Installing with the Air-Gapped Data Fabric Repository

Explains how to prepare a local air-gapped Data Fabric repository and use its published packages for installation or upgrade.

An air‑gapped repository is a package or software repository that is hosted inside a network that has no internet access (an “air‑gapped” environment). The systems in such a network can install or update the HPE Data Fabric software without connecting to the public internet.

You can setup a air-gapped repository as a replica of the online HPE Data Fabric repository to help mitigate flaky network issues to speed up the installation process.

This is done by using the airgap-repository bootstrap shell script that downloads and spins up a pre-packaged Docker web server, and downloads the Core, DEP, Installer packages that you select.

The standalone airgap-repository CLI is used to manage the lifecycle of the repository after the initial setup.

Connected preparation and isolated use

Once the HPE Data Fabric packages are published on the local mirror host, the cluster nodes can use the advertised HTTP URL to obtain those packages for installation or upgrade from the air-gapped repository.

Users would have to update the airgapped repository running on the local mirror host from time to time, as and when new release versions or patches are made available by HPE for HPE Data Fabric.

The mirror serves the downloaded available Data Fabric packages. Users also need to enable cluster nodes also need to enable appropriate OS package source to be required by their installation prerequisites

NOTE
Serving an existing publication is an offline operation. --local skips the image pull only; it does not turn create or update into offline package synchronization.

Workflow to create and use repository

The following is the Docker registry that hosts the airgap repository container: https://hub.docker.com/r/maprtech/edf-airgap-repository-container.

Follow the steps given below to create the HPE Data Fabric air-gapped repository:
  1. Download the airgap-repository bootstrap script from https://github.com/mapr/private-dfaas-sandbox/blob/master/airgap-repository-container/airgap-repository repo.
  2. Download the bootscript from repo https://github.com/mapr/private-dfaas-sandbox/blob/master/airgap-repository-container/airgap-repository,and identify the correct airgap-repository image that you want to use, and then pull the image by using Docker/Podman.
  3. Configure credential file to access the official HPE Data Fabric repository.
  4. Configure proxy, private CA information.
  5. Select at least one component Core/DEP versions and OS selection. When selecting DEP, supply both the version list and the OS build list. The CLI uses --mep-* option names for DEP. Select the release-compatible versions. The air-gapped repository does not guarantee that the Core/DEP combination is maintained.
  6. Select the --installer-os when Installer packages are needed. Include Installer during initial preparation when the installation workflow needs the public signing keys supplied in its archive. The air-gapped repository does not download Installer or pub/ keys automatically.
  7. View the status and verify client access.
  8. Check readiness, versions, and required repository branches.
  9. Use the advertised URL in your Data Fabric installation workflow to download Data Fabric packages.