VCF Automation 9.0 Installation | Deep-Dive |
- Arun Nukula
- Jun 25
- 5 min read
In today's fast-paced IT landscape, automation has become a critical component for streamlining operations and enhancing efficiency.
One of the most powerful products available for Private Cloud is VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF), which a cohesive infrastructure solution.
This blog delves into the intricacies of VCF Automation installation, providing a comprehensive guide for IT professionals looking to simplify their deployment processes.
We will explore the prerequisites, installation steps, and best practices to ensure a smooth and successful implementation of VCF Automation, enabling organizations to harness the full potential of their cloud environments.
Deployment Types
VCF Automation comes with three sizing profiles.
Small
Medium
Large
Below table describes
Number of nodes deployed for a specific deployment type
Number of IP's needed for a specific deployment type
Let's now get into the deployment flow and see what all parameters we need for a successful deployment
Login into VCF Operations UI , Select Fleet Management -- Lifecycle -- VCF Management -- Overview
Click on ADD on the automation tile
This would launch the automation installation wizard
There are three options here
New Install
Deploys a new VCF Automation component
Import
Gives an ability to import Automation 9.0 when it's removed as a management component from VCF Operations Fleet Management Appliance for troubleshooting purposes post its deployment.
Import from legacy Fleet Management
Provides an ability for a customer to import their existing VMware Aria Automation 8.18.x instances into VCF Operations fleet management appliance, so that they can be upgraded to VCF Automation 9.0
The initial/first VCF Automation instance you deploy or import will be classified as an INTEGRATED instance. Any subsequent VCF Automations added to the VCF Operations fleet management, whether through deployment or the import & upgrade methods, will be classified as NON-INTEGRATED.
Since we would be coverting New Install for this blog, so let's select this option and move forward by clicking on NEXT. We shall select MEDIUM deployment type
In the next step, select the certificate which would be used for the deployment
If you have a certificate pre-created select it.
If you don't have the certificate, then go ahead and click on the "+" sign to Generate it. This would be a VCF Operations fleet management Locker CA based certificate
If you have an external party certificate authorized by your organization, then choose Import Certificate and then import it
Unlike VMware Aria Automation 8.x, where you need 1 VMware Aria Automation Load Balancer FQDN and 3 VMware Aria Automation node FQDN's, when deploying VCF Automation 9.0 , you just need 1 VCF Automation FQDN.
This VCF Automation FQDN is the only one needed while generating the certificate and no other inputs are needed.
Select the certificate and click on NEXT for further inputs on the Infrastructure tab
Select vCenter Server
This would be the management domain where VCF Automation would be deployed
If the vCenter Server where you would like to deploy VCF Automation is not listed, then go ahead and check if that's added as one of the deployment targets under
VCF Operations - Administration - Integrations - Accounts - vCenter or VMware Cloud Foundation
Fleet Management - Lifecycle - VCF Management - Settings - Deployment Target
Select Cluster
This would be the place where you would like to host your nodes
Select Folder
Placeholder for placing the VCF Automation ndoes
Select Resource Pool
Placeholder for placing the VCF Automation ndoes
Select Network
This would be the network where your VCF Automation nodes would be connected to
Select Datastore
This would be the datastore where your VCF Automation nodes would be deployed to
Once done with the Infrastructure tab , proceed with the Network tab
Domain Name
Enter the domain name of the organization
Domain Search Path
Enter the domain search path of the organization
DNS Servers
Add NEW Server
Add a new DNS Server and then select it
EDIT SERVER SELECTION
Select the DNS Server which you would like to use for this deployment
Time Sync Mode
Use NTP Server
Add NEW Server
Add a new NTP Server and then select it
EDIT SERVER SELECTION
Select the NTP Server which you would like to use for this deployment
Use Host Time
Leverage the NTP set on the ESXi host where it's deployed
IPv4 Details
Default IPv4 Gateway
Enter the defaut gateway for the deployment
IPv4 Netmask
Enter the netmask used for the deployment
Click on next to enter the component properties
Component Properties
FQDN
Enter VCF Automation FQDN
Certificate
As we selected this during initial screen, this is pre-populated
Component Password
Create a 15 character long password
If the password is not created, create it using "ADD PASSWORD" on the top right corner of the screen
Once created , select the password
Cluster Virtual IP
FQDN
Enter VCF Automation FQDN
Yes, you have entered this before, but you need to enter this again.
Controller Type
Internal Load Balancer
When using internal load balancer the VCF Automation FQDN should be pointing to the Primary VIP
Internal Load Balancer
Others
This is an option if a customer wants to leverage an external load balancer like F5, Netscaler , NSX-T etc.
When this option is used VCF Automation FQDN should be pointing to the VIRTUAL SERVER IP of the Load Balancer
The Primary VIP and Additional VIP's which would be collected as inputs in the subsequent steps should be part of it's POOL
Components
Node Prefix
Specify a unique prefix for the VCF Automation nodes. Ensure the prefix is unique within the VCF Instance fleet to avoid conflicts and enable accurate VM backup identification
This is used as prefix to the VCF Automation ndoes we deploy and a suffix is autogenerated during deployment
This behavior cannot be changed.
Primary VIP
The Primary Virtual IP address of the VCF Automation used for accessing the services
As described above
if using internal load balancer the VCF Automation FQDN should be pointing to this Primary VIP
if using others or external load balancer, then this Primary VIP should be part of the pool on the load balancer
Internal Cluster CIDR
IP Address Range used for internal network communication within the cluster. Choose a range that does not conflict with any existing networks.
Note: Once a cluster CIDR is selected and component is deployed, this cannot be changed
Additional VIP's
You can add upto 2 additional VIP's for VCF Automation
This is not mandatory for Greenfield Installs
Click on ADD ADDITIONAL VIP POOL to add IP addresses one after another
Cluster Node IP Pool
A node IP pool is a range of IP addresses allocated for nodes being deployed to host VCF Automation, from which they will receive their IP addresses.
For Medium and Large deployment types a minimum of 4 IP's are needed
For Small deployment type a minimum of 2 IP's are needed
As stated it accepts
CIDR based format
Individual IP Addresses
A range
Click on NEXT now to run a PRECHECK
Proceed only when PRECHECK is successful
Once Prechecks are successful, review the summary and submit the deployment request
As stated in the summary page, parallel deployments of VCF Automation or Identity Broker is not supported.
Deploy them one after another
Once submitted, the deployment procedure begins
Deep-Dive into deployment process will be blogged soon
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