After you deploy and set up a standalone vRealize Log Insight node, you can deploy a new vRealize Log Insight instance and add it to the existing node to form a vRealize Log Insight cluster.

vRealize Log Insight can scale out by using multiple virtual appliance instances in clusters. Clusters enable linear scaling of ingestion throughput, increase query performance, and allow high-availability ingestion. In cluster mode, vRealize Log Insight provides primary and worker nodes. Both primary and worker nodes are responsible for a subset of data. Primary nodes can query all subsets of data and aggregate the results. You might require more nodes to support site needs. You can use from three to 18 nodes in a cluster. This means that a fully functional cluster must have a minimum of three healthy nodes. Most nodes in a larger cluster must be healthy. For example, if three nodes of a six-node cluster fail, none of the nodes functions fully until the failing nodes are removed.

Prerequisites

  • In the vSphere Client, note the IP address of the worker vRealize Log Insight virtual appliance.
  • Verify that you have the IP address or host name of the primary vRealize Log Insight virtual appliance.
  • Verify that you have a user account on the primary vRealize Log Insight virtual appliance with the Super Admin role, a role that has the relevant permissions. See Create and Modify Roles for more information.
  • Verify that the versions of the vRealize Log Insight primary and worker nodes are in sync. Do not add an older version vRealize Log Insight worker to a newer version vRealize Log Insight primary node.
  • You must synchronize the time on the vRealize Log Insight virtual appliance with an NTP server. See Synchronize the Time on the Log Insight Virtual Appliance.
  • For information on supported browser versions, see the vRealize Log Insight Release Notes.

Procedure

  1. Use a supported browser to navigate to the web user interface of the vRealize Log Insight worker.
    The URL format is https:// log_insight-host/, where log_insight-host is the IP address or host name of the vRealize Log Insight worker virtual appliance.
    The initial configuration wizard opens.
  2. Click Join Existing Deployment.
  3. Enter the IP address or host name of the vRealize Log Insight primary and click Go.
    If the primary node provides an untrusted SSL certificate, a dialog box appears with the details of the certificate. Click Accept to send a request to the vRealize Log Insight primary node to join the existing deployment.

    If you click Cancel, the join request is not sent to the primary node. You must accept the certificate to ensure that the worker node joins the existing deployment.

  4. Click Click here to access the Cluster Management page.
  5. Log in as a Super Admin user or a user with the relevant permissions.
    The Cluster page loads.
  6. Click Allow.
    The worker node joins the existing deployment and vRealize Log Insight begins to operate in a cluster.

What to do next

  • Add more worker nodes as needed. The cluster must have a minimum of three nodes.