Create a Volume Instance

Updated

Introduction

A volume instance provides key services to the edge nodes, such as storing the applications, storing data generated by the apps, and enabling apps on the same node to share data with each other. 

This article describes the process of creating a volume instance by selecting a type (Content Tree or Block Storage) and other configuration options.

Important: When deploying an application to an edge node, it’s important to consider how it will handle persistent data. If your application requires data persistence, then you should configure a volume instance accordingly. If the application instance does not have any persistent data requirements, then the content tree will be set up automatically.

Prerequisites

This is a series of articles. You will likely follow them in this order.

  1. Volume Instance Overview
  2. Create a Volume Instance - You are here!
  3. Manage a Volume Instance
  4. Use the ZEDEDA CLI to Manage a Volume Instance

Add the Volume Instance

You can deploy many volume instances onto a single edge node, and each of your edge apps may be connected to many volume instances.

  1. Hover on Library in the side nav on the left of the page.
  2. Click Volume Instances.
  3. Click the Add icon at the top right of your page.
  4. Continue on to the configuration topics as needed, such as configure the volume instance identity. 
  5. Click Add when finished.

Configure the Volume Instance Identity

  1. Enter the volume instance Name.
    This is unique across the enterprise and cannot be changed.
  2. Enter the volume instance Title.
    This value is not used by the ZEDEDA Cloud system. It’s offered to give you more flexibility in organizing your enterprise. It can be changed after you create the object.
  3. Enter a Description.
    You or other admins can use this to understand the purpose of the volume instance or any important details about it.
  4. Continue on to configure the volume instance details.

Configure the Volume Instance Details

There are two types of volume instances: Content Tree and Block Storage. In general, Content Tree volume instances are intended for immutable images (meaning images that are static and cannot be modified, like an Ubuntu ISO on a DVD). For a discussion of which one to choose, see the use cases in the Volume Instances Overview.

Content Tree instances

To configure the content tree instance details, complete the following steps.

  1. After you configure the volume instance identity, configure the details by setting the volume instance Type to Content Tree (assuming this volume will be used for immutable application images that are static).
  2. Select your Edge Node from the dropdown menu.
  3. In the Access Mode, select Read - Any application that mounts this volume can read from it, but can't make any changes or write data to it.
  4. Select your Image from the dropdown menu. This is the immutable application image (like an Ubuntu ISO) that you want to store in this volume. This (read-only) base image should be pulled from your remote storage (like AWS S3 or your private repository) and made available on the edge device.
  5. Enter the Label from the dropdown menu. Labels are used for the tag field when defining a volume instance in the edge app in the marketplace. See the discussion under step 2 of configure the drives under Add a Container as an Edge App Type. 
  6. Click Add.

Block Storage instances

There are two types of volume instances: Content Tree instances and Block Storage instances. In general, Block Storage volume instances are intended for mutable images (meaning log files and other data will need read and write access to the volume). For a discussion of which one to choose, see the use cases in the Volume Instances Overview.

To configure the block storage instance details, complete the following steps.

  1. After you configure the volume instance identity, configure the details by setting the volume instance Type to Block Storage (assuming this volume will be used for mutable application images).
  2. Select your Edge Node from the dropdown menu.
  3. Set the Encrypted checkbox to Yes. The data stored on the drive will be encrypted to help protect sensitive information.
  4. In the Access Mode select one of the following:
    • Read - Any application that mounts this volume can read from it, but can't make any changes or write data to it. Intended for deploying base application images or shared configuration files that should not be changed during runtime.
    • Read Write -  Any application that mounts this volume can read from and write to the volume. This is for regular application storage where an app needs to save data, logs, or modify its own files.
    • Multi-Read, Single Write - This is handled the same as Read, Write. Any application that mounts this volume can read from and write to the volume.
  5. In the Max Storage Size, select the units from the dropdown (Bytes, KB, MB, GB, TB), and then specify the maximum storage size for the volume instance. (This field sets an upper limit on how much storage space a volume instance can use on the edge device, preventing any single app from consuming all free storage on your edge device.)
  6. Enter the Label from the dropdown menu. Labels are used for the tag field when defining a volume instance in the edge app in the marketplace. See the discussion under step 2 of configure the drives under Add a Container as an Edge App Type. 
  7. Select your Content Tree from the dropdown menu. For Block Storage type volumes, instead of seeing the "Image" field, the "Content Tree" field appears. This field allows you to select a previously created Content Tree volume; this makes sense since Block Storage volumes need a base image (from the content tree) to create their working copy.
  8. Click Add.

Next Steps

This is a series of articles. You will likely follow them in this order.

  1. Volume Instance Overview
  2. Create a Volume Instance - You are here!
  3. Manage a Volume Instance
  4. Use the ZEDEDA CLI to Manage a Volume Instance

After you’ve completed the series, you might be interested in the following articles.

  1. See create an edge app in the marketplace.
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