Installation Notes

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Introduction to the DataCore Deployment Wizard

The automated installer tool (DataCore Deployment Wizard) is recommended to assist and guide Administrators through the process of configuring and deploying DataCore Servers in a variety of environments (explained in the following section). To bypass the DataCore Deployment Wizard, click Exit and double-click the DataCoreServer.exe in the installation folder. See Manual Server Installation for detailed instructions.

Pre-Installation Requirements

For new installations only, the wizard verifies that servers meet necessary software, hardware, and operating system requirements, including the required version of .NET Framework.

Hardware prerequisites include:

  • Minimum number of ports and port connectivity.
  • At least one available unformatted disk on the server to create a pool.

System requirements are not verified when selecting an upgrade template.

Network Configuration

  • Network adapters present on the servers are configured during installation.
  • Servers must connect over Network Interface Cards (NICs).
  • Each server requires a minimum of three NIC or Fibre Channel (FC) ports:
    • At least one must be a NIC.
    • Two others can be NIC or FC ports.
  • Additional TCP/IP settings configurable during installation include DHCP, DNS server, and gateway addresses.

Installation Environment Considerations

  • If a DataCore Server lacks Internet access, installation may be significantly slower. To mitigate this:
  • Open Internet Explorer.
    • Go to Tools > Options > Advanced tab.
    • In the Security section, clear the Check for Publisher's Certificate Revocation check box.
    • Click OK. This change takes effect immediately and does not require restarting the installation.
  • Disable firewalls between servers during the wizard installation to ensure connectivity
  • All servers must be members of the same domain or workgroup.

User Accounts and Permissions

  • For single-server deployments, self-guided installation, High Availability pairs, or virtual SANsymphony servers, log in with a local administrator account.
  • For cluster solutions requiring multiple servers, use a domain administrator account to run the wizard.
  • During software installation on new nodes, a DataCore Administrator password is created for the DcsAdmin service. This password must be consistent across all servers in the group. Ensure it is remembered securely.

Wizard Operation and Behavior

  • If the wizard is exited prematurely or the server restarts during installation, the wizard will resume from the last completed step upon restart.
  • Warnings and errors encountered during installation are logged to:
    • log.txt in the DataCore Deployment Wizard installation folder.
    • The operating system Event Viewer under Windows Logs > Application Logs.
  • While the wizard allows continuation after warnings, any errors must be resolved before proceeding to ensure a valid configuration.

High Availability Server Deployment

  • When deploying two servers in a High Availability configuration:
    • The wizard identifies the local server as Server One.
    • The remote server is referred to as Server Two.
    • Installation of Server Two is performed remotely from Server One.
  • For single-server deployments, the server is referred to as Server One.

Additional Configuration Tips

  • For large server groups, when adding nodes, consider checking Disable iSCSI auto-login in the wizard to optimize performance.
  • Cache size may be required during installation. Be mindful of RAM usage by other applications on the server.

    Cache size may be changed after installation. See Changing Cache Size in the DataCore SANsymphony Help for more information.

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