VMware vRealize Operations Manager - 6.5 Installation Manual
vRealize Operations Manager
Installation and Configuration Guide
for Linux
vRealize Operations Manager 6.5
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.vmware.com/support/pubs.
EN-002405-00
vRealize Operations Manager Installation and Configuration Guide for Linux
You can find the most up-to-date technical documentation on the VMware Web site at:
hp://www.vmware.com/support/
The VMware Web site also provides the latest product updates.
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Copyright © 2017 VMware, Inc. All rights reserved. Copyright and trademark information.
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2 VMware, Inc.
Contents
About Installation and Conguration for Linux 5
About Installing 7
1
Installation Overview 8
Workow of vRealize Operations Manager Installation 8
Sizing the vRealize Operations Manager Cluster 9
Add Data Disk Space to a vRealize Operations Manager Linux 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 13
Preparing for Installation 15
2
Platform requirements for vRealize Operations Manager 15
vRealize Operations Manager Platform Requirements for Linux 15
Requirements 17
Using IPv6 with vRealize Operations Manager 17
Cluster Requirements 18
Installing vRealize Operations Manager 23
3
Deployment of vRealize Operations Manager 23
Create a vRealize Operations Node using Installers 23
Installation Types 25
Installing vRealize Operations Manager for a New User 26
Installing vRealize Operations Manager as an Administrator 28
Expand an Existing Installation of vRealize Operations Manager 29
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Resize your Cluster by Adding Nodes 33
4
Gathering More Data by Adding a vRealize Operations Manager Remote Collector Node 34
Run the Setup Wizard to Create a Remote Collector Node 34
Adding High Availability to vRealize Operations Manager 35
Run the Setup Wizard to Add a Master Replica Node 35
vRealize Operations Manager Cluster and Node Maintenance 36
Cluster Management 38
vRealize Operations Manager Post-Installation Considerations 41
5
About Logging In to vRealize Operations Manager 41
About New vRealize Operations Manager Installations 42
Log In and Continue with a New Installation 42
3
vRealize Operations Manager Installation and Configuration Guide for Linux
Updating, Migrating and Restoring 45
6
Obtain the Software Update PAK File 45
Create a Snapshot as Part of an Update 46
How To Preserve Customized Content 46
Backup and Restore 47
vRealize Operations Manager Software Updates 47
Install a Software Update 48
Install a vRealize Operations Manager Software Update from the Administration Interface 49
Migrate a vCenter Operations Manager Deployment into this Version 50
Uninstalling 51
7
Uninstallation from Linux 51
Index 53
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About Installation and Configuration for Linux
The vRealize Operations Manager Installation and Conguration Guide for Linux provides information about
installing VMware® vRealize Operations Manager on the Linux operating system, including how to create
and congure the vRealize Operations Manager cluster.
The vRealize Operations Manager installation process consists of running the vRealize Operations Manager
Enterprise installer on each cluster node, and accessing the product to nish seing up the application.
Intended Audience
This information is intended for anyone who wants to install and congure vRealize Operations Manager on
Linux machines. The information is wrien for experienced Linux system administrators who are familiar
with enterprise management applications and datacenter operations.
VMware Technical Publications Glossary
VMware Technical Publications provides a glossary of terms that might be unfamiliar to you. For denitions
of terms as they are used in VMware technical documentation, go to
hp://www.vmware.com/support/pubs.
VMware, Inc.
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vRealize Operations Manager Installation and Configuration Guide for Linux
6 VMware, Inc.
About Installing 1
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:
“Installation Overview,” on page 8
n
“Workow of vRealize Operations Manager Installation,” on page 8
n
“Sizing the vRealize Operations Manager Cluster,” on page 9
n
“Complexity of Your Environment,” on page 10
n
“About vRealize Operations Manager Cluster Nodes,” on page 12
n
“About vRealize Operations Manager Remote Collector Nodes,” on page 13
n
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“About vRealize Operations Manager High Availability,” on page 13
n
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vRealize Operations Manager Installation and Configuration Guide for Linux
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
thevRealize Operations Manager OVF or installer once for each cluster node, accessing the product to set up
cluster nodes according to their role, and logging in to congure the installation.
Figure 1‑1. vRealize Operations Manager Installation Architecture
8 VMware, Inc.
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.
It is dicult 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 specic 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 congure a vRealize Operations Manager node.
2 Deploy a temporary vRealize Operations Manager node.
Chapter 1 About Installing
3 Congure 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 dierent 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 notication when thresholds are passed.
Add Data Disk Space to a vRealize Operations Manager Linux Node
You add to the data disk of vRealize Operations Manager Linux nodes when space for storing the collected
data runs low.
The following example is for a Linux system.
Prerequisites
Note the disk size of the analytics cluster nodes. When adding disk, you must maintain uniform size across
analytics cluster nodes.
Procedure
1 Add a new disk to the system, and partition and format the disk as needed.
2 Use the vRealize Operations Manager administration interface to take the cluster oine.
3 Stop the vmware-casa service.
4 Move the contents of /storage/db into a directory on the new disk.
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vRealize Operations Manager Installation and Configuration Guide for Linux
5 Create a symbolic link from the new directory back to /storage/db, so that /storage/db now references
the new disk.
6 Start the vmware-casa service.
7 Bring the cluster online.
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 dierent 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.
Green
n
Your installation only includes conditions that most users can understand and work with, without
assistance. Continue your deployment.
Yellow
n
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.
Red
n
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 rm 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.
Table 1‑1. Effect of Deployment Conditions on Complexity
Current or New Deployment
Complexity Level
Green You run only one
Green Your deployment includes a
Yellow You run multiple instances of
Condition Additional Notes
Lone instances are usually easy to
vRealize Operations Manager
deployment.
management pack that is listed as
Green according to the compatibility
guide on the VMware Solutions
Exchange Web site.
vRealize Operations Manager.
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
dierent results. Regardless, users
might need help in adjusting their
conguration 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
paerns.
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Table 1‑1. Effect of Deployment Conditions on Complexity (Continued)
Current or New Deployment
Complexity Level
Yellow Your deployment includes a
Yellow You are deploying
Yellow You are deploying a multiple-node
Yellow Your new
Yellow Your vRealize Operations Manager
Yellow You want help in understanding the
Red You run multiple instances of
Red Your deployment includes a
Red You are deploying multiple
Condition Additional Notes
management pack that is listed as
Yellow according to the compatibility
guide on the VMware Solutions
Exchange Web site.
vRealize Operations Manager remote
collector nodes.
vRealize Operations Manager cluster.
vRealize Operations Manager
instance will include a Linux based
deployment.
instance will use high availability
(HA).
new or changed features in
vRealize Operations Manager and
how to use them in your
environment.
vRealize Operations Manager, where
at least one includes virtual desktop
infrastructure (VDI).
management pack that is listed as
Red according to the compatibility
guide on the VMware Solutions
Exchange Web site.
vRealize Operations Manager
clusters.
Chapter 1 About Installing
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
dierent results. Regardless, users
might need help in adjusting their
conguration so that associated data,
dashboards, alerts, and so on appear as
expected.
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
dierent than vCenter Operations
Manager in areas such as policies,
alerts, compliance, custom reporting,
or badges. In addition,
vRealize Operations Manager uses one
consolidated interface.
Multiple instances are typically used to
address scaling, operator use paerns,
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
dierent results. Regardless, users
might need help in adjusting their
conguration so that associated data,
dashboards, alerts, and so on appear as
expected.
Multiple clusters are typically used to
isolate business operations or
functions.
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vRealize Operations Manager Installation and Configuration Guide for Linux
Table 1‑1. Effect of Deployment Conditions on Complexity (Continued)
Current or New Deployment
Complexity Level
Red Your current
Red Professional Services customized
Condition Additional Notes
If your environment was complex
vRealize Operations Manager
deployment required a Professional
Services engagement to install it.
your vRealize Operations Manager
deployment. Examples of
customization include special
integrations, scripting, nonstandard
congurations, multiple level
alerting, or custom reporting.
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
or Linux installer to create role-less nodes. After the nodes are created and have their names and IP
addresses, you use an administration interface to congure 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.
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 rewalls, 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 dierent operating system than the rest of the
cluster.
12 VMware, Inc.
Chapter 1 About Installing
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 rewalls, 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 buer 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.
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.
HA is not a disaster recovery mechanism. HA protects the analytics cluster against the loss of only one
n
node, and because only one loss is supported, you cannot stretch nodes across vSphere clusters in an
aempt to isolate nodes or build failure zones.
When HA is enabled, the replica can take over all functions that the master provides, were the master to
n
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.
Return to HA mode by correcting the problem with the master node. When a master node exits an
n
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.
Return to HA mode by converting a data node into a new replica node and then removing the old,
n
failed master node. Removed master nodes cannot be repaired and re-added to
vRealize Operations Manager.
Change to non-HA operation by disabling HA and then removing the old, failed master node.
n
Removed master nodes cannot be repaired and re-added to vRealize Operations Manager.
In the administration interface, after an HA replica node takes over and becomes the new master node,
n
you cannot remove the previous, oine 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.
When HA is enabled, the cluster can survive the loss of one data node without losing any data.
n
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.
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vRealize Operations Manager Installation and Configuration Guide for Linux
When HA is enabled, it lowers vRealize Operations Manager capacity and processing by half, because
n
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,” on
page 9.
When HA is enabled, deploy analytics cluster nodes on separate hosts for redundancy and isolation.
n
One option is to use anti-anity rules that keep nodes on specic hosts in the vSphere cluster.
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
dierence. Without HA, the loss of even one node would make all of vRealize Operations Manager
unavailable.
When you power o the data node and change the network seings of the VM, this aects the IP
n
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.
When you remove a node that has one or more vCenter adapters congured to collect data from a HA-
n
enabled cluster, one or more vCenter adapters associated with that node stops collecting. You change
the adapter conguration to pin them to another node before removing the node.
Administration UI shows the resource cache count, which is created for active objects only, but the
n
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
dierent quantity of objects from that shown in the Administration UI.
Creating a Replica Node for High Availability
(hp://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid2296383276001?
bctid=ref:video_vrops_create_replica_node_ha)
14 VMware, Inc.
Preparing for Installation 2
You preparing for your installation, consider some of these best practises, platform, and cluster
requirements.
This chapter includes the following topics:
“Platform requirements for vRealize Operations Manager,” on page 15
n
“Requirements,” on page 17
n
Platform requirements for vRealize Operations Manager
vRealize Operations Manager requires the following hardware and software when you install on any
platform.
vRealize Operations Manager Platform Requirements for Linux
vRealize Operations Manager requires the following hardware and software when you install on Linux.
CPU and Memory Requirements
vRealize Operations Manager is supported for installation with the following CPU and memory.
Table 2‑1. vRealize Operations Manager Linux Virtual CPU and Memory Requirements
Node Size Virtual CPU and Memory
Small 4 vCPU
16 GB vRAM
Medium 8 vCPU
32 GB vRAM
Large 16 vCPU
48 GB vRAM
Standard Remote Collector 2 vCPU
4 GB vRAM
Large Remote Collector 4 vCPU
16 GB vRAM
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vRealize Operations Manager Installation and Configuration Guide for Linux
Disk Requirements
Disk space for vRealize Operations Manager is not driven solely by how much space the application needs
in order to successfully install. In addition, you must consider data collection and retention requirements,
which might vary from site to site.
See “Sizing the vRealize Operations Manager Cluster,” on page 9.
The default disk requirement for a new, single-node cluster is 250 GB. Thereafter, one approach to prevent
disk capacity shortages is by using vRealize Operations Manager for self monitoring and by adding disk or
data nodes as needed.
Software Version Requirements
vRealize Operations Manager is supported for installation on the following Linux versions.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 6, starting with version 6.5.
n
Required Linux Packages for vRealize Operations Manager
vRealize Operations Manager requires that certain Linux packages be installed before running the product
installer. Also, vRealize Operations Manager installs additional packages.
Prerequisite Linux Packages
The following packages must be present before running the vRealize Operations Manager installer.
Furthermore, if a package is a Linux default, it must not be removed after installation.
bash
n
chkcong
n
coreutils
n
db4
n
expat
n
glibc
n
initscripts
n
libaio
n
libselinux
n
libstdc++
n
libuuid
n
mailcap
n
openldap
n
pcre
n
python
n
sudo
n
redhat-logos
n
rpm-libs
n
shadow-utils
n
zlib
n
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Packages that vRealize Operations Manager Installs
vRealize Operations Manager installs its own copies of the following packages.
apr
n
apr-util
n
apr-util-ldap
n
hpd
n
hpd-tools
n
mod_ssl
n
openssl
n
python
n
VMware-Postgres-libs
n
VMware-Postgres-osslibs
n
VMware-Postgres-osslibs-server
n
VMware-Postgres-server
n
Chapter 2 Preparing for Installation
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
All vRealize Operations Manager cluster nodes, including remote collectors, must have IPv6 addresses.
n
Do not mix IPv6 and IPv4.
All vRealize Operations Manager cluster nodes, including remote collectors, must be vApp or Linux
n
based.
Use global IPv6 addresses only. Link-local addresses are not supported.
n
If any nodes use DHCP, your DHCP server must be congured to support IPv6.
n
DHCP is only supported on data nodes and remote collectors. Master nodes and replica nodes still
n
require xed addresses, which is true for IPv4 as well.
Your DNS server must be congured to support IPv6.
n
When adding nodes to the cluster, remember to enter the IPv6 address of the master node.
n
When registering a VMware vCenter® instance within vRealize Operations Manager, place square
n
brackets around the IPv6 address of your VMware vCenter Server® system if vCenter is also using IPv6.
For example: [2015:0db8:85a3:0042:1000:8a2e:0360:7334]
Note that, even when vRealize Operations Manager is using IPv6, vCenter Server may still have an IPv4
address. In that case, vRealize Operations Manager does not need the square brackets.
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