Performing installation of IBM Storage Enabler for Containers

You can install the IBM® Storage Enabler for Containers software on a compatible version of Kubernetes. For more information, refer to the release notes of the IBM Spectrum Connect.

Before you begin

Verify that you have completed the preliminary configuration steps, as detailed in Compatibility and requirements for IBM Storage Enabler for Containers.

Important:

IBM Storage Dynamic Provisioner for Kubernetes uses the Kubernetes configuration file to access the Kubernetes API server and monitor the Persistent Volume Claims (PVCs). Usually, Kubernetes configuration file is located either in the ~/.kube/config or /etc/kubernetes directory. Make sure that this configuration file has access to all the namespaces intended persistent volume provisioning. If a PVC comes from namespace that cannot be accessed, it will not be served.
During installation of the IBM Storage Enabler for Containers, the IBM Storage Kubernetes FlexVolume driver is automatically installed on all master and worker nodes in a Kubernetes cluster, using the ubiquity-k8s-flex DaemonSet.
A single IBM Storage Enabler for Containers instance can be installed per one Kubernetes cluster.

Procedure

Follow these steps to install IBM Storage Enabler for Containers:

Download the installer. See Downloading IBM Storage Enabler for Containers software).
Copy the installer to a local folder on a host that can access the Kubernetes cluster, using the kubectl command. Usually, a master node has access to the cluster.

Extract the installer file ('* ' represents the build number):

# tar -xzvf installer-for-ibm-storage-enabler-for-containers-x.y.z-*.tar.gz

Update the ubiquity_installer.conf configuration file, according to your environment requirements. Replace the VALUE placeholders in the files with your values.

Important: Any change to be made after running the installation script must be performed manually in the corresponding yml files themselves.

Table 1. Configuration parameters in ubiquity_installer.conf
Parameter	Description
UBIQUITY_IMAGE	Docker image of the IBM Storage Enabler for Containers to be deployed as Kubernetes deployment/ubiquity. Set by default to ibmcom/ibm-storage-enabler-for-containers:x.y.z. The image is available in the Docker Hub.
UBIQUITY_DB_IMAGE	Docker image of the IBM Storage Enabler for Containers database to be deployed as Kubernetes deployment/ubiquity-db. Set by default to ibmcom/ibm-storage-enabler-for-containers-db:x.y.z. The image is available in the Docker Hub.
UBIQUITY_K8S_ PROVISIONER_IMAGE	Docker image of the IBM Storage Dynamic Provisioner to be deployed as Kubernetes deployment//ubiquity-k8s-provisioner. Set by default to ibmcom/ibm-storage-dynamic-provisioner-for-kubernetes:x.y.z. The image is available in the Docker Hub.
UBIQUITY_K8S_FLEX_ IMAGE	Docker image of the IBM Storage FlexVolume to be deployed as Kubernetes daemonset/ubiquity-k8s-flex. Set by default to ibmcom/ibm-storage-flex-volume-for-kubernetes:x.y.z. The image is available in the Docker Hub.
SCBE_MANAGEMENT_IP_VALUE	IP address or FQDN of the Spectrum Connect server.
SCBE_MANAGEMENT_PORT_ VALUE	Communication port of the Spectrum Connect server. Default value is `8440`.
SCBE_DEFAULT_SERVICE_ VALUE	Default Spectrum Connect storage service to be used, if not specified by the storage class.
UBIQUITY_INSTANCE_NAME_ VALUE	A prefix for any new volume created on the storage system. For example, u_<instance_name>_<PVC_ID>.
DEFAULT_FSTYPE_VALUE	File system type of a new volume, if not specified by the user in the storage class. Allowed values: `ext4` or `xfs`. Default value is `ext4`.
DEFAULT_VOLUME_SIZE_ VALUE	Default volume size (in GB), if not specified by the user when creating a new volume. Default value is `1`.
SKIP_RESCAN_ISCSI_VALUE	Rescanning mode. Allowed values: `true` or `false`. Set it to `true` if the nodes have FC connectivity. Setting to `false` in iSCSI environment, triggers a rescan. Default value is `false`.
LOG_LEVEL_VALUE	Log level. Allowed values: `debug`, `info`, `error`. Default value is `info`.
SSL_MODE_VALUE	SSL verification mode. Allowed values: `require` (No validation is required, the IBM Storage Enabler for Containers server generates self-signed certificates on the fly.) or `verify-full` (Certificates are provided by the user.). The `verify-full` mode requires additional configuration steps, as detailed in the Managing SSL certificates with IBM Storage Enabler for Containers section.
SCBE_USERNAME_VALUE	Username defined for the IBM Storage Enabler for Containers interface in Spectrum Connect. Note: The IBM Storage Enabler for Containers interface appears as Enabler for Containers in Spectrum Connect GUI.
SCBE_PASSWORD_VALUE	Password defined for the IBM Storage Enabler for Containers interface in Spectrum Connect. Note: The IBM Storage Enabler for Containers interface appears as Enabler for Containers in Spectrum Connect GUI.
UBIQUITY_DB_PV_NAME_ VALUE	Name of the persistent volume to be used for the ubiquity-db database. For the Spectrum Virtualize and Spectrum Accelerate storage systems, use the default value (`ibm-ubiquity-db`). For the DS8000 storage system, use a shorter value, such as (`ibmdb`). This is necessary because the DS8000 volume name length cannot exceed 16 characters. As a result, the UBIQUITY_INSTANCE_NAME and UBIQUITY_DB_PV_NAME combination (u_<instance_name>_<PV_name>) cannot exceed 16 characters.
UBIQUITY_DB_USERNAME_ VALUE	Username and password for the deployment of ubiquity-db database. Do not use the postgres username, because it already exists.
UBIQUITY_DB_PASSWORD_ VALUE	Username and password for the deployment of ubiquity-db database.
STORAGE_CLASS_NAME_ VALUE	Storage class name. Note: The storage class parameters are used for creating an initial storage class for the ubiquity-db PVC. You can use this storage class for other applications as well. It is recommended to set the storage class name to be the same as the Spectrum Connect storage service name.
STORAGE_CLASS_PROFILE_ VALUE	Storage class profile, directing to the Spectrum Connect storage service name.
STORAGE_CLASS_FSTYPE_ VALUE	File system type for the storage class profile. Allowed values: `ext4` or `xfs`. Default value is `ext4`.

Apply the ubiquity_installer.conf settings to the relevant yml files of the installer. Run the
$> ./ubiquity_installer.sh -s update-ymls -c ubiquity_installer.conf command to do this. The code example below illustrates a successful configuration of the yml files.

[root@k8s-18-master-ibm installer-for-ibm-storage-enabler-for-containers-x.y.z-*]# 
  ./ubiquity_installer.sh -s update-ymls -c /var/tmp/ubiquity_installer.conf
Executing STEP [update-ymls]...
Updating yml files with placeholders from /var/tmp/ubiquity_installer.conf file. Are you sure (y/n): y
Update placeholder [UBIQUITY_IMAGE                ] in files : ./yamls/ubiquity-deployment.yml
Update placeholder [UBIQUITY_DB_IMAGE             ] in files : ./yamls/ubiquity-db-deployment.yml
Update placeholder [UBIQUITY_K8S_PROVISIONER_IMAGE] in files : ./yamls/ubiquity-k8s-provisioner-deployment.yml
...
...
...
Update placeholder [STORAGE_CLASS_NAME_VALUE      ] in files : ./yamls/storage-class.yml 
  ./yamls/ubiquity-db-pvc.yml ./yamls/sanity_yamls/sanity-pvc.yml
Update placeholder [STORAGE_CLASS_PROFILE_VALUE   ] in files : ./yamls/storage-class.yml
Update placeholder [STORAGE_CLASS_FSTYPE_VALUE    ] in files : ./yamls/storage-class.yml
Finished updating yml files according to /var/tmp/ubiquity_installer.conf

Start the first installation stage, which is performed without installing the database (ubiquity-db). Run the $> ./ubiquity_installer.sh -s install -k <path_to_Kubernetes_configuration_file> command to do this. Make sure that the name of the target configuration file is config. The first stage is complete, illustrated by the following message
"IBM Storage Enabler for Containers" installation finished, but the deployment is not ready yet".
For Kubernetes version 1.6 or 1.7, you must reload the FlexVolume. To do this, manually restart the kubelet on all the Kubernetes worker and master nodes. Skip this step for Kubernetes version 1.8, in which the driver is discovered automatically.
Start the second stage to install the IBM Storage Enabler for Containers database. Run the $> ./ubiquity_installer.sh -s create-ubiquity-db command. The installation is complete, illustrated by the following message
"IBM Storage Enabler for Containers" installation finished successfully in the Kubernetes cluster".

What to do next

Verify the post-installation status of the IBM Storage Enabler for Containers service. Run the following command: $>./ubiquity_cli.sh -a status. Check that the database status is Bound, and all other elements are available and running, as illustrated in the following example.
Figure 1. IBM Storage Enabler for Containers post-installation status

Note: You can use the $>./ubiquity_cli.sh -a status_wide command to display the full system status. You can use it to verify that there is ubiqutiy-k8s-flex pod on each worker and master node.
Perform the sanity test to spin up and down the Kubernetes PVC and pod. Run this command: $>./ubiquity_cli.sh -a sanity. The following message must be displayed: Sanity finished successfully (pvc1 and pod1 were successfully created and deleted).
In addition to the default storage class, define more Kubernetes storage classes, if needed. This default storage class, named as a value of the STORAGE_CLASS_NAME_VALUE parameter in the ubiquity_installer.conf file, was created during the installation. Template for setting storage classes is included in the ./yamls/templates/storage-class-template.yml file. See Configuring storage classes, PVCs and pods for details.
Use the IBM Storage Enabler for Containers for creating persistent volume claims (PVCs) on IBM storage systems. Template for PVC configuration is included in the ./yamls/templates/pvc-template.yml file. See Configuring storage classes, PVCs and pods for details.