VMware vRealize Operations Deployment Guide
vRealize Operations
Manager vApp
Deployment Guide
vRealize Operations Manager 6.7
vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment Guide
You can find the most up-to-date technical documentation on the VMware website at:
https://docs.vmware.com/
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Contents
How To Preserve Customized Content 5
1
About vApp Deployment and Configuration 6
About Installing 7
2
Installation Overview 7
Workflow of vRealize Operations Manager Installation 7
Sizing the vRealize Operations Manager Cluster 8
Add Data Disk Space to a vRealize Operations Manager vApp Node 9
Complexity of Your Environment 10
About vRealize Operations Manager Cluster Nodes 12
About vRealize Operations Manager Remote Collector Nodes 13
About vRealize Operations Manager High Availability 14
Preparing for Installation 16
3
Platform requirements for vRealize Operations Manager 16
Requirements 16
Using IPv6 with vRealize Operations Manager 16
Cluster Requirements 17
Installing vRealize Operations Manager 21
4
Deployment of vRealize Operations Manager 21
Create a Node by Deploying an OVF 21
Installation Types 23
Installing vRealize Operations Manager for a New User 24
Installing vRealize Operations Manager as an Administrator 26
Expand an Existing Installation of vRealize Operations Manager 28
Resize your Cluster by Adding Nodes 31
5
Gathering More Data by Adding a vRealize Operations Manager Remote Collector Node 32
Run the Setup Wizard to Create a Remote Collector Node 32
Adding High Availability to vRealize Operations Manager 33
Run the Setup Wizard to Add a Master Replica Node 33
vRealize Operations Manager Cluster and Node Maintenance 35
Cluster Management 36
vRealize Operations Manager Post-Installation Considerations 38
6
About Logging In to vRealize Operations Manager 38
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vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment Guide
After You Log In 39
Secure the vRealize Operations Manager Console 40
Log in to a Remote vRealize Operations Manager Console Session 40
About New vRealize Operations Manager Installations 41
Log In and Continue with a New Installation 41
Updating, Migrating and Restoring 43
7
Obtain the Software Update PAK File 43
Create a Snapshot as Part of an Update 44
How To Preserve Customized Content 44
Backup and Restore 45
vRealize Operations Manager Software Updates 46
Install a Software Update 46
Install a vRealize Operations Manager Software Update from the Administration Interface 48
Migrate a vCenter Operations Manager Deployment into this Version 49
Before Upgrading to vRealize Operations Manager 6.7 49
Running the vROps 6.7 Pre-Upgrade Readiness Assessment Tool 50
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How To Preserve Customized
Content 1
When you upgrade vRealize Operations Manager, it is important that you upgrade the current versions of
content types that allow you to alert on and monitor the objects in your environment. With upgraded alert
definitions, symptom definitions, and recommendations, you can alert on the various states of objects in
your environment and identify a wider range of problem types. With upgraded views, you can create
dashboards and reports to easily identify and report on problems in your environment.
You might need to perform certain steps before you upgrade the alert definitions, symptom definitions,
recommendations, and views in your vRealize Operations Manager environment.
n
If you customized any of the alert definitions, symptom definitions, recommendations, or views that
were provided with previous versions of vRealize Operations Manager, and you want to retain those
customized versions, perform the steps in this procedure.
n
If you did not customize any of the alert definitions, symptom definitions, recommendations, or views
that were provided with previous versions of vRealize Operations Manager, you do not need to back
them up first. Instead, you can start the upgrade, and during the upgrade select the check box named
Reset out-of-the-box content.
Prerequisites
You previously customized versions of your alert definitions, symptom definitions, recommendations, or
views.
Procedure
1 Before you begin the upgrade to vRealize Operations Manager, back up the changes to your alert
definitions, symptom definitions, recommendations, and views by cloning them.
2 Start the upgrade of vRealize Operations Manager.
3 During the upgrade, select the check box named Reset out-of-the-box content.
After the upgrade completes, you have preserved your customized versions of alert definitions, symptom
definitions, recommendations, and views, and you have the current versions that were installed during the
upgrade.
What to do next
Review the changes in the upgraded alert definitions, symptom definitions, recommendations, and views.
Then, determine whether to keep your previously modified versions, or to use the upgraded versions.
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About vApp Deployment and
Configuration
The vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment and Configuration Guide provides information about
deploying the VMware® vRealize Operations Manager virtual appliance, including how to create and
configure the vRealize Operations Manager cluster.
The vRealize Operations Manager installation process consists of deploying the
vRealize Operations Manager virtual appliance once for each cluster node, and accessing the product to
finish setting up the application.
Intended Audience
This information is intended for anyone who wants to install and configure vRealize Operations Manager
by using a virtual appliance deployment. The information is written for experienced virtual machine
administrators who are familiar with enterprise management applications and data center operations.
For administrators who want to deploy the vRealize Operations Manager virtual appliance
programmatically, the VMware vRealize Operations Manager CaSA API documentation is available in
HTML format and is installed with your vRealize Operations Manager instance. For example, if the URL of
your instance is https://vrealize.example.com, the API reference is available from
https://vrealize.example.com/casa/api-guide.html.
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
http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.
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About Installing 2
When you install vRealize Operations Manager, you can install the product in an environment that has
never been monitored by vRealize Operations Manager. You can also migrate, which captures an
environment monitored by a previous version of vRealize Operations Manager so that the new copy of
vRealize Operations Manager can monitor that environment.
You can migrate at installation time, or you can postpone a migration until after your copy of
vRealize Operations Manager is in production use. In other words, you can run
vRealize Operations Manager to monitor a fresh environment, and at any time, decide to add an
environment that was being monitored by a previous vRealize Operations Manager.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n
Installation Overview
n
Workflow of vRealize Operations Manager Installation
n
Sizing the vRealize Operations Manager Cluster
n
Complexity of Your Environment
n
About vRealize Operations Manager Cluster Nodes
n
About vRealize Operations Manager Remote Collector Nodes
n
About vRealize Operations Manager High Availability
Installation Overview
You prepare for vRealize Operations Manager installation by evaluating your environment and deploying
enough vRealize Operations Manager cluster nodes to support how you want to use the product.
Workflow of vRealize Operations Manager Installation
The vRealize Operations Manager virtual appliance installation process consists of deploying the
vRealize Operations Manager OVF or an installer once for each cluster node, accessing the product to
set up cluster nodes according to their role, and logging in to configure the installation.
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Download OVF/Installers
Monitor your environment
New
install
NoYes
New installation
Licensing
Custom certificates
Add new solution
Configure solution
Configure monitoring policies
Expansion of
existing installation
Run remote collectorRun data node
vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment Guide
Figure 2‑1. vRealize Operations Manager Installation Architecture
Sizing the vRealize Operations Manager Cluster
The resources needed for vRealize Operations Manager depend on how large of an environment you
expect to monitor and analyze, how many metrics you plan to collect, and how long you need to store the
data.
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vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment Guide
It is difficult to broadly predict the CPU, memory, and disk requirements that will meet the needs of a
particular environment. There are many variables, such as the number and type of objects collected,
which includes the number and type of adapters installed, the presence of HA, the duration of data
retention, and the quantity of specific data points of interest, such as symptoms, changes, and so on.
VMware expects vRealize Operations Manager sizing information to evolve, and maintains Knowledge
Base articles so that sizing calculations can be adjusted to adapt to usage data and changes in versions
of vRealize Operations Manager.
Knowledge Base article 2093783
The Knowledge Base articles include overall maximums, plus spreadsheet calculators in which you enter
the number of objects and metrics that you expect to monitor. To obtain the numbers, some users take
the following high-level approach, which uses vRealize Operations Manager itself.
1 Review this guide to understand how to deploy and configure a vRealize Operations Manager node.
2 Deploy a temporary vRealize Operations Manager node.
3 Configure one or more adapters, and allow the temporary node to collect overnight.
4 Access the Cluster Management page on the temporary node.
5 Using the Adapter Instances list in the lower portion of the display as a reference, enter object and
metric totals of the different adapter types into the appropriate sizing spreadsheet from Knowledge
Base article 2093783.
6 Deploy the vRealize Operations Manager cluster based on the spreadsheet sizing recommendation.
You can build the cluster by adding resources and data nodes to the temporary node or by starting
over.
If you have a large number of adapters, you might need to reset and repeat the process on the temporary
node until you have all the totals you need. The temporary node will not have enough capacity to
simultaneously run every connection from a large enterprise.
Another approach to sizing is through self monitoring. Deploy the cluster based on your best estimate, but
create an alert for when capacity falls below a threshold, one that allows enough time to add nodes or
disk to the cluster. You also have the option to create an email notification when thresholds are passed.
During internal testing, a single-node vApp deployment of vRealize Operations Manager that monitored
8,000 virtual machines ran out of disk storage within one week.
Add Data Disk Space to a vRealize Operations Manager vApp
Node
You add to the data disk of vRealize Operations Manager vApp nodes when space for storing the
collected data runs low.
Prerequisites
n
Note the disk size of the analytics cluster nodes. When adding disk, you must maintain uniform size
across analytics cluster nodes.
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vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment Guide
n
Use the vRealize Operations Manager administration interface to take the node offline.
n
Verify that you are connected to a vCenter Server system with a vSphere client, and log in to the
vSphere client.
Procedure
1 Shut down the virtual machine for the node.
2 Edit the hardware settings of the virtual machine, and add another disk.
You cannot increase the size when the virtual machine has snapshots.
3 Power on the virtual machine for the node.
During the power-on process, the virtual machine expands the vRealize Operations Manager data
partition.
Complexity of Your Environment
When you deploy vRealize Operations Manager, the number and nature of the objects that you want to
monitor might be complex enough to recommend a Professional Services engagement.
Complexity Levels
Every enterprise is different in terms of the systems that are present and the level of experience of
deployment personnel. The following table presents a color-coded guide to help you determine where you
are on the complexity scale.
n
Green
Your installation only includes conditions that most users can understand and work with, without
assistance. Continue your deployment.
n
Yellow
Your installation includes conditions that might justify help with your deployment, depending on your
level of experience. Consult your account representative before proceeding, and discuss using
Professional Services.
n
Red
Your installation includes conditions that strongly recommend a Professional Services engagement.
Consult your account representative before proceeding, and discuss using Professional Services.
Note that these color-coded levels are not firm rules. Your product experience, which increases as you
work with vRealize Operations Manager and in partnership with Professional Services, must be taken into
account when deploying vRealize Operations Manager.
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vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment Guide
Table 2‑1. Eect of Deployment Conditions on Complexity
Complexity Level Current or New Deployment Condition Additional Notes
Green You run only one
vRealize Operations Manager
deployment.
Green Your deployment includes a
management pack that is listed as Green
according to the compatibility guide on
the VMware Solutions Exchange Web
site.
Yellow You run multiple instances of
vRealize Operations Manager.
Yellow Your deployment includes a
management pack that is listed as
Yellow according to the compatibility
guide on the VMware Solutions
Exchange Web site.
Lone instances are usually easy to create
in vRealize Operations Manager.
The compatibility guide indicates whether
the supported management pack for
vRealize Operations Manager is a
compatible 5.x one or a new one designed
for this release. In some cases, both might
work but produce different results.
Regardless, users might need help in
adjusting their configuration so that
associated data, dashboards, alerts, and
so on appear as expected.
Note that the terms solution, management
pack, adapter, and plug-in are used
somewhat interchangeably.
Multiple instances are typically used to
address scaling or operator use patterns.
The compatibility guide indicates whether
the supported management pack for
vRealize Operations Manager is a
compatible 5.x one or a new one designed
for this release. In some cases, both might
work but produce different results.
Regardless, users might need help in
adjusting their configuration so that
associated data, dashboards, alerts, and
so on appear as expected.
Yellow You are deploying
vRealize Operations Manager remote
collector nodes.
Yellow You are deploying a multiple-node
vRealize Operations Manager cluster.
Yellow Your new vRealize Operations Manager
instance will include a Linux based
deployment.
Yellow Your vRealize Operations Manager
instance will use high availability (HA).
Yellow You want help in understanding the new
or changed features in
vRealize Operations Manager and how
to use them in your environment.
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Remote collector nodes gather data but
leave the storage and processing of the
data to the analytics cluster.
Multiple nodes are typically used for
scaling out the monitoring capability of
vRealize Operations Manager.
Linux deployments are not as common as
vApp deployments and often need special
consideration.
High availability and its node failover
capability is a unique multiple-node
feature that you might want additional help
in understanding.
vRealize Operations Manager is different
than vCenter Operations Manager in
areas such as policies, alerts, compliance,
custom reporting, or badges. In addition,
vRealize Operations Manager uses one
consolidated interface.
vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment Guide
Table 2‑1. Eect of Deployment Conditions on Complexity (Continued)
Complexity Level Current or New Deployment Condition Additional Notes
Red You run multiple instances of
vRealize Operations Manager, where at
least one includes virtual desktop
infrastructure (VDI).
Red Your deployment includes a
management pack that is listed as Red
according to the compatibility guide on
the VMware Solutions Exchange Web
site.
Red You are deploying multiple
vRealize Operations Manager clusters.
Red Your current
vRealize Operations Manager
deployment required a Professional
Services engagement to install it.
Red Professional Services customized your
vRealize Operations Manager
deployment. Examples of customization
include special integrations, scripting,
nonstandard configurations, multiple
level alerting, or custom reporting.
Multiple instances are typically used to
address scaling, operator use patterns, or
because separate VDI (V4V monitoring)
and non-VDI instances are needed.
The compatibility guide indicates whether
the supported management pack for
vRealize Operations Manager is a
compatible 5.x one or a new one designed
for this release. In some cases, both might
work but produce different results.
Regardless, users might need help in
adjusting their configuration so that
associated data, dashboards, alerts, and
so on appear as expected.
Multiple clusters are typically used to
isolate business operations or functions.
If your environment was complex enough
to justify a Professional Services
engagement in the previous version, it is
possible that the same conditions still
apply and might warrant a similar
engagement for this version.
If your environment was complex enough
to justify a Professional Services
engagement in the previous version, it is
possible that the same conditions still
apply and might warrant a similar
engagement for this version.
About vRealize Operations Manager Cluster Nodes
All vRealize Operations Manager clusters consist of a master node, an optional replica node for high
availability, optional data nodes, and optional remote collector nodes.
When you install vRealize Operations Manager, you use a vRealize Operations Manager vApp
deployment to create role-less nodes. After the nodes are created and have their names and IP
addresses, you use an administration interface to configure them according to their role.
You can create role-less nodes all at once or as needed. A common as-needed practice might be to add
nodes to scale out vRealize Operations Manager to monitor an environment as the environment grows
larger.
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vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment Guide
The following node types make up the vRealize Operations Manager analytics cluster:
Master Node The initial, required node in vRealize Operations Manager. All other nodes
are managed by the master node.
In a single-node installation, the master node manages itself, has adapters
installed on it, and performs all data collection and analysis.
Data Node In larger deployments, additional data nodes have adapters installed and
perform collection and analysis.
Larger deployments usually include adapters only on the data nodes so
that master and replica node resources can be dedicated to cluster
management.
Replica Node To use vRealize Operations Manager high availability (HA), the cluster
requires that you convert a data node into a replica of the master node.
The following node type is a member of the vRealize Operations Manager cluster but not part of the
analytics cluster:
Remote Collector Node Distributed deployments might require a remote collector node that can
navigate firewalls, interface with a remote data source, reduce bandwidth
across data centers, or reduce the load on the
vRealize Operations Manager analytics cluster. Remote collectors only
gather objects for the inventory, without storing data or performing analysis.
In addition, remote collector nodes may be installed on a different operating
system than the rest of the cluster.
About vRealize Operations Manager Remote Collector
Nodes
A remote collector node is an additional cluster node that allows vRealize Operations Manager to gather
more objects into its inventory for monitoring. Unlike data nodes, remote collector nodes only include the
collector role of vRealize Operations Manager, without storing data or processing any analytics functions.
A remote collector node is usually deployed to navigate firewalls, reduce bandwidth across data centers,
connect to remote data sources, or reduce the load on the vRealize Operations Manager analytics
cluster.
Remote collectors do not buffer data while the network is experiencing a problem. If the connection
between remote collector and analytics cluster is lost, the remote collector does not store data points that
occur during that time. In turn, and after the connection is restored, vRealize Operations Manager does
not retroactively incorporate associated events from that time into any monitoring or analysis.
You must have at least a master node before adding remote collector nodes.
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vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment Guide
About vRealize Operations Manager High Availability
vRealize Operations Manager supports high availability (HA). HA creates a replica for the
vRealize Operations Manager master node and protects the analytics cluster against the loss of a node.
With HA, data stored on the master node is always 100% backed up on the replica node. To enable HA,
you must have at least one data node deployed, in addition to the master node.
n
HA is not a disaster recovery mechanism. HA protects the analytics cluster against the loss of only
one node, and because only one loss is supported, you cannot stretch nodes across vSphere clusters
in an attempt to isolate nodes or build failure zones.
n
When HA is enabled, the replica can take over all functions that the master provides, were the master
to fail for any reason. If the master fails, failover to the replica is automatic and requires only two to
three minutes of vRealize Operations Manager downtime to resume operations and restart data
collection.
When a master node problem causes failover, the replica node becomes the master node, and the
cluster runs in degraded mode. To get out of degraded mode, take one of the following steps.
n
Return to HA mode by correcting the problem with the master node. When a master node exits
an HA-enabled cluster, master node does not rejoin with the cluster without manual intervention.
Therefore, restart the vRealize Operations Analytics process on the downed node to change its
role to replica and rejoin the cluster.
n
Return to HA mode by converting a data node into a new replica node and then removing the old,
failed master node. Removed master nodes cannot be repaired and re-added to
vRealize Operations Manager.
n
Change to non-HA operation by disabling HA and then removing the old, failed master node.
Removed master nodes cannot be repaired and re-added to vRealize Operations Manager.
n
In the administration interface, after an HA replica node takes over and becomes the new master
node, you cannot remove the previous, offline master node from the cluster. In addition, the previous
node continues to be listed as a master node. To refresh the display and enable removal of the node,
refresh the browser.
n
When HA is enabled, the cluster can survive the loss of one data node without losing any data.
However, HA protects against the loss of only one node at a time, of any kind, so simultaneously
losing data and master/replica nodes, or two or more data nodes, is not supported. Instead,
vRealize Operations Manager HA provides additional application level data protection to ensure
application level availability.
n
When HA is enabled, it lowers vRealize Operations Manager capacity and processing by half,
because HA creates a redundant copy of data throughout the cluster, as well as the replica backup of
the master node. Consider your potential use of HA when planning the number and size of your
vRealize Operations Manager cluster nodes. See Sizing the vRealize Operations Manager Cluster.
n
When HA is enabled, deploy analytics cluster nodes on separate hosts for redundancy and isolation.
One option is to use anti-affinity rules that keep nodes on specific hosts in the vSphere cluster.
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vRealize Operations Manager vApp Deployment Guide
If you cannot keep the nodes separate, you should not enable HA. A host fault would cause the loss
of more than one node, which is not supported, and all of vRealize Operations Manager would
become unavailable.
The opposite is also true. Without HA, you could keep nodes on the same host, and it would not
make a difference. Without HA, the loss of even one node would make all of
vRealize Operations Manager unavailable.
n
When you power off the data node and change the network settings of the VM, this affects the IP
address of the data node. After this point, the HA cluster is no longer accessible and all the nodes
have a status of "Waiting for analytics". Verify that you have used a static IP address.
n
When you remove a node that has one or more vCenter adapters configured to collect data from a
HA-enabled cluster, one or more vCenter adapters associated with that node stops collecting. You
change the adapter configuration to pin them to another node before removing the node.
n
Administration UI shows the resource cache count, which is created for active objects only, but the
Inventory Explorer displays all objects. Therefore, when you remove a node from a HA-enabled
cluster allowing the vCenter adapters collect data and rebalance each node, the Inventory explorer
displays a different quantity of objects from that shown in the Administration UI.
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Preparing for Installation 3
When you prepare for your installation, consider some of these best practises, platform, and cluster
requirements.
This chapter includes the following topics:
n
Platform requirements for vRealize Operations Manager
n
Requirements
Platform requirements for vRealize Operations Manager
vRealize Operations Manager requires the following hardware and software when you install on any
platform.
Requirements
You have to consider important requirements while creating nodes in a vRealize Operations Manager.
Using IPv6 with vRealize Operations Manager
vRealize Operations Manager supports Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6), the network addressing
convention that will eventually replace IPv4. Use of IPv6 with vRealize Operations Manager requires that
certain limitations be observed.
Using IPv6
n
All vRealize Operations Manager cluster nodes, including remote collectors, must have IPv6
addresses. Do not mix IPv6 and IPv4.
n
All vRealize Operations Manager cluster nodes, including remote collectors, must be vApp based.
n
Use global IPv6 addresses only. Link-local addresses are not supported.
n
If any nodes use DHCP, your DHCP server must be configured to support IPv6.
n
DHCP is only supported on data nodes and remote collectors. Master nodes and replica nodes still
require fixed addresses, which is true for IPv4 as well.
n
Your DNS server must be configured to support IPv6.
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