Deploying Virtuozzo Storage Cluster

Firstly, you need to set up at least one Virtuozzo storage cluster in your network. You can do this either during the installation of Virtuozzo software on your virtualization nodes or after it.

A Virtuozzo storage high availability cluster includes three types of Virtuozzo nodes:

• Client servers: nodes that are used to run virtual machines and containers stored in Virtuozzo storage cluster.
• Chunk servers: nodes that are used to store all the data, including the contents of virtual machines and containers, in the form of fixed-size chunks and provide access to these chunks. All data chunks are replicated, and the replicas are kept on different chunk servers to achieve high availability.
• Metadata servers (MDS): nodes that are used to store metadata about chunk servers and to control how files, keeping the contents of virtual machines and containers, are split into chunks, and where these chunks are located.

Let’s consider an example how to deploy Virtuozzo storage cluster, consisting of three hardware nodes. Each of the nodes shares three server roles. For more detailed information about configuring Virtuozzo storage cluster, refer to Virtuozzo Installation Guideand Virtuozzo Storage Administrator’s Guide.

Cluster’s Name	Hardware Nodes	Server Roles
cluster1	first node (HW1_IP)	Master metadata server, chunk server, client (all roles shared)
	second node (HW2_IP)	Regular metadata server, chunk server, client (all roles shared)
	third node (HW3_IP)	Regular metadata server, chunk server, client (all roles shared)

Setting up Virtuozzo storage cluster includes four steps:

1. Setting up metadata servers for storing metadata about chunk servers and data chunks. The first MDS server in the cluster is called master MDS server. The second and third metadata servers are regular metadata servers.

   Master metadata server (master MDS server) – the central MDS server, responsible for monitoring all cluster activity and keeping all metadata current, along with acting as a regular MDS server. Any MDS server can become the master one if the current master MDS server fails.

   Regular metadata server (regular MDS server or MDS server) – a computer, storing metadata about Virtuozzo storage chunks, their replicas and locations. Regular MDS servers periodically communicate with the master MDS server to get metadata updates.

2. Setting up chunk servers for storing the actual content of virtual machines and containers in data chunks.
3. Setting up clients from where you will access Virtuozzo storage cluster and run virtual machines and containers.
4. Configuring replication parameters.
5. Checking Virtuozzo storage cluster configuration.

You should set up an MDS server, chunk server, client server, and replication parameters on each of the three hardware nodes.