Overview of the OpenStack Provider

OpenStack is a global collaboration of developers and cloud computing technologists that produces the open source cloud computing platform for public and private clouds.

This topic contains the following sections:

Product overview

With OpenStack Provider integration with BMC Cloud Lifecycle Management, you can perform the following actions:

• Onboard and offboard a Logical Data Center.
• Register an OpenStack Provider instance.
• Provision new VMs that are based on OpenStack templates or a customized template.
• Place VMs on specific subnets.
• Start, stop, shut down, suspend, and resume provisioned VMs.
• Modify memory and CPU values of provisioned VMs.
• Add disks for provisioned VMs.
• Decommission provisioned machines.
• Extend the commission length of provisioned VMs.
• Install software on provisioned VMs (both pre- and postprovisioning).
• Add a local user on provisioned VMs (both pre- and postprovisioning).
• Manage tenant or user quota in BMC Cloud Lifecycle Management.
• Create multiple OpenStack accounts.

• Use the OpenStack public cloud (Cloudwatt).

  Note

  You must first configure the public cloud account details by using Managing multiple OpenStack accounts before configuring the cloud resources, managing the cloud service offerings, and requesting a cloud service in an OpenStack public cloud.

• Allow SSH Keypair during provisioning.

  Note

  You must define the Openstack Keypair service blueprint definition-level parameter to enable access to a VM provisioned in the OpenStack cloud (for example: Cloudwatt) using BMC Cloud Lifecycle Management. Keypairs in OpenStack cloud are used to secure access to your Linux instance (and retrieve password for Windows instances in Cloudwatt). They allow you to authenticate virtual instances created by you without using a password. A Keypair consists of a public key installed on the server to which you want to connect, and a private key specified by you.

  See Building service blueprints for OpenStack service for details.

• Use the Self Service feature. See Managing the OpenStack service offerings and Managing OpenStack services for details.
• Monitor server and tenant details of the OpenStack Provider by using the Value Dashboard. See Monitoring server and tenant usage for details.
• Request and manage OpenStack services and servers using either the legacy or the new My Cloud Services Console. See Managing the OpenStack service offerings, Managing OpenStack services and Managing OpenStack servers for details.

_{Back to top}

Supported releases of OpenStack

The following components of the OpenStack releases (along with the respective API details) are supported in BMC Cloud Lifecycle Management 4.5.00 and its service packs and patches: 

_{Back to top}

High-level tasks for setting up an OpenStack Provider

The following sections lists the high-level tasks that you must complete to set up an OpenStack Provider for a private and public cloud and initiate an OpenStack service instance.

_{Back to top}

OpenStack construct mappings

The following table lists BMC Cloud Lifecycle Management objects and describes how they correspond to OpenStack constructs:

BMC Cloud Lifecycle Management object mappings for the OpenStack Provider

_{Back to top}

Limitations

• BMC Cloud Lifecycle Management does not synchronize modified or deleted OpenStack templates.
• When you deregister an OpenStack Provider instance, the OpenStack installable resources are not removed automatically.
• Registering an OpenStack Provider instance with an incorrect OpenStack user name and password does not produce an error.
• Any operation that exceeds the poll time that is specified during provider registration fails in BMC Cloud Lifecycle Management, but is updated in the OpenStack Provider. In this situation, resources are not synchronized.

_{Back to top}