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Version: v23.0

Azure Load Balancer Quick Start Guide

This quick start guide describes how to set up and configure a load balancing solution for DxEnterprise running in Azure. Using this guide, the user will create an availability set and virtual machines, configure applications, and create and configure an Azure Load Balancer that will allow access to the resources assigned to the DxEnterprise Vhost.

Prerequisites​

Create the Availability Set and Virtual Machines​

Create the Availability Set​

  1. Log in to the Azure Management Portal.

  2. Search for Availability Sets using the top search bar, then select Add.

  3. Assign the availability set to a resource group and give it a name.

    Create the availability set

  4. Select Review + Create in the bottom-left corner, then select Create.

Create the Virtual Machines​

  1. Search for DxEnterprise in the top search bar and select one of the DxEnterprise offers available under Marketplace.

    licensing

    DxEnterprise for Availability Groups (AGS) comes pre-configured with a pay-as-you-go license. If you do not want to use that image, select DxEnterprise (BYOL) instead.

    For BYOL images, a valid DxEnterprise license will be required later in this guide. A fully featured Developer Edition is available free for non-production use. To purchase DxEnterprise software for production workloads, visit the DH2i Store.

  2. Under Select a software plan, choose an operating system and select Create.

  3. Configure a virtual machine template and assign it to the availability set.

    1. Assign the VM to the same resource group as the availability set and give it a name.

    2. Under Instance Details > Availability options, select Availability set.

    3. A new drop-down box will appear. Select the availability set created in step 4 of the previous section.

    4. Set up an authentication type.

    5. Under Networking, select Create New and set the SKU of the public IP address to standard.

      caution

      There is an option under network settings to place the virtual machine behind an existing load balancing solution. Do not select this option.

    6. Select Review + Create, then Create.

      Create the DxEnterprise virtual machine

  4. Repeat steps 1-3 for any additional VMs.

  5. The availability set has been created with VMs assigned to it. Return to the Azure homepage by selecting Microsoft Azure in the top-left corner.

Configure DxEnterprise and Applications​

  1. Application(s) must be installed and configured in DxEnterprise before continuing. DH2i provides quick start guides for some applications – such as Microsoft SQL Server – running within a VM on Azure. Links for these guides are provided in the Next Steps section below, but other configurations can also utilize the Azure load balancer. After configuring the application, leave the console or DxAdmin window open.

  2. After configuring DxEnterprise and your application on the VM, add a probe port to the Vhost using DxCLI or DxAdmin.

    1. Right-click on the Vhost and select Update virtual host.

    2. Select the pencil icon to the right of the Probe Port field, then enter a port number into the field. More than one probe port may be added to the Vhost by separating the ports with a comma (,).

    3. Note the Vhost IP and probe port for later use. Save the changes by selecting OK at the bottom of the window.

  3. After adding the probe port to the Vhost, return to the Azure Management Portal.

Create and Configure the Azure Load Balancer​

  1. Search for Load Balancers in the top search bar, then select Add.

    1. Assign the load balancer to the resource group and give it a name.

    2. Set the Type to Internal.

    3. Set the SKU to Standard.

    4. Assign the load balancer to the same virtual network as the VMs.

    5. Set the IP address assignment to Static.

    6. Enter the IP address for the load balancer. This is the same IP used for the Vhost in step 2 of the previous section.

    7. Select Review + Create in the bottom-left corner, then select Create.

      Create the load balancer

  2. After the deployment completes, select the Go to resource box. Alternatively, the resource can be found by navigating to the resource group from the Azure homepage.

  3. Select Backend pools from the options in the left pane to add the VMs to the load balancer's backend pool.

    1. Select Add near the top.

    2. Assign a name to the backend pool.

    3. Under virtual machines, select Add and add the DxEnterprise VMs to the list.

    4. Select Add at the bottom to add the backend pool to the load balancer.

      Add the DxEnterprise VMs to the backend pool for the load balancer

  4. Select Health probes from the options in the left pane to add a health probe to the load balancer.

    1. Select Add near the top.

    2. Assign a name for the health probe.

    3. Set the Port to the Vhost probe port from step 2 of the previous section.

    4. Select OK at the bottom to add the health probe to the load balancer.

      Add a health probe to the load balancer

  5. Select Load balancing rules from the options in the left pane to allow traffic through the IP address.

    1. Select Add near the top.

    2. Assign a name for the load balancing rule.

    3. Select HA Ports to allow all traffic through the Frontend IP Address.

    4. Set Floating IP to Enabled.

    5. Select OK at the bottom to add the rule to the load balancer.

      Add a load balancing rule to the load blancer

Next Steps​

Additional Information​