Installing Parallels Plesk Panel in Parallels Containers Environment

The section covers only the essential steps that must be performed using Parallels Containers CLI to deploy Parallels Plesk Panel, focused on creating a Container with Parallels Plesk Panel. For further details on Parallels Container CLI, or the Parallels Containers API (XML or SOAP) functionality, refer to the Parallels Containers developer documentation.

Deploying Parallels Plesk Panel in a Parallels Containers environment implies the following two stages:

1. Installing Parallels Plesk Panel application template on a hardware node.
2. Creating a Container and deploying the application from the template.

The first stage is performed on each hardware node only once: As soon as an application template is installed on a hardware node, it can be deployed to as many Containers as required. Instead of creating a new Container every time you need to deploy a Container with the Panel, there is always an option of cloning an existing Container where the Panel is installed, which acts as a sort of Template Container.

When the template is being installed on a hardware node, the core set of files is deployed, which includes definition of the application packages repository. Then, when the application is installed in a container, Parallels Containers communicates with the repository (default repository for Parallels Plesk Panel for Linux/Unix is Parallels Updates server at http://autoinstall.plesk.com) and retrieves the application packages and installs them in the container. The packages are stored in the node cache until it is cleaned up, and then the packages are retrieved form the repository again when the application is installed in the Container. To save up traffic and time, you may want to use a custom mirror of the Panel repository.

To install the Panel template on a Parallels Containers hardware node:

1. Obtain the Panel template from the Parallels Web site and upload it to the target Parallels Containers hardware node.
2. Install application templates of the Panel. If you are installing on Microsoft Windows Server 2003, also install Microsoft .NET Framework v.2.0 or later by issuing a command of the following format:

   vzpkgdeploy [-q|-v] -i <template-file>

   where

   • -q disables logging to the display and to the log file
   • -v sets the log level to the maximum possible value for this vzpkgdeploy session

   For example,

   >vzpkgdeploy -i plesk_9.5.0_20100307.efd

   >vzpkgdeploy -i dotnet2.0_frmwk-2.0.50727.42.efd

   Note: Installing extra template of the .NET Framework is required only on Windows Server 2003 (PVC 4.0, VZ 3.5.1). It is not required on Windows Server 2008 (PVC 4.5).

To create a new Container and install the Panel into it:

1. Create a container and, optionally, configure it according to your needs.

   Issue the following commands:

   vzctl create <CTID> --pkgset name [options]

   vzctl set <CTID> <setting_name> <value> [--save]

   where

   • <CTID> defines an arbitrary container ID number higher than 100, which is unique on the hardware node
   • --pkgset name denotes the OS template to be used for the Container creation
   • --save switch tells vzctl whether to save changes into the Container configuration file

     Note: For details on the Container creation and configuration options, refer to the Parallels Containers for Windows Reference Guide located at the Parallels Technology Network.

   For example, the commands below do the following:

   • create a Container with ID 444 with IP 192.0.2.44, based on the OS template w2k3
   • set a disk space limit to 4+ gigabytes, private memory limit to 1 gigabyte and Administrator's password to "P4sSw0rd"
   • enable managing the Container using Web browser (by prohibiting offline management with the "--offline_management no" option)

     Note: It is very important that you set this option exactly as in the example. Otherwise, the Panel will not be accessible through a Web browser.

     >vzctl create 444 --pkgset w2k3 --ipadd 192.0.2.44

     >vzctl set 444 --save --diskspace 4500000 --vprvmem 1024 --userpasswd Administrator:P4sSw0rd --offline_management no

2. Start the newly created Container:

   >vzctl start <CTID>

3. Install the Microsoft .NET framework version 2.0 or later into your Container:

   vzpkgadd <CTID> <dotnet_template_name>

   For example,

   >vzpkgadd 444 dotnet2.0_frmwk-2.0.50727.42/20070613

4. Install the Parallels Panel template into the Container:

   vzpkgadd <CTID> <panel_template_name>

   For example,

   >vzpkgadd 444 Plesk_9.5.0_20100307

To clone a Container:

Issue a command of the following format:

vzmlocal -C <CT_List>

<CT_List> = <source_CTID>:<dest_CTID>[:<dest_private>] [options]

You should specify the source Container ID (<source_CTID>) and the destination Container ID (<dest_CTID>). Specifying the destination Container private area path (<dest_private>) is optional; it allows you to override the default path of X:\vz\private\<CT_ID>. For details on the command options, refer to the Parallels Containers for Windows Reference Guide located at the Parallels Technology Network.

For example, to clone the Container with the Panel created during the previous procedure:

>vzmlocal -C 444:445