How to manage hosted VMs in the IT Services hybrid cloud

1. Ensure that you have the correct ports open. A list is available at the Morpheus page on common ports & requirements. Note that certain ports need to be open for the Morpheus agent to function; without the agent, you will not be able to see the health and other statistics for your VM(s).
2. Set up a username and password for default use on your VMs. Once logged into SHORE, do as follows: click on your username in the top right-hand corner, and select USER SETTINGS. Then, under Linux Settings and/or Windows Settings (depending on which operating systems you will be using), create a username and password, and select a default RDP keyboard source (Windows) or SSH key (Linux). You will receive an e-mail to inform you that this process has been successful. See further below on how to ensure that your setting(s) are automatically applied to your VM(s). Please note: the username here must be a new creation, and you cannot use the USER SETTINGS option to set the password for either the default administrator account in Windows or for root in Linux. You should set the administrator/root password within the VM once you have logged in for the first time.
3. If you have not already done so, you will need to contact us on cloud-support@it.ox.ac.uk to request that networking be set up.

Note: a bold black vertical bar at the start of a box means that that field is mandatory.

1. Click on the Provisioning tab.
2. Click +ADD.
3. The CREATE INSTANCE pane will open. This comprises five sections: TYPE, GROUP, CONFIGURE, AUTOMATION and REVIEW.
4. Under TYPE, select your type of instance from the list. The list reflects the options that have been made available to you. Click on NEXT.

5. Under GROUP, there are five options:

   GROUP: if you have more than one group option, select the correct one from the drop-down list.

   CLOUD: the default, res-vc, should be selected. This indicates that your VM will be located on-premise.

   NAME: this field is mandatory. Enter an appropriate name for your virtual machine.

   ENVIRONMENT: select from Dev, Test, Staging and Production.

   Once you have made your selections, click on NEXT.

6. Under CONFIGURE, there are three sections.  The first is entitled Configuration Options, in which there are four mandatory fields: GB, RESOURCE POOL, NETWORKS and IMAGE.

   GB, CORE COUNT, CORES PER SOCKET and MEMORY: choose the relevant numbers for your VM.  The cost of the VM will vary according to how these figures are set.  Please note that if you click on the '$' symbol below PLAN before choosing your configuration options, the SHORE Service Pricing Plan may not be the most attractive option, due to the set minimum price; the figures will change once the specifications are set. For further details, see: IT Services Charges - Hybrid cloud: Infrastructure.

   RESOURCE POOL: choose the default, METRO01 / Morpheus.

   NETWORKS: select your network; you may also add any further ones that you require. By selecting Static from the drop-down list, you may specify a static IP address. If you have not already arranged for networking to be set up, please contact us as per the information in the Prerequisites section above.

   The options for HOST and FOLDER should default to the correct options and do not need to be edited manually.

7. You can set the VM to be set up with the username and password which you set in the previous section above on this page, Prerequisites. To do this, open up the second section under CONFIGURE, by clicking on the drop-down arrow beside User Config.  Tick the box marked CREATE YOUR USER to add in your default username and password.

8. In the third section under CONFIGURE, Advanced Options, one has the option to prevent installation of the Morpheus agent.  This agent is installed by default, and preventing its installation is not recommended. Without the Morpheus agent, you will not see statistics about your VM in SHORE. If you do wish to do prevent its installation, however, tick the box marked SKIP AGENT INSTALL.
9. When you have completed work on the CONFIGURE section, click on NEXT to move onto the next section. If you find that you cannot proceed to the next screen then you may have specified a figure below the minimum requirements: check higher up on the screen to ensure that no red warning text has appeared.
10. Under REVIEW, review your instance options.
11. Click on COMPLETE to create your VM.
12. You may now watch the progress as your VM is created. From your list of VMs, click on the name of your new VM, and then the History tab. Expand the entry by clicking on the down-arrow on the far right.  When you see 'Complete provisioning', the VM is ready. You will also be sent an e-mail to this effect.

You can access your VM in various ways:

1. When logged on to SHORE, click on Provisioning and select your VM instance.  You can access it via the Console tab. Alternatively, to open the VM in a new window, click on the Resources tab and then on the cog to the far right of your VM's details; then select Open Console from the drop-down list.
2. Windows VMs may be accessed via RDP.
3. Linux VMs may be accessed via SSH.

1. Click on the name of your VM.
2. Click on the button ACTIONS. A drop-down list will appear.
3. From the list, select RECONFIGURE.
4. You can now edit various options such as RAM, disk size and more. Please note that a restart of the VM may be required after making such changes.

We recommend that you install the Morpheus agent when you create your VM(s).  If, however, you have one or more VM(s) which do not have the agent installed and you wish to change this, please contact us on cloud-support@it.ox.ac.uk for an installation script.