Create a cluster on GCP

Use these steps to create a cluster with Cloudbreak.

If you experience problems during cluster creation, refer to Troubleshooting cluster creation.

Prerequisites

This prerequisite step is required for AWS GovCloud users only and is optional for other AWS users.

If you are planning to create clusters on AWS GovCloud, you must first prepare a custom image and register a custom image catalog with Cloudbreak. For instructions, refer to Custom images.

Steps

Log in to the Cloudbreak web UI.
Click the Create Cluster button and the Create Cluster wizard is displayed.
By default, the Basic view is displayed. To view advanced options, click Advanced. To learn about advanced options, refer to Advanced cluster options.

On the General Configuration page, specify the following general parameters for your cluster:


Parameter	Description
Select Credential	Choose a previously created credential.
Cluster Name	Enter a name for your cluster. The name must be between 5 and 40 characters, must start with a letter, and must only include lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens.
Region	Select the GCP region in which you would like to launch your cluster. For information on available GCP regions, refer to Cloud Locations in GCP documentation.
Platform Version	Choose the HDP or HDF version to use for this cluster. Blueprints available for this platform version will be populated under “Cluster Type” below. If you selected the HDF platform, refer to Creating HDF clusters for HDF cluster configuration tips.
Cluster Type	Choose one of the default cluster configurations, or, if you have defined your own cluster configuration via Ambari blueprint, you can choose it here. For more information on default and custom blueprints, refer to Custom blueprints.
Flex Subscription	This option will appear if you have configured your deployment for a flex subscription.

On the Hardware and Storage page, for each host group provide the following information to define your cluster nodes and attached storage. To edit this section, click on the

. When done editing, click on the

to save the changes.


Parameter	Description
Ambari Server	You must select one node for Ambari Server by clicking the button. The “Instance Count” for that host group must be set to “1”. If you are using one of the default blueprints, this is set by default.
Instance Type	Select a VM instance type. For information about instance types on GCP refer to Machine types in GCP documentation.
Instance Count	Enter the number of instances of a given type. Default is 1.
Storage Type	Select the volume type. The options are: (1) Standard persistent disks (HDD) or (2) Solid-state persistent disks (SSD). For more information about these options refer to Storage options in GCP documentation.
Encryption	Under Encryption Key, you can select an existing encryption key. For more information, refer to Disk encryption.
Attached Volumes Per Instance	Enter the number of volumes attached per instance. Default is 1.
Volume Size	Enter the size in GB for each volume. Default is 100.
Root Volume Size	This option allows you to increase or decrease the root volume size. Default is 50 GB. This option is useful if your custom image requires more space than the default 50 GB.
Use Preemptible instances	Check this option to use Google Cloud preemptive VM instances as your cluster nodes. For more information, refer to Use preemptible instances.

On the Network and Availability page, provide the following to specify the networking resources that will be used for your cluster:

Parameter

Description

Select Network

Select the virtual network in which you would like your cluster to be provisioned. You can select an existing network or create a new network.

	Note
	The Shared Networks option is only available for Google Cloud. For more information, refer to Shared networks.

Select Subnet

Select the subnet in which you would like your cluster to be provisioned. If you are using a new network, create a new subnet. If you are using an existing network, select an existing subnet.

Subnet (CIDR)

If you selected to create a new subnet, you must define a valid CIDR for the subnet. Default is 10.0.0.0/16.

	Note
	Cloudbreak uses public IP addresses when communicating with cluster nodes.

On the Gateway Configuration page, you can access gateway configuration options.
When creating a cluster, Cloudbreak installs and configures a gateway (powered by Apache Knox) to protect access to the cluster resources. By default, the gateway is enabled for Ambari; You can optionally enable it for other cluster services.
For more information, refer to Gateway configuration documentation.

On the Network Security Groups page, define security groups for each host group. You can either create new security groups and define their rules or reuse existing security groups:

	Note
	Existing security groups are only available when an existing VPC is selected.


Option	Description
New Security Group	(Default) Creates a new security group with the rules that you defined: A set of default rules is provided. You should review and adjust these default rules. If you do not make any modifications, default rules will be applied. You may open ports by defining the CIDR, entering port range, selecting protocol and clicking +. You may delete default or previously added rules using the delete icon. If you don't want to use security group, remove the default rules.
Existing Security Groups	Allows you to select an existing security group that exists in the selected region and network. This selection is disabled if no existing security groups are available in your chosen region and network.

The default experience of creating network resources such as network, subnet and security group automatically is provided for convenience. We strongly recommend you review these options and for production cluster deployments leverage your existing network resources that you have defined and validated to meet your enterprise requirements. For more information, refer to Restrict inbound access to clusters.

On the Security page, provide the following parameters:


Parameter	Description
Cluster User	You can log in to the Ambari web UI using this username. By default, this is set to `admin`.
Password	You can log in to the Ambari web UI using this password.
Confirm Password	Confirm the password.
New SSH public key	Check this option to specify a new public key and then enter the public key. You will use the matching private key to access your cluster nodes via SSH.
Existing SSH public key	This option is not available on GCP.

Click on Create Cluster to create a cluster.
You will be redirected to the Cloudbreak dashboard, and a new tile representing your cluster will appear at the top of the page.