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ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere 10.3

Deploy ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere

Contributors netapp-jani

The ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere appliance is deployed as small-sized single node with core services to support NFS and VMFS datastores.

Before you begin

A content library in VMware is a container object which stores VM templates, vApp templates, and other types of files. Deployment with content library provides you with a seamless experience as it is not dependent on the network connectivity.

Note You should store the content library on a shared datastore so that all hosts within a cluster can access it. Create a content library to store the OVA before configuring the appliance to HA configuration. Do not delete the content library template after deployment.
Note To enable HA deployment later, do not deploy the virtual machine hosting the ONTAP tools directly on an ESXi host. Deploy it on a cluster or resource pool instead.

If you don't have a content library, follow these steps to create one:

Create content library In you plan to use only a small single node deployment, creating a content library is not necessary.

  1. Download the .zip file that contains binaries (.ova) and signed certificates for ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere from the NetApp Support Site.

  2. Log in to the vSphere client using https://<vcenterip>/<ui>

  3. Select the vSphere client menu and select Content libraries.

  4. Select Create on the right of the page.

  5. Provide a name for the library and create the content library.

  6. Navigate to the content library you created.

  7. Select Actions in the right of the page and select Import item and import the OVA file.

Note For more information, refer to Creating and Using Content Library blog.
Note Before proceeding with the deployment, set the cluster's Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS) on the inventory to 'Conservative'. This ensures that VMs are not migrated during the installation.

ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere is initially deployed as a non-HA setup. To scale to HA deployment, you will need to enable the CPU hot plug and memory hot plugin. You can perform this step as part of the deployment process or edit the VM settings after deployment.

Steps

  1. Download the .zip file that contains binaries (.ova) and signed certificates for ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere from the NetApp Support Site. If you have imported the OVA into the content library, you can skip this step and proceed with the next step.

  2. Log in to the vSphere server.

  3. Navigate to the resource pool, cluster, or host where you intend to deploy the OVA.

    Note Never store ONTAP tools for VMware vSphere virtual machine on vVols datastores that it manages.

  4. You can deploy the OVA from the content library or from the local system.

    From the local system

    From the content library

    a. Right-click and select Deploy OVF template…​.

    b. Choose the OVA file from the URL or browse to its location, then select Next.

    a. Go to your content library and select the library item that you want to deploy.

    b. Select Actions > New VM from this template

  5. In the Select a name and folder field, enter the virtual machine name and choose its location. To enable the ability to use the HA feature, select the option Customize this virtual machine's hardware, which will activate an additional step called Customize hardware before proceeding to the Ready to complete window.

  6. Select a computer resource and select Next. Optionally, check the box to Automatically power on deployed VM.

  7. Review the details of the template and select Next.

  8. Read and accept the license agreement and select Next.

  9. Select the storage for the configuration and the disk format and select Next.

  10. Select the destination network for each source network and select Next.

  11. In the Customize template window, fill in the required fields and select Next.

    • The information is validated during installation. If there is a discrepancy, an error message appears on the web console, and you are prompted to correct it.

    • Host names must include letters (A-Z, a-z), digits (0-9), and hyphens (-). To configure dual stack, specify the host name mapped to the IPv6 address.

      Note Pure IPv6 is not supported. Mixed mode is supported with VLAN containing both IPv6 and IPv4 addresses.

  12. In the Customize hardware window, enable the CPU hot add and Memory hot plug options to allow HA functionality.

  13. Review the details in the Ready to complete window, select Finish.

    As the deployment task gets created, the progress is shown in the vSphere task bar.

  14. Power on the VM after the completion of the task.

You can track the progress of the installation within the VM's web console.

If there are discrepancies in the OVF form, a dialog box will prompt corrective action. Use the tab button to navigate, make the necessary changes, and select "OK.You have three attempts to resolve any issues. If problems continue after three attempts, the installation process will stop, and it is advised to retry the installation on a new virtual machine.