Installing Skylar One in Azure

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This section describes how to deploy a Skylar One (formerly SL1) virtual machine in Azure from a virtual hard disk (VHD) image file. ScienceLogic supports the following subscription types for deploying Skylar One in Azure:

  • Azure Global

  • Azure Government

For Azure resources and support, see the Microsoft Azure Marketplace: https://azuremarketplace.microsoft.com/.

If you are configuring a Database Server, ScienceLogic recommends allocating four times the memory for the Database Server as compared to the memory for the Data Collectors.

High-availability for Azure deployments is supported for installations of 12.1.x and later that are running on Oracle Linux 8 (OL8). ScienceLogic recommends that customers running Skylar One versions prior to 12.1.x upgrade to 12.1.x or later, convert to OL8, and then complete the high-availability setup and configuration. For more information about upgrading, see the section on Updating Skylar One.

A single Azure image file can be used to create multiple virtual machines. For example, you can use the same Azure VHD file for the Database Server to create multiple Database Servers.

Use the following menu options to navigate the Skylar One user interface:

  • To view a pop-out list of menu options, click the menu icon ().
  • To view a page containing all of the menu options, click the Advanced menu icon ().

Prerequisites for Installing Skylar One in Azure

You must have the following tools installed and configured if you are deploying a Skylar One appliance in Azure using the Azure command line interface rather than the Azure Portal:

Regardless of whether you are using the command line interface or the Azure Portal to deploy a Skylar One appliance, you must also have the following components before attempting to deploy Skylar One:

In addition, before attempting to deploy Skylar One in Azure, you should confirm that the following prerequisites are all true: 

  • Your Azure policies allow you to create a new virtual machine from the ScienceLogic virtual hard disk (VHD).

  • Your virtual machine naming convention does not conflict with any existing policies in Azure.

  • You are using virtual networks and subnets that allow access and the creation of new virtual machines.

  • Your resource group allows you to create new virtual networks.

Installing and Configuring the Azure CLI Tool

Azure CLI is a tool that lets you manage resources in Azure using the command line interface. To complete the Skylar One installation on Azure using the procedures in the section Creating an Azure Virtual Machine Using the Command Line, you must have the Azure CLI tool installed.

If you are creating your virtual machine using the Azure Portal, you can skip this section.

To install and configure the Azure CLI tool:

  1. Download and install the Azure CLI tool from the Microsoft website:

    https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/cli/azure/install-azure-cli-windows?view=azure-cli-latest

  2. After installation completes, search for and click on "PowerShell" in Windows to start the program.
  3. In PowerShell, type az login. You will be prompted to sign into your Microsoft Azure account. After you log in, you will see information about your Azure subscription within the PowerShell window.

Configuring an Azure Resource Group and Storage Account

To create and configure an Azure storage account:

  1. Log in to the Azure Portal and follow Microsoft's instructions for Creating resource groups to create a new Azure resource group.
  2. After creating the resource group, follow Microsoft's instructions for Creating an Azure storage account to create a new storage account for your resource group. While configuring the storage account, make sure to associate it with the resource group you created in step 1.
  3. After creating the storage account, follow Microsoft's instructions for Creating a blob container to add a new container to the storage account you created in step 2.

Creating the Container URI

Before you can upload the VHD image file, you must:

  • Determine the URL value of the Azure storage account
  • Define the container uniform resource identifier (URI)

To create the container URI, you must determine the container URL and then append the name of the VHD file. You will use the container URI value when you upload the VHD file. This container URI tells Azure where to put the VHD file and what to call it.

To determine the container URL:

  1. Log in to the Azure portal.

  2. Select Storage Accounts.

  3. Under Data Storage, click Containers.

  4. Select the checkbox of the container you want to view.

  5. Click the ellipses (...) button to the right of the container name to open the pop-up menu, and then select Container Properties.

  6. In the Properties pane, locate the container's URL.

  7. Click the blue Copy icon on the Properties pane to copy the URL for the container.

  8. To create the container URI value, append the destination to the container URL. For example, if the container URL is:

    https://azuretest.blob.core.windows.net

    Your container URI value might be:

    https://azuretest.blob.core.windows.net/vhds/em7inazure.vhd

    Where "/vhds" is the directory on the container, and "em7inazure.vhd" is the name of the VHD image file you will be uploading.

Deploying a Skylar One System in Azure

This section describes the steps for deploying a Skylar One system in Azure.

Azure Instance Specifications

For details about Azure and the requirements and specifications for each Skylar One appliance, see the ScienceLogic Support Site: https://support.sciencelogic.com/s/system-requirements?tabset-3429b=f4ac1.

Downloading the ScienceLogic VHD File

To download the ScienceLogic VHD file:

  1. Open a browser session and go to https://support.sciencelogic.com.
  2. Go to the Skylar One menu and select Downloads.
  3. Find the platform version that you want to download. Click on its name.
  4. Expand the Release Files list and find an entry with the Record Type Product Image.
  5. Click the File Name hyperlink for the product image file you want to download. The Release File Details page appears.
  6. In the Release File Downloads pane to the right, download the .vhd files for each Skylar One appliance type.

Converting a VHD File from Dynamic to Fixed

After downloading the ScienceLogic VHD file to a Windows server, you must convert it from "Dynamic" to "Fixed".

To do this:

  1. Open a PowerShell session as an administrator.
  2. At the PowerShell prompt, navigate to the directory to which you downloaded the .vhd file.

  3. For each .vhd file, run the following command:

    Convert-VHD –Path <vhd_file_path> –DestinationPath <destination_file_path> –VHDType Fixed

    where:

    • <vhd_file_path> specifies the full path of the downloaded .vhd file, including the file name.
    • <destination_file_path> specifies the full path to where you want to store the converted file, including the file name

  4. If you see the following error, proceed to step 5. Otherwise, proceed to the next section.

    convert-vhd: The term 'convert-vhd' is not recognized as the name of a cmdlet, function, script file, or operable program. Check the spelling of the name, or if a path was included, verify that the path is correct and try again.

  5. To install the Hyper-V Module for Windows PowerShell, run the following command:

    Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName Microsoft-Hyper-V-Management-PowerShell

  6. To install Hyper-V Services, run the following command:

    Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName Microsoft-Hyper-V -all

  7. Reboot the server when prompted.

Uploading the VHD File to an Azure Container

To upload the ScienceLogic VHD file to your blob container, perform the following steps:

  1. Open Microsoft Azure PowerShell and log in to your Azure account:

    Login-AzAccount

  1. You created a resource group and storage container blob to which you will upload your VHD image file in Configuring an Azure Resource Group and Storage Account. You identified the container URI in the sectionCreating the Container URI. Now you are ready to upload your VHD image file.

    2. The virtual machine that you create in Creating an Azure Virtual Machine must be in the same resource group as the storage account.

  1. Add your VHD file to the storage account with the following cmdlet:

    2. Add-AzVhd -Destination '<container_uri>' -LocalFilePath '<vhd_local_file_path>' -ResourceGroupName '<resource_group>'

    where:

    • <container_uri> specifies the container URI you created in the section Creating the Container URI where you will upload your VHD file. When entering the container URI, you must include the .vhd file name. For example: https://azuretest.blob.core.windows.net/vhds/em7inazure.vhd
    • <vhd_local_file_path> specifies the file path on your machine for the VHD file you want to upload.
    • <resource_group> specifies the resource group you created and that will be used when you create the Azure VM.
  1. Repeat step 3 for each VHD file.

Creating the Image

After creating the Resource Group, storage account, and blob container and downloading, converting, and uploading the ScienceLogic VHD image file, you must create the ScienceLogic VHD image file. To do so, you will need the following information:

The following steps require that you have an Azure resource group and storage account with the VHD file uploaded.

To create the image:

  1. Open Microsoft Azure PowerShell and log in to your Azure account:

    2. Login-AzureRmAccount

  1. Run the following command:

    2. az image create --name <image_name> -g <resource_group_name> --os-disk-caching ReadWrite --os-type Linux --source <container_URI>

    where:

    • <image_name> specifies what you want to call the image (such as "dbimage123").
    • <resource_group_name> specifies the resource group you created in Azure.
    • <container_URI> specifies the destination value you provided when you uploaded the VHD file. This is also the container URI you created in the section Creating the container URI. When entering the container URI, you must include the .vhd file name. For example: https://azuretest.blob.core.windows.net/vhds/em7inazure.vhd

    This command might return a large amount of JSON output. This is normal.

  2. Repeat these steps for each Skylar One appliance you want to build.

Skylar One Appliance Deployment Order for Distributed Systems

To deploy a distributed Skylar One system on Azure instances, create appliances in this order:

  1. Database Server
  2. Administration Portal (if applicable)
  3. Data Collectors
  4. Message Collectors (if applicable)

Creating an Azure Virtual Machine

After you have downloaded the .vhd file and created the image, you must create the virtual machine that you will use to deploy and run Skylar One. You can create the virtual machine using one of the following methods:

Both methods are described below.

Creating a Virtual Machine Using the Azure Portal

If you prefer to create your virtual machine using the command line interface, you can skip this section.

The following steps require that you have an Azure resource group and storage account with the VHD file uploaded.

To create an Azure virtual machine (VM) using the Azure portal:

  1. Log in to your Azure account, then go to the Azure Marketplace.

  2. In the search bar, type "ScienceLogic," then select the Skylar One appliance type that you want to deploy.

  3. From the image's Overview page, click Get It Now.

  4. In the modal that appears, review the software plan details and then click Continue to confirm the agreement. Your Azure portal opens with the image download already selected.

  5. Click Create to start the VM creation process.

  6. During the VM creation process, do the following:

    • Under Project Details, select the appropriate Resource group.

    • Under Instance Details, follow the System Requirements for sizing the VM based on the appliance type you are deploying.

    • Under Administrator Account:

      • Set the Authentication type to SSH public key.

      • Enter the Username as "em7admin".

      • For the SSH public key source, use an existing key or generate a new one.

    • Under Inbound Port Rules, select the necessary inbound ports.

  7. Complete the rest of the VM creation steps based on your specific needs. (For more information, see Microsoft's instructions for Creating a Linux VM.) When you are finished, click Review + create.

  8. Review the details for the VM you are about to create. When you are ready, click Create.

  9. When the Generate new key pair window appears, click Download private key and create resource. When you do so, your key is downloaded as the file myKey.pem. Make note of the file's download location.

  10. When the deployment has completed, click Go to resource.

  11. On the page for your new VM, make note of the VM's Public IP address.

  12. Repeat these steps for each Skylar One appliance you want to build.

Creating an Azure Virtual Machine Using the Command Line

If you prefer to create your virtual machine using the Azure portal, you can skip this section.

The following steps require that you have an Azure resource group and storage account with the VHD file uploaded.

To create an Azure virtual machine:

  1. Open Microsoft Azure PowerShell and log in to your Azure account:

    Login-AzureRmAccount

  1. Run the following command:

    2. The virtual machine that you create must be in the same resource group as the storage account.

    az vm create -g <resource_ group_ name> -n <vm_ name> --image <image_name> --public-ip-sku Standard --admin-username em7admin --authentication-type ssh --ssh-key-name <ssh_key_name> --os-disk-size-gb <disk_size> --storage-sku StandardSSD_LRS --vnet-name <virtual_ network_name> --subnet <subnet_name>

    where:

    • <resource_group_name> specifies the resource group you created in Azure.
    • <vm_name> specifies what you want to call your virtual machine.
    • <image_name> specifies the name you gave to the image when you created it in the section Creating the Image.
    • <ssh_key_name> specifies the SSH key that you want to use within Azure. You will need this to SSH into the virtual machine. For more information, see https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/virtual-machines/ssh-keys-portal.
    • <disk_size> specifies the virtual machine disk size you want to use.
    • <virtual_network_name> specifies the virtual network name you want to use within Azure.
    • <subnet_name> specifies the subnet name you want to use within Azure.

If the public IP address is not available, ignore --public-ip-sku Standard in the command above.

  1. Repeat these steps for each Skylar One appliance you want to build.

Setting the Public IP Address to Static

To ensure the IP address for the virtual machine remains the same after reboot, which ensures that your Skylar One appliances work properly, you must configure the public IP address to be static. To do so:

  1. In the Azure Portal, enter "network interfaces" in the search box at the top of the portal. Select Network interfaces in the search results.

  2. From the list of network interfaces, select the network interface you want to modify.

  3. Click Settings > IP configurations, and then select the IP configuration that you want to modify.

  4. In the Edit IP configuration window, click Disassociate in the Public IP Address field, and then select Associate public IP address.

  5. In the Public IP address field, click Create a public IP address.

  6. Under Add a public IP address, type a name for your IP address in the Name field and select Static in the Assignment field.

  7. Click OK and then click Save.

  8. Repeat these steps for each Skylar One appliance you want to build.

Configuring the Virtual Machine

To configure each virtual machine, perform the following steps:

  1. Use SSH to access the virtual machine using its public IP address, username, and the SSH key defined in step 2 of the section Creating an Azure Virtual Machine.

    ssh -i <private key path> em7admin@<vm-ip-address>

  2. If you are performing a fresh installation, you will be prompted by the Message of the Day to set up the MariaDB password.

  3. If this is a new STIG installation, the Message of the Day will also contain instructions for setting a new password. Follow these instructions for setting a password on the em7admin account.

    If you are updating a STIG system, the Message of the Day will display a security warning stating that the em7admin account does not have a password, along with instructions for setting the password.

  4. Use the following command to edit the /etc/silo.conf file:

    sudo visilo --no-validation

  5. In the /etc/silo.conf file, update the following section or sections:

    • For the clientdbuser account:

      [LOCAL]

      dbpasswd = <NEW_PASSWORD>

      [CENTRAL]

      dbpasswd = <NEW_PASSWORD>

      The CENTRAL section does not appear for all appliance types. If it does, then the dbpasswd values should match in both sections.

    • For the ap_user account:

      [CENTRAL]

      ap_user = apuser

      ap_pass = <NEW_PASSWORD>

      The CENTRAL section does not appear for all appliance types.

  6. Save the file (:wq) and enter y to move the changes to the /etc/siteconfig/siloconf.siteconfig file automatically.

  7. If you are upgrading to this release of Skylar One, run the following command:

    sudo systemctl restart nextui php-fpm nginx

    If this is a new STIG installation, you can skip this step.

  8. Repeat these steps on the other Skylar One appliances in your stack as needed to update the passwords for those appliances as well.