Chapter 6. Optional: Installing operators

The Assisted Installer can install select Operators for you with default configurations. If you require advanced options, install the desired Operators after installing the cluster.

The Assisted Installer monitors the installation of the selected Operators as part of the cluster installation and reports their status. If one or more Operators encounter errors during installation, the Assisted Installer reports that the cluster installation has completed with a warning that one or more Operators failed to install.

For details on adding an Operator while registering a new cluster, refer to the specific section below. For details on adding and removing Operators when the cluster is already registered as part of a previous installation step, see Modifying a cluster. For full installation instructions using the Assisted Installer API or UI, see Installing with the Assisted Installer API or Installing with the Assisted Installer API respectively.

6.1. Installing OpenShift Virtualization

When you configure the cluster, you can enable OpenShift Virtualization.

Note

Currently, OpenShift Virtualization is not supported on IBM zSystems and IBM Power.

If enabled, the Assisted Installer:

  1. Validates that your environment meets the prerequisites outlined below.

  2. Configures virtual machine storage as follows:

    1. For single-node OpenShift clusters version 4.10 and newer, the Assisted Installer configures the hostpath provisioner.
    2. For single-node OpenShift clusters on earlier versions, the Assisted Installer configures the Local Storage Operator.
    3. For multi-node clusters, the Assisted Installer configures OpenShift Data Foundation.

Prerequisites

  • Supported by Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 8
  • Support for Intel 64 or AMD64 CPU extensions
  • Intel Virtualization Technology or AMD-V hardware virtualization extensions enabled
  • NX (no execute) flag enabled

Procedure

  • In the operators step of the wizard, enable the "Install OpenShift Virtualization" checkbox.

Additional resources

6.2. Installing Multicluster Engine (MCE)

When you configure the cluster, you can enable the Multicluster Engine (MCE) Operator. The Multicluster Engine (MCE) Operator allows you to install additional clusters from the cluster that you are currently installing.

Prerequisites

  • OpenShift version 4.10 and above
  • An additional 4 CPU cores and 16GB of RAM for multi-node OpenShift clusters.
  • An additional 8 CPU cores and 32GB RAM for single-node OpenShift clusters.

Storage considerations

Prior to installation, you must consider the storage required for managing the clusters to be deployed from the Multicluster Engine. You can choose one of the following scenarios for automating storage:

  • Install OpenShift Data Foundation (ODF) on a multi-node cluster. ODF is the recommended storage for clusters, but requires an additional subscription. For details, see Installing OpenShift Data Foundation in this chapter.
  • Install Logical Volume Management Storage (LVMS) on a single-node OpenShift (SNO) cluster.
  • Install Multicluster Engine on a multi-node cluster without configuring storage. Then configure a storage of your choice and enable the Central Infrastructure Management (CIM) service following the installation. For details, see Additional Resources in this chapter.

Procedure

  1. If you are using the Assisted Installer UI:

    • In the Operators step of the wizard, enable the Install multicluster engine checkbox.

  2. If you are using the Assisted Installer API:

    • When registering a new cluster, use the "olm_operators: [{"name": "mce"}]" statement, for example: 

      $ curl -s -X POST https://api.openshift.com/api/assisted-install/v2/clusters \
-H "Authorization: Bearer ${API_TOKEN}" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d "$(jq --null-input \
    --slurpfile pull_secret ~/Downloads/pull-secret.txt '
{
    "name": "testcluster",
    "openshift_version": "4.11",
    "cpu_architecture" : "x86_64"
    "high_availability_mode": "None",
    "base_dns_domain": "example.com",
    "olm_operators: [{"name": "mce"}]",
    "pull_secret": $pull_secret[0] | tojson
}
')" | jq '.id'

Post-installation steps

Additional resources

6.3. Installing OpenShift Data Foundation

When you configure the cluster, you can enable OpenShift Data Foundation. If enabled, the Assisted Installer: . Validates that your environment meets the prerequisites outlined below (except for devices being empty, which you should verify). . Configures the storage to use all available disks.

Prerequisites

  • The cluster is a three-node OpenShift cluster or has at least 3 worker nodes.
  • Each host has at least one non-installation disk of at least 25GB.
  • The devices you use must be empty, the disks must not include Physical Volumes (PVs), Volume Groups (VGs), or Logical Volumes (LVs) remaining on the disk.
  • Each host has 6 CPU cores for three-node OpenShift or 8 CPU cores for standard clusters, in addition to other CPU requirements.
  • Each host has 19 GiB RAM, in addition to other RAM requirements.
  • Each host has 2 CPU cores and 5GiB RAM per storage disk in addition to other CPU and RAM requirements.
  • You have assigned control plane or worker roles for each host (and not auto-assign).

Procedure

  • In the "operators" step of the wizard, enable the "Install OpenShift Data Foundation" checkbox.

Additional resources