
	TOC
	Power management in a nutshell
	Step 1: Determine node and tier configuration
	Step 2: Prepare hardware and networks
	Step 3: Verify that automatic discovery is turned off
	Step 4: Verify application node setup
	Verify monitoring setup
	Verify SSH
	Verify power control
	Step 5: Configure the power only image
	Step 6: Create tiers
	Step 7: Add nodes and power controllers
	Managing power only nodes, tiers, and images
	Image actions
	Tier actions
	Node actions
	Sidebars
	Alternative SSH tool for Windows nodes: copSSH

know how:

Power Only Nodes and Tiers: Configuration and Management

Intended for use with Cassatt Active Response Standard Edition, Premium Edition and Data Center Edition V5.1.

This article describes how to configure nodes and tiers for Active Power Management, which offers minimal node management and power savings, without changing your existing business applications. These instructions are also applicable if your site has other reasons for minimal node management by Cassatt Active Response.

Power management in a nutshell

Managing just power using Cassatt Active Response requires no change to your existing hardware or business applications. All you have to do is: 1) configure an operating system shutdown command on nodes so Cassatt Active Response can gracefully shut them down, 2) create tiers for the nodes and their applications, and 3) add the nodes and power controllers to the Cassatt Active Response Controller using a simple wizard. Then, node shutdown can be scheduled using Policy Manager, or you can manage node shutdown using load-based SLAs.

Step 1: Determine node and tier configuration

Before starting tasks in this article, you'll need to determine your node and tier configuration (1 node to 1 tier, or other). For help, see Understanding Tier Configuration and Personalization.

Step 2: Prepare hardware and networks

Follow these steps to prepare application nodes and power controllers for Cassatt Active Response power management.

Topic	Task	Description
Hardware	Ensure application nodes are power controllable	Understanding How Hardware Gets Under Cassatt Active Response Management Recommended Hardware: Application Nodes and Power Controllers
Hardware	If using external power controllers, you must qualify application nodes to ensure they have the proper power behavior	External Power Controllers: Qualifying Nodes and Other Best Practices Cabling nodes to external power controllers
Networks	Add the nodes' primary network and power network to the Cassatt Active Response Controller	Application networks Do not add network switches in the Cassatt Active Response Controller. Networking for power only tiers is predetermined; Cassatt Active Response control over switch configuration is not needed (or desirable).
Application node and power controller setup	Gather node and power controller information	If you'll be adding nodes and power controllers using a .csv file, prepare your spreadsheet using: Import/export hardware spreadsheet > New Nodes - Power Only . If you will be using the wizards to add nodes and power controllers, the hardware spreadsheet tells you the information you'll need to supply.
	(Best practice) Configure default authentication on power controller hardware	Cassatt recommends configuring the same authentication for power controllers. Setting up defaults saves you time because you don't have to specify authentication each time you add another external power controller of the same type. For example, if you have 6 Baytech external power controllers, configure the hardware with the same authentication. Go to: Discovered Pool > Properties > Power Controller Authentication
	Configure application nodes for graceful shutdown	Cassatt Active Response requires that application nodes be configured for graceful shutdown. If your nodes do not support SSH, or are running an OS that is not currently supported by Cassatt, contact Cassatt Customer Support. If your nodes are running Windows, and you do not already have an SSH implementation, copSSH is an alternative. For instructions, see the sidebar, Alternative SSH tool for Windows nodes: copSSH. Follow these steps to configure SSH (open SSH is shown in the following example): Set the SSH configuration for "root" if using Linux or Solaris; for Windows, use "Administrator." Set the PermitRootLogin to "yes" in /etc/ssh/sshd_config Set the PasswordAuthentication to "yes" in /etc/ssh/sshd_config. Restart the service after making changes. Verify that the SSH service is started.
	Set up monitoring for application nodes	Every application nodes must be set up for at least one supported monitoring collector so Cassatt Active Response can detect failures. Ping is the minimum. For help, see Understanding Monitoring Collectors.
	Configure hardware for Cassatt Active Response management	Application nodes with multi-node devices: APC: External Power Controllers Baytech: External Power Controllers CyberSwitching Dualcom: External Power Controllers Server Technology: External Power Controllers WTI: External Power Controllers

Step 3: Verify that automatic discovery is turned off

The automatic discovery feature must be turned off whenever you add power only nodes to the Cassatt Active Response Controller; this prevents Cassatt Active Response from discovering power controllers that may be issuing DHCP requests.

In the Cassatt Active Response Controller, go to: Discovered Pool > Properties > Automatic Discovery = Off.

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Step 4: Verify application node setup

Follow these steps to verify application node setup.

Verify monitoring setup

Test each node as follows:

Log into the control node as root.
Run the ccmonitor command, as follows:

/opt/cassatt/bin/ccmonitor -f -p <protocol> -u <IPaddress>

Required fields:
<protocol> = the monitoring collector protocol; valid values are ping, SNMP, script, HTTP, and socket (JMX does not return an error, but is not supported for this command).
<IPaddress> = node IP address to validate.

Verify SSH

Test the SSH installation by connecting to the node via SSH from a Linux machine (you can use the control node).

Verify power control

Make sure your nodes are running, then test the power setup using the Cassatt Active Response power command:

/opt/cassatt/bin/ccpower -t <power_type> -a <IPaddress> -u <username> -p <password> -d <deviceID_status>

In the return text, look for this line:

Node/blade "server" is On

Where:
server represents the slot in a blade server, or the outlet in an external power controller, or "server-1" for an integrated power controller

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Step 5: Configure and activate the manual allocation image

Follow these steps to duplicate the power only template, configure the copy for your application, and activate the copy for use with a tier.

About the power only template

The power only template is an image stub that you copy and then configure to give Cassatt Active Response the information it needs to monitor and manage your business application.

Cassatt Active Response treats the template—and the duplicates you make—as though they were regular images, even though they contain no business application software.

A power only image contains most of the same properties as an image (aside from the software, which is already deployed to your servers, and hardware requirements, which are predetermined by the servers you manually allocate to run the software).

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Follow these steps:

In the Cassatt Active Response Controller, select Images in the left navigation pane.
In the Images list, select the checkbox for the power only template, then select Duplicate in the Actions dropdown box.
In the Duplication dialog box, give the duplicate a descriptive name, select a version number, specify the Cassatt base filesystem (the default), and click Next.

The image name is used for image selection from a dropdown list when creating tiers. Cassatt recommends giving the image a name that indicates it is a power only image. If you implement images for business applications now or in the future, it is helpful for visually discerning the image types.
Cassatt Active Response creates the duplicate and adds it to the Images list.

Close the image duplication Results box.
Select the new image name in the Images list.

On the Image Properties page, set the Service Startup Time Limit and OS Monitoring for the image.

Service Startup Time Limit and Monitoring

If you already understand image properties, then proceed full-speed ahead. If you have never configured an image, you'll need to know about two things: monitoring (read Understanding Monitoring Collectors) and the Service Startup Time Limit.

The Service Startup Time Limit is the amount of time Cassatt Active Response should wait during initial startup to replace an application node if a monitoring collector indicates that the node is not starting. When Cassatt Active Response starts an application node, it waits for every monitoring collector defined for the OS and application in the image to report in. If any monitoring collector fails to report within the service startup time limit, Cassatt Active Response considers the startup to have failed and replaces the application node.

Roughly, the Service Startup Time Limit for each image should be:

The time it takes for your hardware to start, plus
The time it takes for the operating system to start and the monitoring collectors you have defined for your operating system to respond, plus
The time it takes for your applications to start and the monitoring collectors you have defined for each application to respond (optional)

Note that, for power only tiers, nodes should be running when you add them to the tier: the Service Startup Time Limit comes into play only when Cassatt Active Response powers up a node, either to increase tier capacity or when an active node fails.

If you will be using an IPv6 network for the tier, set IPv6 Capable to "Yes."
(Optional). Select the Applications tab; add applications and set the monitoring values according to the monitoring setup on your nodes.
Click Save Changes.
In the Images list, select the checkbox for your new image, then select Activate in the Actions dropdown box.

Your power only image is now ready for use in a power only tier.

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Step 6: Create tiers

Follow these steps to define tiers for your applications. Cassatt Active Response prepopulates tier values with the parameters you set for the image. If necessary, you can change them during tier creation.

On the left navigation pane, click Tiers to display the Tier List.
On the Tier List page, click the New Tier button and follow the wizard.

On the Properties page, set the properties for your tier as follows; you can accept the defaults in other fields.

Prompt	Recommendation
Name	Cassatt recommends giving the tier a name and description that indicate that the tier is a power only tier. If you implement utility computing tiers now or in the future, it is helpful for visually discerning the tier types.
Image	From the drop-down menu, select the power only image that you created.

On the SLA page, select the node-based SLA type and set as follows. For information on setting the idle timer, see Understanding Tier Configuration and Personalization.

At this prompt...	Enter...	Notes
When you first create a tier, always use a node-based SLA with the operational target and the maximum set to the total number of nodes you have available. This ensures that all nodes are correctly allocated to the tier. After nodes are correctly allocated to the tier, you can switch to load based SLAs if desired.
Operational Target	TargetNodes	Set the operational target to the total number of nodes you have available. Be aware that Cassatt Active Response powers off any nodes beyond the operational target. If your actual operational requirements are different, you can change the SLA type or reduce the operational target after verifying that nodes are correctly allocated to the tier.
Minimum Nodes	0 or 1	Set the minimum nodes to 0 or 1. The New Node wizard fails if the minimum is not met when you add a node to a tier. So, if your actual minimum requirement is more than 1, raise the minimum after you have added at least that number of nodes to the tier.
Maximum Nodes	MaxNodes	Set the maximum to the total number of nodes you have available, or to the total number you expect to have if you intend to add nodes for the application later.

On the networks page, select the network for the tier, and select the Primary Network radio button.
On the IPs and Hostnames page, select the Specify Manually radio button, then reserve the IP addresses of the nodes that will run in this tier.
After the tier is created, do not allocate or activate: Cassatt Active Response does that for you when you add nodes (in the next section). Allocation and activation fail if attempted prior to adding nodes.
Verify that the minimum number of nodes are in the tier; if necessary, go back to the SLA page and revise the Minimum nodes value as discussed in step 4.

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Step 7: Add nodes and power controllers

In this step, you will add nodes and power controllers to the Cassatt Active Response Controller. After nodes are successfully added, they go to their respective tiers and you're ready to go.

Interface	To add...	Follow these steps...
Command line	Hardware via file or scripting	Import/export hardware spreadsheet > New Nodes - Power Only tab. For scripting, these commands are available: ccpowerimport, ccnodeimport , ccdeletenode
Cassatt Active Response Controller	Multi-node devices (external power controllers and blade enclosures)	Multi-node devices must be added before you can add their associated nodes as follows: If you are bulk loading devices, make sure the .csv file is ready for importing. Go to: Discovered Pool > Power Controllers > New Multi-Node Power Controller and follow the wizard. Verify that the power controller has successfully been added by checking the Power Controller list. Follow instructions in the next table cell to add nodes to these multi-node power controllers.
	Nodes	If you are bulk loading devices, make sure the .csv file is ready for importing. Go to: Nodes list > New Nodes. Follow the wizard. Verify that nodes have successfully added.

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What happens when you add more nodes than the tier needs?

If a tier is at its operational target when you add a node, Cassatt Active Response puts the new node into the free pool and powers it off.

Cassatt Active Response does not allocate the node to any other tier: nodes added can be allocated only to the tier for which the IP address of the node has been reserved.

Managing power only nodes, tiers, and images

Many activities surrounding management of power only tiers are identical to management activities for utility computing images and tiers. Some actions, however, are irrelevant with power only nodes: any action that affects your business applications is unnecessary because Cassatt Active Response power only images don't contain any software. Some actions have implications you should understand in advance. The following tables provide descriptions of each action you can take on power only images, tiers, and nodes.

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Image actions

Action	Notes
New Version	Works as usual.
Duplicate	Works as usual.
Configure Image/Configuration Complete	Not allowed.
Verify Monitors/Verification Complete	Not allowed.
Activate/Deactivate	Works as usual.
Delete	You can delete any image not in use by a tier, except for the original images shipped with Cassatt Active Response, which includes the base power only template.

Tier actions

Action	Notes
Allocate/Deallocate	If you allocate a power only tier prior to adding a node, by definition, there will not be nodes with IP addresses matching those of the slots in the tier, and allocation will fail. After you add nodes, you can use the allocate/deallocate actions on the tier as usual.
Activate/Deactivate	Works as usual.
Engage Tier	Works as usual.
Disengage Tier	Works as usual.
Increase Capacity/Decrease Capacity	Works as usual. Increasing capacity is limited to nodes that have added to the tier manually, but which were moved to the free pool when the operational target was less than the number of nodes available.
Delete	Works as usual.
New Node	Works as usual.
Update Image	Works as usual.
Personalize/Personalization Complete	Works as usual. Personalization can be used to get all the nodes booted so you can work with them as desired. Personalizing a tier fails if you do not have maximum nodes available for the tier.

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Node actions

Action	Notes
New Node	Works as usual.
Power On	Works as usual.
Power Off	Works as usual.
Reboot	Works as usual.
Shut Down	Whenever Cassatt Active Response powers down a node for any reason, it first attempts a graceful shutdown using an operating system shutdown command. If a graceful shutdown is not successful, the node remains powered on, and an alert is generated so you can diagnosis the problem.
Move to Free Pool	Works as usual. Be aware that the node will be powered off.
Move to Maintenance Pool	Not allowed.
Engage Node	Works as usual.
Disengage Node	Works as usual.
Enable Image Instance	Works as usual.
Disable Image Instance	Works as usual.
Clear Failure	Works as usual.
Delete Node	If in a tier, the node is removed from the Cassatt Active Response domain without turning off its power; if the node is not in a tier, Cassatt Active Response issues a power-off command to ensure the node is powered off.
Move to Discovered Pool	Allowed, but not a desirable or useful action. The node will fail to inventory, and must be deleted and re added before it can be used in a tier.

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