If you created a new cluster, you now need to create and configure cluster resources. You might also need to create shared disk partitions if they do not already exist and, if necessary, configure all shared disk system pools and volumes to work with Novell Cluster Services. You might also need to cluster enable the shared disk system pools and volumes.
You can use either the server-based NSS Management Utility (NSSMU) or the Storage plug-in for iManager, or Novell Remote Manager for NetWare to create shared disk partitions, NSS pools, and volumes.
All uninitialized devices that you want to use in a cluster-enabled pool must be initialized by using NSSMU or iManager before you can create cluster-enabled NSS pools on them.
Initialized devices with available free space are listed when you create an NSS pool. If a device that you want to use does not appear in the list of available devices, it might be because it has not yet been initialized. It might also mean that there is no free space on the device.
WARNING:The initialization process completely removes all the partitions on the device and all the data stored on the device is lost. Do not initialize devices that already contain data unless you intend to remove all data on the device.
To initialize a device:
Start NSSMU by entering nssmu at the server console of the master node of the cluster.
In NSSMU, click .
A list of devices appears in the list.
In the list, select a device.
Press F3, .
All devices that you want to use in a cluster-enabled pool must be enabled for sharing by using NSSMU or iManager before you can create cluster-enabled NSS pools on them.
Storage devices must be available via a shared storage area network (SAN) in order to be failed over between servers in the cluster. NSS supports Fibre Channel SAN and iSCSI SAN environments. External SCSI device arrays can also be configured for multiple server access.
Before enabling sharing on shared storage, Novell Cluster Services must be installed and running on your servers. You should carefully plan how you want to configure your shared storage prior to installing Novell Cluster Services.
IMPORTANT:If a device is marked as sharable for clustering, all partitions on that device are automatically sharable.
To enable sharing for a device:
Start NSSMU by entering nssmu at the server console of the master node of the cluster.
In NSSMU, select from the NSS main menu.
A list of devices appears in the list. Device names are not changeable and might be labeled with names such as 0x2 or 0x1.
In the list, select a shared device.
If sharing is disabled, the parameter is marked No.
Press F6, to enable sharing for the device.
Wait for the device details to refresh, then verify that the parameter is now marked Yes.
Repeat this process for each shared device you want to enable for sharing.
Exit NSSMU.
You can create a pool on the shared device by using iManager or NSSMU. The shared partition is automatically created for you when you create the pool.
Start your Internet browser and enter the URL for iManager.
The URL is http://server_ip_address/nps/imanager.html. Replace server_ip_address with the IP address or DNS name of a server in the cluster that has iManager installed or with the IP address for Apache-based services.
Specify your username and password, specify the tree information, then click .
In Roles and Tasks, select , then click the link.
Enter a cluster server name, or browse and select the Cluster object.
Click the link to open the New Pool wizard.
Specify the new pool name, then click .
Select the check box next to the shared device where you want to create the pool, then specify the size of the pool.
Specify whether you want the pool to be activated when it is created.
The option determines if the pool you are creating is to be activated as soon as it is created. The check box is selected (enabled) by default. If you deselect the check box, you must manually activate the pool later before it can be used.
Specify whether you want the pool to be cluster-enabled when it is created by doing one of the following:
If you want to cluster-enable the pool at the same time it is created, leave the check box selected, click , then continue with Step 10.
If you want to cluster-enable the pool later, deselect the check box, click , click , then continue with Configuring a Cluster Resource for (Cluster Enabling) an NSS Pool and Its Volumes.
If you selected , an additional page appears that allows you to specify the cluster information.
Specify the following shared pool clustering parameters:
Virtual Server Name: The name assigned to the virtual server that represents the shared pool in the cluster.
When you cluster-enable a pool, a virtual Server object is automatically created in Novell eDirectory™ and given the name of the Cluster object plus the name of the cluster-enabled pool. For example, if the cluster name is cluster1 and the cluster-enabled pool name is pool1, then the default virtual server name will be cluster1_pool1_server. You can edit the field to change the default virtual server name.
CIFS Virtual Server Name: The name assigned to the virtual server for handling CIFS requests. This is the name of the server as it appears in a Windows system.
You can specify a different name for the Novell CIFS Server only when you create the share. User the CIFS iManager plug-in to manage the name of existing CIFS shares.
IP Address: The IP address that you want to assign the virtual server.
To specify an IP address, tab between the different entries; no dot is required in the fields. For example, if the IP address is 192.168.1.1, type the following:
192 168 1 1
Advertising Protocols: Protocols that give users native file access to data.
Specify one or more advertising protocols by selecting the check boxes of the protocols you want to enable for data requests to this shared pool.
NCP is the Novell networking protocol used by the Novell Client. It is selected by default. Selecting NCP causes commands to be added to the pool-resource load and unload scripts to activate the NCP protocol on the cluster. This lets you ensure that the cluster-enabled pool you are creating is highly available to Novell clients.
CIFS is the Windows networking protocol. Selecting CIFS causes commands to be added to the pool-resource load and unload scripts to activate the CIFS protocol on the cluster. This lets you ensure that the cluster-enabled pool you are creating is highly available to CIFS/Samba clients.
AFP is the Macintosh networking protocol. Selecting AFP causes commands to be added to the pool-resource load and unload scripts to activate the AFP protocol on the cluster. This lets you ensure that the cluster-enabled pool you are creating is highly available to AFP clients.
Click .
Typically, the pool creation takes less than a minute, and the volume creation takes less than 10 seconds. However, if you have a large tree or the server does not hold an eDirectory replica, the create time can take up to 3 minutes.
Continue with Creating NSS Volumes on a Shared Pool.
Start NSSMU by entering nssmu at the server console of the master node of the cluster.
From the NSSMU main menu, select .
On the Pools page, press Insert, then type a name for the new pool you want to create.
Select the device on your shared storage where you want the pool created.
Specify whether you want the pool to be activated when it is created.
The option determines if the pool you are creating is to be activated as soon as it is created. The check box is selected (enabled) by default. If you deselect the check box, you must manually activate the pool later before it can be used.
The feature is enabled by default. Specify whether you want the pool to be cluster-enabled when it is created by doing one of the following:
If you want to cluster-enable the pool at the same time it is created, accept the default entry (), select , then continue with Step 7.
If you want to cluster-enable the pool at a later date, change the default entry from to , select , then go to Section 3.4.5, Configuring a Cluster Resource for (Cluster Enabling) an NSS Pool and Its Volumes.
If you enabled , an additional page appears that allows you to specify the cluster information.
Specify the following shared pool clustering parameters:
Virtual Server Name: The name assigned to the virtual server that represents the shared pool in the cluster.
When you cluster-enable a pool, a virtual Server object is automatically created in Novell eDirectory™ and given the name of the Cluster object plus the name of the cluster-enabled pool. For example, if the cluster name is cluster1 and the cluster-enabled pool name is pool1, then the default virtual server name will be cluster1_pool1_server. You can edit the field to change the default virtual server name.
CIFS Virtual Server Name: The name assigned to the virtual server for handling CIFS (Common Internet File System) requests. This is the name of the server as it appears in a Windows system.
You can specify a different name for the Novell CIFS Server only when you create the share. User the CIFS iManager plug-in to manage the name of existing CIFS shares.
IP Address: The IP address that you want to assign the virtual server.
To specify an IP address, tab between the different entries; no dot is required in the fields. For example, if the IP address is 192.168.1.1, type the following:
192 168 1 1
Advertising Protocols: Protocols that give users native file access to data.
Specify one or more advertising protocols by selecting the check boxes of the protocols you want to enable for data requests to this shared pool.
NCP is the Novell networking protocol used by the Novell Client. It is selected by default. Selecting NCP causes commands to be added to the pool-resource load and unload scripts to activate the NCP protocol on the cluster. This lets you ensure that the cluster-enabled pool you are creating is highly available to Novell clients.
CIFS is the Windows networking protocol. Selecting CIFS causes commands to be added to the pool-resource load and unload scripts to activate the CIFS protocol on the cluster. This lets you ensure that the cluster-enabled pool you are creating is highly available to CIFS/Samba clients.
AFP is the Macintosh networking protocol. Selecting AFP causes commands to be added to the pool-resource load and unload scripts to activate the AFP protocol on the cluster. This lets you ensure that the cluster-enabled pool you are creating is highly available to AFP clients.
Select to create and cluster-enable the pool.
Continue with Creating NSS Volumes on a Shared Pool.
You can create NSS volumes by using the Storage plug-in to Novell iManager or the server-based NSSMU tool. For planning and management information, see the OES 2 SP1: NSS File System Administration Guide.
Depending on your configuration, the new volumes are either mounted automatically when resources that require them start, or you must mount them manually on individual servers after the cluster resources are loaded.
Repeat the following procedure for each cluster volume that you want to create.
Start your Internet browser and enter the URL for iManager.
The URL is http://server_ip_address/nps/imanager.html. Replace server_ip_address with the IP address or DNS name of a server in the cluster that has iManager installed or with the IP address for Apache-based services.
Specify your username and password, specify the tree information, then click .
In Roles and Tasks, select , then select the .
Specify a cluster server name or browse and select one, then click .
Specify the new volume name, then click .
Select the check box next to the cluster pool where you want to create the volume and either specify the size of the volume () or select , then click .
The volume quota is the maximum possible size of the volume. If you have more than one volume per pool, you can specify a quota for each volume rather than allowing multiple volumes to grow to the pool size.
Review and change volume attributes as necessary.
For information about volume attributes, see Volume Attributes
in the OES 2 SP1: NSS File System Administration Guide.
Choose whether you want the volume activated and mounted when it is created, then click .
Repeat the following procedure for each cluster volume that you want to create on the shared NSS pool.
From the NSSMU main menu, select .
On the Volumes page, press Insert, then type a name for the new volume you want to create.
Each shared volume in the cluster must have a unique name.
Select the pool where you want the volume to reside.
Review and change volume attributes as necessary.
For information about volume attributes, see Volume Attributes
in the OES 2 SP1: NSS File System Administration Guide.
Either specify a quota for the volume or accept the default of 0 to allow the volume to grow to the pool size, then select .
The quota is the maximum possible size of the volume. If you have more than one volume per pool, you can specify a quota for each volume rather than allowing multiple volumes to grow to the pool size.
Cluster-enabling a pool or volume allows it to be moved or mounted on different servers in the cluster in a manner that supports transparent client reconnect. If you have a shared disk system that is part of your cluster and you want the pools and volumes on the shared disk system to be highly available to NCP clients, you must cluster-enable those pools and volumes.
Cluster-enabled volumes do not appear as cluster resources. NSS pools are resources, and load and unload scripts apply to pools and are automatically generated for them. Each cluster-enabled NSS pool requires its own IP address. This means that each cluster-enabled volume does not have an associated load and unload script or an assigned IP address.
NSS pools can be cluster-enabled at the same time they are created. If you did not cluster-enable a pool at creation time, the first volume that you cluster-enable in the pool automatically cluster-enables the pool. After a pool has been cluster-enabled, you must also cluster-enable the other volumes in the pool if you want them to be mounted on another server during a failover.
When a server fails, any cluster-enabled pools being accessed by that server fail over to other servers in the cluster. Because the cluster-enabled pool fails over, all volumes in the pool also fail over, but only the volumes that have been cluster-enabled are mounted. Any volumes in the pool that have not been cluster-enabled must be mounted manually. For this reason, volumes that aren't cluster-enabled should be in separate pools that are not cluster-enabled.
If you want each cluster-enabled volume to be its own cluster resource, each volume must have its own pool.
Some server applications don't require NCP client access to NSS volumes, so cluster-enabling pools and volumes might not be necessary.
Start your browser and enter the URL for iManager.
The URL is http://server_ip_address/nps/imanager.html. Replace server_ip_address with the IP address or DNS name of a server in the cluster, or the IP address for Apache-based services.
Specify your username and password, specify the tree information, then click .
In , select , then go to the Volumes and Pools pages to verify that the volumes are not mounted and the pool is deactive.
In , select , then click the link.
Browse to locate and select the Cluster object of the cluster you want to manage.
Click the link.
Specify Pool as the resource type you want to create by clicking the radio button, then click .
Type the name of the pool you want to cluster-enable, or browse and select it.
(Optional) Change the default name of the virtual Server object.
When you cluster-enable a pool, a virtual Server object is automatically created and given the name of the Cluster object plus the cluster-enabled pool. For example, if the cluster name is cluster1 and the cluster-enabled pool name is pool1, then the default virtual server name will be cluster1_pool1_server.
(Optional) Change the default name of the CIFS server name.
If you select the check box in the section of this page, the field will become active. The CIFS server name is the server name CIFS clients see when they browse the network. A default server name is listed, but you can change the server name by editing the text in the field.
Specify an IP address for the pool.
Each cluster-enabled NSS pool requires its own IP address. The IP address is used to provide access and failover capability to the cluster-enabled pool (virtual server). The IP address assigned to the pool remains assigned to the pool regardless of which server in the cluster is accessing the pool.
Select one or more advertising protocols.
NCP is the Novell networking protocol used by the Novell Client. It is selected by default. Selecting NCP causes commands to be added to the pool-resource load and unload scripts to activate the NCP protocol on the cluster. This lets you ensure that the cluster-enabled pool you are creating is highly available to Novell clients.
CIFS is the Windows networking protocol. Selecting CIFS causes commands to be added to the pool-resource load and unload scripts to activate the CIFS protocol on the cluster. This lets you ensure that the cluster-enabled pool you are creating is highly available to CIFS/Samba clients.
AFP is the Macintosh networking protocol. Selecting AFP causes commands to be added to the pool-resource load and unload scripts to activate the AFP protocol on the cluster. This lets you ensure that the cluster-enabled pool you are creating is highly available to AFP clients.
(Optional) Select the check box.
This causes the volume to automatically mount once it is created.
Ensure the check box is selected, then click .
If desired, modify the cluster load, unload, and monitor scripts.
Cluster resource load, unload, and monitor scripts are automatically generated for a pool when the cluster resource for the pool is created. You can modify the scripts to suit your needs. For examples of the scripts for NSS, see the following:
Continue with Setting Start, Failover, and Failback Modes.
Templates simplify the process of creating similar or identical cluster resources. For example, templates are helpful when you want to create multiple instances of the same resource on different servers. You can create templates for any server application or resource you want to add to your cluster.
Novell Cluster Services currently provides templates for DHCP, iFolder®, and MySQL*, as well as a generic IP SERVICE template. The generic IP SERVICE template can be used when configuring certain server applications to run on your cluster. You can edit and customize any of the templates for your specific needs.
Start your browser and enter the URL for iManager.
The URL is http://server_ip_address/nps/imanager.html. Replace server_ip_address with the IP address or DNS name of a NetWare 6.5 server in the cluster or the IP address for Apache-based services.
Specify your username and password, specify the tree information, then click .
In Roles and Tasks, select , then click the link.
Type the cluster name or browse and select it, then click the link.
Specify as the resource type you want to create by clicking the radio button, then click .
Type the name of the template you want to create.
Ensure that the check box is selected, then continue with Configuring Load Scripts.
To finish creating a cluster resource template, you need to configure load and unload scripts, set failover and failback modes and, if necessary, change the node assignments for the resource template.
Cluster resources must be created for every resource or application you run on servers in your cluster. Cluster resources can include Web sites, e-mail servers, databases, and any other server-based applications or services you want to make available to users at all times.
Start your browser and enter the URL for iManager.
The URL is http://server_ip_address/nps/imanager.html. Replace server_ip_address with the IP address or DNS name of a NetWare 6.5 server in the cluster or the IP address for Apache-based services.
Specify your username and password, specify the tree information, then click .
In Roles and Tasks, select , then click the link.
iManager displays four links under that you can use to configure and manage your cluster.
Type the cluster name or browse and select it, then click the link.
Specify Resource as the resource type you want to create by clicking the radio button, then click .
Type the name of the resource you want to create.
IMPORTANT:Do not use periods in cluster resource names. NetWare and NetWare clients interpret a period as a delimiter.
If a template exists for the resource you are creating, type the template name in the field, or browse and select it from the list. If a template does not exist, select the check box.
(Conditional) If you are not using a template for the resource, continue with Configuring Load Scripts.
A load script is required for each resource, service, or disk pool in your cluster. The load script specifies the commands to start the resource or service on a server, or to mount the volume on a server.
You can use any commands in the load script that would be used in a .ncf file run from the server console. If you don't know which commands to add to your load script, consult the documentation for the application or resource.
Load scripts are automatically created for disk pools when you cluster enable them. Because of this, it might not be necessary to configure or change the load script for a pool.
IMPORTANT:Do not comment out commands that are autogenerated for parameters that define the cluster resource, such as the mount point, IP address, container name, file system type, and device.
If you are creating a new cluster resource, the load script page should already be displayed. You can start with Step 4.
In Roles and Tasks, select and click the link.
Type the cluster name or browse and select it, select the box next to the resource whose load script you want to edit, then click the link.
Click the tab, then click the link.
Edit or add the necessary commands to the script to load the resource on the server.
For more details on load script commands, see the instructions below on configuring load scripts using ConsoleOne.
Specify the Load Script Timeout value, then click to save the script; or, if you are creating a new cluster resource, click .
The timeout value determines how much time the script is given to complete. If the script does not complete within the specified time, the resource becomes comatose.
Depending on your cluster application or resource, you can add an unload script to specify how the application or resource should terminate. An unload script is not required by all resources or applications, but it can ensure that during a failback or manual migration, a resource unloads before it loads on another node. Consult your application vendor or documentation to determine if you should add commands to unload the resource.
Unload scripts are automatically created for pools when you cluster enable them. Because of this it might not be necessary to configure or change the load script for a pool.
If you are creating a new cluster resource, the unload script page should already be displayed. You can start with Step 4.
In Roles and Tasks, select , then click the link.
Type the cluster name or browse and select it, select the box next to the resource whose unload script you want to edit, then click the link.
Click the tab, then click the link.
Edit or add the necessary commands to the script to unload the resource on the server.
You can use any commands used in a .ncf file run from the server console. If you don't know which commands to add, consult the documentation for the application or resource you want to unload.
Specify the Unload Script Timeout value, then click to save the script; or, if you are creating a new cluster resource, click .
The timeout value determines how much time the script is given to complete. If the script does not complete within the specified time, the resource becomes comatose when migrating to another node.
You can configure the start, failover, and failback of cluster resources to happen manually or automatically. With the resource Start Mode set to AUTO, the resource automatically starts on a server when the cluster is first brought up. If the resource Start Mode is set to MANUAL, you can manually start the resource on a server when you want, instead of having it automatically start when servers in the cluster are brought up.
IMPORTANT:Cluster Services works with NCP user connections so that the user data sessions are resumed after failover. However, non-NCP users might experience service interruption and need to reconnect to the server after the failover. Applications using server based storage must be restarted on the new node even with NCP unless they are NCP reconnect aware.
With the resource Failover Mode set to AUTO, the resource automatically starts on the next server in the Assigned Nodes list in the event of a hardware or software failure. If the resource Failover Mode is set to MANUAL, you can intervene after a failure occurs and before the resource is moved to another node.
With the resource Failback Mode set to DISABLE, the resource does not fail back to its most preferred node when the most preferred node rejoins the cluster. If the resource Failback Mode is set to AUTO, the resource automatically fails back to its most preferred node when the most preferred node rejoins the cluster. Set the resource Failback Mode to MANUAL to prevent the resource from moving back to its preferred node when that node is brought back online, until you are ready to allow it to happen.
The preferred node is the first server in the list of the assigned nodes for the resource.
IMPORTANT:Resources will only failback to the first node in their preferred nodes list. So if a resource has failed over to three servers since it originally ran on its preferred node, and the second server the resource was running on comes back up, the resource will not failback to that second server.
Resources do not automatically move from node to node just because a node higher in the preferred nodes list rejoins the cluster, unless the Failback mode is set to auto and the first node in the preferred nodes list rejoins the cluster.
If you are creating a new cluster resource, the Resource Policies page should already be displayed. You can start with Step 4.
In Roles and Tasks, select , then click the link.
Type the cluster name or browse and select it, select the box next to the resource whose start, failover, or failback modes you want to view or edit, then click the link.
Click the tab.
(Conditional) Select the check box if you want to ensure that the resource runs only on the master node in the cluster.
If the master node in the cluster fails, the resource will fail over to whichever node becomes the master.
(Conditional) Select the check box if you don't want the cluster-wide timeout period and node number limit enforced.
The quorum default values were set when you installed Novell Cluster Services. You can change the quorum default values by accessing the properties page for the Cluster object.
Selecting this box will ensure that the resource is launched immediately on any server in the Assigned Nodes list as soon as any server in the list is brought online.
Choose the Start, Failover, and Failback modes for this resource.
The default for both Start and Failover modes is AUTO, and the default for Failback mode is DISABLE.
Continue with Assigning Nodes to a Resource, or if you are creating a new cluster resource, click , then continue with Assigning Nodes to a Resource.
When you create a resource on a cluster or cluster enable a volume or pool, the nodes in the cluster are automatically assigned to the resource or the volume or pool. The order of assignment is the order the nodes appear in the resource list. You can assign or unassign nodes to the resource or the volume or pool, or change the failover order.
If you are creating a new cluster resource, the Preferred Nodes page should already be displayed. If you have just set start, failover, and failback modes, the Preferred Nodes page will be displayed as part of the Resource Policies page. You can start with Step 4.
In Roles and Tasks, select, then click the link.
Type the cluster name or browse and select it, select the box next to the resource whose assigned nodes you want to change, then click the link.
Click the tab.
From the list of unassigned nodes, select the server you want the resource assigned to, then click the right-arrow button to move the selected server to the list.
Repeat this step for all servers you want assigned to the resource. You can also use the left-arrow button to unassign servers from the resource.
Click the up-arrow and down-arrow buttons to change the failover order of the servers assigned to the resource or volume.
Click or to save node assignment changes.