SUSE® CloudReference Implementation for Dell

White PaperCloud Computing

The intent of this document is to provide an overview of a complete, OpenStack-based, private cloud solution, including the core physical infrastructure integrated with enterprise-ready versions of many open source offerings. Deploying this fully supported, enterprise-class private cloud solution helps you increase business agility, maximize your existing data center investments and improve your resource utilization.

Table of Contents page

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Solution Focus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Site Preparation Needed for the Deployment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Facility Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Physical Networking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Computing Platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Software Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Computing Hardware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Appendices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Network Switches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Computing Platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

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Cloud Computing White PaperSUSE Cloud Reference Implementation for Dell

This document also focuses on how to leverage the highly au-tomated nature of this private cloud installation to deploy any type of workload whether for testing and development or for production services .

The target audience is IT professionals responsible for setting up, configuring, administering and operating a private cloud infrastructure .

Solution FocusThrough integrated, open source software, enterprises can es-tablish an Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS1) private cloud that delivers on-demand access to pools of compute, storage and networking resources for use within their organization . With this software, these resources are provisioned as necessary to meet the specific requirements of the applications and services deployed in the cloud . Compute resources are provided through the provi-sioning of physical servers or virtual machines running on top of a hypervisor . Providing storage resources can be accomplished with either dedicated storage elements or distributed, resilient file systems across industry-standard hardware with local stor-age . Networking provides the unifying connectivity that ties the compute, storage and management elements of the private cloud together . Given the complexity of such an infrastructure, the net-work must be provided in a fully configurable fashion, adapting to change requests on demand . Finally, it is the private cloud software that provides the user interface for setup, configuration and main-tenance as well as the long-term operation of the cloud by bond-ing these three core components into a cohesive service offering .

BackgroundCloud computing delivers access to resources like hardware and software over a network, abstracting the complex, internal infra-structures from end users and, to an extent, from some devel-opment and information technology professionals (DevOps) . It allows individual virtual machines or workloads to be provisioned on demand from predefined templates with little concern about the underlying infrastructure or resources . Services, consisting of many workloads, can be provisioned for use in minutes and then scaled appropriately to meet service demands . For further reference, the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) Definition of Cloud Computing2 describes the important characteristics of cloud computing .

While public cloud services have existed for some time, a pri-vate cloud enables companies to take advantage of the benefits of cloud computing with less risk of data exposure and more control of resources because it is operated behind the corporate firewall . However, compared to public clouds, private clouds im-pact capital cost saving profiles because they continue to require investment in locally maintained infrastructure . Yet, because pri-vate cloud resources can be shared via higher levels of automa-tion, they offer potentially higher overall utilization with the total cost of ownership likely lower than traditional IT infrastructure deployments .

IntroductionThis white paper aims to help organizations create and deploy a private cloud instance within their own network space using computing resources under their own control. It covers networking, computing hardware, software and key areas of integration.

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1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrastructure_as_a_service2 http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-145/SP800-145.

pdf

3www.suse.com

ApproachThis white paper provides a complete private cloud solution including the core physical infrastructure and enterprise-ready versions of many open source offerings . It also extends the framework to include creating virtualized workloads and manag-ing resources and workloads through their complete life cycles . With this framework, enterprises can take a secure approach to increase agility, enhance scalability and improve utilization of resources . Conceptually, the basic building blocks for deploying a private cloud (i .e ., networking infrastructure, computing hard-ware and software) are similar to any IT infrastructure .

With private clouds, delivering robust network resources for the core infrastructure and the needs of the workloads requires significant attention . High-speed, scalable devices like the Dell Force10 series of network switches and modern industry-stan-dard x86-based servers like the Dell PowerEdge Servers pro-vide an ideal platform for private clouds because they balance

performance and efficiency . The emerging software standard for private cloud implementations is the open source Linux op-erating system . The current reference framework for the cloud itself, OpenStack3, is also open source, as are many cloud sub-components . Examples include KVM or Xen virtualization tech-nologies and Crowbar4, an open source project founded by Dell, which facilitates system deployment and enables scaling with the private cloud instance . These open source components deliver an overall private cloud ecosystem that yields a completely func-tional, usable and stable installation today . In addition, the rapid innovation of open source development will continue to rapidly enhance current features and add capabilities . The figures below illustrate all of these components and interactions to deliver an Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) private cloud deployment:__________

3 http://openstack.org/4 www.dell.com/Learn/us/en/19/cloud-computing/crowbar-

software-framework

Private Cloud Service

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Cloud Computing White PaperSUSE Cloud Reference Implementation for Dell

This white paper introduces the setup and configuration of net-working services for a private cloud instance using Dell Force10 top-of-rack (ToR) switches as the networking infrastructure, Dell PowerEdge servers for both compute and storage resources and OpenStack-based SUSE® Cloud5 as the private cloud software . To provide a complete solution it also integrates additional soft-ware products, SUSE Studio™6 and SUSE Manager7, to facilitate the overall life cycle management of workloads running in the private cloud .

For the remainder of this document, the user should refer to the documentation for the specific network and computing hard-ware and software products under discussion, using this white paper as supplemental information to augment, clarify and fur-ther refine the use of the other documentation for a successful deployment .

Site Preparation Needed for the Deployment

Facility ConsiderationsThe heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC) and power requirements for deployment can be estimated using the Dell Energy Smart Solution Advisor8 . Using this tool, you can plan the needs for your solution, order the correct Power Distribution Unit (PDU) and have the proper HVAC ready for the installation .

This white paper does not specify any PDU since power require-ments vary depending on the exact configuration and the power configuration in the final installation location .

Physical NetworkingBecause networking is the technology component likely to take the most upfront planning, networking requirements for a private cloud instance have a fair amount of complexity, especially when integrated with an existing IT infrastructure . For the physical level, using pairs of Dell Force10 top-of-rack (ToR) switches in a stacked configuration supports a full rack of 20 servers . With the two re-sulting aggregation group/layers, the Force10 switch stack offers a single switch view that yields switch redundancy within the rack and enables high availability . Each server can have multiple NIC ports, forming a link aggregation group (LAG) across the ports with at least one port on each switch in the stack . The LAG offers switch redundancy within the rack and enables high availability .

When deployed, the ToR switches are physically stacked together . Stacking them offers some significant benefits .__________

5 www.suse.com/products/suse-cloud/6 www.suse.com/products/susestudio/7 www.suse.com/products/suse-manager/8 www.dell.com/Learn/us/en/uscorp1/campaigns/config_calculator

Improved Manageability All switches in the stack are managed as a single switch .

Efficient Spanning Tree The stack is viewed as a single switch by the Spanning Tree Protocol .

Link Aggregation Stacking multiple switches in a chassis allows a link aggregation group across ports on different switches in the stack .

Reduced Network Traffic Traffic between the individual switches in a stack is passed across the stacking cable, reducing the amount of traffic passed upstream to network distribution switches .

Higher Speed The stacking module supports a higher data rate than the uplink module .

Lower Cost Uplink ports are shared by all switches in the stack, reducing the number of distribution switch ports necessary to connect modular servers to the network .

Simplified Updates The basic firmware management commands propagate new firmware versions and boot image settings to all switch stack members .

Stacked Top-of-Rack Switch Benefits

Notes: Stackingcablesareproprietaryandcomeinonly1mand3mlengths.Thisrequirestheswitchestobeincloseproximityto

eachother. Stackingrequiresaringtopologyforredundancy.Thismakesthedistancelimitationonthelengthofthestackingcables

anissue. Errorsinconfigurationpropagatethroughoutthestackimmediately.

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Computing PlatformOne of the benefits of a private cloud implementation is that industry-standard servers can fulfill all the needs . To reduce the time spent on hardware specification for an initial private cloud implementation, the hardware should be general purpose and allow for a wide range of configuration options . The popular Dell

PowerEdge R7209 and PowerEdge R720xd10 series of servers with their powerful and balanced performance, advanced I/O capabilities and flexible, scalable networking options are ideally suited for all the various nodes in this private cloud installation reference configuration .

Software ComponentsAs noted in the overview, three SUSE products included in this white paper provide private cloud functionality and complete life cycle management of the workload images and infrastructure .

SUSE Cloud Extended Software Ecosystem

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 9 www.dell.com/us/business/p/poweredge-r720/fs10 www.dell.com/us/business/p/poweredge-r720xd/fs

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Cloud Computing White PaperSUSE Cloud Reference Implementation for Dell

SUSE Cloudprovidestheenterprise-gradeimplementationofOpenStackcomponentsandincludesothertoolsforacompleteprivatecloudimplementation.SUSECloudformsthebasisoftheprivatecloudoperatingsolutionandoverallframeworktoabstractthenetwork,computing,andstorageresources.MultiplephysicalhostsarerequiredforthevariousserverrolesinaSUSECloudimplementation:

– Administration Server—Usually the first system installed, the SUSE Cloud Administration Server is a dedicated system that provides all services needed to set up and deploy all other resource nodes in the private cloud installation . It runs on the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server operating system and provides the deployment framework with the Crowbar deployment engine along with other tools . Among the services provided by this server are DHCP, DNS, NTP, PXE and TFTP . These are set up, configured and accessed from a web interface that guides all the remaining installation and configuration tasks by assigning roles to each resource node via barclamps . The Administration Server also commonly hosts the necessary software repositories for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server and SUSE Cloud since they are needed to deploy the Compute and Storage Nodes . The remaining Control, Compute and Storage Nodes are all provisioned by simply PXE network booting from the SUSE Cloud Administration Server . The primary user of this node and its web interface is the cloud administrator .

–  Control Node(s)—A SUSE Cloud Control Node hosts all the core OpenStack services needed to orchestrate virtual machines deployed on the Compute and Storage Nodes in the private cloud installation . Like the SUSE Cloud Administration Server, it runs on the SUSE Linux Enterprise Server operating system and is managed and deployed through the SUSE Cloud Administration Server web interface . For high availability setups, creating multiple dedicated Control Nodes is required, with at least one pair of nodes needed for a cluster and possibly others for any of the core OpenStack services not requiring

high availability . Once the cluster is established, via the Pacemaker barclamp, it can be assigned to any of the core OpenStack services . A particularly noteworthy service, the OpenStack Dashboard (Horizon) usually runs on the Control Node and gives users and administrators of the private cloud the ability to interact with, deploy and manage their workloads and storage volumes .

–  Compute Node(s)—A SUSE Cloud Compute Node is a physical, dedicated server running a hypervisor and serves as the host for the eventual deployment of workloads and services . Both KVM and Xen are supported hypervisors within SUSE Cloud and are included with a Compute Node deployed with SUSE Linux Enterprise Server . In addition, one can completely provision and utilize a Microsoft Hyper-V Compute Node from the SUSE Cloud Admini-stration Server web interface by following the preparatory steps outlined in the SUSE Cloud deployment guide and the respective appendix . Another option is to integrate a VMware vSphere node into the compute role through interaction and delegation of vCenter, as also described in the deployment guide and its respective appendix . Users do not typically interact directly with these nodes since the Control Node provides the self-service dash-board to deploy and manage workloads and services on these Compute Nodes .

–  Storage Node(s)—A SUSE Cloud Storage Node acts as a controller for persistent cloud-based storage elements . A SUSE Cloud implementation can contain multiple dedicated Storage Nodes and provides OpenStack Object Storage (Swift) as well as Ceph . Storage Nodes should be deployed, at least, in pairs to provide data redundancy . It is also possible to integrate one cloud instance with another, for example, by using an existing, external Ceph storage cloud as outlined in the deployment guide . In addition, other block storage elements can be integrated into a private cloud instance through the use of OpenStack Block Storage(Cinder) plug-ins . As with the Compute Nodes, users typically interact with the Storage Nodes via the self-service dashboard on the Control Node .

7www.suse.com

SUSE Studio OnsiterunsontopofSUSELinuxEnterpriseServerandprovidesaweb-basedinterfacetobuildandtestcloud-readysystemapplicationimagesorappliances.Withitsabilitytocreate,buildandeventestdrivetheappliances,SUSEStudioOnsiteshouldbedeployedonadedicated,physicalhost.ThroughtheuseoftheSUSEStudioWebHookfunctionality,theseimagescanbedirectlypublishedintotheprivatecloud’sOpenStackImageService(Glance)repositorytomakethemavailableforuserstodeploy.TheseimagescanthenbeseamlesslydeployedonComputeNodesasprovisionedworkloadsacrossanyofthesupportedhypervisorsandcanbeautomaticallyintegratedwithSUSEManager.

SUSE ManagerisbasedontheopensourceSpacewalkprojectaswellasotheropensourcecomponentsand

providespatchandupdatemanagement,complianceandreportingtoolsandconfigurationandmonitoringcapabilities.ItrunsontopofSUSELinuxEnterpriseServerandcanbedeployedonadedicatedhost,evenleveraginganexistingoneifavailable,orasavirtualmachineonallmajorhypervisors.Forthiswhitepaper,SUSEManagerprimarilyallowsuserstomanagetherun-timelifecycleofthedeployedworkloadsacrossbothpublicandprivateclouds.SUSEManagercanalsobeusedbythecloudadministratortomanageandmonitortheunderlyingphysicalserversthathosttheComputeandStorageNodes.

The following figure represents a logical diagram of the interac-tion of these various software components:

SUSE Cloud Extended Software Logical Diagram

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Cloud Computing White PaperSUSE Cloud Reference Implementation for Dell

As preparation, either download each of these products from the SUSE Downloads11 site or directly order them from Dell with your hardware order . If you want just to evaluate these products, both SUSE Cloud and SUSE Manager are available with a free 60-day evaluation subscription . For free access to SUSE Studio (http://susestudio.com/), use the on-line instance to generate workload images; however, you may need to manually upload the resulting images into your private cloud infrastructure .

The typical use cases for a private cloud installation such as the one documented here illustrates the power of this solution:

InSUSEStudio,adevelopercancreateacompletesoftwareappliance,iteratingasneededtoprovideaprovenworkingsolution.EachbuildseamlesslyappearsintheSUSEClouddashboardinterfaceasaworkloadguestimagefordeploy-mentontovariouscloudinfrastructureresourcesfortestingorproductionqualification.

Asdirected,anoperatororadministratorcanpromotetheseworkloadguestimagestobedeployedwhenneededbythevarioususercommunitieswithinthescopeoftheirresourcequotas.Theseworkloadguestimagescanthenbedeployedfromtheclouddashboardorviathecommand-lineinterfaceswithconfidence,asbusinessconditionsdictate.

Aseithernewresourcesorworkloadsaredeployed,SUSEManagerautomaticallyincorporatesthemtoensuremonitoringandcomplianceaswellasproperservicemanagementpracticesaremaintainedovertheiroperationallifecycle.

Asdesired,SUSECloudcanscaleacrossmultiplehypervisors,integratingbothMicrosoftHyper-VandVMwareforComputeNoderolesorevenexistingKVMorXennodes.Theflexibilitytodeploymultiplehypervisorsenablesenterprisestomaintaincurrentinvestmentsinskillsandtechnologyandoptimizesperformanceandlicensingcosts.

Asneeded,coreOpenStackservicescanbesetupinhighavailabilityconfigurationswithSUSECloud,inanautomated,intuitivemanner.Providinggracefulfailoverscenariosforhardwareissuesandplannedmaintenanceactions,suchsetupsyieldcontinuedaccesstocloudservicesbythewidergroupofusersandensurethedeliveryofenterprise-gradeservice-levelagreements.

Target environments for private cloud are varied, ranging from small development and test instances to full production imple-mentations that address both scale and availability . Some private cloud instances target only workload management while others are set up to provide storage clouds, yet mixed environments are quite common . Both Dell and SUSE provide professional services and technical pre-sales teams that can size a private cloud instance according to a customer’s needs . The following configurations can be used as a starting point:

MINIMAL DEVELOPMENT INSTANCE

This minimal instance provides only the necessary components to cover private cloud usage modes in a functional sense so that developers of next-generation services have access to all the features . In this scenario, workload life cycle management is handled in a true cloud sense, in that already updated images are deployed, so there is no need for SUSE Manager, and are them-selves developed in an already-existing instance of SUSE Studio .

SMALL STARTER INSTANCE

This small instance provides all of the features noted in this refer-ence configuration but at the lowest levels of node count pos-sible . As such, this is a starter configuration and can be scaled over time to meet increasing usage and availability concerns .

SCALABLE AND HIGHLY AVAILABLE INSTANCE

This instance expands upon the small starter node set to yield more scale across hypervisor and storage types and provides node count to address high availability concerns about key con-trol plane services of the private cloud instance .

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11 www.suse.com/download-linux/

9www.suse.com

In order to facilitate setting up and administering the various servers, the embedded BMC network inter-face for systems hosting the SUSE Cloud Administration Server, SUSE Manager, and SUSE Studio Onsite should be connected to a subnet (typically outside the private cloud network infrastructure) that allows easy administration access while all other systems should have their BMC network interfaces connected to the internal private cloud admin network .

Note: TheSUSECloudAdministrationServerwillconfiguretheBMCfortheComputeandStorageNodesduringsetup,andtheoperatingsysteminstallwillusethenetworkinterfacespresentedtoit.

An overall system and network de-ploy ment diagram is illustrated in the figure at right:

Instance Sizing Guidelines

Development Starter Scalable

Administration Server 1 1 1

Control Node(s) 1 1 2–9 (c)

Compute Node(s) 2 2 8+

Storage Node(s) 2 2 (d) 5+ (d)

SUSE Manager 0 (b) 1

SUSE Studio Onsite (a) 1 1

Notes: (a) UseSUSEStudioOnline(http://susestudio.com)andmanuallyuploadimagestoprivatecloudinstance(b)CanuseanexistingSUSEManagernode,ordeployasavirtualmachineinexistinginfrastructure(c) Atminimum,a2-nodeclusterisrequired;however,multiple3-nodeclustersarerecommendedformaximumscalabilityand

performanceofthecoreservices(d)ForSwift,minimumof2nodes;forCephminimumof3nodesandsamevaluessuggestedforfurtherincrements

Deployment Diagram

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Cloud Computing White PaperSUSE Cloud Reference Implementation for Dell

SolutionThe remainder of the process is listed here in a suggested de-ployment order . There are interdependencies, so it may be nec-essary to implement part of a given product and then move to another before completing the first . In general, though, each of the three SUSE products is mostly standalone in its initial setup

and configuration . As a result, you can set up and configure them in parallel until the required integration steps .

For reference, this white paper relies on the core design deci-sions and settings, summarized in the following table:

Software Deployment Decisions

Attribute Description

OpenStack Release SUSE Cloud 4 based on OpenStack Icehouse

Host Operating System SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 SP3

Hypervisor(s) KVM, Xen, Microsoft Hyper-V or VMware vSphere

Database SUSE Cloud utilizes PostgreSQL

Message Queue SUSE Cloud utilizes RabbitMQ

OpenStack Compute Nova

OpenStack Networking Neutron

OpenStack Object Storage (if used) Swift or Ceph

OpenStack Block Storage Cinder (with various plug-ins) or Ceph

OpenStack Identity Service Keystone

OpenStack Image Service Glance

OpenStack Dashboard Horizon

OpenStack Telemetry Ceilometer

OpenStack Orchestration Heat

OpenStack Database Trove (technical preview)

Cloud Deployment Engine SUSE Cloud utilizes Crowbar, Chef, PXE, AutoYaST

Control Node HA Clustering Pacemaker

Network Topology Mode Neutron, in single or teamed mode, with tagged vLAN*

BMC for Nodes Connected to Admin Network*

Fully Qualified Domain dellsuse .com* (This is an example only, please select your own designation and make the appropriate substitutions throughout the remainder of this document .)

Note: Anasterisk(*)denotesthosevalueswhicharenotimplicitlycontainedinthevariousnetwork,systemandsoftwarecomponents,butarethevaluesusedforthiswhitepaper.

11www.suse.com

Network

CONFIGURATION

At the logical level, multiple network segments are required for the proper operation of a private cloud installation . These segments are completely documented in the SUSE Cloud Deployment Guide12 along with other important considerations and limitations . Care must be taken to select the various modes supported by the various Compute Node and hypervisor com-binations and must be correctly established before proceeding with the private cloud instance setup, since later changes cannot be accommodated without a re-installation .

Notes: UnliketheexternalandinternalvLANsegments,the

administrativevLANdoesnotuse802.1qvLANtagging. UsingflatorLAG-bondedinterfacesandsoftware

controllednetworkconfigurationsforthevariousvLANsegmentsisrecommended.

Withthisdefaultnetworkconfiguration,upto49ComputeNodesmaybeaccommodatedandupto61publicIPaddresses,withabout200workloadinstances.Adjustasneededtofitwithinthelocalnetworkconfigurationandforthedesiredscaleofthedeployment.

ThereisnoIPv6supportforSUSECloudimplementationsatthistime.

MoredetailsregardingthevariousnetworksanddesignatedrangeswithineachsubnetareavailableintheSUSECloudDeploymentGuide12.

Inaddition,anetworkgatewayprovidingaccesstothepublicnetworkisrequired.

Computing Hardware

CONFIGURATION

Depending upon how the physical Dell PowerEdge servers were ordered or their current state, it is wise to start from a known, consistent configuration . If the servers were previously used, returning to factory defaults may be appropriate . At a minimum, certain settings are critical for their proper operation within the cloud installation, as shown below and in the respective sections for each node’s role .

Notes: Applyallfirmwareupdates,especiallyforIPMIandBIOS,to

allsystemsbeforeproceedingtoensurethelatestreleasedversionsareinplace.

Ensurethateachsystemmeetsthehardwarerequirementsforitstargetservicerole.

OftentheavailabledisksareconfiguredfromthefactoryasasingleLUN,usingRAID6toprovidemaximumfilespaceandredundancy.However,thismaypresentissuesfortheinstallationofsomesystemsacrossthevariousroles.Foreachofthesesituations,refertotherespectivesectionforeachrole,andeitheradjusttheconfigurationormakethenecessarychangesduringdeploymenttoaccommodatethedefaultLUNconfiguration.

EnsurethatthebootmethodissettoBIOS,notUEFI,andthatNICenumerationforbootingismanagedviatheBIOS.

Ensurethatprocessorvirtualizationoptionsareenabled.__________

12 www.suse.com/documentation/suse-cloud3/book_cloud_ deploy/data/book_cloud_deploy.html

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Cloud Computing White PaperSUSE Cloud Reference Implementation for Dell

OneSUSECloudAdministrationServerfornodedeploymentandmanagement

OneormoreControlNodeshostingthecloudmanagementservices

SeveralComputeNodescontainingthehypervisorsonwhichtheworkloadinstancesarestarted

SeveralStorageNodesforblockandobjectstorage

SUSE CLOUD ADMINISTRATION SERVER SETUP

AND CONFIGURATION

Select one physical server to act as the administration server, ensuring that it meets the necessary hardware requirements for this role .

FromeitherdirectconsoleaccesswithanexternalmediadriveorviathevirtualmediaoptionoftheBMCandtheISOimagefile,performanx86_64architectureinstallationof:

–  SUSE Linux Enterprise Server –  SUSE Cloud –  SUSE Subscription Management Tool (SMT) (needed only

if you don’t already have access to such repositories)

Notes: • Eitheradefaultinstallor,minimally,thepatternscited

intheSUSEClouddeploymentguidearerequired. • IftheavailablecapacityoftheprimaryLUNisgreater

than2TB,ensurethatamulti-partitionsetupwithasmaller“/boot”partitionisusedthatiscompletely

SoftwareSUSE Cloud is deployed to four different types of machines:

SUSE Cloud Infrastructure

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containedinthefirst2TBtobecompatiblewiththerecommendedlegacyBIOSsetting.Theremainingfreespacethencanbeallocatedforthe“swap”and“/”(root)partitionsplusanyotherthataredesired.

CompletethenextsetofstepsasdescribedintheSUSECloudDeploymentGuide,including:

–  Product Registration –  Online Update –  CA Setup –  Basic Network Configuration (ensuring that the firewall

for all network interfaces and the IPv6 are disabled) –  SMT Configuration (optional)

CarefullyreviewtheCrowbarSetupsection,selectingtheappropriatenetworkmodeasdictatedbylocalnetworkconfigurationswithguidancefromthepreviousdesigndecisionstable.

Performthesetupstepforallthenecessarysoftwarerepositories,asnotedintheSUSECloudDeploymentGuide.

–  Note:Sometimeisrequiredtosetupallofthisproperlyandtomirrorallcontent.Beforeproceeding,itisimperativethatallthesoftwarerepositoriesaremirroredandavailableontheSUSECloudAdministrationServer.

Atthispoint,carefullyreviewthenetworkconfigurationtoensureyoursetupcomplieswiththecheckpointsnotedintheSUSECloudDeploymentGuide.Then,usingaterminalmultiplexerlikethescreenutility,completethefollowingprocess:

–  Execute the screeninstall-suse-cloud setup script . –  When it completes, review the noted log file for any

issues .

• Note:Thenetworksetupisfixedatthispointandcannotbemodified.Tomakechanges,youmustrestartthesetupprocess.

Someadditionalintegrationmaybeundertakenatthispointtoeaselatersetupsandprovideamoreconvenientworkingenvironmentfortheadministratorandusers:

–  You should add local host resolution entries for some of the other core servers (assuming the default network setup, adjust as necessary), by executing the following commands:

• echo“192.168.124.8susestudio.dellsuse.comsusestudio”>>/etc/hosts

• echo“192.168.124.9susemanager.dellsuse.comsusemanager”>>/etc/hosts

–  Remember that the SUSE Cloud Administration Server is your default DNS server for the private cloud instance . Consequently, you should use it as the default DNS server for SUSE Manager and SUSE Studio Onsite, so you can resolve host names for the cloud workload guests .

–  For the remaining nodes, if the primary LUN exceeds 2TB, you should configure a multi-partition setup with a smaller /boot partition . This can be accomplished for all subsequent node deployments by performing the following steps on the SUSE Cloud Administration Server:

• edit/opt/dell/chef/cookbooks/provisioner/templates/default/autoyast.xml.erb(othersettings13canalsobeadjustedtolocalpreferences)

• inthe<partition>portion,replacethedefaultsettingswithsomethinglike:<partitionsconfig:type=”list”> <partition> <filesystem config:type=”symbol”>ext3</filesystem> <mount>/boot</mount> <size>1gb</size> </partition> <partition> <mount>swap</mount> <size>2gb</size> </partition> <partition> <filesystem config:type=”symbol”>xfs</filesystem>

<mount>/</mount> <size>auto</size> </partition> </partitions>

• knifecookbookupload-o/opt/dell/chef/cookbooks/provisioner

• chef-client

TheremainingrequirednodesoftheSUSECloudinfrastructurecanbesetup,configured,andmanagedfromtheadministrationserverwebinterface.TheonlyprerequisiteistobeabletoPXEbooteachofthesystemsagainsttheadministrationserverviatheadminvLANsubnet.ThisincludestheControl,ComputeandStorageNodes.

__________

13 www.suse.com/documentation/sles11/singlehtml/book_autoyast/ book_autoyast.html

14

Cloud Computing White PaperSUSE Cloud Reference Implementation for Dell

–  Notes: • Ensurethatalltheremainingtargetsystemshavethe

BMCconfiguredandavailableontheadminvLANsubnetasthiswillgetmanagedandintegratedintotheprivatecloudinstanceforbasicpoweron/offandrebootcontrol.

• EnsurethatalltheremainingsystemsareabletoPXEbootfromtheAdministrationServerviatheadminvLANsubnet.The10GBeinterfacesmustbespecificallyenabledtoPXEbootfromtheirrespectivedevicesettingsmenu.

• Ifteamingmodesareused,itmaybenecessarytofurtheradjustCrowbar’sInterfaceMap,asdocumentedinthedeploymentguide,toensurethepropernetworkinterfacesareused,regardlessoftheorderfoundbytheoperatingsystem.

EachresourcenodewillbecomevisibletotheAdministrationServerafterPXEbooting,atwhichpointbasicsysteminformationisreturnedtotheadministrationwebinterfaceina“Discovered”mode.Atthispoint,thenewnodecanbe“Allocated”foruseasaControl,Compute,orStorageNode.FollowtheSUSECloudDeploymentGuide,payingcarefulattentiontotheorderlisted.

–  Notes: • Validatethattherespectivesystem’snetwork,hardware

andstoragedevicesmatchtherequirementsfortheintendedrole.

• Aseachnodeis“Discovered,”itisadvisabletogroupthenodesbyfunctionaltype,enterameaningfuldescription,createapublicnametoprovideahandletoarrangeandmanageallyournodes.Aliasnamescanalsobeusedtomakeidentifyingthenodeeasier.Toaidlaterassociationofrolestoagivennode,itiswisetosettheintendedroleforeachnode,sothatthesubsequentbarclampsauto-populatenodesappropriately.Whereappropriate,availabilityzonesmayalsobeenteredforthenodes.

CONTROL NODE(S) SETUP AND CONFIGURATION

The Control Node hosts all OpenStack services needed to or-chestrate virtual machines deployed on the Compute Nodes in SUSE Cloud . It is managed and deployed through the SUSE Cloud Administration Server web interface .

PXEbootthedesiredsystemtoactastheControlNode,ensuringthatitmeetsthenecessaryhardwarerequirements.IftheControlNodewillprovideanyoftheOpenStackBlockStorageservices,ensurethestorageconfigurationhasaprimaryRAID1LUNfortheoperatingsystemwithanyremainingdisksasindividualRAID0LUNs.

AllocatetheControlNode,selectingSUSELinuxEnterpriseServer11SP3asthetargetplatform.

Forhighavailabilitysetups,creatingmultipleControlNodesisrequired.Atleastonepairofnodesisneededforthecluster.YoumayneedtodeployotherControlNodesorControlNodeclustersforanyoftheOpenStackservicesthatdonotrequirehighavailabilityorscalingforperformance.

–  To utilize the high availability feature set, first apply the Pacemaker barclamp to the respective cluster nodes . Then for each of the desired OpenStack services, assign this cluster to the role instead of an individual Control Node .

–  Notes: • Asdescribedinthedeploymentguide,forlargerscale

deploymentsitisadvisabletosetupthreeclusters,eachwiththreenodes.

• Thedesiredclustersshouldallbesetupfirst.ThensetuptheOpenStackservices,ensuringthateachserviceissuccessfullysetupbeforemovingontothenextservice.

COMPUTE NODE(S) SETUP AND CONFIGURATION

The Compute Node is a physical server running a hypervisor, serving as a host for workload guest virtual machines . Generally speaking, Compute Nodes also house the root and ephemeral disk images of the running workload guests, but this space is reclaimed when a guest is terminated .

PXEbootthedesiredsystemstoactasComputeNodes,ensuringthateachmeetsthenecessaryhardwarerequirements.

–  Note:BecauseComputeNodeshousetherootandephemeraldiskimagesoftherunningworkloadguestsandthisspaceisreclaimedwhenaguestisterminated,asingleLUNsetupforthestorageconfigurationisacceptable.

ForXenorKVMcomputenodes,selectSUSELinuxEnterpriseServer11SP3asthetargetplatform.

15www.suse.com

ForaMicrosoftHyper-VComputeNode,followthepreparatorystepsoutlinedinthedeploymentguideandtherespectiveappendix;thenselecteitherWindowsServerorHyper-Vasthetargetplatform.

ForVMwarenodes,followthepreparatorystepsoutlinedinthedeploymentguideandrespectiveappendix.ExistingnodesmaybeincludedlateraspartoftheOpenStackComputeconfigurationbyselectingtheappropriateVMwarevCentersettings.

–  Notes: • Whendeployingaprivatecloudwithmixedhypervisor

ComputeNodes,itmaybenecessarytospecificallysetworkloadimagemetadatatotargetaspecifichypervisor.

• Forexample,aftersourcingthecloudinstance’sAPIfile,executionofthefollowingcommandwillupdateanexistingimage(usingglanceimage-listtodeterminetheUUID)toutilizetheavailableHyper-VComputeNodeduringlaunch:

  •  glance image-update <img_UUID> --property hypervisor_type=hyperv

• Similarcommandsshouldberuntodesignateimagesastheirrespectivehypervisortype.

STORAGE NODE(S) SETUP AND CONFIGURATION (OPTIONAL)

The Storage Node acts as a controller for persistent cloud-based storage elements . A SUSE Cloud infrastructure can contain mul-tiple Storage Nodes and provides object (via Swift and Ceph) storage elements . SUSE Cloud is configured to always use all un-used disks on a node for storage . As noted in the site preparation section, these nodes should have at least two LUNs configured .

PXEbootthedesiredsystemstoactastheStorageNodes,ensuringthateachmeetsthenecessaryhardwarerequirements.

–  Notes: • BecauseSUSECloudisconfiguredtoalwaysuseall

unuseddisksonanodeforStorageNodes,itisadvisabletoconfigurethestoragewithaprimaryRAID1LUNfortheoperatingsystemandtoconfigurealltheremainingdisksasindividualRAID0LUNs.

• SwiftStorageNodesshouldbedeployedatleastinpairstoprovidedataredundancy.

• CephStorageNodesshouldbedeployedatleastingroupsofthree.ItisalsopossibletointegrateanexistingexternalCephstoragecloudasoutlinedinthedeploymentguide.

SUSE MANAGER SETUP AND CONFIGURATION

For this white paper, a single SUSE Manager topology is suffi-cient and can be set up according to the product documentation . Unless other conditions exist, using the included PostgreSQL database is recommended . As the download image comes in a pre-configured appliance model, the setup is straightforward .

As with the other SUSE software products used in this white paper, only differences or additions from the product documen-tation will be presented .

Ifdesired,forthevariousresourcenodesthatmakeupthecloudinstance,SUSEManagercanbeconfiguredasthesourcefortheoperatingsystemandcloudpackageupdates.SimplyadjustthesettingsoftheSUSEManagerClientbarclamptomatchthesettingsofyourSUSEManagernodeasdescribedintheSUSEClouddeploymentguide.

TohelpmaintaintheRPM-basedworkloadguests,youcansetuponeormoreadditionalgroups.

–  For example, from the SUSE Manager web interface, add the Cloud Guests group .

–  From the SUSE Manager web interface, create a distinct activation key, which will be used in the next step by the new group in their respective bootstrap scripts .

• Obtainacopyofthedefaultbootstrap.shscript(orcreatetheinitialonefromthewebinterface).Then:

• Settheparameter“FULLY_UPDATE_THIS_BOX”to0toensuretheSUSECloudAdministrationServerdoesnotautomaticallydistributeanyavailableupdates.

• Savethiscopyas“bootstrap_cloud_guests .sh”—withtherespectiveactivationkey.

• ThefinalstepforintegrationrequiresthatanAutoYaSTfileorotherpost-installscriptingmechanismisusedtodeploytheinfrastructureresourcesandcontainstheappropriateinvocationofthedesiredbootstrapscript.Forexample,thefollowinginvocationwouldcorrectlyassociatethissystemwiththeinfrastructuregroup(assumingthedefaultnetworkingsetup,adjustasnecessary):

16

Cloud Computing White PaperSUSE Cloud Reference Implementation for Dell

  •  -  wget -qO - http://192 .168 .124 .9/pub/bootstrap_cloud .sh | /bin/bash

  •  -  Note:ForworkloadguestscreatedinSUSEStudio,asimplecheckboxandconfigurationdialogexisttoincludeintegrationwithaSUSEManagerinstanceviathesystemIPaddressorhostnameandbootstrapscript.

SUSE STUDIO ONSITE SETUP AND CONFIGURATION

SUSE Studio Onsite runs on top of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server and provides a web-based interface to build and test cloud-ready system application images or appliances . These images can be easily integrated with the private cloud instance covered in this white paper and even deployed directly to public clouds .

Note:IfyouareusingthepublicinstanceofSUSEStudioinsteadofdeployinganonsiteinstance,theresultingimageswillneedtobemanuallyintegratedwithyourSUSECloudinstance.ThiscanbeaccomplishedwithshellaccesstothenodehostingOpenStackImageService,byutilizingtheglance-image-createcommandlineutilityortheOpenStackDashboardwebinterfaceanduploadingimagesthere.

AswiththeotherSUSEsoftwareproductsusedinthiswhitepaper,onlydifferencesoradditionsfromtheproductdocumentationwillbepresented.

Theinstallationandinitialconfigurationarestraightforwardsincethedownloadimagecomesinapre-configuredappli-ancemodel.

–  After the initial setup and configuration steps, the integra-tion is accomplished by logging into the resulting web interface as the administrative user .

–  To complete the integration between SUSE Studio Onsite with SUSE Cloud:

• OnSUSEStudioOnsite:

  •  - Navigate to user preferences   •  - Select the “API and Hooks” tab and   •  -  Enter and save a URL of the form (assuming the

default networking setup, adjust as necessary to point to the URL of the SUSE Cloud OpenStack Dashboard service/port):

  •  -  • http://192.168.124.81:457

  •  -  • -  Note:TheIPaddressshownassumestheControlNode,wheretheserviceresides,wasthefirstnodeconfiguredandsetup;adjustasnecessary.

–  On the SUSE Cloud Control Node, where the OpenStack Image Service is hosted:

• Installwebhook-receiver14tolistenforimagebuildsfromSUSEStudioOnsiteandautomaticallyimportthem.

Duringthecreationofsoftwareappliancesdestinedforyourprivatecloudinstance:(Allofthefollowingassumethedefaultcloudnetworksetup;adjustasnecessary.)

–  In the Configuration/Appliance tab, ensure you enable the integration with SUSE Cloud . This installs the cloud-init package, which associates the instance with the respec-tive SSH keys for access .

–  Also in the Configuration/Appliance tab, enable the integration with SUSE Manager to point back to the IP address or host name of your SUSE Manager instance and to correctly associate the workload with the respective bootstrap script .

–  In the Configuration/Scripts tab, modify the post-build script of the appliance:

• ToensurethattheworkloadscanfindtheSUSEManagerhostbycreatingalocalhostsentries

  •  -  echo “192 .168 .124 .9 susemanager .dellsuse .com suse-manager” >> /etc/hosts

• AndremovetheEULAfilesothatworkloadsdon’tpauseduringtheirbootprocessforacknowledgment:

  •  - rm -fv /etc/YaST2/licenses/license .txt

SummaryAfter completing the steps described in this white paper along with the steps in the respective network, hardware and software products documentation, you should have a fully functional pri-vate cloud installation . All of the noted use cases should be satis-fied and can be exercised to achieve an end-to-end use model for your private cloud installation .__________

14 https://github.com/susestudio/susestudio-webhook-receivers

17www.suse.com

SupportBoth Dell and SUSE can provide guidance, training, support and services for more sophisticated deployments than the one

described in this white paper; however, they are beyond the scope of this document .

Appendices

Network Switches

Quantity Description/Catalog Number

2 Force10 S4810 with 48 10GbE Ports, Managed Switch, 10GbE and Stacking Capable

2 Modules: Stacking Module, 48Gbps, Includes 1m Stacking Cable

2 Stacking Cable, 3m

Quantity Description/Catalog Number

2 Force10 S60 with 48 GbE Ports, Managed Switch, 10GbE and Stacking Capable

2 Modules: Stacking Module, 48Gbps, Includes 1m Stacking Cable

2 Stacking Cable, 3m

Note: Includeappropriatepowerandnetworkcables,plushardwaresupport

Note: Includeappropriatepowerandnetworkcables,plushardwaresupport

Computing PlatformThe computing hardware listed should be used as initial guidance only as it represents what was tested . Additional configurations are possible and will likely be required as each customer’s environ-ment and use-case are unique . Common parameters that could differ include:

Processors—Higherfrequenciesandcorecountsmayimproveperformancewhilelowervoltage/TDPprocessorscanimprovepowerefficiency.

Local Storage—Diskcapacity,drivetechnologyandspindlespeedcanbematchedtobudgetandperformancerequirementsasnecessary.

Memory—Dependingontheusageofvariousservices,moreorlessmemorymaybenecessaryonvariousnodesaccordingtotheirrole.

–  Note:Includeappropriatepowerandnetworkcables,plusrackmountkitsandhardwaresupportwitheachserverordered

Dell PowerEdge R720 Specification

Height 2 Rack Units (3 .5")

Processor 2x Intel Xeon E5-2650 2 GHz 8-core processors

Memory 128 GB

Disk 6x 600 GB 15K SAS Drives

Network 4x 1GbE Intel LOMs, 2x 10GbE Intel NICs

RAID Controller PowerEdge RAID Controller H710 (PERC)

Management Card Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller (iDRAC)

Note: Usedforthefollowingroles—SUSEStudio,SUSEManager,SUSECloudAdministrationServer,SUSECloudControlNode(s)

262-002512-001 | 11/14 | © 2014 SUSE LLC. All rights reserved. SUSE and the SUSE logo are registered trademarks, and SUSE Studio is a

trademark of SUSE LLC in the United States and other countries. All third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Contact your local SUSE Solutions Provider, or call SUSE at:

1 800 796 3700 U .S ./Canada1 801 861 4500 Worldwide

SUSEMaxfeldstrasse 590409 NurembergGermany

Software

www.suse.com

Dell PowerEdge R720xd Specification

Height 2 Rack Units (3 .5")

Processor 2x Intel Xeon E5-2667 2 .9 GHz 6-core processors

Memory 128 GB

Disk 24x 500GB or 1TB 7200 RPM Nearline SAS drives

Network 4x 1GbE Intel LOMs, 2x 10GbE Intel NICs

RAID Controller PowerEdge RAID Controller H710 (PERC)

Management Card Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller (iDRAC)

Note: Usedforthefollowingroles—SUSECloudComputeNodes,SUSECloudStorageNodes

Quantity Description

1 SUSE Cloud Administration Server x86_64 (with either 1-Year Priority Subscription or 3-Year Priority Subscription)

M SUSE Cloud Control Node x86_64 (with either 1-Year Priority Subscription or 3-Year Priority Subscription)

N SUSE Cloud Compute/Storage Node x86_64 (with either 1-Year Priority Subscription or 3-Year Priority Subscription)

S SUSE Linux Enterprise Server AMD64 & Intel64, 11-SP3, virtual, 2 socket (with either Priority Support 1yr or Priority Support 3yr)

1 1 1 1

SUSE Manager Server, plus SUSE Manager Management Unlimited Virtual Machines SUSE Manager Provisioning Unlimited Virtual Machines SUSE Manager Monitoring Unlimited Virtual Machines (each with either 1-Year Subscription or 3-Year Subscription)

1 SUSE Studio Advanced Edition License (includes up to 2 instances) (with either Priority Maintenance 1-Year or Priority Maintenance 3-Year)

Note: Matchthequantity: “M”tothenumberofadditionalControlNodes,beyondthefirstone “N”tothetotalnumberofComputeandStorageNodes “S”tothenumberofSUSELinuxEnterpriseServer-basedComputeandStorage

Nodes(matchingsocketpaircounts)