Installing Cisco MSE in a VMware Virtual Machine

This chapter describes how to install and deploy a Cisco Mobility Services Engine (MSE) virtual appliance.

Cisco MSE is a prebuilt software solution that comprises one or more virtual machines (VMs) that are packaged, maintained, updated, and managed as a single unit. Cisco MSE is distributed as an Open Virtual Appliance (OVA) for installation on a virtual appliance and as an ISO image for installation on a physical appliance.

Cisco MSE acts as a platform (physical or virtual Cisco Mobility Services Engine [MSE] appliance) to deploy and run the Cisco services.

If you choose Location during installation, you will see the following services in Cisco CMX GUI.

  • DETECT & LOCATE—Active for 120 day trial period unless either a CMX base or advanced license is added.

  • ANALYTICS—Active for 120 day trial period unless a CMX advanced license is added.

If you choose Presence during installation, you will see the following services in the Cisco CMX GUI.

  • CONNECT & ENGAGE—Active for 120 day trial period unless either a CMX base license is added

  • PRESENCE ANALYTICS

  • CONNECT & ENGAGE

Virtualization Concepts

Refer to these documents for information on virtualization:

Installation Overview

The following table lists the Cisco MSE virtual appliance installation process and contains information about the sections providing details about them:

Table 1 Installation Overview

Step

Task

See

1

Review the deployment checklist and prepare for the installation of a Cisco MSE virtual appliance.

Cisco MSE Virtual Appliance Deployment Checklist and Hardware Guidelines

2

Download the Cisco MSE Open Virtualization Archive (OVA) file from Cisco.com.

Downloading the Cisco MSE OVA File

3

Deploy the Cisco MSE OVA file.

Deploying the Cisco MSE OVA File Using the VMware vSphere Client

4

Configure the basic configurations and install the Cisco MSE virtual appliance.

Installing a Cisco MSE Virtual Appliance

5

Set up the Cisco MSE virtual appliance.

Installing Cisco CMX Using Web Interface

Restrictions for Installing Cisco MSE in a VMware Virtual Machine

  • Map size must be less than 5 MB in Cisco Prime Infrastructure.

  • There must be less than 1000 access points on a single map.

  • The Mobile Application Server and Wireless intrusion prevention system (wIPS) are not available.

  • A common NTP server must be used to synchronize the time.

  • Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) Mail Server name and authentication mechanism must be used for the Cisco CMX mail notification system.

  • Cisco CMX 10.2 does not render any data on Cisco Prime Infrastructure maps. To allow client display in Cisco Prime Infrastructure 1.4 or later, a parallel Cisco MSE 8.0 is also required.

Cisco MSE Virtual Appliance Deployment Checklist

  • Cisco Wireless Controller has IP connectivity to a Cisco CMX instance.

  • Cisco Prime Infrastructure has IP connectivity to a Cisco CMX instance.

  • Port 16113 is routable from Cisco WLC to the Cisco CMX IP address.

  • Port 161 (for Simple Network Management Protocol [SNMP] traffic) is routable from Cisco WLC to the Cisco CMX IP address.

  • SSH client to log in with the root access to the VM is present.

  • A Secure Copy (SCP) client (on MAC native or installed on PC) or a Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) exists to move files into Cisco CMX OVA (specifically, map files and images to upgrade).

Prerequisites for Installing Cisco MSE in a VMware Virtual Machine

  • VMWare vSphere client.

  • Cisco MSE 10.2 OVA, which can be downloaded from Download Software on cisco.com.

  • Hostname IP address, netmask, default gateway, DNS IP address, and Network Time Protocol (NTP) Server IP address or name.

  • Cisco WLC 7.6, 8.0 or later.

  • IP address, type, the SNMP version, and the SNMP write community string of Cisco WLC.

  • SNMP credentials of Cisco WLC (private key for V1 and V2, or username and password for V3).

  • Mail server settings (port number and security settings) and email address.

  • Cisco Prime Infrastructure 2.2, 3.0 or later with a hierarchy of maps in the order of campus, building, and floor.

  • Existing exported map file from Cisco Prime Infrastructure.

  • VMware virtualization environment ESXi 5.x, 6.0, and 6.5.

Hardware Guidelines

The following table lists the hardware guidelines for the Cisco MSE virtual appliance.


Note

If the hardware requirements are not met, the OVA deployment fails. Similarly, the Cisco MSE setup fails during installation when the other minimum requirements listed in the table below are not met.

Table 2 Hardware Guidelines

Hardware Platform

Basic Appliance

Standard Appliance

High-End Appliance

CPU

8 vCPU (2.4 GHz core)

16 vCPU (2.4 GHz core)

24 vCPU (2.4 GHz core)

RAM

24 GB

48 GB

64 GB 1

HDD

500 GB

500 GB

1 TB

1 The high-end deployment VM (20 vCPU, 64 GB RAM) reserves 63.74 GB for itself and the rest of the RAM is used by ESXi.

Release Upgrade Compatibility Matrix

The following table lists the Cisco CMX releases available on Cisco.com.

Table 3 Cisco CMX Releases Available on Cisco.com

Cisco CMX Release

OVA

3365 ISO

Upgrade Option Only

10.1.0

cmx-v10-1-0.ova

—

—

10.1.1

—

10.1.1

—

10.1.1-2

—

—

cisco_cmx-10.1.1-2.tar.gz (cisco_cmx-10.1.1-2.x86_64.rpm and cisco_cmx_connect-10.1.1-30.x86_64.rpm)

10.1.2

—

—

cisco_cmx-10.1.1-2.tar.gz

10.2

10.2 OVA

10.2 ISO

10.2 backend upgrade (10.1 and 10.1.1 to 10.2) script and.CMX image file

10.3

10.3 OVA

10.3 ISO

—

Table 4 Node Types Supported Per Release

Release

Location and Analytics Node

Location and Connect Node

Location, Analytics, and Connect Node (L-Node)

Connect and Presence Node (P-Node)

10.1.0

Yes

—

—

—

10.1.1-2

Yes

Yes

Yes

—

10.1.2

Yes

Yes

Yes

—

10.2

Use the upgrade script to change Location and Analytics to Location, Analytics, and Connect internally.

Use the upgrade script to change Location and Connect to Location, Analytics, and Connect internally.

Yes

Yes

10.3

Use the upgrade script to change Location and Analytics to Location, Analytics, and Connect internally.

Use the upgrade script to change Location and Connect to Location, Analytics, and Connect internally.

Yes

Yes

Table 5 Upgrade Path by Node Type

Upgrade Path 12

Location and Connect Node

Location and Analytics Node

Location, Analytics, and Connect Node (L-Node)

Connect and Presence Node (P-Node)

10.1.0 OVA to 10.2

10.2 backend script to upgrade image to10.2 and change Location and Connect to Location, Connect, and Analytics.

10.2 backend script to upgrade image to10.2 and change Location and Analytics to Location, Connect, and Analytics.

10.2 backend script to upgrade image to 10.2.

—

10.1.1-2 tar.gz to 10.2

10.2 backend script to upgrade image to10.2 and change Location and Connect to Location, Connect, and Analytics.

10.2 backend script to upgrade image to10.2 and change Location and Analytics to Location, Connect, and Analytics.

10.2 backend script to upgrade image to 10.2.

—

10.1.2 tar.gz to 10.2

10.2 backend script to upgrade image to10.2 and change Location and Connect to Location, Connect, and Analytics.

10.2 backend script to upgrade image to10.2 and change Location and Analytics to Location, Connect, and Analytics.

10.2 backend script to upgrade image to 10.2.

—

10.2 OVA/ISO to 10.2

—

—

UI upgrade script to upgrade image.

UI upgrade script to upgrade image

2 The path that is provided for upgrade is the same as that used for backup and restore.

VM Alerts

The following table displays the alerts shown on the VM for the following conditions:

Table 6 VM Alerts

Hard Disk Status

Alert Shown

50 percent

Do Not Back Up

80 percent

System Is About To Run Out Of Space

85 percent

All The Services Are Stopped

Downloading the Cisco MSE OVA File

    Step 1   Download the Cisco MSE image from Download Software on cisco.com.
    Step 2   Save the Cisco MSE OVA installer to your computer and ensure that it is accessible.

    Deploying the Cisco MSE OVA File Using the VMware vSphere Client

    To deploy the Cisco MSE OVA file using the VMware VSphere Client, follow these steps:

      Step 1   Launch the VMware vSphere client application on your desktop.
      Step 2   From the VMware vSphere Client application menu, choose File > Deploy OVF Template.
      Step 3   In the Deploy OVF Template window that is displayed, click Browse and select the Cisco MSE OVA file that is stored locally on the machine.

      Figure 1. Select CMX Image

      Step 4   Verify the OVF Template Details details, and click Next.
      Figure 2. OVF Template Details

      Step 5   Click Accept to accept the End User License Agreement and then click Next.
      Figure 3. End User License Agreement

      Step 6   Enter a name for the Cisco MSE VM and click Next.
      Figure 4. Name and Location

      Step 7   From the Configuration drop-down list, choose the VM configuration of your choice.
      Figure 5. Deployment Configuration

      Step 8   Check the format in which you want to store the virtual disk.
      Figure 6. Format

      Step 9   Map the networks used in the OVF template to the networks in your directory.
      Figure 7. Network Mapping

      Step 10   Click Finish. Ensure that Power On the Virtual Machine is not checked.
      Figure 8. Complete the Deployment

      Wait for the deployment to complete. This will take a few minutes.

      Figure 9. Deploying the OVA

      Step 11   Click the deployed VM and choose Edit Virtual Machine.
      Figure 10. Edit Virtual Machine

      Step 12   (Optional)Click Hard disk and modify the Provisioned Size as per your requirement and capacity.
      Figure 11. Edit Provisioned Size

      Step 13   (Optional)Click Resources>CPU and modify the reservations if your OVA fails to start because of insufficient resources.
      Figure 12. Modify CPU Reservations

      Step 14   Power ON the VM. The first boot takes a while as the new disk has to be expanded.
      Figure 13. Power ON VM

      Installing a Cisco MSE Virtual Appliance

      After the Cisco MSE is deployed, you can install and configure a Cisco MSE virtual appliance. Note the following points:

      • Cisco MSE does not have a node install menu. However, there is a first-boot script that checks if a configuration exists on the device. If the script does not find a valid configuration, it launches the setup routine and initiates network configuration tasks using the CLI, followed by initial setup tasks on the browser.

      • The new first-boot script determines if the initial configuration is completed, and then displays the normal login prompt. If the initial configuration is not completed, the default login prompt is displayed.


      Note

      The cmxctl node install command is no longer valid.

      To install and configure a Cisco MSE virtual appliance, follow these steps:

        Step 1   Right-click the Cisco MSE VM and click Open Console. The console window is displayed with the following information: 
        CentOS release 6.6 (Final)
Kernal 2.6.32-504.e16.x86_64 on an x86_64
 
localhost login: cmxadmin
password: cisco
Last login: Sun May 15 19:31:03 from 10.0.2.2
        Step 2   Enter the login name and password as prompted.
        Figure 14. Console Window

        Step 3   Press Enter when prompted, as shown in the figure below.
        Figure 15. Press Enter

        Step 4   Enter a new password for the root user and reconfirm it when prompted. The password should meet the minimum requirements listed.
        Note   

        The root password is used only for root operating system configuration and not for the cmxadmin user functions.

        Step 5   Enter a new password for cmxadmin user and reconfirm it. The password should meet the minimum requirements listed.
        Note    The cmxadmin password is used for logging in to the Cisco MSE account for future network admin configurations.
        Figure 16. Set Passwords

        Step 6   In the Select Action window, click Device configuration.
        Figure 17. Device Configuration

        Step 7   In the Select A Device window, click the eth0 interface.
        Figure 18. Select A Device

        Note   

        With CSCux07068, CMX 10.2 and 10.2.1 installation fails when New Device option is selected under device configuration. We recommend that you do not select New Device option.

        Step 8   In the Network Configuration window, toggle the Use DHCP field and then enter the Static IP address, Netmask, and Default gateway IP, and click Ok.
        Note   

        • To set the hostname, see the Hostname field in Step 10. Changing the hostname through the CLI is not supported. After the initial setup, to change the hostname, use the cmxos reconfigure command to display the Network Configuration and DNS Configuration windows again.

        • Do not change the Device field as this is automatically detected.

        • Do not enter DNS details because the information entered here is not used by the system. These details can be entered in the DNS configuration step (Step 10) that follows.

        Figure 19. Network Configuration

        Note   

        Do not change the name of the interface. The default interface Name is eth0 and it should not be changed.

        Step 9   In the Select Action window, click DNS Configuration.
        Figure 20. Select DNS Configuration

        Step 10   In the DNS configuration window, enter the Hostname, DNS, and DNS search path default domain.
        Figure 21. DNS Configuration

        Step 11   In the Select Action window, click Save&Quit.
        Figure 22. Select Action

        Step 12   (Recommended) Enter the NTP server name or the IP address of the NTP server when prompted.
        Note   
        • After installation, changing the NTP information through the CLI or GUI is not supported. To change the NTP information, use the cmxos reconfigure command from the CMX CLI to to change the NTP information. Given below is a workaround. 
          cmxctl stop
cmxctl stop ?a
!Go to root user
su
!Run the timezone script
/opt/cmx/bin/tzselect
!Logout of the box
exit
!Log back in and check the timezone
date
!Restart the services
cmxctl start agent
cmxctl start
        Figure 23. Configuring NTP

        Step 13   Configure the time zone and save the changes.
        Figure 24. Configuring Time Zone

        Step 14   Access the URL when prompted.

        Figure 25. Access URL

        Step 15   Open the URL http://<ip-address>:1984 when prompted in the browser. The Cisco Mobility Services Installation sign in page is displayed.
        Figure 26. Welcome Menu

        Step 16   In the Cisco Mobility Services Installation sign in page, enter your cmxadmin credentials and proceed with the installation.
        Note   

        Use steps 15-16 while installing a new MSE virtual appliance.

        Creating New Virtual Machines Using Hyper-V Manager

        You can now run Cisco CMX on Microsoft Hyper-V virtualization hosts. This enables you to use Cisco CMX on virtual machines using any Hyper-V capable host running Windows Server 2008 R2 or later.

        You can create a new virtual machine using Hyper-V Manager application. Ensure to specify 24 GB of memory or higher when creating the virtual machine in Hyper-V manager, and to subsequently increase the processor count for the virtual machine to 8 vCPU or higher before starting the new virtual machine.

        If you are running Windows Server 2012 or later, we recommend you to convert the Cisco CMX .vhd disk image to .vhdx format before adding it to the new virtual machine.

        To create a new virtual machine:

          Step 1   Download the CMX .vhd file to the location on the drive where it will reside.
          Step 2   (Optional) Convert the .vhd file to .vhdx format.
          Step 3   Open the Hyper-V Manager application and verify the Hyper-V virtual network switch configuration.
          Note   

          To configure a Hyper-V virtual network switch, click Virtual Switch Manager at the right side of the Hyper-V Manager window.

          Step 4   To create a new VM, choose Action > New > Virtual Machine.
          Step 5   Enter a name for the new virtual machine.
          Step 6   Select to store the virtual machine in a different location, browse to the folder containing the .vhd or converted .vhdx file, and then click Next.
          Step 7   Choose Generation 1 as the machine type, and then click Next.
          Note   

          Only certain Windows guests support Generation 2.

          Step 8   Specify 8192 or greater for the VM memory, and then click Next.
          Note   

          Do not enable Dynamic Memory.

          Step 9   Under Connections, choose the appropriate virtual network switch to connect the VM, and then click Next.
          Step 10   Select Use an existing hard disk, and then navigate to the .vhd or .vhdx file on your hard disk.
          Step 11   In the Summary window, click Finish.
          Step 12   Edit the new VM settings and change the processor count to a minimum of 4.

          Installing Cisco CMX Using Web Interface

          Launch the Cisco CMX user interface using Google Chrome 40 or later, and follow these steps:

            Step 1   In the Cisco CMX web interface, enter the login credentials for a Cisco CMX administrator and click Sign in to continue.

            The login username is cmxadmin. Use the password that was configured when the system was started for the first time.

            Figure 27. Welcome Menu

            Step 2   Choose the Cisco CMX type as either Location or Presence. The installation is initiated and services are started. Note that this may take a few minutes.
            The sequence of events is as follows:

            1. Consul Configuration

            2. DB Installation

            3. Schema Migration

            4. InfluxDB Configuration

            5. Cassandra Installation

            6. Node Registration

            Step 3   Click Please click to continue setup or press Enter to proceed to the main portal.
            Note   

            You can monitor the progress of the installation either through the graphical status display or the console output. Note that this console is for display only.

            The installation is complete. If this is a reinstallation, the Cisco CMX Welcome window is displayed. If this is a fresh installation, the user is automatically authenticated and the Cisco CMX Welcome is skipped.

            Step 4   Log in with the username admin and password admin.
            Figure 28. Welcome Screen

            What to Do Next

            A Setup Assistant window is displayed, from where you can complete the initial configuration. You must now set a password for the admin user, import Cisco WLC details and maps from Cisco Prime Infrastructure, and configure and test mail server settings.

            Use https://<ip address> for all subsequent logins to the web user interface. Use https:// <ip-address>:1984 only for initial configuration.

            Figure 29. Setup Assistant



            Upgrading from Cisco CMX 10.2

            You can upgrade from Cisco CMX 10.2 using the Cisco CMX user interface.

              Step 1   From the Cisco CMX top menu, choose SYSTEM > Dashboard.
              Step 2   In the top-right corner of the System at a Glance window, click Settings.
              Figure 30. Systems at a Glance

              Step 3   In the left pane of the SETTINGS window, click Upgrade, and then click the blue Upgrade button.
              Figure 31. Upgrade

              Step 4   Click Local File or Remote File .

              Figure 32. Local or Remote File

              Step 5   Do one of the following:
              • Click Local File option, and then click Browse and select the Cisco CMX image file from your local machine.
                Note   
                After you upgrade using the Local File option, use Secure Shell (SSH) to connect to Cisco CMX and run the following commands:

                1. To stop the Cisco CMX admin UI, run the cmxos adminui stop command.

                2. To start the Cisco CMX admin UI, run the cmxos adminui start command.

                Figure 33. Local File



              • Click Remote File option, and enter the URL of the installation file.
                Figure 34. Remote File



              Step 6   Click Upload.

              Figure 35. Cisco CMX Upgrade

              Step 7   Once the upgrade process is complete, click the Please click to return to your upgraded experience blue text to go to the Cisco CMX Welcome page, and login using the username and password (admin and admin).
              Figure 36. Upgrade Completion Window

              Upgrading from Cisco CMX 10.1.x to 10.2

              The upgrade from Cisco CMX 10.1 to Cisco CMX 10.2 is accomplished through the use of a helper script and a.cmx file. To perform the upgrade, perform the following steps:

                Step 1   Download the. cmx file and the helper script as a.zip file from CCO.
                Step 2   Unzip the downloaded file.
                Step 3   Connect to the Cisco CMX CLI via SSH or CIMC KVM.
                Step 4   Edit the sshd_config file to permit root access by changing the PermitRootLogin value to yes. 
                vi /etc/ssh/sshd_config
                Step 5   Move to the root directory. 
                cd /
                Step 6   Create a folder to hold the script and the .cmx file. 
                mkdir upgrade
                Step 7   Move to the newly created upgrade directory 
                cd /upgrade
                Step 8   Use the Secure Copy Protocol to transfer both the cmx_upgrade.sh script and its associated.cmx file to the upgrade folder on the existing 10.1 installation: 
                scp username@hostname_or_IP:/Users/username/Downloads/<CISCO_CMX$$$.cmx>.
                Note   

                Ensure that you enter the space and the period at the end of the command.

                Step 9   Ensure that both the script and the.cmx file can be executed by the root user: 
                chmod +x cmx_upgrade.sh
chmod +x <CISCO_CMX$$$.cmx> 
chmod 755 *
                Step 10   Stop all runnning services. 
                cmxctl stop
cmxctl stop -a
                Step 11   Run the upgrade script by entering the following at the CLI prompt: 
                ./cmx_upgrade.sh <CISCO_CMX$$$.cmx>
                Step 12   After the script runs to completion, you are prompted to reboot.
                Step 13   Login with user cmxadmin and password 'cisco' as prompted.
                Step 14   Configure new root and cmxadmin passowords.
                Step 15   Check version of upgraded image. 
                cmxctl version
                Step 16   Run commands to start services. 
                cmxctl start
cmxctl status
cmxos adminui start
cmxctl version
                Step 17   After the completion of upgrade, remove the /upgrade folder.

                Verifying Installing Cisco MSE in a VMware Virtual Machine

                You can verify the overall system health and status of the Cisco MSE services using the System tab in the Cisco MSE user interface. Ensure that all the services, memory, and CPU indicate a healthy status (green) for each Cisco MSE and Cisco CMX node, and that there is at least one active Cisco WLC.

                The System tab contains the following subtabs:

                • Dashboard—Provides an overall view of the system.

                • Alerts—Enables you to view live alerts.

                • Patterns—Enables you detect patterns of various criteria, such as Client Count, CPU Usage, Memory Usage, and so on..

                • Metrics—Enables you to view system metrics.