Connecting to an external IBM Storage Scale Server

You can create and add custom script packages to your IBM Storage Scale Client to connect to an external IBM Storage Scale Server after deployment.

You can configure your IBM Storage Scale Client running in a Cloud Pak System Software for Power® instance to connect to an external IBM Storage Scale Server running outside a Cloud Pak System Software for Power instance. Using customized script packages, you can automate the majority of the client setup process, to avoid running IBM Storage Scale commands on the client virtual machine manually.

You should consult your IBM Storage Scale product documentation for information on setting up the external IBM Storage Scale Server. After setting up the external IBM Storage Scale Server, the procedure documented here includes additional IBM Storage Scale commands that you must run on the server to complete the setup.

The following steps outline the general procedure for connecting your IBM Storage Scale Client running in the Cloud Pak System Software for Power environment to an external IBM Storage Scale Server. Note that this procedure is supported only for virtual system patterns and classic virtual system patterns because they can include script packages.
  1. Create the external IBM Storage Scale Server, as described in your IBM Storage Scale product documentation. See the Related link for more information.
  2. Create the script package archive file, by using the example code provided.
  3. Import the archive file into the script packages catalog. See the Related link for information on working with script packages.
  4. Create a IBM Storage Scale Client in a virtual system pattern by using the Pattern Builder. If you are working with classic virtual system patterns, you can also create the IBM Storage Scale Client in a classic virtual system pattern by using the Pattern Editor.
    As part of this creation process, you must add to your IBM Storage Scale Client pattern component either of the following items that provide additional installation code for the IBM Storage Scale function:
    • The IBM Storage Scale Client Policy (supported only in virtual system patterns, not classic virtual system patterns)
    • The GPFS Client Install for off rack GPFS Server script package (supported in both virtual system patterns and classic virtual system patterns).

    You then continue by adding to your IBM Storage Scale Client pattern component the script package that you created and imported into the catalog from the previous steps.

    See the Related link for information on creating virtual system patterns and working with script packages.

  5. Deploy your virtual system pattern to create the IBM Storage Scale Client. Note that the GPFS Client Install for off rack GPFS Server script package (if used) and the script package that you created are configured to be run manually, so that they are not run automatically at deployment time.
  6. After successfully deploying the IBM Storage Scale Client, run the GPFS Client Install for off rack GPFS Server script package (if used) to install the IBM Storage Scale Client cluster. The IBM Storage Scale Client Policy code is run automatically as part of the deployment if you configured the client by using the IBM Storage Scale Client Policy instead of the IBM Storage Scale Client script packages. This step installs the IBM Storage Scale Client cluster only. It does not include the authentication with the IBM Storage Scale Server cluster and shared file system, which is handled by running the script package in the next step, after exchanging keys between the server and Client cluster.
  7. Perform a number of manual steps to exchange the key information between the Client and Server cluster and to configure the Server cluster to allow access to the cluster.
  8. Run your second script package to connect to the external IBM Storage Scale Server.