Step 1 - Upgrade the cluster components to their latest versions

Software is software, and there will always be new releases. I typically run LCM as soon as the initial deployment is completed and once more when the post-installation configurations have been applied. Why run LCM twice? It’s what works for me.

1. Log into the Prism console, click the Home menu, navigate to LCM, select Inventory, and then click Perform Inventory.

2. If necessary, select Enable Auto Inventory (with a suitable time) and Enable Auto Update for NCC. Then click Proceed to start the inventory.

3. The inventory will perform a series of tests, usually taking a few minutes. Once the tests are complete, click Return to Inventory to return to the previous page in Prism.

4. Once back in Prism, select the Updates tab and mark the software components, such as FSM, that you want to upgrade. Clicking Pre-Upgrade will run checks to ensure that the update(s) can be completed but will not apply the updates. To run the upgrade(s), click View Upgrade Plan followed by Apply Updates. It’s time for a cup of tea again. Once finished, the upgrades, not the cup of tea, click Return to Updates., You now have a fully updated Nutanix CE cluster.

Step 2 - Clean up initial errors and warnings

The first time you log onto Prism, you’ll see errors and warnings in the navigation/status bar at the top of the console screen. These are most likely related to Time Sync, Default Passwords, etc., so let’s clear them up.

1. To access the Health Dashboard, click the red heart on the navigation bar or anywhere in the Health widget (3^rd panel).
2. This view shows the cluster's overall health. As shown in the image, several failed checks are in the right-hand pane.

3. Clicking Failed displays a categorized list of failed checks. You can examine the reason for the failure of each check by clicking the text. For example, CVM is using the default password. This provides you with:

• The cause of the error.
• Links to KB articles to resolve the issue.
• The ability to turn the check-off.

Examine and correct the Failed, Warning, and Error checks as necessary.

4. Finally, re-run the checks by selecting Run NCC Checks from the Actions menu.
5. The navigation bar displays recent alerts. Clicking on an alert selects it. The next screen presents a summary of the alert, possible causes (in the central part of the screen), and details in the left-hand pane. The alert(s) can be cleared by clicking the Resolve or Acknowledge buttons in the top right-hand corner.

Step 3 - Configure network settings and storage pools

This section will check and configure network settings, name servers, and NTP servers.  From the main navigation bar at the top of the console, click the Home menu item, navigate to Settings, and check and/or configure the following:

Cluster Details

1. The Virtual IP is a logical IP address that connects to one of the active CVMs in a multi-node cluster. I recommend configuring the Virtual IP even in a single-node cluster, as some services/features, such as Nutanix Objects, use the VIP for access.
2. ISCSI Data Services IP. Nutanix Volumes and other similar data services use this.
3. The FQDN can be ignored for the moment.

Network, Name Servers, and NTP Servers

1. Navigate to Settings, Network Configuration, and select Create a Network. Then, specify a subnet name that matches your naming configuration. In Part 1, I discussed the naming conventions I’ve settled on over the years, such as “hostname-vlan-0.”
2. Select the required virtual switch, vs0, by default, followed by the VLAN ID.
3. Ignore Enable IP address management if you have DHCP enabled on your network.

4. Navigate to Settings, Name Servers, and configure and check the Name Servers. These should be your internal DNS Servers; two are recommended for high availability. A single-name server works OK.

5. Lastly, check and configure the NTP Servers. Navigate to Settings à Name Servers and configure at least three NTP servers. Three NTP servers are the minimum to identify one source as a false ticker but have no redundancy; four will provide redundancy, whereas five NTP servers are the recommended minimum configuration. I use time1-4.google.com and a local NTP pool server such as 0.se.pool.ntp.org.

Step 4 – Storage

This section will likely be the most controversial, reflecting personal preferences rather than official Nutanix recommendations. Clear naming conventions will help you identify the correct storage pool when you create disaster recovery plans. For example, I included the cluster names in the pool and container names. Either way, choose a naming strategy that works for you. As the saying goes, Your Mileage May Vary.

In the following steps, we will update the Storage Pool name, delete it, and create a new storage pool to match your naming convention.

Storage Pool Name

1. Select Storage in the Navigation bar and then click Storage Pool.
2. Right-click the default-storage-pool-xxxx, select update, and provide a name that matches your preferred naming convention, e.g., ourfarm-storage-pool.

Storage Containers

1. Right-click and delete the default container.
2. Create a new one with your naming conventions by clicking + Storage Container in the top right-hand corner. Provide a name that matches your naming conventions, followed by Save.
3. NutanixManagementShare and SelfServiceContainer are used by the Nutanix self-service and files services and should be left alone.

Step 5 - Image Repositories

AHV allows you to import and configure operating system ISO and disk image files through Prism Element. Skip this section if you’re using Prism Central, as we will examine the PC specifics in the following article. The image service feature allows you to build a store of imported files that can be used to create a virtual CD-ROM from an ISO image or an operating system disk from a disk image when creating a VM.

1. From the main navigation menu, select Settings, followed by Image Configuration.
2. Click + Upload Image, complete the necessary fields, and click Save
3. The upload operation will start. Progress can be monitored in the Tasks dashboard. Once the upload is completed, it will be converted and stored in the cluster. After a few minutes, the status will update to ACTIVE.

Step 6 - Changing default passwords

A newly installed Nutanix CE cluster has default accounts that must be secured. For a single-node installation, the accounts that need to be changed are the local Nutanix account of the CVM, as well as the local root, admin, and user accounts for the AHV hypervisor. Specific details can be found here.

1. The Nutanix Controller VM (CVM) “Nutanix” account.
   1. SSH into the CVM with “ssh nutanix@ip_address_of_cvm.
   2. Run “sudo passwd nutanix” and provide a new password.
2. The root, admin, and Nutanix accounts for the AHV Hypervisor can be changed via a script for each account. Please check the knowledge base article mentioned above.

Summary

Once again, congratulations. Your Nutanix CE Cluster is now more secure and easier to manage. We will install and configure Prism Central in Part 3 for multi-cluster management. Until then, have fun with Nutanix.

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