Hardware and Software Requirements for a Netra HA Suite Cluster

The hardware and software you choose to run the Netra HA Suite Foundation Services is directly influenced by the objectives of your installation. For example, if you are only evaluating the Netra HA Suite Foundation Services, the hardware and software requirements might be very different than they are if you are developing and testing an application using the Netra HA Suite Foundation Services.

In the latter case, your hardware and software choices will be influenced by the type of application you want to develop and deploy, your expectations for the system’s performance, and the environment of your future deployments. For example, consider whether your application will be deployed on a network equipment provider [NEP] core network, in a datacenter, or in difficult field environments.When selecting hardware and software for use on a cluster that is running the Netra HA Suite Foundation Services consider the following questions:

• Are you installing a cluster for evaluation purposes or are you developing and testing an application using the Netra HA Suite Foundation Services?

• Are you running a client/server application? If so, must your clients be part of the cluster?

• Are multiple instances of the same application servicing external devices?

• Does your application perform a high number of disk I/Os or is there a lot of network traffic inside or outside of the cluster?

• Does your application access only local data, or does it also access data that must be highly available?

• Is part of your application already available on the Solaris OS or under a Linux distribution?

• Do you want to consolidate multiple rack mount servers in a single ATCA blade server?

• Do you plan to use virtualization & share resources between logical domains on a single server?

Answering the preceding questions and likely several others will guide you as you define the cluster you will set up for your application and on which you will use the Netra HA Suite Foundation Services.

Depending on your answers to the preceding questions, you will decide whether or not to set up a cluster with client nodes (diskless or dataless), whether to support data replication over IP or through shared disks, whether or not to handle external access lines, and whether to run the Solaris OS or a Linux distribution. You will also decide if you want to install your cluster on rackmounted servers or blade servers, and whether or not your solution needs to be NEPS-compliant. If you plan to use virtualization, it implies a choice of well-identified hardware (based on the UltraSPARC® T1 processor family) and limits the operating system choice.

At a minimum, a cluster running the Netra HA Suite 3.0 software requires the following:

• Two server nodes (master-eligible nodes) with their local disks

• Two network interfaces on each node

• Two Ethernet switches

• One terminal server

Other hardware components are optional and should be selected based on the answers you provided to the previously listed questions. Some of these optional components include the following:

• Client nodes (diskless or dataless), up to 62

• SCSI disk bay or network attached storage (NAS) if using shared disk for data replication

• Supplementary network interface cards if external access is required

Chapter 2 provides examples of hardware configurations in typical clusters. Along with each of this typical cluster, some hints are given about the type of Application such a cluster will preferably support.Running the Netra HA Suite 3.0 Foundation Services on your cluster requires either the Solaris Operating System or a Carrier Grade Linux distribution. But if you choose to run Netra HA Suite Foundation Services on a cluster where virtualization and partitioning technology are in use, only the Solaris OS can be installed. For information about supported Solaris releases and Linux distributions, see Netra High Availability Suite 3.0 1/08 Release Notes.

Using Logical Domains

Sun’s Logical Domains (LDoms) technology is a server virtualization and partitioning technology that enables the allocation of various system resources, such as memory, CPUs, I/O, and storage into partitions known as logical or virtual domains. Each logical domain can have an independent operating system, resources, and identity within a single computer system. Specialized service and control domains allow these resources to be managed using the Logical Domains Manager software.

For information about the LDom configurations that are supported with this release of the Netra HA Suite Foundation Services, see the Netra High Availability Suite 3.0 1/08 Release Notes.

Hardware and Software Requirements for the Installation Server

To install the OS and Netra HA Suite 3.0 software on your cluster, you need an installation server and a network link between the installation server and your cluster. The installation server can be any hardware that is capable of running the Solaris OS or a Linux distribution.See the Netra High Availability Suite 3.0 1/08 Foundation Services Installation Guide for information about choosing the hardware and software for the installation server, connecting the cluster and installation server hardware, and installing and configuring the cluster software from the installation server.

Hardware and Software Requirements for the Development Host

If you are developing applications that you plan to deploy on a cluster running the Netra HA Suite 3.0 Foundation Services, you can choose to install a development host. The hardware required to support a development host is optional, but can be any hardware that is capable of running the Solaris OS or a Linux distribution.See the Netra High Availability Suite 3.0 1/08 Foundation Services Installation Guide for information about installing a development host.

Choosing an Installation Method

The Netra HA Suite product provides two ways of installing software on the cluster.

• Automated installation with the nhinstall tool. The nhinstall tool, running on the installation server, enables you to install the OS of your choice and the Netra HA Suite software on a cluster, regardless of the hardware configuration of the cluster. It also automatically manages the configuration of the cluster, based on predefined configuration files.

  This tool is flexible and provides various configuration options that you can adapt to your requirements. For more information, see the Netra High Availability Suite 3.0 1/08 Foundation Services Installation Guide.

• Manual installation. You can manually install the software on a cluster, regardless of the hardware configuration in use. A manual installation requires you to manage, step-by-step, the installation of the software (the OS and the Netra HA Suite software) on the cluster, without any help from an automated tool.

  Manual installation provides greater flexibility when installing various components of the Foundation Services. However, manual installation can result in a cluster configuration that is not easily reproducible on other clusters.

  Manual installation is not recommended for use on the Solaris 10 OS and Linux because the procedures involved are complex and can be a source of errors. For more information, see the Netra High Availability Suite 3.0 1/08 Foundation Services Manual Installation Guide for the Solaris OS.

  If you install Netra HA Suite Foundation Services on a cluster where the virtualization and partitioning technology are in use, Solaris OS and LDoms software have to be installed manually first (see the Netra High Availability Suite 3.0 1/08 Foundation Services Installation Guide for detailed instructions). Then, you can choose an automated installation or a manual installation to install Netra HA Suite on the cluster.

Installation Task Map

The following table outlines the tasks for choosing and installing the cluster hardware and the installation hardware.

If you are planning to develop applications using the Netra HA Suite software API, you must also perform the following tasks to install a development server: