This section discusses the recommended steps and precautions required during the maintenance operations of an Avi Load Balancer Controller.

Shutting Down or Rebooting an Avi Load Balancer Controller

The Controller Virtual Machines (VMs) can be shut down or rebooted directly through the hypervisor or a public cloud console. If the Controller is part of a cluster, it will attempt to rejoin the cluster once it is operational. The Controller does not require user intervention for a reboot operation in a cluster set-up.

You can reboot the Controller node using the following CLI:

reboot node nodename <node>

This will restart the virtual machine.

You can reboot the Controller node using the following API command:

/cluster/reboot/node

This will restart the virtual machine.

cluster/reboot

For more details on the CLI used here, see CLI Top-Level Commands section in this guide.

Increasing Controller Disk Size of an Avi Load Balancer Controller

There are scenarios where the Controller’s disk size configured initially is insufficient and requires an increase in the disk size. The Controller VM’s disk can be resized directly using the hypervisor or the public cloud console. If the Controller is part of a cluster, it is recommended to perform the changes on the follower nodes, followed by the leader node.

Note:

  • Increasing overall disk capacity by adding a new, additional disk to the Controller VM is not supported.

  • It is recommended to configure the same disk size for all Controllers in a cluster.

Follow the below steps to increase Disk Size:

  1. Shut down the Controller VM.

  2. Increase the disk size through the hypervisor or public cloud console.

  3. Start the Controller VM.

  4. SSH to the Controller VM, and confirm that the new disk size using the command sudo df -h.

  5. Perform the above steps on the follower nodes first, followed by the leader nodes.

Increasing Memory and vCPU of an Avi Load Balancer Controller

There are scenarios where the vCPU or memory configured initially is insufficient and requires an increase in the allotment. Another related use case it so select a different flavor or size for the Controller VM for a public cloud or OpenStack deployment. The resources can be edited using the hypervisor, or the public cloud console.

If the Controller is part of a cluster, it is recommended to perform the changes on the follower nodes, followed by the leader node.

Note:

  • It is recommended to configure the same resource parameters for all Controllers in a cluster.

Follow the below steps to increase vCPU or Memory of an Avi Load Balancer Controller:

  1. Shut down the Controller VM.

  2. Increase the vCPU or memory assigned to the VM.

  3. In vCenter environments, increase the allocation using the settings.

  4. In case of flavor-based selections, select the new flavor or VM size.

  5. Start the Controller VM.

  6. Perform the above steps on the follower nodes, followed by the leader nodes.

Increasing Controller Disk Capacity

Following is the process by which disk capacity for Controllers in a cluster can be increased.

  1. Power down one of the Controller followers.

  2. Increase disk size for the physical or virtual machine using the tools appropriate to your environment.

  3. Power up the Controller on that machine.

  4. Verify that it has joined into the cluster.

  5. Repeat steps 1-4 for the second follower.

  6. Power down the Controller cluster leader. One of the two already-upgraded followers automatically become the new leader.

  7. Proceed with steps 2-4 for the third and final Controller. The third controller must have joined as the second follower.