vRealize Operations for Horizon collects performance data from monitored software and hardware objects in your View environment and provides predictive analysis and real-time information about problems in your View infrastructure.
Following our previous vROps installation guide we have installed an vROps instance on Windows Server. The current guide should be applicable for any of the implementation modes of the vROps deployed on Linux or via the OVA.
System Requirements
Horizon View adapter is compatible with the following components:
- VMware View 5.0 or 5.1.x
- VMware Horizon View 5.2.x or 5.3.x
- VMware Horizon 6.0.x with View
- VMware vRealize Operations Manager 6.0
Adapter Software Requirements
- vRealize Operations Manager 6.0
- Licenses that enable vRealize Operations for Horizon 6.0 and vRealize Operations Manager 6.0
Broker Agent Software Requirements
- View Connection Server 5.0 or later
- Microsoft .NET Framework version 3.5
- View Connection Server 5.3: PowerShell 3.0
- View Connection Server 5.2 or earlier: PowerShell 2.0
Two notes here:
- View Connection Server 6.0 uses the View API instead of PowerShell.
- You cannot install the broker agent on a 32-bit View Connection Server 5.0 host
Desktop Agent Software Requirements
- In Horizon View 5.2 and later and Horizon 6.0.x with View environments, the vRealize Operations for Horizon desktop agent is installed as part of the View Agent installation.
- If you have a View 5.0 or 5.1 environment, you must manually install the desktop agent on your desktops.
Let’s get started with the installation
We are going to continue where we have finished in our vROps installation article, but first we need to download the necessary files from the VMware download page. What we need is the adapter apk file, broker agent and desktop agent as an option in case we use an old View agent which doesn’t include the vROps agent inside it. Here is the naming of the files:
VMware-vcops-viewadapter-6.0.0-buildnumber.pak – this is the adapter file and must be installed/deployed on via the vROps web console;
Vmware-v4vbrokeragent-x86_64-6.0.0-buildnumber.exe – this is the broker agent and must be installed on your connection/replica servers;
VMware-v4vdesktopagent-6.0-buildnumber.exe – this is the desktop agent and must be installed on View 5.0/5.1 managed desktops, because the View agent 5.0/5.1 doesn’t include the vROps features.
The Adapter installation should be done via vROps web console. How to reach it, you can check vROps installation guide.
Navigate to Home -> Administration
After that go to Solutions page where you will see the build-in vCenter adapter.
Click on the green plus and the following window will appear:
Go to Browse a solution… button and select the apk file which you have downloaded from the VMware download page. Once you select it information about it should appear – Name, Description and Version. Click Next to continue…
Read and accept the agreement in order to continue. Click Next and the installation will start. Once it is completed you should see a bit more about the process.
By clicking finish you will complete the adapter installation. The next step is to configure it, so it can work with your Horizon View block/pod.
To start the configuration, first click on the Horizon View and then on the Config button (the red arrow)
First you should setup a Display Name, Description and Adapter ID.
After that you must add credentials which contains a credentials name and a server key. Write down the selected key, because we will need it on the next phase of the installtion/configuration
Save the Settings at the end and a validation will be done. If everything is fine you should see a screen similar to this one:
vROps View Broker Agent installation and configuration
Login to your View Connection server and navigate to the agent installation file
The file which we should use is the broker agent. Double click on it to start the installation
Click Next to continue…
Read and Accept the EULA to continue. Click Next…
Keep the Launch the VMware vRealize … check box marked and the configuration utility will appear right after the installation is completed. Click Install to start the installation and Finish after that.
Once the installtion is completed we should Pair the broker agent and the vROps with View Adapter. Type the vROps server IP or FQDN and click Pair.
You will be prompt to enter twice the password which we chose during the Adapter credential configuration.
A verification will be done after you click Next and if the vROps server accept the password you will see a window like this:
Next step is to enter a View Administrator credentials, which is required for configuration and data collecting.
Since vROps for View is able to read and anylize your View events, it will ask for credentials about the database where the events are stored. This information can be taken from View Administrator
Use the same user name and password to complete the Broker Agent configuration
You can include/exclude desktop pools from monitoring if you want. If nothing is selected, everything will be monitored. You can also use vROps for View to monitor your App and Hosted app pools.
On the last step, just verify and click Finish
After completion of the process you will have chance to validate and change any of the inputs done during the Broker Agent configuration
If nothing for change, just click Apply and close the window.
To validate the Adapter and Broker Agent installation is successful, go back to the vROps web console and check Collection Status. If it is Data receiving, then the process is successful. Give it some time to get some useful data and you can start using it for operational purposes.
On our next post will go through the build in dashboards and the metrics which we can monitor through it.
Nikolay Nikolov
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What happens if you are using vROps HA (Master/Master Replica) and you pair your connection server to the Master vROps and the Master fails or goes offline? Does the Master Replica provide redundancy in this configuration since the connection server is paired via IP/FQDN to the Master only? Thanks!
Hello LYGHTNIN,
during my tests the View adapter couldn’t switch to the master replica automatically when the master node went down. Once you lose the master you must go and pair the broker agent and the replica vROps again. I see two solutions for automatic failover the View adapter, but I couldn’t find any official information in the product documentation.
1. Use load balancer and pair the broker agent with the vROps using the balancer IP or FQDN
2. If you have more than one Connection servers, you can register one CS with the Master and the second one with the Master Replica. (this is what I’ve tested in my lab and looks like working well).
I will continue digging and once I have confirmed answers, I will publish another article with my findings.
Cheers,
That’s what I thought – you’d have to pair it again. So you have a Standard CS1 –Paired–> Master vROps and CS2 (Standard or Replica?) –Paired–> Master Replica vRops? Thanks for the reply!
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Thank you for this, it’s strange how the offical VROPS install guide mentions the .pak installation but not the broker configuration (or at least it did when I went through it).
If you have two sites but both managed by the vcenter do you need to install the broker on a CS for each site or will one installation do?
One per site is the answer so I can see all datastores 🙂
Hi ITSTIMETOGEEK,
if both of the sites are managed by one vCenter, one broker agent is enough. Also after I write my article I found out that actually it is not a supported configuration to have two broker agents install on two View Connection servers which are part of a single View Pod. There is no redundancy provided for the broker agent at this point.
I hope to be added soon that’s why we should check the latest documentation before every design/build in order to provide accurate information.
Thanks for your comment!