Adding hosts and installing Plug-in for Exchange

You can use the SnapCenter Add Host page to add Windows hosts. The Plug-in for Exchange is automatically installed on the specified host. This is the recommended method for installing plug-ins. You can add a host and install a plug-in either for an individual host or a cluster.

Before you begin

You must be a user that is assigned to a role that has the plug-in install and uninstall permissions, such as the SnapCenter Admin.
When installing a plug-in on a Windows host, if you specify a credential that is not built-in, or if the user belongs to a local workgroup user, you must disable UAC on the host.
The message queueing service must be running.

About this task

You can add a host and install plug-in packages either for an individual host or a cluster. If you are installing plug-ins on a cluster (Exchange DAG), they are installed on all of the nodes of the cluster even if some of nodes do not have databases on NetApp LUNs.

Plug-in for Exchange depends on SnapCenter Plug-ins Package for Windows, and the versions must be the same. During the Plug-in for Exchange installation, SnapCenter Plug-ins Package for Windows is selected by default and is installed along with the VSS Hardware Provider.

If SnapManager for Microsoft Exchange Server and SnapDrive for Windows are already installed, and you want to install Plug-in for Exchange on the same Exchange Server, you must unregister the VSS Hardware Provider used by SnapDrive for Windows because it is incompatible with the VSS Hardware Provider installed with Plug-in for Exchange and SnapCenter Plug-ins Package for Windows.

The administration documentation contains information about managing hosts.

Performing administrative tasks

Steps

In the left navigation pane, click Hosts.
Verify that Managed Hosts is selected at the top.
Click Add.

On the Hosts page, do the following:

For this field…	Do this…
Host Type	Select Windows as the host type. SnapCenter Server adds the host and then installs on the host the Plug-in for Windows and the Plug-in for Exchange if they are not already installed. Plug-in for Windows and Plug-in for Exchange must be the same version. If a different version of Plug-in for Windows was previously installed, SnapCenter updates the version as part of the installation.
Host name	Enter the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) or the IP address of the host. SnapCenter depends on the proper configuration of the DNS. Therefore, the best practice is to enter the fully qualified domain name (FQDN). An IP address is supported for untrusted domain hosts only if it resolves to the FQDN. You can enter IP addresses or the FQDN of one of the following: Stand-alone host Exchange DAG If you are adding a host using SnapCenter and it is part of a subdomain, you must provide the FQDN.
Credentials	Select the credential name that you created, or create the new credentials. The credential must have administrative rights on the remote host. For details, see information about creating a credential. You can view details about the credentials by positioning your cursor over the credential name that you specified. Note: Credentials authentication mode is determined by the host type that you specify in the Add Host wizard.

For this field…

Do this…

Host Type

Select Windows as the host type.

SnapCenter Server adds the host and then installs on the host the Plug-in for Windows and the Plug-in for Exchange if they are not already installed.

Plug-in for Windows and Plug-in for Exchange must be the same version. If a different version of Plug-in for Windows was previously installed, SnapCenter updates the version as part of the installation.

Host name

Enter the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) or the IP address of the host.

SnapCenter depends on the proper configuration of the DNS. Therefore, the best practice is to enter the fully qualified domain name (FQDN).

An IP address is supported for untrusted domain hosts only if it resolves to the FQDN.

You can enter IP addresses or the FQDN of one of the following:

Stand-alone host
Exchange DAG

If you are adding a host using SnapCenter and it is part of a subdomain, you must provide the FQDN.

Credentials

Select the credential name that you created, or create the new credentials.

The credential must have administrative rights on the remote host. For details, see information about creating a credential.

You can view details about the credentials by positioning your cursor over the credential name that you specified.

Note: Credentials authentication mode is determined by the host type that you specify in the Add Host wizard.

In the Select Plug-ins to Install section, select the plug-ins to install.
When you select Plug-in for Exchange, SnapCenter Plug-in for Microsoft SQL Server is deselected automatically. Microsoft recommends that SQL Server and Exchange server not be installed on the same system due to the amount of memory used and other resource usage required by Exchange.

(Optional) Click More Options.

For this field…	Do this…
Port	Either retain the default port number or specify the port number. The default port number is 8145. If the SnapCenter Server was installed on a custom port, that port number will be displayed as the default port. Note: If you manually installed the plug-ins and specified a custom port, you must specify the same port. Otherwise, the operation fails.
Installation Path	The default path is C:\Program Files\NetApp\SnapCenter. You can optionally customize the path.
Add all hosts in the DAG	Select this check box when you add a DAG..
Skip preinstall checks	Select this check box if you already installed the plug-ins manually and you do not want to validate whether the host meets the requirements for installing the plug-in.

Click Submit.
If you have not selected the Skip prechecks check box, the host is validated to determine whether it meets the requirements to install the plug-in. If the minimum requirements are not met, the appropriate error or warning messages are displayed.
If the error is related to disk space or RAM, you can update the web.config file located at C:\Program Files\NetApp\SnapCenter WebApp to modify the default values. If the error is related to other parameters, you must fix the issue.
Note: In an NLB setup, if you are updating web.config file, you must update the file on both nodes.
Monitor the installation progress.

Result

The configuration checker operation is triggered automatically and provides alerts for recommendations, corrective actions, and notifications to resolve the issues.