Adding new nodes to the system

Starting with version 1.0.5.1, newly added nodes are automatically discovered and enabled. You can also assign the personality to the new nodes to define their role in the system.

Before you begin

  • Hardware expansion, if needed, is performed by IBM installers.
  • If your system is on version prior to 1.0.5.1, upgrade it to version 1.0.5.1 or later before you expand. A known issue with Portworx in earlier versions may cause trial license issues down the line.
  • The entitled Portworx license in a base Cloud Pak for Data System has the limit of maximum 8 storage nodes per cluster (96 VPCs). When you plan to expand your system beyond the base (96 VPCs) to add any more worker nodes, you must procure and apply a Portworx extended license which will allow scaling Portworx cluster beyond 8 nodes.
    Note: If you are unsure about the Portworx license on your system, reach out to IBM Sales or Offering Management before you proceed further.

Procedure

  1. If you are expanding beyond 96 VPCs, apply the extended Portworx license as described in this step. If you are expanding within the first 96 VPCs, skip to step 2.
    1. On internet connected clusters:
      1. Log in as root on e1n1.
      2. ssh to e1n1-1-control.
      3. Issue the following commands providing the activation ID that you received upon procurement:
        pxctl license activate <activationID>
      4. Verify the license:
        pxctl license list
    2. On air-gapped clusters:
      1. Log in as root on e1n1.
      2. ssh to e1n1-1-control.
      3. Use the provided .bin file in the following command:
        pxctl license add /path/to/file.bin
        Note: If you got the Portworx license in a PDF file, rename it to .bin.
  2. Ensure that the node personality is Unset. If not, as root, from e1n1, run:
    ap node set_personality <node> Unset
    Example:
    ap node set_personality  enclosure2.node3 Unset

    It might take several minutes to change the role to Unset. You can verify it by running the ap node command.

  3. Run the following command to set the personality of the node to worker:
    ap node set_personality <node> worker
    Example:
    ap node set_personality  enclosure2.node3 worker
    In versions 1.0.7.0 and beyond, you can set the personality for multiple nodes at a time by providing a comma separated list of nodes. It is recommended not to modify more than 4 nodes at a time.
    ap node set_personality <node1>,<node2>,<node3>,<node4> Worker 
    Example:
    ap node set_personality  enclosure2.node3, enclosure2.node4, enclosure3.node1, enclosure3.node2 Worker
    The personality value is provided as <roleX>, or <roleX>[<labelX>]. The latter should be used only when the label is not blank. If a node has more than one role, both roles must be provided as a comma-separated list, for example: <roleX>,<roleY>, or <roleX>[<labelX>],<roleY>[<labelY>]

Results

You can verify that the command ran successfully by running the ap node command.