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Planning and Installing Liquidware Stratusphere

What is Liquidware Stratusphere Product:

Is a physical and virtual desktop assessment, monitoring, and diagnostics solution. It is comprised of 2 solutions.

Stratusphere FIT: Is an assessment tool that allows you to evaluate your existing environment on how resources are currently being consumed.

Stratusphere UX: is a monitoring and diagnostic desktop solution that will provide you with desktop user experience. It will also provide data for the entire desktop infrastructure from endpoints, hosts, network, and storage.

Planning Installation of Liquidware Stratusphere

The Stratusphere product has 2 required components and 2 optional components.

Required Components:


Stratusphere Hub Appliance: Is the central management and reporting of the stratusphere platform.

Connector ID Key: Is the software installed on each endpoint that collects metrics and sends it to the hub appliance.

Optional Components:


Stratusphere Database Appliance: Is used to store information when you have more than 1000 Connector ID keys.

Network Station: Is used to capture information about virtual networking. It will give you metrics on network latency, and response time for network connections.

For sizing requirements use the sizing guide provided by Liquidware labs at http://www.liquidwarelabs.com/products/stratusphere-sizing-guide

Network communication between stratusphere components use TCP connections. I have listed below the required ports that need to be open between components.

Component and port number
Description
Stratusphere HUB TCP/22 (SSH)
Console access to Stratusphere Hub
Stratusphere Hub TCP/443 (HTTPS)
Management UI
Stratusphere Hub TCP/5501 (CID Key)
Connector ID Key Communications
Stratusphere Hub UDP/5501 (CID Key)
Connector ID Key Communications
Stratusphere Hub TCP/5502
Network Station Communications
Stratusphere Hub TCP/5444
Internal Reporting Database Access (SHA)
Stratusphere Database TCP/5432
External Reporting Database Access (SDA)
Stratusphere Database TCP/22 (SSH)
Console access to Stratusphere Database
Stratusphere Network Station TCP/5502
Policy Communications
Stratusphere Network Station TCP/22
Console access to Stratusphere Station

How to install and configure the Liquidware Stratusphere Hub Appliance (On VMware vSphere)


  1. Download software from http://www.liquidwarelabs.com/download
  2. Select correct virtual appliance option
  3. Deploy ovf template (Process)
    1. Inside vCenter select File --->  deploy ovf template
    2. Click the browse button to ovf file location then select next
    3. Next again
    4. Name VM and then select folder location where the VM will be located then select next
    5. Select Cluster where the VM will be located then select next
    6. Select the host and then select next
    7. Select the datastore where you want the VM to be stored then select next
    8. Select disk format (Liquidware recommends user Think provision due to a database being on the appliance) then select next.
    9. Select the network label that the VM will communicate on then select next
    10. Then click finish
  4. Power the VM up when the ovf import process is finished
  5. Next configure IP and host name
    1. At the console of the Stratusphere hub press enter to login
      1. Default login info
        1. Username: ssconsole
        2. Password: sspassword
    2. On the LWL hub menu select N for network
    3. Enter Y to change the current configuration then hit enter
    4. Enter host name for the Hub then hit enter
    5. Enter DNS name  for the Hub then hit enter
    6. Enter No when it asks if you want to use DHCP then hit enter
    7. Enter IP address of the Hub then hit enter
    8. Enter netmask of the Hub then hit enter
    9. Enter Default gateway for the hub then hit enter
    10. Enter the primary DNS server for the hub then hit enter
    11. Enter secondary DNS server for the hub then hit enter
    12. For IPv6 enter no then hit enter
    13. For IPv6 address enter skip then hit enter
    14. Enter yes for enable NTP service then hit enter
    15. Enter NTP server then hit enter
    16. When it asks you to save changes enter write then hit enter
  6. Next go to a browser and enter in the host name that you entered above
  7. Log into the web interface as the local account
    1. Default login info
      1. Username: ssadmin
      2. Password: sspassword
  8. Client on the I agree button for the license
  9. For the Registration info page enter your information
    1. If you have a product license key enter it here or generate an evaluation license
      1. Evaluation key is good for 15 days and 5 desktops
    2. Then select the button get started
  10. Next go to the configuration page
    1. Configure the time zone info by selecting your time zone from the drop down
    2. Configure your SMTP Server this will allow you to send alerts and report notifications

How to install and configure the Liquidware Stratusphere Database Appliance (On VMware vSphere)

  1. Download software from http://www.liquidwarelabs.com/download
  2. Select correct virtual appliance option
  3. Deploy ovf template (Process)
    1. Inside vCenter select File --->  deploy ovf template
    2. Click the browse button to ovf file location then select next
    3. Next again
    4. Name VM and then select folder location where the VM will be located then select next
    5. Select Cluster where the VM will be located then select next
    6. Select the host and then select next
    7. Select the datastore where you want the VM to be stored then select next
    8. Select disk format (Liquidware recommends user Think provision due to a database being on the appliance) then select next.
    9. Select the network label that the VM will communicate on then select next
    10. Then click finish
  4. Power the VM up when the ovf import process is finished
  5. Next configure IP and host name
    1. At the console of the Stratusphere hub press enter to login
      1. Default login info
        1. Username: ssconsole
        2. Password: sspassword
    2. On the LWL hub menu select N for network
    3. Enter Y to change the current configuration then hit enter
    4. Enter host name for the Hub then hit enter
    5. Enter DNS name  for the Hub then hit enter
    6. Enter No when it asks if you want to use DHCP then hit enter
    7. Enter IP address of the Hub then hit enter
    8. Enter netmask of the Hub then hit enter
    9. Enter Default gateway for the hub then hit enter
    10. Enter the primary DNS server for the hub then hit enter
    11. Enter secondary DNS server for the hub then hit enter
    12. For IPv6 enter no then hit enter
    13. For IPv6 address enter skip then hit enter
    14. Enter yes for enable NTP service then hit enter
    15. Enter NTP server then hit enter
    16. When it asks you to save changes enter write then hit enter

Connecting your hub and database appliances


It is recommended that you start this process with backing up both the database and the hub appliances.

  1. Open the console to your database appliance
  2. Next hit Alt + F2 to login to the appliance
  3. Default login info
    1. Username: ssconsole
    2. Password: sspassword
  4. At the LWL database appliance menu select D (Database VM Utilities)
  5. At the database VM utilities menu select J (Join this DB to a HUB)
  6. Enter IP address of Hub appliance
  7. Enter Yes to copy database from the HUB
  8. Enter the IP address of the Hub Appliance
  9. Enter Yes to reboot the hub to complete the process of joining the Hub and database appliance.
  10. Then Enter Q to quit Database VM Utilities
  11. Then enter Q to quit LWL database appliance menu


Installing and configuring the Connector ID key software on your clients

Before you select a install option you must first download the software package from your Hub Appliance
  1. Login your Hub and go to the Administration page.
  2. Make sure you are at the Hub administration tab and then select the Connector ID keys tab
  3. On this tab you will see 2 sub tabs you will want to select the connector ID key software tab.
  4. On this tab download the version that corresponds with the clients you will install on.
Now that you have downloaded the software you have a few options for installing

  1. For standalone installs you can just execute the exe on your system
  2. For Citrix PVS, VMware view (Instant clones or linked clones) you can install the software in the base image and then perform the image prep script.
    1. For VMware View Gold Images do the following
      1. After installing the connector ID key software run the following batch file.
        1. On 32-bit Operating Systems:
          C:\Program Files\Liquidware Labs\Connector ID\admin scripts\VMwareView_MasterImagePrep.bat
        2. On 64-bit Operating Systems:
          C:\Program Files (x86)\Liquidware Labs\Connector ID\admin scripts\VMwareView_MasterImagePrep.bat
      2. Next inside view make sure to set a post script.
        1. On 32-bit Operating Systems:
          C:\Program Files\Liquidware Labs\Connector ID\admin scripts\VMWareView_PostSyncScript.bat
        2. On 64-bit Operating Systems:
          C:\Program Files (x86)\Liquidware Labs\Connector ID\admin scripts\VMWareView_PostSyncScript.bat
    2. For Citrix PVS gold image do the following
      1. After installing the connector ID key software run the following batch file.
        1. C:\Program Files\Liquidware Labs\Connector Id\admin scripts\ProvisioningServer_MasterImagePrep.bat
  3. If you have persistent desktops you can use a tool like SCCM ( SCCM is out of scope for this post but I wanted to mention that this is an option)

You now have all the requirements in place to start using the Liquidware Stratusphere product.
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