QuickStart Guide vCenter Server Heartbeat 6.3 Update 1 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.
QuickStart Guide You can find the most up-to-date technical documentation on the VMware Web site at: http://www.vmware.com/support/ The VMware Web site also provides the latest product updates. If you have comments about this documentation, submit your feedback to: docfeedback@vmware.com Copyright © 2011 VMware, Inc. All rights reserved. This product is protected by U.S. and international copyright and intellectual property laws. VMware products are covered by one or more patents listed at http://www.
Contents About This Book 5 1 vCenter Server Heartbeat Introduction 7 vCenter Server Heartbeat Overview 7 vCenter Server Heartbeat Protection 7 Server Protection 8 Network Protection 8 Application Protection 8 Performance Protection 8 Data Protection 9 Communications 9 vCenter Server Heartbeat Communications 9 VMware Channel 9 Principal (Public) Network 9 Node Configuration 10 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Installation 11 Overview 11 Environmental Prerequisites 11 FireWall Configuration Requirements 11 Comm
QuickStart Guide Starting Conditions 27 Actions 28 Results 28 Data Replication Exercise 28 Starting Conditions 28 Actions 29 Results 29 Switchover Exercise 29 Starting Conditions 29 Actions 29 Results 30 31 Appendix – Pre-Installation Checklist 4 31 VMware, Inc.
About This Book This Quick Start Guide provides an introduction to VMware vCenter Server Heartbeat and guides you through the steps required to install vCenter Server Heartbeat in the most common environment and to perform basic configuration. This guide also provides a brief introduction to basic administration tasks and advanced configuration features, and provides pointers to more detailed information in other manuals.
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1 vCenter Server Heartbeat Introduction 1 This chapter introduces vCenter Server Heartbeat and provides an overview of vCenter Server Heartbeat concepts.
QuickStart Guide When a failure occurs or condition is reached that falls outside of established parameters, vCenter Server Heartbeat can take a variety of actions in response. For example, in the event of a server failure, the passive (standby) server will detect that the active server has failed and will immediately assume the role of the active server. This is referred to as a “failover” event.
Chapter 1 vCenter Server Heartbeat Introduction Data Protection vCenter Server Heartbeat intercepts all data written by users and applications, and maintains a copy of this data on the passive server which is used in the event of a failure. vCenter Server Heartbeat configures itself to protect files, folders, and even the registry settings for vCenter Server on the active server by replicating these in near real-time to the passive server.
QuickStart Guide Node Configuration vCenter Server Heartbeat can be configured to support multiple configuration modes such as identical nodes and non-identical nodes with updatable DNS servers but is most commonly configured for non-identical nodes with non-updatable DNS servers (referred herein as non-identical nodes).
2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Installation 2 This chapter discusses the installation of vCenter Server Heartbeat using the most common configuration and provides an overview of the prerequisites for successful installation. It contains the following sections: NOTE For other supported configurations, see the vCenter Server Heartbeat Installation Guide.
QuickStart Guide Common Requirements The following requirements are in addition to those required for vCenter Server and SQL Server Supported vCenter Server versions NOTE Although vCenter Server Heartbeat supports vCenter Server versions 2.5 through version 4.1 Update 1, you must use version 4.0 Update 1 or later when configuring with non-identical nodes. For other configurations, see vCenter Server Heartbeat Install Guide. vCenter Server 4.0 Update 1 vCenter Server 4.
Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Installation Server Architecture Virtual to Virtual (V2V) is the supported architecture when vCenter Server is already installed on the production (Primary) server running on a virtual machine. VMware vCenter virtual machine is used for creating a cloned image of the Primary server (Pre-Clone) for use as a Secondary server. The Secondary virtual machine must meet the following minimum requirements.
QuickStart Guide NOTE Ensure that all VMware components are bound to the Principal (Public) IP address on the Principal (Public) network adapter and that the Principal (Public) network adapter is listed first in the bind order of the Network Connections > Advanced > Advanced Settings window.
Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Installation Static IP address in a different subnet than the Principal (Public) network with a different IP address than the Primary server VMware Channel NIC Correct network mask No Gateway IP address No DNS IP address NetBIOS enabled (disabled during the installation process) File and print sharing enabled Installation Process vCenter Server Heartbeat is installed on both the Primary and Secondary server of a vCenter Server Heartbeat Pair.
QuickStart Guide 9 The Setup Type page appears. Because this is a new installation of vCenter Server Heartbeat, select Install vCenter Server Heartbeat and click Next. NOTE The left pane of each page in the setup wizard provides information about the setup process. 10 Select the physical identity of the server on the Physical Hardware Identity page. Select Primary as the server identity and click Next. 11 Read the license agreement carefully and select I accept terms of the License Agreement.
Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Installation If no NICs are available, click Open Network Connections to review the network configuration of your machine and verify that you have the correct number of NICs installed. After selecting the appropriate NIC, click Next. NOTE Only one channel can be configured for each NIC. To configure more than one VMware Channel you must identify more than one NIC. A disabled NIC does not appear in this list. Enable the NIC to display it.
QuickStart Guide If installing SQL Server remotely, upon completion of the vCenter Server installation locally, repeat the installation procedure at the remote SQL Server location and select Protect SQL Server only. If installing both vCenter Server and SQL Server locally, select Protect Virtual Center and SQL Server. 24 The Microsoft Windows Backup Configuration page prompts you to select options to facilitate the clone of the Primary server onto the Secondary server.
Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Installation 38 In the first Mask field, enter the Subnet Mask of the Principal (Public) IP address. 39 In the Passive IP field, enter a reserved Management IP address for the Primary server. NOTE The Management IP address is unique for each server in the cluster. 40 In the second Mask field, enter the Subnet Mask of the Management IP address. 41 Verify that the option to Start vCenter Server Heartbeat is not selected and Click Finish.
QuickStart Guide 6 Identify the location of the folder containing the backup file from the Primary server. Manually type the location path in the text box. Click Next. NOTE On Windows Server 2008 installations, you must use the UNC path. 7 The pre-install checks run. Click Next. NOTE The pre-install checks will return the message that the Primary and Secondary server’s names match. This is expected and installation will be allowed to continue.
Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Installation 18 Enter the Service Name for the vCenter Server or SQL Server. NOTE The Service Name is the DNS name by which application clients connect to the application. Normally this is the original name of the vCenter Server or SQL Server. There is only one Service Name and it is the same on all servers in the cluster. 19 In the NIC drop-down, select the Principal (Public) NIC.
QuickStart Guide After installation you rename the Secondary server to “vCSHB-Secondary” and then rename the Primary server to “vCSHB-Primary”. You then use the Configure Server Wizard and identify the Service Name as “vCenterServer” thereby allowing access to vCenter Server on either the Primary or Secondary servers. To rename the Secondary server 1 Navigate to Start > Administrative Tools > Services and set the Neverfail Server R2 service to Manual, Stopped, and close the dialog.
Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Installation To install vCenter Server Heartbeat Client Tools 1 Copy the self-extracting file to the client where it is to be installed. 2 Double-click the self-extracting file to initiate the installation process. The Setup Introduction dialog appears. Review the information and click OK. 3 The Self-Extractor dialog appears. Click Setup to continue. 4 The Setup Type page appears.
QuickStart Guide The selection of Group or Pair you make in the navigation panel “points” the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console to that Group or Pair and vCenter Server Heartbeat Console provides information related to only the selected Group or Pair. To avoid confusion, pay particular attention to the selection in the navigation panel when you are managing more than one Group or Pair. NOTE Groups and Pairs are not automatically detected by vCenter Server Heartbeat Console.
Chapter 2 vCenter Server Heartbeat Installation Post Installation Configuration Upon completion of installation, a series of tasks must be performed to ensure that vCenter Server Heartbeat is properly configured. 1 Verify that the SetSPN.exe (Service Principal Names) executable is present in the Windows\System32 directory on both the Primary and Secondary servers (this is normally present as a component of the Windows 2008 operating system). SetSPN.
QuickStart Guide 4 Enter the credentials of a domain account that is a member of the Domain Admins group, Enterprise Admins group, or one that has been delegated Administrator rights and click OK. 5 Once the account has been successfully added to the list, click Close. 6 In the Tasks pane, select the Network Configuration task Set SPN (Primary). 7 Click Edit. 8 In the Edit Task dialog, in the Run As: drop-down field, select an account with appropriate rights (the account previously added).
3 Installation Verification 3 This chapter includes the following topics: “Verifying vCenter Server Heartbeat” on page 27 “Failover Simulation” on page 27 “Data Replication Exercise” on page 28 “Switchover Exercise” on page 29 Verifying vCenter Server Heartbeat The Installation Verification process validates the proper installation of vCenter Server Heartbeat and tests the software’s operation.
QuickStart Guide Actions Table 3-1. Failover Simulation Exercise Actions Machine Activity Result Primary Right-click on the System Tray icon and select Shutdown VMware vCenter Server Heartbeat. Select the option to Stop all protected applications. vCenter Server Heartbeat stops all monitored services and exits. This can be verified by navigating to the Service Control Manager and viewing the status of the protected services.
Chapter 3 Installation Verification Actions Table 3-2. Data Replication Exercise Actions Machine Activity Result Primary Right-click on the System Tray icon and select Start VMware vCenter Server Heartbeat. vCenter Server Heartbeat starts. Launch the vCenter Server Heartbeat Console. Select the Server: Summary tab to show the connection from the Secondary (active) to Primary (passive). Select the Data: Replication tab and wait for both the File System and the Registry status to display Synchronized.
QuickStart Guide Results Application service was transferred from the originally active machine to the originally passive machine. This exercise demonstrated that functionality and operations can be switched to the other server in the pair on command while maintaining service to users. It is a best practice to document the application-client behavior upon switchover for future reference. 30 VMware, Inc.
Appendix – Pre-Installation Checklist Table A-1. Pre-Installation Checklist Checked Description of Items to be Checked o Verify that the server is not configured as a domain controller, global catalog sever, or DNS server. o Verify that there are no other business critical applications running on the server. o Verify that the Operating System is Windows 2008 or later. o Verify that vCenter Server 4.0 Update 1 or later is installed.
Installation Guide Table A-1. Pre-Installation Checklist Checked o The Primary server’s VMware Channel NIC is configured with a static IP address in a different subnet than the Principal (Public) network, correct network mask, no gateway IP address, no DNS server IP address, and NetBIOS is enabled (disabled by setup during the installation process). o The Secondary server has the same number of NICs as the Primary server.
