Use MAAS to automate bare metal provisioning

Before you get started!

Welcome to OpenStack!

In this series of tutorials, we will walk you through all the necessary steps to install, configure and get started with OpenStack. Using just three dedicated machines, you will learn how to deploy OpenStack in highly available, multi-node, production-grade clusters.

This tutorial is the fifth in the “Phase 2 - Deploy OpenStack” series.

Explore other tutorials >

What is OpenStack?

OpenStack is a collection of open source projects designed to work together to form the basis of a cloud. OpenStack can be used for both private and public cloud implementation.

What is Sunbeam?

Sunbeam is an upstream project under the governance of the OpenInfra Foundation (OIF), which was created to lower the barrier to entry for OpenStack, simplify its adoption process, and set the foundation for an autonomous private cloud. Sunbeam uses cloud-native architecture and total bottom-up automation to make OpenStack more accessible to newcomers and to help users get to grips with the platform immediately.

What is MicroStack?

MicroStack (based on Sunbeam) is an OpenStack distribution designed for small-scale cloud environments. While it is available with full commercial support from Canonical, it can also be self-deployed with no friction, effectively eliminating the need for a paid consulting engagement. MicroStack currently includes core OpenStack services only, but is expected to evolve quickly to ensure full feature parity with Canonical’s Charmed OpenStack soon.

In this tutorial, you will learn how to:

• Use MAAS documentation to get familiar with MAAS

You will only need:

• Theoretical knowledge of OpenStack gained by completing all tutorials in the “Phase I - Learning OpenStack” series

In all the tutorials in this series so far, we have assumed that machines are already installed with Ubuntu and configured. But what if your cloud is going to consist of tens or hundreds of machines? In this case you would definitely like to automate the provisioning process of those bare metal machines.

Canonical’s reference tool for bare metal automation is MAAS. MAAS automatically discovers all physical machines available on the network, configures them and enables on-demand provisioning with an operating system of your choice, effectively turning your data centre into a bare metal cloud.

On the other hand, MAAS installation and configuration comes with its own challenges and learning, and MAAS on its own is not part of the Sunbeam project. Thus, in the next tutorial - “6. Deploy at scale” - we’re going to assume that your MAAS instance is already up and running, and so that your machines are commissioned and ready be deployed.

You can refer to the MAAS documentation to get familiar with those concepts. The link attached includes comprehensive tutorials on how to get started with MAAS for bare metal automation.

Congratulations! You have reached the end of this tutorial.

You can now move to the next tutorial - “6. Deploy at scale” - or explore other tutorials.

In this tutorial, you have learnt how to:

• Use MAAS documentation to get familiar with MAAS

Where to go from here?

• Refer to Sunbeam documentation
• Join the community and ask questions
• Report a bug in Sunbeam
• Explore Charmed OpenStack