Initialize ZSphere

After you log in to ZSphere for the first time, you can use the initialization wizard to create basic resources so that the environment is ready for adding hosts, configuring storage, and creating virtual machines.

You can initialize the environment through the following methods:

Initialize manually
Restore from backup data

Notes during the initialization:

If you exit the Wizard midway, you will not be able to enter the Wizard again.
If no resources are created during the initialization, you can initialize the environment again from the Dashboard page.
If you accidentally exit the Wizard, you can delete the data center and re-enter the initialization wizard from the Dashboard page.
Note: Deleting a data center will delete clusters, hosts, networks, and data storage resources, along with all subordinate resources of each resource. Proceed with caution.

Initialize Manually

You can follow the wizard to initiate a new environment by creating necessary resources, including data center, cluster, host, data storage, image storage, image and distributed port group.

In the Welcome to Initialization Wizard dialog, choose Initialize Manually.
Click Next.
On the Initialize Manually page, create a data center.
1. Enter a name and description for the data center.
2. Click OK.
Create a cluster.
1. Enter a name for the cluster.
2. Select a CPU architecture for the cluster. Options include x86_64 and aarch64.
3. Click OK.
Add a host.
1. Enter a name for the host.
2. Enter the host IP address, SSH port, SSH username, and SSH password.
  
  Note: The host architecture must match the cluster's CPU architecture, otherwise host addition to the cluster will fail.
3. Click OK.
  The addition process may take several minutes to complete.
Add a data storage.
1. Enter a name for the data storage.
2. Select a data storage type. Options include local storage, ZCE distributed storage, and ZHPS distributed storage.
  - Local storage: Set mount path and host disk configurations.
    Note:
    
    Avoid system directories such as /, /dev/, /proc/, /sys/, /usr/bin, and /bin for mount path. Using system directories might cause the hosts unable to work properly.
    
    Host disk configuration will format the selected disks and completely erase all partitions, file systems, and data on the disk.
  - ZCE distributed storage: Set whether to enable key authentication, add monitoring node, and specify image cache pool, storage pool, and storage network.
    Note: Make sure the key authentication configuration is consistent with the platform configuration. Otherwise, virtual machine creation may fail.
  - ZHPS distributed storage: Enter IP address, port, username, and password. Add a storage pool.
  - ZBS distributed storage: Add MDS nodes and Enter the pool name of the storage pool.
3. Click OK.
Add an image storage.
1. Enter a name for the image storage.
2. Select the image storage type. Options include standalone image storage and distributed image storage.
  - Standalone image storage: Enter the image storage IP address, SSH port, username, and password. Complete the disk configurations, including addition method, mount path, whether to retrieve existing image, image sync network, and data network.
    Note:
    
    If you select free disk for addition method, this configuration will format the selected disks and completely erase all partitions, file systems, and data on the disk.
    
    Avoid system directories such as /, /dev/, /proc/, /sys/, /usr/bin, and /bin for mount path. Using system directories might cause the image storage unable to work properly.
  - Distributed image storage: Configure the monitoring node, including monitoring node IP address, SSH port, username, and password. Specify an image storage pool UUID as needed. If not specified, the platform creates one automatically.
3. Click OK.
Add an image.
1. Select the image path. Options include URL and local file.
2. Enter a name for the image.
3. Select the image type. Options include system image and disk image.
4. Select the image format. Options include qcow2, iso, vmdk, and raw.
5. Click OK.
Create a distributed port group.
1. Enter a name for the distributed port group.
2. Select the distributed switch for the distributed port group. Options include default switch and new switch.
  - Default switch: Automatically created based on host configuration when adding the first host to a cluster. Primarily used for host management network. You can reuse this switch for both management network and business networks.
  - New switch: To realize network separation between management network and business network, you can create a distributed switch as needed. This option is recommended for production environment. If you select this option, you need to configure aggregated interface configuration, uplink name, bond mode, hash policy, and host NC.
3. Select the VLAN type. Options include none and standard VLAN.
  You need to specify a VLAN ID when selecting standard VLAN.
4. Choose whether to enable the DHCP service.
  When enabled, you need to configure the network range method (IP range or CIDR), gateway, IP allocation policy, and DHCP IP.
5. Enter a DNS.
6. Click OK.
The Manual Initialization Complete dialog appears. Click OK.
You have completed the necessary resource creations for environment initialization. You may now start using the platform.

Restore from Backup Data

In the event of a disaster in the local data center, you can rely on the platform's database backup data to rebuild the data center and restore business. You can quickly restore the whole environment from an existing platform database backup using the initialization wizard.

You have at least one valid platform backup.

In the Welcome to Initialization Wizard dialog, choose Restore from Backup Data.
Click Next.

In the Restore from Backup Data dialog, set the following parameters to complete server configurations:

Parameter	Description
Backup Storage IP	Enter the IP address of the backup storage that stores the platform backup data.
URL	URL of the backup storage.
SSH Port	SSH port of the backup storage. Default is 22.
Username	Username of the backup storage.
Password	Password of the backup storage.

Click Test Connection to validate network connectivity to the backup storage.

After successful connection, set the following parameters to complete backup data configurations:

Parameter	Description
Database Backup	Select platform backup data. Note: To avoid management node start failure due to insufficient licensed quota, select the appropriate data to restore. You can click Update License to renew your licensed quota.

Review the configuration and click OK.
In the Restore Platform Database dialog, enter the database root password and click OK.

Note: Restoring the platform database requires a management node restart, during which the management interface will be unavailable. This process takes a few minutes and does not affect your resources.
After the platform database is successfully restored, click Log in Again.

After platform database recovery, all resources on the platform will be recovered to the state at which the backup is created. Click Scan Backup Data in the local backup storage to obtain real-time backup data.

PreviousLog in to ZSphere NextOverview