er in a Stretched VLAN – vCenter Server Heartbeat can also be deployed in a stretched VLAN using

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the same subnet for the production and the disaster recovery site.
Similar to a LAN installation, this configuration requires that both the Primary and Secondary nodes share

the Public IP address.The active node reveals the Public IP address while the passive node is hidden
from the network resulting in vCenter Server Heartbeat being deployed without any changes to DNS during
failover operations, just as in the LAN deployment.

Failover in a WAN – vCenter Server Heartbeat can be deployed in a WAN where each site uses different

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subnets.When deployed in this manner, each site has a different Public IP address.When a failover
occurs, vCenter Server Heartbeat automatically updates the DNS server with the Public IP address of the
new site thereby allowing clients to connect to the new site.

vCenter Server Heartbeat Protection

vCenter Server Heartbeat provides the following protections:

Server Protection – provides continuous availability to end users through an operating system crash or

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hardware failure scenario ensuring that users are provided with a replica server instance and its IP address
should the production node fail.

Network Protection – proactively monitors the network by polling up to three predefined nodes to ensure

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that the active node is visible on the network.
Application Protection – monitors the application environment ensuring that protected applications and

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services stay alive and are available on the network.
Performance Protection – proactively monitors system performance attributes to ensure the system

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administrator is notified of problems and can take pre-emptive action to prevent an outage.
Data Protection – intercepts all data written by users and applications, and maintains a copy of the data

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on the passive node that can be used in the event of a failure.

vCenter Server Heartbeat provides all five protection levels continuously, ensuring all facets of the user
environment are maintained at all times, and that vCenter Server and its components continue to operate
through as many failure scenarios as possible.

Server Protection

The Primary and Secondary nodes regularly send “I’m aliv e” messages to one another o ver a dedicated network
connection referred to as the “VMware Channel” to detect interruptions in responsiveness. If the passive node
detects that this monitoring process (referred to as the “Heartbeat”) has failed, it initiates an auto-failover as
illustrated in Figure 1-2.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

Figure 1- 2. vCenter Server Heartbeat Initiated Failover

An auto-failover occurs when the passive node detects that the active node is no longer responding.This can
occur when the active node operating system crashes, loses its network connections, host hardware fails, or
otherwise becomes unavailable. The failover process is discussed in detail later in this guide.

Network Protection

vCenter Server Heartbeat proactively monitors the network by polling up to three predefined IP addresses to
ensure that the active node is visible on the network. vCenter Server Heartbeat polls by default the Primary
DNS server, the Default Gateway, and the Global Catalog server at regular intervals. If all three nodes fail to
respond, for example in the case of a network card or switch failure, vCenter Server Heartbeat can initiate a
failover, allowing the Secondary node to assume the active role and service clients.

Application Protection

vCenter Server Heartbeat running on the active node locally monitors vCenter Server and its services to verify
that vCenter Server is operational and not in an unresponsive or stopped state.This level of monitoring is
fundamental in ensuring that vCenter Server remains available to users.

If vCenter Server should fail, vCenter Server Heartbeat first attempts to restart the application on the active
node (1) in Figure 1-3.

If the application does not successfully restart, vCenter Server Heartbeat initiates an auto-failo ver (2) in Figure

1-3. Refer to “vCenter Server Heartbeat Failover Processes,” on page 14 for further information about the

failover process.

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Chapter 1 Introduction

Figure 1- 3. vCenter Server Heartbeat Initiated Failover

When vCenter Server Heartbeat initiates a failover as a result of a failed application or service, vCenter Server
Heartbeat gracefully closes vCenter Server running on the active node and starts it on the passive node,
including the component or service that caused the failure. For example, if the Primary is active and the
Secondary is passive, the Primary is demoted to a passive role and is hidden from the network while the
Secondary is promoted to an active role and is made visible to the network.The mechanics of a failover are
discussed in more detail later in this guide.

Performance Protection

To ensure that vCenter Server is operational and providing service at an adequate level of performance to
meet user demands, vCenter Server Heartbeat employs the vCenter Server Heartbeat Plug-in which provides
performance monitoring and pre-emptive remediation capabilities. vCenter Server Heartbeat proactively monitors
system performance attributes and can notify the system administrator in the ev ent of a prob lem and can also
be configured to take pre-emptive action to prevent an outage.

In addition to monitoring vCenter Server services, vCenter Server Heartbeat can monitor specific attributes to
ensure that they remain within normal operating ranges. Similar to application monitoring, various rules can
be configured to trigger specific corrective actions whenever these attributes fall outside of their respective
ranges. vCenter Server Heartbeat provides the ability to define and perform multiple corrective actions in the
event of problems on a service-by- service or even attribute-by-attribute basis.

Data Protection

All data files that users or vCenter Server requires in the application environment are protected and made
available should a failure occur. After installation, vCenter Server Heartbeat configures itself to protect files,
folders, and registry settings for vCenter Server on the active node b y mirroring them in real time to the passive
node. If a failo ver occurs , all files protected on the failed (Primary) node are availab le to users after the f ailov er ,
hosted on the Secondary node.

vCenter Server Heartbeat intercepts all file system operations on the active node.Those write and update
operations which are part of the protected set are placed in the “Send Queue” of the active node pending
transmission to the passive node.

With the channel connected, the active node’s send queue is transferred to the passive node, which places
all the requests in the passive node’s “Receive Queue”. The passive node confirms the changes were logged
by sending the active node an acknowledgment. The active node then clears the data from its send queue.
The apply process running on the passive node applies all updates thereby creating a duplicate identical set
of file operations on the passive node.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

vCenter Server Heartbeat Communications

The VMware Channel is a crucial component of vCenter Server Heartbeat and can be configured in a number
of ways.

vCenter Server Heartbeat supports use of either multiple NICs or a single NIC . Both the Primary and Secondary
must have the same number of NICs. The Public IP address provides client access and the Management IP
address provides administrative access, while the VMware Channel provides for data transfer and control.

Multi-NIC Configuration

When installed using multiple NICs, a second pair of NICs can be configured for the VMware Channel to pro vide
a degree of redundancy.To provide added resilience, the communications for the second channel should be
completely independent from the first channel.They should not share any switches, routers , or the same WAN
connection.

Configuring vCenter Server Heartbeat using multiple NICs (1 for the Public and Management IP and 1 for the
VMware Channel IP) prevents a single point of failure in the system. Additionally, it allows vCenter Server
Heartbeat to monitor availability of the nodes independently via the Public network and the VMware Channel
network.

Figure 1- 4. Multi-NIC Configuration

Single NIC Configuration

When installing using a single NIC, the Public IP, the Management IP, and the VMware Channel IP addresses
are all configured on the same NIC.

Configuring vCenter Server Heartbeat with a single NIC on each node creates a network environment with a
single point of failure where a malfunction of the NIC on either node can cause protection failure.

12 VMware, Inc.

Figure 1- 5. Single NIC Configuration

LAN and Stretched vLAN Deployment

Chapter 1 Introduction

When deployed in a LAN, the Public NIC on the active node is configured with both a unique permanently
assigned Management IP address for administrative access and the Public IP address which allows traffic
from clients.The Public NIC on the passive node is configured to use its unique permanently assigned
Management IP address.When a failover occurs, the Public IP address assigned to the currently active node
is removed and reassigned to the new activ e node.The new passive node remains accessible to administrators
via the Management IP address but is not visible to clients.The newly active node then starts accepting traffic
from clients.

The NICs on the active and passive nodes used for the VMware Channel are configured so that their IP
addresses are outside of the subnet range of the Public network.These addresses are referred to as VMw are
Channel addresses.

DNS in a LAN or Stretched vLAN

When deployed in a LAN or stretched vLAN configuration, should a failover occur, the Public IP address is
simply removed from the currently active server and reassigned to the currently passiv e server without a need
to update DNS. Clients continue to communicate to the same Public IP address that was used before the
failover.

WAN Deployment

When configured for a WAN deployment, configure the VMware Channel to use static routes over switches
and routers to maintain continuous communications independent from corporate or public traffic.

DNS in a WAN Deployment

When deployed in a WAN configuration, should a failover occur, vCenter Server Heartbeat automatically
updates DNS with the IP address of the new active server using vCenter Server Heartbeat's own DNSUpdate.ex e
utility.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

vCenter Server Heartbeat Failover Processes

vCenter Server Heartbeat provides for failover from one node to the other node when initiated man ually by the
administrator or automatically as a result of hardware, operating system, network communications, protected
applications, or services failure. Failover changes the role of the active and passive nodes depending on the
status of the active node.

vCenter Server Heartbeat failovers are categorized by how the failover is initiated.

When a failover is initiated man ually by an administrator , the f ailov er gracefully changes the roles between

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the active node and the passive node.This type of failover is frequently used to perform maintenance on
the node or its software.

If a failover is initiated automatically due to hardware, operating system, or network communications

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rendering the active node unavailab le, vCenter Server Heartbeat considers the active node has failed and
immediately initiates the process to change the role of the passive node to active.

Should vCenter Server Heartbeat detect that the active node is alive but that a protected application or

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service has failed, it can first attempt to restart the application or service to correct the problem and if
unsuccessful, initiate a failover causing the active and passive nodes to change roles making the passive
node active and the active node passive.

Failover - Manually Initiated by an Administrator

You can click Make Active on the Heartbeat tab of the vSphere Web Client or the Server: Summary page of
the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console to manually initiate a failover. When a failover is triggered, the running
of protected applications is gracefully transferred from the active node to the passive node in the pair.The
roles of the nodes are reversed.

Figure 1- 6. Failover

A manually initiated failover performs the following steps:
1 Stop the protected applications on the active node. After the protected applications stop, no more disk

updates are generated.

2 Send all updates that are still queued on the active node to the passive node. After this step, all updates

are available on the passive node.

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Chapter 1 Introduction

3 Re-designate the Secondary as the new active node. After this step, vCenter Server Heartbeat:

Reassigns the Public IP address to the Secondary in a LAN or updates DNS in a WAN.

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Makes the newly active node visible on the network. The newly active node begins to intercept and

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queue disk I/O operations for the newly passive node.

4 vCenter Server Heartbeat causes the newly passive node to begin accepting updates from the active

node.

5 vCenter Server Heartbeat starts the same protected applications on the new active node. The protected

applications become accessible to users.The failover is complete

Failover - Automatically Initiated by vCenter Server Heartbeat

Automatic failo ver (auto-f ailo ver) is triggered when system monitoring detects failure of a protected application
or when the passive node detects that the active node is no longer running properly and assumes the role of
the active node.

Resulting from a hardware, operating system, or network communications failure

Figure 1- 7. Automatic Failover (failed node)

During the auto-failover, the passive node performs the following steps:
1 Apply any intercepted updates currently in the passive node’s receive queue as identified by the log of

update records that are saved on the passive node but not yet applied to the replicated files.
The amount of data in the passive node’ s receiv e queue affects the time required to complete the failover

process. If the passive node’s receive queue is long, the system must wait for all updates to the passive
node to complete before the rest of the process can take place. An update record can be applied only if
all earlier update records are applied, and the completion status for the update is in the passive node’s
receive queue. Update records that cannot be applied are discarded.

2 Switch mode of operation from passive to active.

This enables the public identity of the new active node. The shared Public IP address is assigned to the
new active node and the node becomes available to clients that were connected to the previously active
node before the auto-failover and clients are able to reconnect.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

3 Start intercepting updates to protected data and store the updates in the send queue of the local node.
4 Start all protected applications.The applications use the replicated application data to recover, and then

accept re-connections from any clients. Any updates that the applications make to the protected data are
intercepted and logged.

At this point, the originally active node is offline and the originally passive node is filling the active role and
running the protected applications. An y updates completed before the auto-f ailover are retained. Application
clients can reconnect to the application and continue running as before.

Resulting from a failed application or service

When an auto-failover occurs as the result of a failed protected application, auto-failover changes the roles of
the nodes but then stops vCenter Server Heartbeat on the previously active node to allow the administrator to
investigate the cause of the auto-failover and verify the integrity of the data.

After the cause of the auto-failover is determined and problems are corrected, the administrator can use the
Heartbeat tab of the vSphere Web Client or the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console to return the node roles to
their original state.

Figure 1- 8. Auto-Failover (protected application failure)

1 Stop the protected applications on the active node. After the protected applications stop, no more disk

updates are generated.

2 Send all updates that are still queued on the active node to the passive node. After this step, all updates

are available on the passive node.

3 Re-designate the Secondary as the new active node. After this step, vCenter Server Heartbeat:

Reassigns the Public IP address to the Secondary in a LAN or updates DNS in a WAN.

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Makes the newly active node visible on the network. The newly active node begins to intercept and

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queue disk I/O operations for the newly passive node.

4 vCenter Server Heartbeat causes the newly passive node to begin accepting updates from the active

node.

5 vCenter Server Heartbeat starts the same protected applications on the new active node. The protected

applications become accessible to users.

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Chapter 1 Introduction

Failover in a WAN Environment

Failover in a WAN environment differs from Failover in a LAN environment due to the nature of the WAN
connection. In a WAN environment, auto-failover is disabled by default in the event that the WAN connection
is lost.

Should a condition arise that would normally trigger an auto-failover, the administrator will receive vCenter
Server Heartbeat alerts.The administrator must manually click the Make Active button on the Heartbeat tab
of the vSphere Web Client or the Server: Summary page of the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console to allow
the roles of the node to switch over the WAN.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

18 VMware, Inc.

2vCenter Server Heartbeat Monitoring

After installation of vCenter Server Heartbeat, initial operational configuration and day-to-day operations are
performed using the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console. vCenter Server Heartbeat operates over a Pair of
vCenter Server Heartbeat nodes and is administered in these Pairs.The vCenter Server Heartbeat Console
is used to administer one or more Pairs.

This chapter includes the following topics:

“Supported vCenter Server Heartbeat Clients,” on page 19

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“vCenter Server Heartbeat Console,” on page 20

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“vSphere Web Client Plug-in,” on page 25

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“vSphere Client Plug-in,” on page 27

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“Server Monitoring,” on page 29

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“Network Monitoring,” on page 30

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“Application Monitoring,” on page 34

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“Performance Monitoring,” on page 35

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“Monitoring Data Replication,” on page 36

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Supported vCenter Server Heartbeat Clients

vCenter Server Heartbeat allows the use of multiple clients to provide basic management of vCenter Server
Heartbeat pairs. vCenter Server Heartbeat communicates with the following clients:

Note Each client permits differing le vels of permissions based upon either vCenter Server role or user account
permissions as indicated below.

Available Clients:

vSphere Web Client (NGC)

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vSphere Client (C#)

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Console (local or remote)

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NFCMD (command line)

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The following (table 2-1) provides the level of permissions for each client based upon user role.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

Table 2- 1. VMware vCenter Server Heartbeat Account Permissions

Server role

Applications

Replication

Comments

Permissions derived
from vSphere Client
login

Notes:

Permissions derived
from vSphere Client
login

N/AN/AN/AN/AWindows role

Local System
Administrators
Group

Permissions
derived from
vCSHB Console
login account

1, 2

NFCMDvCSHB ConsolevSphere ClientvSphere Web ClientClient

N/AN/AUserAdministratorUserAdministratorvCenter

Local System Administrators
Group

YesYesYesYesYesYesView
YesYesNoYesNoYesMake Active
YesYesNoYesNoYesStart/Stop

YesYesNoYesNoYesStart/Stop

YesYesNoYesNoYesShutdown
Permissions derived from the

permissions of the currently
logged in user

3

1 Only the Administrator or members of the Administrator Group can login to the vCenter Server Heartbeat

Console. User level accounts are not permitted.The account used to login will be validated against the
virtual machine where vCenter Server Heartbeat is installed. If the user account is v alidated as a member
of the Administrator Group, login can proceed. If the user account is not a member of the Administrator
Group, login will fail.

2 Once an Administrator has logged in to a vCenter Server Heartbeat pair using the vCenter Server Heartbeat

Console, they are not prompted for username and password during subsequent logons to that specific
pair.

3 The NFCMD utility connects to the vCenter Server Heartbeat instance and logs in using the credentials

of the currently logged in user.The vCenter Server Heartbeat service allows administrators on the local
node to log on using NFCMD and execute commands. If you are running NFCMD on another node, then
you must setup a TrustedClient relationship for the hostname and user name you want to use by connecting
first using the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console.

vCenter Server Heartbeat Console

The vCenter Server Heartbeat Console runs from either of the two nodes in the Pair or remotely from another
node in the same subnet that has vCenter Server Heartbeat or the vCenter Server Heartbeat Client Tools
installed.

Note You can install vCenter Server Heartbeat on a Windows XP and Windows Vista SP1 or later w orkstation
to act as a client to the Pair or on Windows Server 2003. Download and run Setup similar to vCenter Server
Heartbeat installation on the workstation and select Install Client Tools Only on the Setup Type page.

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Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Monitoring

Starting vCenter Server Heartbeat Console

Start vCenter Server Heartbeat Console from any node of the vCenter Server Heartbeat Pair.

Procedure

1 Right-click the VMw are vCenter Server Heartbeat interactive status icon on the Windo ws tool tray (located

on the right side of the Windows tool bar).The vCenter Server Heartbeat quick access menu opens.

2 Select Manage Server.

The vCenter Server Heartbeat Console opens in a window and displays the Heartbeat Servers (overview)
pane.

Note Alternatively you can start vCenter Server Heartbeat Console from the VMware program group on
the Windows Start menu.This is the only method supported if vCenter Server Heartbeat Console has
been installed on a workstation that is not part of the Pair.

Navigate vCenter Server Heartbeat Console

After vCenter Server Heartbeat Console is running, use the navigation panel on the left of the vCenter Server
Heartbeat Console window to view and select Groups and Pair connections you can manage with vCenter
Server Heartbeat Console.

Note A Group is an arbitrary collection of vCenter Server Heartbeat Pairs used for organization.
A Connection, or Pair Connection allows vCenter Server Heartbeat Console to communicate with a vCenter

Server Heartbeat Pair either on the same machine or remotely.

See “Adding a vCenter Server Group,” on page 22 and “Adding a New Connection, ” on page 23 f or inf ormation
on how to add Groups and Pair Connections to vCenter Server Heartbeat Console.

The selection of the Group or Pair you make in the navigation panel provides information related to only the
selected Group or Pair. To avoid confusion, pay particular attention to the selection in the navigation panel
when managing more than one Group or Pair.

Note Groups and Pairs are not automatically detected by vCenter Server Heartbeat Console. Each Group
or Pair you intend to manage must be added to vCenter Server Heartbeat Console before you can use it to
view status or change settings for that Group or Pair Connection.

Select a Pair in the navigation panel of vCenter Server Heartbeat to show a set of tabs and sub-tabs that offer
detailed status and control of the associated vCenter Server Heartbeat node in the Pair.

Changing the Font for vCenter Server Heartbeat Console

You can change the font used in the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console interface.

Procedure

1 Select Font Selection from the Preferences menu.The Font Selection dialog opens.
2 In the Style pane, scroll to and click to select a font.
3 In the Size: text box, type a new numeric (point) size or use the arrow buttons to change the font size.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

4 Click OK.

A confirmation message appears.

5 Click Yes to confirm the changes and restart vCenter Server Heartbeat Console to apply the new font

settings. Click No to restart later; the changes will be applied the next time vCenter Server Heartbeat
Console is started.

Working with Groups

vCenter Server Heartbeat allows you to Group pairs based upon logical organization such as business function
or category.

Adding a vCenter Server Group

The Add Group feature in vCenter Server Heartbeat Console allows you to add new vCenter Server Heartbeat
Groups to manage.

Procedure

1 Open vCenter Server Heartbeat Console and click Add Group in the tool bar, select Add Group from the

File menu, or right-click an existing group in the navigation panel and select Add Group from the menu.

2 Type the name for the new group into the text box and click OK.

The newly created group appears in the navigation panel on the left of the vCenter Server Center Heartbeat
window.

Removing a vCenter Server Heartbeat Group

The Remove Group feature in vCenter Server Heartbeat allows you to remo ve existing vCenter Server Heartbeat
Groups from management.

Procedure

1 Select the Group to be removed in the navigation panel of vCenter Server Heartbeat Console. Click

Remove Group in the tool bar or select Remove Group from the File menu.
A confirmation message appears.

2 Click Yes.

Working with Pairs in vCenter Server Heartbeat Groups

When you created a vCenter Server Heartbeat Group using the instructions in “Adding a vCenter Server Group, ”
on page 22, you created an empty container.You must add connections to the Pair or Pairs that make up y our
new vCenter Server Heartbeat Group to enable management of them.

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Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Monitoring

Adding a New Connection

The Add Connection feature in the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console allows you to add a new P air Connection
to an existing vCenter Server Heartbeat Group.

Procedure

1 In the navigation panel, select the vCenter Server Heartbeat Group to receive the new connection. Click

Add Connection in the tool bar, select Add Connection from the File menu, or right-clic k an existing group
in the navigation panel and select Add Connection to invoke the Add Connection dialog.

2 Type the Host Name or IP address for the new connection into the text box, select the Port Number (if

different from the default v alue of 52267), and select a group from the Add to Group drop-do wn list (to add
the connection to a Group other than the one currently selected).

3 Click the Alternate IPs button to add additional IPs for the node. Click OK.

Note The Add Connection dialog allows you to add additional Management IP addresses to the connection
for the node. In the event that the main IP address becomes unavailable, the vCenter Server Heartbeat
Console will attempt to use the alternate IP addresses to connect to vCenter Server Heartbeat.

The newly created connection appears in the navigation panel on the left of the vCenter Server Heartbeat
Console window and vCenter Server Heartbeat Console attempts to connect to the node.You may be
prompted to accept a secure connection certificate from the node.This allows communications between
vCenter Server Heartbeat Console and the node to be encrypted.To accept the certificate, click OK.

4 You may be prompted for credentials that allow you to have access to the node.Typically you will be

asked for these credentials the first time you connect from a particular client system. If so, enter a Username
that has administrator rights on the node that you are connecting to, enter the Password, and click OK.

Once you have connected to a particular node and have a valid secure connection certificate, the next
time you use vCenter Server Heartbeat Console on this client system it will automatically connect to the
node. If the certificate expires or becomes invalid, the connection may be removed from vCenter Server
Heartbeat Console requiring you to reconnect and accept the new certificate. If the IP address of the client
system changes, you may have to re-enter the username and password credentials.

Note The Server: Summary page updates to represent any existing network relationships of the added
node.

5 Enter the remaining connections necessary to define the new vCenter Server Heartbeat Group.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

Editing a Connection

The Edit Connection feature in the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console allows you to change the Port Number
for existing connections.

Procedure

1 In the navigation panel, select the connection you want to change and select Edit Connection from the

File menu or right-click an existing connection in the navigation panel and select Edit Connection from the
menu to display the Edit Connection dialog.

Note When a configured connection is not found, an error message may be displayed. Click Edit
Connection to reconfigure the connection.

2 Type the new value for the Port Number into the text box, or use the Up or Down arrow controls to the

right of the text box to select a new value.

3 Click OK.

Moving a Connection

The Move Connection feature in vCenter Server Heartbeat Console allows you to reassign an existing Pair to
a different Group.

Procedure

1 Select the Pair in the navigation panel and clic k Move Connection in the tool bar , select Mov e Connection

from the File menu, or right-click on the Connection in the navigation panel and select Move Connection

from the menu to display the Move Connection dialog.
2 Select the destination Group to receive the Connection from the drop-down list.
3 click OK.

Removing a Connection

The Remove Connection feature in vCenter Server Heartbeat allows you to remove an existing Connection.

Procedure

1 Select the Connection in the navigation panel and click Remove Connection in the tool bar , select Remov e

Connection from the File menu, or right-click on the connection in the navigation panel and select Remov e

Connection from the menu.

A confirmation dialog appears.
2 Click Yes.

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Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Monitoring

Editing User Name and Password Settings

Use the Edit User Name and Passw ord feature in vCenter Server Heartbeat Console to change the User Name
and Password settings used to connect to a given Pair.

Procedure

1 Select a connection in the navigation panel and select Edit User Name and Pass w ord from the File men u

or right-click on the Connection in the navigation panel and select Edit User Name and Password from

the menu to display the Edit User Name and Password dialog.
2 Type new values for User Name and Password into the corresponding text boxes.
3 Click OK.

Reviewing the Status of Groups and Pairs

Click on the top lev el of the Heartbeat Servers page in the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console to view a list of
all managed Pairs and a quick status of protected applications , netw ork, files system, and registry settings for
each Group.The status hyperlinks in the overview window links to pages that provide more specific related
information and management controls.

The Server connection name to view the Server: Summary page

■

The Applications status to view the Applications: Summary page

■

The Network status to view the Network Monitoring page

■

The File System or Registry status to view the Data: Replication page

■

Exiting vCenter Server Heartbeat Console

Procedure

1 Click Exit on the File menu.

The Confirm Exit message appears.
2 Click Yes.

vSphere Web Client Plug-in

During installation of vCenter Server Heartbeat, Setup installs a plug-in for vSphere Web Client that allows
you to view or manage vCenter Server Heartbeat, depending on your user account permissions, from the
integrated vSphere Web Client. The Heartbeat tab of the vSphere Web Client provides the status of vCenter
Server Heartbeat and provides administrators the ability to perform basic vCenter Server Heartbeat management
functions such as perform a failover or stop and start replication.

Note Use of vCenter Server Heartbeat Plug-in for vSphere W eb Client requires that Adobe Flash Pla y er 11.4
or later is installed. If Adobe Flash Player 11.4 or later is not installed prior to installation of vCenter Server
Heartbeat, selecting the Heartbeat tab in vSphere Web Client for the first time will provide an opportunity to
download Adobe Flash Player 11.4 from the internet and install it.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

Launching the Heartbeat Plug-in for vSphere Web Client

The Heartbeat Plug-in is integrated with vSphere Web Client and allows you to administer your Pair.

Procedure

1 Login to vSphere Web Client.
2 Select vCenter in the navigation pane of vSphere Web Client.

The vCenter pane is displayed.
3 Under the Inventory Lists, select vCenter Servers.

A list of manageable vCenter Servers is displayed by Fully Qualified Domain Names (FQDN).
4 Select the FQDN of the vCenter Server to be managed.
5 Select the Monitor tab of the vSphere Client.

The Monitor sub-tabs are displayed.
6 Select the Heartbeat sub-tab of vSphere Web Client.

The Heartbeat Plug-in content is displayed.

Figure 2- 1. vSphere Web Client Heartbeat Plug-in

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Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Monitoring

Performing a Failover Using vSphere Web Client

Procedure

1 Navigate to the Heartbeat sub-tab in the vSphere Web Client.
2 Click either Make Primary Active or Make Secondary Active as appropriate.

A confirmation dialog is displayed.
3 Click Yes to confirm your action.

vCenter Server Heartbeat performs a failover.

Note After performing a Make Active operation, the Heartbeat tab may f ail to display properly.To update

the Heartbeat tab, refresh vSphere Web Client browser.

Starting or Stopping Replication Using vSphere Web Client

Procedure

1 Select the Heartbeat tab of vSphere Web Client.
2 Click either Stop Replication or Start Replication as appropriate.

vSphere Client Plug-in

During installation of vCenter Server Heartbeat, Setup installs a plug-in for vSphere Client that allows you to
manage vCenter Server Heartbeat from the integrated vSphere Client.The Heartbeat tab of the vSphere Client
provides the status of vCenter Server Heartbeat and the ability to perform basic vCenter Server Heartbeat
management functions such as perform a failover or stop and start replication.

Note Use of vCenter Server Heartbeat Plug-in for vSphere Client requires that Adobe Flash Player 11.4 or
later is installed. If Adobe Flash Player 11.4 or later is not installed prior to installation of vCenter Server
Heartbeat, selecting the Heartbeat tab in vSphere Client for the first time will pro vide an opportunity to download
Adobe Flash Player 11.4 from the internet and install it.

When using the Heartbeat Plug-in for the first time (selecting the Heartbeat tab), you must be connected to
the internet.

Launching the Heartbeat Plug-in for vSphere Client

The Heartbeat Plug-in is integrated with vSphere Client and allows you to administer your Pair.

Procedure

1 Login to vSphere Client.
2 A security certificate is presented. Select the check box to install the security certificate.

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

3 Select the Heartbeat tab of vSphere Client.
4 When prompted to acknowledge the Security Alert, click Y es to proceed.The Heartbeat Plug-in is displayed.

Figure 2- 2. vSphere Client Heartbeat Plug-in

Performing a Failover Using vSphere Client

Procedure

1 Select the Heartbeat tab of vSphere Client.
2 Click either Make Primary Active or Make Secondary Active as appropriate.
3 When prompted accept the security certificate to complete the operation.

Note Each time you perform a Make Active operation from the vSphere Client you must accept the

security certificate. After performing a Make Active oper ation, the Heartbeat tab may fail to displa y properly .

To update the Heartbeat tab, restart vSphere Client.

After a failover, should vSphere Client fail to authenticate when it attempts to connect, select the use

Windows Credentials checkbox.

Starting or Stopping Replication Using vSphere Client

Procedure

1 Select the Heartbeat tab of vSphere Client.
2 Click either Stop Replication or Start Replication as appropriate.

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Server Monitoring

Protection against operating system or hardware failure affecting the active node is accomplished using two
instances of the vCenter Server Heartbeat that monitor one another by sending “I’m alive” messages o ver the
VMware Channel. If the passive node detects that this process (the heartbeat) has failed, a f ailov er is initiated.

Checking the vCenter Server Heartbeat Pair Status

The Server: Summary page is the default page that opens when administering the vCenter Server Heartbeat
pair.The Server: Summary page allows you to view the roles that nodes are performing (active or passive),
actions that each node is currently performing, and summary information on communications status and data
replication between nodes.The lower pane displays status information for each node in the pair.

Note To change the currently displayed node (active or passive), click the node graphical representation in
the upper pane, or select the Identity tab (Primary or Secondary) in the bottom pane.

The following (table 2-2) lists the possible system statuses and their meanings.

Table 2- 2. System Status

DescriptionIconStatus

Heartbeat service is shut down.Heartbeat service

shutdown

Heartbeat service is starting up.Initializing

Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Monitoring

Replicating

Not replicating

server

server
Stopping replication

Heartbeat service
shutting down

Lost active server

(Normal status) File and registry changes on the active node are intercepted and
replicated to the passive node. Protected applications are monitored.

File and registry replication is stopping and all protected applications may be closing
down.

The system is performing a failover.Switching active server

VMware Channel connections have been established between the two nodes.Connecting to peer

VMware Channel connections have been lost between the two nodes.Disconnecting from peer

File replication is stopping and, optionally , all protected applications may be closing
down.

Replication is starting and protected applications are optionally starting.Starting replication

Heartbeat is initializing on the active node and starting protected applications.Starting as active server

Heartbeat is stopping.The Heartbeat service is shutting down, and will no longer
participate in replication. Optionally, protected applications may be stopped.

The passive node has lost connection to the active node. If this condition persists
for the failover timeout, and failover is permitted between the pair of nodes, then a
failover will occur.

A failover has occurred,Active following failover

The Heartbeat service cannot be contacted on the node.Server not responding

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vCenter Server Heartbeat Administrator's Guide

When viewing the passive node status, the file system and registry status are displayed graphically.The
following (table 2-3) lists possible synchronization statuses and their meanings.

Table 2- 3. File System and Registry Status

When vCenter Server Heartbeat establishes a connection, it triggers a file synchronization and verification
process to ensure all protected files on both nodes are identical.The process checks each 64K block of the
protected file and performs a checksum to determine whether blocks differ. If blocks are the same , it is marked
as synchronized. If blocks differ, then it is replicated to the passive node and then marked as synchronized.
The file verification and synchronization process is finished after all blocks of the stipulated files are marked
as synchronized.

DescriptionIconStatus

Fully synchronized.Synchronized

There are files that are currently unchecked. A full system check did not complete.Unchecked

Not synchronized.Out-of-Sync

Displayed when the Heartbeat service is starting up or shutting down.Uninitialized

The registry is currently in the process of synchronization.Checking

Not synchronized.Error

Monitoring the Status of the Active and Passive Nodes

The Server: Monitoring page provides additional information about the status of communications between
nodes within the pair. Graphical representation pro vides an overview of communications status between nodes .
A green channel icon indicates the channel is connected and healthy while a yellow dashed channel icon
indicates that communications are not operational between indicated nodes. In addition to the heartbeat sent
between nodes, vCenter Server Heartbeat also sends a ping to ensure the nodes remain visible to one another.

Network Monitoring

vCenter Server Heartbeat proactively monitors the network by polling up to three predefined nodes to ensure
that the active node is visible on the network.

vCenter Server Heartbeat also proactively monitors the capability of the active and passive nodes to
communicate with the rest of the network by polling the Primary DNS server, Default Gate way, and the Global
Catalog server at regular intervals. If all three nodes f ail to respond, f or e xample, due to a network card or local
switch failure, vCenter Server Heartbeat can initiate a failover, allowing the passive node to assume the role
of the active node.

Communications Status

Use the Data:Traffic/Queues page to check the status of the VMware Channel, the active node’s send, and
passive node’s receive queues.

30 VMware, Inc.