Skip to content

OpenStack

OpenStack is a free and open-source software platform for cloud computing, primarily deployed as infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS). It allows users to create and manage large groups of virtual private servers in a data center. OpenStack is designed to be scalable and flexible, making it suitable for both public and private cloud environments. OpenStack is the basis for Sunet's Virtual Data Center (VDC) offering.

OpenStack is composed of several interrelated components that control different aspects of cloud computing, such as compute, storage, and networking. Some of the key components include:

  • Nova: The compute service that manages and provisions virtual machines.
  • Ceph S3: The object storage service that allows users to store and retrieve large amounts of unstructured data.
  • Cinder: The block storage service that provides persistent storage for virtual machines.
  • Neutron: The networking service that manages and configures network connectivity for virtual machines.
  • Keystone: The identity service that provides authentication and authorization for OpenStack services.
  • Horizon: The dashboard that provides a web-based user interface for managing OpenStack resources.

Projects

The central unit of abstraction in OpenStack is the project, which is a container for resources such as virtual machines, storage volumes, and networks. Projects are used to organize and manage resources within OpenStack, and they can be associated with specific users or groups. Each project has its own set of resources and permissions, allowing for isolation and control over access to resources. Users can belong to multiple projects, and they can switch between projects to access different sets of resources. Projects are a fundamental part of OpenStack's multi-tenancy model, enabling multiple users and organizations to share the same OpenStack deployment while maintaining separation and security of their resources.

As a user, you will have access to one or more projects, and you can switch between them to manage different sets of resources. Each project may have its own permissions and access controls, so it's important to understand which project you are currently working in when managing your resources. Typically a project is associated with a specific team or department within an organization, and it allows for better organization and management of resources within OpenStack. It is possible to have as many projects as needed, and they can be created and managed by administrators using the self-service portal. There is no additional cost for creating multiple projects, only the aggregate resource usage of all projects will be billed to the organization.

Getting Started

To get started with OpenStack, you can follow these steps:

  1. Access the OpenStack dashboard: The dashboard (Horizon) is at dashboard.sunetvdc.se. Log in with your institutional account through eduGAIN, or an eduID account, as described in Authentication. The web interface lets you manage your projects, instances, storage, and networks, and it is the self-service portal for the credentials you use with the CLI and automation tools.

  2. Create virtual machines: Once you are logged in, you can create virtual machines (instances) using the Nova service. You choose from the available images and flavors to size your instances. See Launching instances.

  3. Manage storage: You can create and manage block storage volumes with Cinder and attach them to your instances, and you can store and retrieve unstructured data in the object storage (S3) service. See Block storage and Object storage.

  4. Configure networking: You can set up and manage networks with Neutron, creating networks, subnets, and routers to connect your instances. In particular, if you need fixed IP addresses for a service, create these separately from the VMs so they are preserved even if the VMs are deleted. See Networking.