Deploy VCHA without connecting to hosting VC SSO.

Products

• VMware vCenter Server

Issue/Introduction

This article introduce steps of deploying VCHA without connecting to hosting VC SSO in detail.

Environment

vCenter Server 8.0

Resolution

Prerequisites

• 3 IP addresses for VCHA network. 
  • VCHA IP subnet should be separated from management subnet.

Steps of Deployment

1. Add another vNIC to vCenter VM. Select the port group accessible to VCHA subnet. Make sure there are 2 vNIC connected to vCenter.
2. Open VAMI(vCenter Server Management Interface) of active node. Select Networking >> EDIT. Select "NIC1", click "NEXT", unfold NIC1 and fill in VCHA IP address for active node.
3. Open vSphere Client of active node.
4. Select vCenter at inventory, click Configure >> vCenter HA >> SET UP VCENTER HA.
5. Select "I do not have Single Sign-On administrator credentials of management vCenter server". Click "Next".
6. Fill in VCHA IP address for 3 nodes. Click "FINISH". Passive node and witness node are invalid at this stage. This is normal and expected.
7. Open vSphere Client of hosting vCenter(the vCenter that active node is managed by). Click menu(3 lines icon) >> Policies and Profiles >> VM Customization Specifications >> NEW.
8. Create a customization specification for VC.
   1. At step 1, enter name, select Linux. Leave  "Use cloud-init config data" unselected.
   2. At step 2, select "Enter a name". Enter the short name of this host. Enter domain name at textbox below.
   3. At step 3, select timezone same as active node.
   4. At step 4, click "NEXT".
   5. At step 5, select "Manually select custom settings". Set NIC1 IPv4 with management IP of active node. Set NIC2 IPv4 to "Prompt the user for an IPv4 address when the specification is used". 
   6. At step 6, enter DNS server.
   7. At step 7, confirm and submit.
9. Clone active node to passive and witness nodes.
   1. At step 1 to 3, configure corresponding resources.
   2. At step 4, select "Customize the operating system".
   3. At step 5, select the newly created customization specification.
   4. At step 6, unfold "Network Adapter 2", enter VCHA IP address for both passive and witness node.
   5. Skip step 7.
   6. At step 8, confirm and submit.
10. Refresh VCHA page at active node. VCHA is expected to be built after few minutes.

 

Additional Information

For additional information, please find vCenter HA Configuration Workflow.