Service management - Update guests list

Description

Add, remove and enable/disable auto start virtual machines (guests) at server boot.

Add guest

Available emulated hardware is displayed based on installed packages. A list of available hardware emulators can be displayed based on the attached license by entering "v".

Select the emulator to add based on the "Available emulated hardware" list then enter the name of the configuration file previously created/edited (out of the menu) or clone (c) an existing one based on the list that can be displayed by entering "l".

Once cloned, the configuration file must be edited to change settings like disks, network interface(s), etc..

Some checks are performed to verify the same network interface and same console ports are not already used, vdisk files if used exist or not, etc... This does not guarantee the configuration file is correct. Please refer to the corresponding CHARON product and version for configuration file details.

Once added, the guest can be started directly.

Example: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.1 server with CHARON-AXP V4.7 installed

We are now going to update the guests list and add a virtual machine:

An AlphaServer 4100 (1) will be added by cloning the as4100 configuration file template (2 & 3) to the /charon/pluto.cfg (4 & 5):

Use the 'l' option to list available configuration files and templates

Once the clone is completed, we can leave the clone utility (1 & 2 below) then use (3) and customize the newly created file (4 & 5):

If you don't edit the file now, you won't be prompted to start the guest (virtual machine)

Using the selected editor, the configuration file can be customized:

Notes on the above example:

1 & 2 : The log rotation mechanism will be used in this example. Ensure the corresponding folder, here /charon/logs, exists before starting the virtual machine
3 : The console is defined as a virtual serial line on port 10003 (default). Ensure the port number is unique if multiple virtual machines will run on the same server

4 : The iso file will be used to install Tru64 V5.1B r2650. The virtual disk that will be used as the system disk, pluto_tru64, has to be created using the "mkdskcmd" command. Ensure the virtual disk exists before starting the virtual machine.
Example:

[root@rhel71 Desktop]# mkdir -p /data/disks

[root@rhel71 Desktop]# mkdskcmd -o /data/disks/pluto_tru64.vdisk -d rz29

Please wait...

100% done

Success.

[root@rhel71 Desktop]# ls -l /data/disks/pluto_tru64.vdisk

-rw-r--r--. 1 root root 4290600960 Nov 26 15:49 /data/disks/pluto_tru64.vdisk

When leaving the editor, the guest log file name is extracted and the monitoring service is automatically enabled (installed).

We can see below the virtual disk is missing:

This does not prevent CHARON from starting but it is highly recommended to solve this, from a separate session as explained above with the mkdskcmd command, to re-edit the configuration file and then to leave the editor again.

We can now start the guest (1) and optionally have a continuous view of the log file (2):

...

The error message above (black/red) is expected the first time the virtual machine is started. It tells the .bin file does not exist as it is initialized when console parameters are set

Press CTRL-C at any time to leave the log file view. The service status will then be displayed for information (this view depends on Linux distribution and version):

Enter 'q' multiple times until you reach the "Service management" menu: we can see below the service is active, meaning the emulator is running ( this does not mean "booted") and will be automatically started at Linux server boot.

The "Stop script" column shows the script has not been initialized meaning the guest will receive a SIGKILL signal upon stop request. This will be explained further (see Service management - Create/Edit guest stop script)

Remove guest

Before removing a guest, please ensure it has been properly stopped (a check will automatically be performed before removal). The way the guest is stopped depends on the "Stop script" existence and settings (see Service management - Create/Edit guest stop script)

If the guest log is monitored, you will be proposed to stop and remove the monitoring service

Example: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.1 server with CHARON-AXP V4.7 installed, virtual machine as4100/pluto installed

We are now going to remove (1 & 2) the as4100/pluto guest, currently in active state:

No stop script has been defined so this guest will be stopped (1 below) without proper shutdown (emulator process will receive a SIGKILL). The service status will then be considered as failed:

As the guest has been deleted, the log monitoring service can also be removed (1 below):

Another guest can be added if needed (2).

Multiple CHARON guests can be added on the Linux server. This is however limited by the license (available products and instances allowed) and the Linux server hardware configuration.

Enable/Disable start at server boot

Use this option if you want (default) or do not want a guest to be started at Linux server boot

By default newly added guests are started automatically at Linux server boot ( this does not mean "booted")

Example: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.1 server with CHARON-AXP V4.7 installed, virtual machine as4100/pluto installed

We are now going to prevent from the as4100/pluto guest to be started automatically (1). Once completed enter 'n' to return to the previous menu (2):

Edit guests lists (for stop order)

Use this option to change the order of managed guests using the text editor of your choice

Use with caution, do not add nor delete lines (or at your own risk)

This option is not active for Linux systems using systemd (Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 and Fedora).

For Linux systems using systemd (Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7 and Fedora), the services description files will have to be modified to add dependencies using Before= or After= for example if you want to define a start and stop order.

For more information, see manpages: # man systemd.unit