RHN Satellite - Server Configuration (RHEL 6)

Server side configuration:

1. Introduction

1.1. Red Hat Network

1.2. RHN Satellite

1.3. Terms to Understand

1.4. How it Works

1.5. Summary of Steps

1.6. Upgrades

1.6.1. Satellite Certificate

1.6.2. Satellite Upgrade Documentation Package (rhn-upgrade)

1.6.3. New Installation ISO

2. Requirements

2.1. Software Requirements

2.2. Hardware Requirements

2.2.1. x86 and x86_64 Hardware Requirements

2.2.2. s/390 Hardware Requirements

2.2.3. Additional Requirements

2.3. Database Requirements

2.4. Additional Requirements

3. Example Topologies

3.1. Single Satellite Topology

3.2. Multiple Satellite Horizontally Tiered Topology

3.3. Satellite-Proxy Vertically Tiered Topology

4. Installation

4.1. Base Install

4.2. RHN Satellite Installation Program

4.2.1. Options to the Satellite Installation Program

4.3. Automated RHN Satellite Server Installation

4.4. Installing Satellite behind an HTTP Proxy

4.5. Sendmail Configuration

4.6. MySQL Installation

5. Entitlements

5.1. Receiving the Certificate

5.2. Uploading the RHN Entitlement Certificate

5.3. Managing the RHN Certificate with RHN Satellite Activate

5.3.1. Command Line Entitlement Options

5.3.2. Activating the Satellite

5.4. Satellite Entitlement Certificate Expiration

6. Importing and Synchronizing

6.1. Exporting with RHN Satellite Exporter

6.1.1. rhn-satellite-exporter

6.1.2. Exporting

6.2. Importing with RHN Satellite Synchronization Tool

6.2.1. satellite-sync

6.2.2. Preparing for Import from Local Media

6.2.3. Running the Import

6.3. Synchronizing

6.3.1. Synchronizing Errata and Packages Directly via RHN

6.3.2. Synchronizing Errata and Packages via Local Media

6.4. Inter-Satellite Sync

6.4.1. Recommended Models for Inter-Satellite Sync

6.4.2. Configuring the Master RHN Satellite Server

6.4.3. Configuring the Slave RHN Satellite Servers

6.5. Using Inter-Satellite Sync

6.5.1. Syncing between a Development Staging Server and a Production Satellite

6.5.2. Bi-directional sync

6.6. Synchronizing by Organization

7. Troubleshooting

7.1. Gathering information with spacewalk-report

7.2. Log Files

7.3. General Problems

7.4. Host Not Found/Could Not Determine FQDN

7.5. Connection Errors

7.6. SELinux Issues

7.7. Updated Software Components

7.8. Satellite Debugging by Red Hat

8. Maintenance

8.1. Managing the Satellite with rhn-satellite

8.2. Updating the Satellite

8.3. Backing Up the Satellite

8.4. Using RHN DB Control

8.4.1. DB Control Options

8.4.2. Backing up the Database

8.4.3. Verifying the Backup

8.4.4. Restoring the Database

8.5. Cloning the Satellite with Embedded DB

8.6. Establishing Redundant Satellites with Stand-Alone DB

8.7. Changing the Satellite Hostname

8.8. Conducting Satellite-Specific Tasks

8.8.1. Using the Tools menu

8.8.2. Deleting Users

8.8.3. Configuring Satellite Search

8.9. Automating Synchronization

8.10. Implementing PAM Authentication

8.11. Enabling Push to Clients

A. Sample RHN Satellite Configuration File

B. Revision History

Chapter 4. Installation

4.1. Base Install

RHN Satellite is designed to run on the Red Hat Enterprise Linux operating system. Therefore, the first phase is to install the base operating system, either from disc, ISO image, or kickstart. During and after operating system installation, make sure you:

• Allocate plenty of space to the partitions storing data. The default location for channel packages is /var/satellite/. For RHN Satellite with Embedded Database, remember the database RPMs go in the /opt/ partition, while the database itself is built in /rhnsat/.
• Enable Network Time Protocol (NTP) on the Satellite and separate database, if it exists, and select the appropriate time zone. All client systems should already be running the ntpd daemon and be set to the correct time zone.
• Due to potential complications, it is strongly advised that the /home/ partition is locally mounted.

Note: Two types of Red Hat Network Satellite are available:

Stand-Alone Database- One with a stand-alone database on a separate machine; and

Embedded Database- One with an embedded database installed on the same machine as the Satellite. We are using Embedded database.

4.2. RHN Satellite Installation Program

The following instructions describe how to run the RHN Satellite Installation Program:

1. Log into the machine as root.
2. Insert the RHN Satellite Server CD containing the installation files or download the ISO image from the RHN website.
3. If you are installing from CD, manually mount it to the /media/cdrom/ directory with the following command:

# mount /dev/cdrom /media/cdrom

If you are installing from an ISO, mount the file from within the directory containing it.  the command:

# mount -o loop iso_filename /media/cdrom

The remaining instructions assume it is mounted in /media/cdrom/.

4. From the /media/cdrom/ directory, enter the following command to start the RHN Satellite Installation Program:

# ./install.pl

If you don’t have internet connectivity at the time of installation, you can also install it in the “disconnected” mode. i.e.

# ./install.pl --disconnected

Note: This script has several options to assist with your installation process. To view these options, enter the following command:

# ./install.pl --help

5. The script first runs through a pre-requisite check. These checks make certain that all prerequisites are met before proceeding with the installation.

* Starting the Red Hat Network Satellite installer.

* Performing pre-install checks. 

* Pre-install checks complete.  Beginning installation.

6. At the prompt, enter the email address to which you would like notifications from the Satellite to be sent. It may be a good idea to choose a general email address rather than the address of an individual, as there can be a large volume of emails.

 “Admin email address” sat-admin@example.com

7. The Satellite is then registered with your RHN Hosted account, and all required packages are installed and updated.

* RHN Registration 

* Installing updates. 

* Installing RHN packages.

Note: 

> If you are installing in disconnected mode, it will not ask the RHN account registration details.

> If you have already registered your system from the RHN account before running the 

installation script, it will not ask the registration details.

> If you haven’t registered your system before, it will ask you the login details of the 

RHN account and you will need to provide the username and the password for that.

8. Next, the RHN Satellite Installation Program downloads and installs the RHN GPG key, including setting up the /root/.gnupg/ directory, if required.

* Setting up environment and users 

** GPG: Initializing GPG and importing RHN key. 

** GPG: Creating /root/.gnupg directory

Note: In disconnected mode you may face the problem in receiving the key. 

For that, mount the RHEL-6 ISO and created the repo of it i.e. dvd.repo

Now run the command:

# rpm –import /media/RPM-GPG-KEY-redhat-release

9. The next step creates and populates the initial database, if you have opted for the RHN Satellite with Embedded Database. If you are installing RHN Satellite with Stand-Alone Database, the installer connects with the database. This step can take quite a while. If you would like to monitor the progress of the installation, use tail in a separate window to monitor the /var/log/rhn/install_db.log file.

* Setting up database. 

** Database: Installing the embedded database (not the schema). 

** Database: Shutting down the database first. 

** Database: Installing the database:

** Database: This is a long process that is logged in:

** Database:   /var/log/rhn/install_db.log

*** Progress: ####

10. Once database installation is complete, or once the connection to the database is established, the Satellite is configured.

* Setting up environment and users.

11. In order to activate the Satellite, you must provide it with the location of your Satellite certificate.

* Activating Satellite. 

Where is your satellite certificate file? /root/example.cert

12. The next step is to create a CA cert for the Satellite. To do so, you must answer a few questions.

CA cert

Enter a password for the certificate.

Organization

Enter the name of your organization

Email Address

Enter an email address to be associated with this certificate, such as the admin email entered in the steps above.

City

Enter the city where the Satellite resides.

Country

13. Once the CA Cert certificate is generated, the RHN Satellite Installation Program performs final configuration and restarts the associated services.

* Final configuration. 

* Restarting services.

14.  Installation complete. 

Visit https://your-satellite.example.com to create the satellite administrator account.

15. Follow the on-screen instructions and visit the FQDN of your Satellite via a web browser. Create the satellite administrator account.

To create Administrator account, go to:

Admin tab -> RHN satellite configuration -> general -> update button.

Note: If you are not using any proxy, you may leave the proxy related text boxes blank.

16. The RHN Satellite Configuration - Monitoring page allows you to configure the monitoring aspects of this Satellite. The local mail exchanger and local main domain are used to mail monitoring notification messages to administration. This is required only if you intend to receive alert notifications from probes. Also configure the send mail for that.

17. The RHN Satellite Configuration - Certificate page allows you to upload a new Satellite certificate. To identify the certificate's path, click Browse, navigate to the file, and select it. To input its contents, open your certificate in a text editor, copy all lines, and paste them directly into the large text field at the bottom. Click Validate Certificate to continue.

18. The RHN Satellite Configuration - Bootstrap page allows you to generate a bootstrap script for redirecting client systems from the central RHN Servers to the Satellite. This script, to be placed in the /var/www/html/pub/bootstrap/ directory of the Satellite, significantly reduces the effort involved in reconfiguring all systems, which by default obtain packages from the central RHN Servers.

When finished, click Generate Bootstrap Script. The Installation Complete page appears.

19. The RHN Satellite Configuration - Restart page contains the final step in configuring the Satellite. Click the Restart button to restart the Satellite in order to incorporate all of the configuration options added on the previous screens. Note that it will take between four and five minutes for the restart to finish.

20. Once the Satellite has restarted, the countdown notice disappears. The page will refresh and now you are now free to begin using your Satellite.

4.2.1. Options to the Satellite Installation Program

The various options available for the Satellite Installation Program are included below for easy reference.

1. Once the installation is completed, you will need to add or modify your settings in the /etc/rhn/rhn.conf file:

server.satellite.http_proxy = <http-proxy-fqdn>

server.satellite.http_proxy_username = <proxy-username>

server.satellite.http_proxy_password = <proxy-password>

disconnected=0

If you are not using any proxy then leave the fields blank.

2. Restart the Satellite service:

#/usr/sbin/rhn-satellite restart

Or

You can also restart it from GUI by going:

Admin -> RHN satellite configuration -> restart -> restart button.

4.5. Sendmail Configuration:

If your RHN Satellite will serve Monitoring-entitled systems and you wish to acknowledge via email the alert notifications you receive, you must configure sendmail to properly handle incoming mail. This is required by the email redirect feature, which allows you to stop notifying users about a Monitoring-related event with a single reply.

To configure sendmail correctly, run the following commands as root.

First, create a symbolic link allowing sendmail to run the notification enqueuer with the following command:

# ln -s /usr/bin/ack_enqueuer.pl /etc/smrsh/.

Next, edit the /etc/aliases file on the mail server and add the following line:

rogerthat01: | /etc/smrsh/ack_enqueuer.pl

Next, edit the /etc/mail/sendmail.mc file and change:

"DAEMON_OPTIONS(`Port=smtp,Addr=127.0.0.1, Name=MTA')dnl"

to:

"DAEMON_OPTIONS(`Port=smtp, Name=MTA')dnl"

Then, have the alias processed like so:

# newaliases

Finally, update the sendmail-cf package:

# yum update sendmail-cf

Note, disconnected installs must obtain this package from the ISO.

Restart sendmail:

# service sendmail restart

Chapter 6. Importing and Synchronizing:

6.2. Importing with RHN Satellite Synchronization Tool

Before distributing packages via RHN Satellite, the packages must first be uploaded to the Satellite. This section describes the process for importing packages and other channel data.

Important:

To populate custom channels correctly, you must first populate at least one Red Hat base channel. The RHN Satellite Synchronization Tool creates the necessary directory structures and permissions; without these, the custom channel tools will not work properly.

6.2.1. satellite-sync

The RHN Satellite Synchronization Tool (satellite-sync) enables an RHN Satellite to update its database metadata and RPM packages with those of RHN's central servers, another Satellite within your organization, or local media.

To launch the RHN Satellite Synchronization Tool, execute the following command as root:

# satellite-sync

For RHEL -6 channels:

# /usr/bin/satellite-sync -c rhel-x86_64-server-6 -c rhel-x86_64-server-supplementary-6 -c rhel-x86_64-server-ha-6 -c rhel-x86_64-server-optional-6 -c rhn-tools-rhel-x86_64-server-6 -c rhel-x86_64-server-optional-6  -c rhel-i386-server-6 -c rhel-i386-server-6-debuginfo -c rhel-i386-server-fastrack-6 -c rhel-i386-server-fastrack-6-debuginfo -c rhel-i386-server-ha-6 -c rhel-i386-server-ha-6-debuginfo -c rhel-i386-server-ha-fastrack-6 -c rhel-i386-server-ha-fastrack-6-debuginfo -c rhel-i386-server-optional-6 -c rhel-i386-server-optional-6-debuginfo -c rhel-i386-server-optional-fastrack-6 -c rhel-i386-server-optional-fastrack-6-debuginfo -c rhel-i386-server-supplementary-6 -c rhel-i386-server-supplementary-6-debuginfo -c rhn-tools-rhel-i386-server-6 -c rhn-tools-rhel-i386-server-6-debuginfo

For minimum required RHEL-6 channels:

Sync only base channel, supplementary and RHN-tools channel.

# /usr/bin/satellite-sync -c rhel-x86_64-server-6 -c rhel-x86_64-server-supplementary-6 -c rhn-tools-rhel-x86_64-server-6

For RHEL-5 channels:

# /usr/bin/satellite-sync -c rhel-x86_64-server-5 -c rhel-x86_64-server-vt-5 -c rhel-x86_64-server-cluster-5 -c rhel-x86_64-server-cluster-storage-5 -c rhn-tools-rhel-x86_64-server-5 -c rhel-x86_64-server-fastrack-5 -c rhel-i386-server-5 -c rhel-i386-server-cluster-5 -c rhel-i386-server-cluster-storage-5

-c rhel-i386-server-fastrack-5 -c rhel-i386-server-supplementary-5 -c rhel-i386-server-vt-5 -c rhn-tools-rhel-i386-server-5

Note: If no options are included, satellite-sync synchronizes all channels that already exist in the Satellite's database.

Keep in mind that the --channel option requires the channel label, not its name. For instance, use "rhel-i386-as-3" not "Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 i386." Use the --list-channels option to obtain a list of all channels by label. All displayed channels are available for importing and synchronizing.

6.2.2. Preparing for Import from Local Media

To perform the RHN Satellite import, the following prerequisites must be met:

• The RHN Satellite installation must have been performed successfully.
• The Red Hat Network Channel Content ISOs or RHN Satellite Exporter data must be available, or the Satellite must have access to the Internet and the RHN website.

Note: There are 13 Channel Content ISOs available each of 4GB in size (means 13*4=52GB content).

Note: Although it is possible to conduct the import directly from the RHN website, this should be done only if Channel Content ISOs are not available. It takes a long time to populate a channel from scratch over the Internet. For this reason, Red Hat urges you to use ISOs, if they are available, for initial import.

6.2.2.1. Preparing Channel Content ISOs

Channel Content ISOs are special collections that contain both packages and XML dumps of metadata. The ISO images can be downloaded from the RHN website on a machine connected to the Internet and then transferred to the Satellite.

To download, follow the process:

1. Login to RHN > Downloads > Channels.

On the Full Software Channel page, Under Filter Product Channel choose Red Hat Network Products then click Filter.

When results are returned, expand RHEL 6 and you should see Satellite. 

Click on the RHN Satellite channel, making sure to select the Satellite channel that corresponds to your version of Satellite.

Look to the right and you should see x86_64 and any other architecture. Click on the x86_64.

Then, Click the Downloads tab and use the instructions on the page to obtain the Channel Content ISOs, available by version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Scroll down to View Base Channel Content ISOs for Satellite and expand.

Locate the Base channel you want and expand, then download all the ISO images. 

For example, locate  RHEL 6 (x86_64) + EUS + AUS + RHN Proxy/Tools + Supplementary (Base 2011-12-11) and download all ISOs listed underneath it.

Once finished, the administrator should delete the temporary directory and all of its contents. Follow these steps:

1. Log into the machine as root.
2. Insert the first Channel Content ISO that has been burned to disc.
3. Create a directory in /mnt/ to store the file(s) with the command:

# mkdir /mnt/import/

4. Mount the ISO file from within the directory containing it using the command:

# mount iso_filename /mnt/import -o loop

5. Create a target directory for the files, such as:

# mkdir /var/rhn-sat-import/

6. This sample command assumes the administrator wants to copy the contents of the ISO (mounted in /mnt/import/) into /var/rhn-sat-import/:

# cp -ruv /mnt/import/* /var/rhn-sat-import/

7. Then unmount /mnt/import in preparation for the next CD or ISO:

# umount /mnt/import

8. Repeat these steps for each Channel Content ISO of every channel to be imported.

 

6.3.2. Synchronizing Errata and Packages via Local Media

For customers who cannot connect their Satellite directly to RHN, Red Hat recommends downloading Channel Content ISOs to a separate, Internet-connected system and then transferring them to the Satellite. For ease of import, we recommend that the data be copied from media directly into a common repository.

# cp -rv /mnt/cdrom/* /var/rhn-sat-sync/

Then, the following command:

# /usr/bin/satellite-sync -c rhel-x86_64-server-6 -c rhel-x86_64-server-supplementary-6 

-c rhn-tools-rhel-x86_64-server-6 --mount-point=/var/rhn-sat-sync

Perform this for every channel you require to import. This can be used to perform the sync process described above, using the dump files in /var/rhn-sat-sync to perform the necessary comparisons and imports.

  

You need to take care of some things while creating the admin user for the first time.

Set properly running email id in Email section and the send mail server should be configured correctly.

Also select the options for the required notifications.

Also set the correct time zone for the server as time synchronization is must for both the server and client systems in order to perform actions.

If you have forgotten to change the time zone while creating the admin user, go to:

Users -> User list -> Active -> admin.

Go to:

Preferences -> User

Go to Preferences -> Locals

And select the correct time zone.

Now restart the satellite server.

To perform some actions on the client system, go to:

System -> Overview.

Under System column, click on your client system.

It will show details and other informations about client system.

Here you will see the “Packages”. Click on it.

You will be presented with list of the packages presented in the channel.

Now, you can select a particular package or all the packages available you want to be installed on the client system.

In the end of the page, click on “Upgrade Packages”.

In the next page you will be asked about the action schedule time. You can select both options according to your needs and click on “confirm”.

Now, to check the scheduled action, go to:

Schedule tab -> Pending actions.

To get more information about it, click on the link available under the Action link.

You will find more information in the “In Progress Systems” link.

Now, the selected process will be applied on the system.

You can also schedule a client system reboot. For that

Create directory on the client system and make directory and a file.

go to:

Checkout 2nd part of the topic also:

RHN Satellite - Client configuration (RHEL 6):
http://rohitchauhanit.blogspot.in/2015/11/rhn-satellite-client-configuration-rhel.html