Prerequisites

Note

The Control Node acts as the management hub and operates independently outside the cluster system.

OtterScale Control Node

The Control Node serves as the central management hub for your OtterScale deployment. Before proceeding with installation, verify that your designated control node machine meets the following requirements.

Operating System

Install Ubuntu 24.04 LTS on your control node. If your machine runs a different OS, perform a clean installation of Ubuntu 24.04 LTS first.

Component	Requirement
OS	Ubuntu 24.04 LTS (Required)

Hardware Requirements

Ensure your control node hardware meets or exceeds these minimum specifications. Higher resources will improve performance and stability.

Resource	Minimum Requirement
CPU	8 Cores
Memory	16 GB RAM
Disk Space	100 GB available storage

Network Configuration

The OtterScale installer will automatically configure networking, but confirm the following prerequisites:

• Connectivity: Ensure at least one network interface has external internet access.
• Bridge Configuration: The installer checks for a network bridge named br-otters.
  • If it exists, the installer will use it.
  • If not, you will be prompted to select an existing bridge or allow the installer to create one automatically.

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Note

Server nodes need to be commissioned manually by creating a Scope through the web interface, then provisioned with just a few clicks.

K8S Nodes (Server Nodes)

K8S nodes are the servers that will form your Kubernetes cluster. These nodes must be commissioned via the OtterScale web interface after creating a Scope, and then provisioned. Ensure each server host is configured as follows before commissioning.

BIOS Configuration

Access your server’s BIOS settings (typically by pressing F2, F10, or Del during boot) and configure the following settings:

1. BMC Settings:
   • BMC Static IP: Assign a static IP address to the BMC for reliable remote management access.
   • Boot Order: Enable network boot via BMC and set it as the highest priority in the boot order.
2. Boot Options:
   • Boot Mode: Set to UEFI (recommended for modern deployments).
     • Avoid Legacy mode, as it limits drive size to 2TB, lacks security features, and does not support GPT partitioning.
   • Fast Boot: Disable Fast Boot to allow complete hardware initialization.
3. CPU Virtualization:
   • Intel CPUs: Enable VMX, VT-d, or VT-x.
   • AMD CPUs: Enable SVM or AMD-V.

Hardware Requirements

Verify that each K8S node meets these storage requirements for optimal performance.

Resource	Minimum Requirement
Storage	At least 2 Block disks or 2 Physical drives

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Network IP Requirement

Plan your network IP allocation carefully to prevent conflicts. Ensure your subnet has sufficient available IP addresses for the OtterScale deployment.

Usage	Quantity	Description
OS System	1	Reserved for the ingress controller.
OtterScale	1	Required from user. A second IP in the same subnet for OtterScale services.
Juju Controller	1	Used by the Canonical Juju controller.
MAAS (DHCP)	2	Used for MAAS dynamic IP allocation.
Kubernetes and Ceph	9 + N	Used for Kubernetes and Ceph services (N = number of K8S nodes).

Total Estimated IPs: 14 + N (where N is the number of K8S nodes)

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Note

These firewall rules are mandatory for the installation process. Ensure outbound access to the listed domains and ports is allowed on each node. For easier management, consider using a dedicated VLAN instead of configuring firewall rules on each machine.

Firewall Configuration

The OtterScale installation process requires outbound internet access to various external services. Configure your firewall to allow outbound connections to the following domains and ports on all nodes (Control Node and K8S nodes).

Canonical

Domains	Port(s)
api.charmhub.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
api.jujucharms.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
changelogs.ubuntu.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
charmhub.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
cloud-images.ubuntu.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
maas.ubuntu.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
images.maas.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
juju.is	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
jaas.ai	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
streams.canonical.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
objects.githubusercontent.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
contracts.canonical.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
images.maas.io	TCP 80 (HTTP)

Snap Package

Domains	Port(s)
snapcraft.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
api.snapcraft.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
storage.snapcraftcontent.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
canonical-lgw01.cdn.snapcraftcontent.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
canonical-lcy01.cdn.snapcraftcontent.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
canonical-lcy02.cdn.snapcraftcontent.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
canonical-bos01.cdn.snapcraftcontent.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)

Ubuntu Repositories

Domains	Port(s)
tw.archive.ubuntu.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS) TCP 80 (HTTP)
archive.ubuntu.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS) TCP 80 (HTTP)
ports.ubuntu.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS) TCP 80 (HTTP)
security.ubuntu.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS) TCP 80 (HTTP)
esm.ubuntu.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS) TCP 80 (HTTP)

GitHub

Domains	Port(s)
github.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
raw.githubusercontent.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
release-assets.githubusercontent.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)

Kubernetes

Domains	Port(s)
registry.k8s.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
k8s.gcr.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
ghcr.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
coredns	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
d39mqg4b1dx9z1.cloudfront.net	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
storage.googleapis.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
nvcr.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
auth.docker.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
auth.docker.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
login.docker.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
cdn.auth0.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
docker.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
hub.docker.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
registry-1.docker.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
index.docker.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
production.cloudflare.docker.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
docker-images-prod.6aa30f8b08e16409b46e0173d6de2f56.r2.cloudflarestorage.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
registry.cn-hangzhou.aliyuncs.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)

HuggingFace

Domains	Port(s)
huggingface.co	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
cdn-lfs.huggingface.co	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
cdn.huggingface.co	TCP 443 (HTTPS)

RedHat Models

Domains	Port(s)
registry.redhat.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
quay.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)
registry.access.redhat.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)

HELM Charts

Domains	Port(s)	Description
otterscale.github.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#OtterScale
charts.jetstack.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#Cert-manager
open-feature.github.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#Open-feature
istio-release.storage.googleapis.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#Istio
prometheus-community.github.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#prometheus
project-hami.github.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#HAMi
helm.ngc.nvidia.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#Nvidia
cloudnative-pg.github.io/charts	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#CloudNative
llm-d.ai	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#llm-d
codecentric.github.io	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#KeyCloak
charts.bitnami.com	TCP 443 (HTTPS)	#Bitnami