Installing a CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform Instance

Use the following workflow to install CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform.

1. Make sure you have the correct setup: Verifying the IBM Cloud Environment.
2. Install CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform: Installing a CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform.
3. Setting Up Storage.
4. For the first server you install, follow all of the steps in Configuring the Primary Server.
5. For any additional servers beside the primary server, configure the server as an additional server as described in Installing and Configuring Additional CTERA Portal Servers.
6. Make sure that you replicate the database, as described in Backing Up the Database.

Verifying the IBM Cloud Environment

Your IT team need to have created a VPC for CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform.

To verify the IBM Cloud environment for CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform:

1. Login to the IBM Cloud console.
   
2. In the Navigation Menu select VPC Infrastructure > VPCs.
   
3. Make sure you have a VPC defined that can be used for CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform.
   
   By default a VPC is created with three subnets. When creating a CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform, you provide one of these subnets and it is the subnet that establishes the VPC in which CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform runs.
4. Click the VPC to use.
   
5. Scroll down the VPC to display the list of subnets.
   
6. Click the subnet you want to use and save the ID, which you need when creating the CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform.
   
7. Create an SSH key on the client machine that will be used to access the CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform instance.
   Note

   You need to generate a public key to access the CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform instance, for example using ssh-keygen. If you are going to access the CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform instance from a tool like PuTTY, you need to convert the private key to a .ppk file.

8. In the IBM Cloud console, in the Navigation Menu select VPC Infrastructure > SSH keys.
   
9. Click Create.
   
10. Enter a name for the SSH key, select the region for the VPC, and scroll-down and paste the generated public key in Public key.
    Note

    The content of the public key file typically starts with ssh-rsa and ends with your user ID.

11. Click Create.
    

Installing a CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform

To create a CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform:

1. Log in to the IBM Cloud console.
   
2. Search for CTERA or Secured Enterprise File Services Platform.
   
3. Click Secured Enterprise File Services Platform.
   The Secured Enterprise File Services Platform page is displayed.
   
   The CTERA Secured Enterprise File Services Platform is created using a Terraform template in a CTERA specific workspace.
4. Under Review your pricing plans you see that you need a license which you get from CTERA support.
   Note

   You enter the license after the installation completes. Without a license you can continue using a 30 day trial license that is included with the Secured Enterprise File Services Platform.

5. Under Configure your workspace provide a name for the workspace and the Location for the workspace.
   
6. Scroll down and specify the Secured Enterprise File Services Platform details under Set the deployment values.
   
   instance_name – The name you want for Secured Enterprise File Services Platform.
   profile – The size of the virtual instance. In a small or test environment, with a single server deployment, bx2-2x8 is sufficient. In a production environment, with a multi-node deployment, the primary database servers requires** bx2-4x16**. When an application server will handle up to the maximum 10,000 clients, CTERA recommends bx2-8x32.
   ssh_key_name – The name of the SSH key. For details, see Verifying the IBM Cloud Environment.
   subnet_id – The ID of the subnet that you want to use for the Secured Enterprise File Services Platform. The specified subnet is what determines the VPC that is used. For details, see Verifying the IBM Cloud Environment.
   Leave all the other parameters with the default values.
   
7. Confirm reading the CTERA EULA and click Install.
   
8. After the installation has completed, click VPC Infrastructure > Virtual server instances.
   
   The Virtual server instances for VPC is displayed.
   
9. Click the virtual server instance just created.
   
10. Scroll down to Network interfaces.
    
11. Click the pencil icon to the right of the network interface to edit the interface to add an external, floating, IP.
    
12. In the Floating IP box, select Reserve a new floating IP.
    
13. Click Save.
    
    The size of the database should be around 1% of the target data. CTERA recommends seeking guidance from CTERA support for a more accurate estimation of the required database size. The virtual server instance is defined with a 100GB disk for the database. If this is not enough, you can expand the disk size so that it is at least 1% of the target data:
    1. In the virtual server instance, click the Data Volume under Storage volumes.
       
       The volume details are displayed.
       
    2. Under Actions, select Expand volume.
       
    3. Change the value in Create size to be at least 2% of the size of the target data.
       Note

       You can expand a disk but you cannot shrink a disk.

    4. Click Save and continue.
       

The server instance is defined with a floating, public, IP that can be used to access the CTERA Portal.

Setting Up Storage

In addition to the storage defined with the virtual server, you need to set up the storage for the portal.

To set up storage:

1. Click the 3 vertical dots to the right of the instance and select Open VNC console.
2. Log in to the CTERA Portal as root, with the password ctera321.
3. Run the following command: fdisk –l.
4. Run the following command: portal-storage-util.sh create_storage <vol_name>
   Where <vol_name> is the name of the non-boot volume listed when fdisk -l was run. The default is vdd. For example, portal-storage-util.sh create_storage vdd
5. Run the following command to start the portal: portal-manage.sh start

For the primary server, proceed with Configuring the Primary Server. For an additional server, proceed with Installing and Configuring Additional CTERA Portal Servers.