How to setup IBM Instana integration with IBM Cloud Infrastructure Center on IBM Z and IBM LinuxONE 

Authors: Shrey Bhatnagar, Chandu Sadina 

Abstract 

IBM® Cloud Infrastructure Center provides a robust foundation for managing virtualized infrastructure, and its integration with IBM Instana® Observability (Instana) further elevates monitoring capabilities. Instana offers real-time visibility into applications and services, providing actionable insights for performance optimization. This blog guides you through the step-by-step process of configuring Instana to work with Cloud Infrastructure Center, ensuring seamless observability and efficient infrastructure management. 

Introduction 

In today’s cloud-driven world, effective infrastructure monitoring is essential for ensuring optimal performance and reliability. By integrating Instana with Cloud Infrastructure Center, organizations can gain enhanced visibility into their cloud environment, quickly detect anomalies, and boost operational efficiency.

Prerequisites: 

Before starting the setup, please ensure the following:

• Pre-Step 1: A functional Cloud Infrastructure Center setup is required to install the Instana agent and enable Instana-based observability for Cloud Infrastructure Center. For more details, refer to the IBM Cloud Infrastructure Center page.
• Pre-Step 2: Instana credentials are necessary to use the Instana product. For more information, visit the IBM Instana page.

Configuration Steps:

Step 1: Log in to Instana using your credentials.

Step 2: Confirm that the OpenStack sidebar is visible in the Instana user interface.

Step 3: Agent Installation

Step 4: Enabling Instana Configuration on the Cloud Infrastructure Center Management Node

In this case, the Cloud Infrastructure Center management node also serves as the Instana agent node.

To modify the configuration on the Instana agent in the Cloud Infrastructure Center setup:

1. Navigate to the configuration file using one of the following paths:

   cd /opt/instana/agent/etc/instana/
   

   or

   cd /etc/instana/
   

2. Open the configuration.yaml file in this directory.

3. Search for "openstack" in the file, then add the required configuration details as shown below:

   #IBMOpenStack
   com.instana.plugin.ibmopenstack:
     remote:  # multiple configurations supported
       - host: '172.26.6.39'  # hostname or IP of IBM OpenStack
         port: '5000'  # port number to connect to IBM OpenStack
         user: 'root'  # username to access the IBM OpenStack
         password: '*****'  # password to access the IBM OpenStack
         project: 'ibm-default'  # project to access the IBM OpenStack
         poll_rate: 15  # in seconds. Default is 15 seconds. If a lower value is specified, the default will be used.
         availabilityZone: 'OpenStack Remote Monitoring'
   

Note: In a multi-node cluster environment, select the virtual IP (VIP) of the cluster as the host.

Step 5: Import a Self-Signed Certificate to the Java TrustStore in Cloud Infrastructure Center Setup

To import the self-signed certificate into the Java TrustStore, run the following command in the Cloud Infrastructure Center setup:

keytool -import -keystore /opt/instana/agent/jvm/lib/security/cacerts -storepass changeit -file /etc/pki/tls/certs/icic.crt

When prompted, type "yes" to accept the certificate.

Step 6: Add a Systemd Service for JVM Launch with a Self-Signed Certificate on the Instana Agent Cloud Infrastructure Center Setup

1. Navigate to the systemd service directory:

   cd /etc/systemd/system/instana-agent.service.d/
   

2. If the environment.conf file is not present, create it by copying the default configuration file:

   sudo cp custom-environment.conf environment.conf
   

3. Open the environment.conf file and add the following content:

   [Service]
   Environment="JAVA_OPTS=-Djavax.net.ssl.trustStore=/opt/instana/agent/jvm/lib/security/cacerts -Djavax.net.ssl.trustStoreType=jks"
   

Step 7: Restart Services on the Instana Agent

To restart the Instana agent services in the ICIC setup, run the following commands:

systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl restart instana-agent

Note: After converting to a multi-node cluster, you will need to re-execute Step 5 and Step 7 to ensure proper communication with Instana.

To do this, run the following commands:

keytool -delete -alias mykey -keystore /opt/instana/agent/jvm/lib/security/cacerts -storepass changeit
keytool -import -keystore /opt/instana/agent/jvm/lib/security/cacerts -storepass changeit -file /etc/pki/tls/certs/icic.crt
systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl restart instana-agent

After completing the above steps, the OpenStack section in Instana will display the output as shown in the screenshots below.