Configure High Availability for Micetro Central

Failover instances of Micetro Central can be configured to build a high availability cluster.

Note

  • To run Micetro in High Availability mode, you must be using the MSSQL or PostgreSQL database backend for Micetro. High Availability mode is not available for other database types.

  • When there are no HA members defined or if Micetro Central has not been configured for HA, a message will appear, indicating further configuration is necessary. This documentation provides instructions on how to configure HA in the web Micetro Web Interface for versions 10.2 and above. If you need to use the management console (thick client), please follow the documentation for version 10.1 (https://menandmice.com/docs/10.1/guides/implementation/central_ha).

  • For fine-tuning the settings for the Central High Availability cluster, see Micetro Central HA Tweaks.

Linux

  1. On the existing (or designated as primary) server running Central, edit the preferences file in /var/mmsuite/mmcentral/preferences.cfg, adding

<ClusterMemberName value="somename"/>

to the end of the file. somename is the unique name that will identify the Central instance in the high availability cluster. (For example “1”, “primary”, or “central1”).

  1. Restart the primary Central application:

systemctl restart mmcentral

  1. Log in to the Micetro Web Interface as “administrator” and go to Admin ‣ Configuration.

  2. Select High Availability.

  3. Enter the name of the first member server to match the previously given name given, and set the priority to 10.

  4. Click Add Member.

  1. Restart Central:

systemctl restart mmcentral

  1. Log in to the Micetro Web Interface and verify that the current server is running with state “Active”.

  2. Repeat steps 3-6 to add another member to the HA configuration, but now use a priority of 20 or higher.

  1. On the newly added secondary server, install the Micetro Central application. If it’s already installed, make sure it’s stopped by using (as root):

systemctl stop mmcentral
systemctl status mmcentral

  1. Copy the /var/mmsuite/mmcentral/preferences.cfg file from the first server to the second and change the ClusterMemberName value to contain the name of the secondary server that was set up previously. Save the file and exit.

  2. Start Central on the secondary server:

systemctl start mmcentral

  1. Verify that you now have 2 servers: one primary, one secondary in the HA cluster.

  2. Create a round robin DNS name for the high availability setup. This involves creating two A records with the same name, each with the IP address of the primary and secondary server.

Note

Repeat these steps for each high availability failover you’d like to add. The priority for each failover member should be unique and higher than the primary.

Proceed to Micetro Agents.

Windows

  1. In the existing (or designated as primary) server running Central, edit the preferences file preferences.cfg, adding

<ClusterMemberName value="somename"/>

to the end of the file. somename is the unique name that will identify the Central instance in the high availability cluster. (E.g. “1”, “primary”, or “central1”).

  1. Restart the primary Central application from the command line:

mmcentral.exe –stop
mmcentral.exe –start

  1. Log in to the Micetro Web Interface as “administrator” and go to Admin ‣ Configuration.

  2. Select High Availability.

  3. Enter the name of the first member server to match the name previously given, and set the priority to 10.

  4. Click Add Member.

  1. Restart the Central application from the command line:

mmcentral.exe –stop
mmcentral.exe –start

  1. Log in to the Micetro Web Interface and verify that the current server is running with state “Active”.

  2. Repeat steps 3-6 to add another member to the HA configuration, but now use a priority of 20 or higher.

  1. On the newly added secondary server, install the Micetro Central application. If it’s already installed, make sure it’s stopped:

  • Open the Services window by pressing Win + R, typing services.msc, and hitting Enter.

  • Locate the Micetro Central service, right-click on it, and select Stop to ensure it’s not running.

  1. Copy the C:\ProgramData\Men and Mice\Central file from the first server to the second and change the ClusterMemberName value to contain the name of the secondary that was set up previously. Save the file and exit.

  2. Start Central on the secondary server:

  • Open the Services window by pressing Win + R, typing services.msc, and hitting Enter.

  • Locate the Micetro Central service, right-click on it, and select Stop to ensure it’s not running.

  1. Verify that you now have 2 servers: one primary, one secondary in Tools ‣ Manage High availability.

  2. Create a round robin DNS name for the high availability setup. This involves creating two A records with the same name, each with the IP address of the primary and secondary server.

Note

Repeat these steps for each high availability failover you’d like to add. The priority for each failover member should be unique and higher than the primary.

Editing HA Member Options

  1. Log in to the Micetro Web Interface and go to Admin ‣ Configuration.

  2. Select High Availability.

  3. Hover over the server member and click on the ellipsis (or meatball) menu.

  4. There are three options:

  • Edit Member: Change the name or priority of the server member in the HA cluster.

  • Set Active: Set the server to be the Active member of the HA cluster manually.

  • Remove Member: Remove the server member from the HA cluster.

Proceed to Micetro Agents.