A3 Quick Start Guide


Get up and running with the A3


This is intended to be a very high-level guide to help get you started with the A3. As of Alike v7, we now support both a virtual appliance deployment, as well as using Docker directly. This article will give you details on using both. If you are not familiar with Docker, we strongly suggest you use the virtual appliance method. However, if you are experienced with Docker, we would love to get your feedback on setting up a self-hosted Docker deployment.


Also, you can view our Initial Setup video here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1qVlqD5VKI


Please report all findings (bugs, comments, requests, etc) to:

feedback@quadricsoftware.com


Important notes:

  • Users must login to the Alike UI with a QS Portal Account (NOTE: the old "alike" username will not work!).
  • Alike can be deployed directly on customer hardware using Docker
  • Q-Hybrid & Hyper-V now uses our installed QHB Agent.

Xen Specific notes:

  • Alike now deploys its own NFS SR to all defined Xen hosts
  • ABDs are provisioned on Alike NFS SR and no longer use shared Xen storage
  • All full restores (full and Instant) will use Alikes SR


Downloads


A3 VM deployment

1. Import & Boot A3 XVA

2. Login to the VM console with username/password: alike/alike

3. From the menu, setup the following:

  • IP & DNS
  • Check for update  (may take some time)
  • Backup Storage (ADS & ODS)

4. Start Alike services from menu. This step will pull the initial docker image, and requires an internet connection to complete.

5. Login to Alike UI with your QS Portal Account (Again, not the "alike" username)

(This will claim ownership of your new A3)

6. From the Alike UI, navigate to Tools->Subscription

  -Click the green \"Add\" on the Subscription page to Add your A3 (lower left)

(Note: if it says you do not own this A3, logout and login again! This is a known issue)


  -Note: it may take a few minutes for the service to sync. Click the green sync button.

   When it syncs, you will see your edition on the Dashboard page



Running Alike on a self-hosted Docker

Alike v7/A3 can run directly on Docker for advanced installations. We have tested on Debian, Ubuntu, and Alpine as base host operating systems. Windows hosts (via WSL2) have been lightly tested, and are scheduled for future certification, but should function properly.


Requirements

  • Docker version (tbd)
  • Docker-compose
  • NFS kernel support (required for Xen regardless of storage selection)
  • ADS storage presented as a folder to Alike (ADS / ODS)


To get up and running, please start with our basic docker-compse.yml.


ADS Storage

The volume mapping "/mnt/ads:/mnt/ads" is for the ADS data, and you can mount that anyway you like from the host side, making sure the "/mnt/ads" on the left is valid. It must be a valid ADS (either blank or pre-existing) in that path before the container is started. To make a blank new ADS, or to convert an old A2 ADS, you must use the a3-tool (below).


ODS Storage

If you plan on using Alike DRs Offsite Vaulting, you can configure your ODS in the same was as the ADS. The same rules apply, and you must make a new ODS via our a3-tool as well.


Data Store Creation/Conversion

With the A3, you must use the a3-tool to create or convert an older DS. The process is very quick for both.


New ADS syntax:

docker run -v /your/backup-storage/location:/ads quadricsoftware/a3-tool ads hostIp=IP.of.your.host {blockSize=XXXX}

The blocksize defaults to 2M. To set a different blocksize, you can use 2048, 4096, or 8192 (2, 4, or 8MB)

The \"hostIP\" should be the IP address that traffic outside of Docker can reach your A3. Typically this is the IP of your docker host.


Converting an A2 ADS syntax:

docker run -v /your/storage/location:/ads quadricsoftware/a3-tool convert


New ODS syntax:

docker run -v /your/offsite-storage/location:/ods quadricsoftware/a3-tool ods


Other defined volumes in Docker

The "logs", "certs", and "configs" folders are pass-through folders. Your A3 logs will be available in the logs folder when started. The "configs" and "certs" folders allow you to provide your own SSL certs, and configure the NGINX config file accordingly.