Launching an EC2 Instance of the CoSolvent Community Server is fairly straight forward, although somewhat technical. If you have any questions please contact iPOV.net
Note: The following steps are for customers who wish to perform their own setup of the CoSolvent Community Server. No prior IT experience is required. However, previous Linux server administration experience will help significantly. Keep in mind that these steps are NOT required, as iPOV will perform them for you as part of your purchase of a CoSolvent Community Server (Production or Enterprise). There are other ways to control your AWS products than those shown below, including the free Amazon command line tools, Firefox plugin “ElasticFox”, an Eclipse plugin, and a standalone Servlet project “AWS Manager”. There are also several commercial tools, although those are mostly geared towards medium to large deployments (of multiple EC2 Instances).
Launch a Server Instance
Now that you have an AWS account, you can launch an “instance” of a server. To do this, most people prefer to use the online “AWS Management Console,” which Amazon makes available for exactly this purpose. There is a prominent link to this tool on the AWS front page (as well as under the “My Account” tab):
When you first log in, you may be prompted to select your default view. If so, choose “EC2″.
Note: The AWS Management Console may not fully function in IE 6; if you can not upgrade to IE 8, then we recommend installing either Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome. In particular, there is a “Portable App” version of Firefox that can be run from a thumb drive or private folder without the need to install software new to your computer.
Locate AMI
Once you open the EC2 section of the AWS Management Console, you’ll see an Overview screen. If this is your first time using your AWS account, this view will simply show that you have no active services.
To locate the iPOV DevPay AMI(s) that you have purchased, first click on the “AMIs” link on the left navigation panel of the management console. Next, enter the iPOV account ID number, number 668764213069, into the search field, which is shown highlighted in the screenshot below.
Then select “All Images” from the first drop-down (shown expanded in the image above). This will allow you to view all of the iPOV AMIs that you have access to use.
Note: another way to locate your AMI(s) is to copy and paste the AMI ID number into the search field. DevPay AMI numbers are listed on the iPOV website and should be displayed to you during the DevPay purchase process.
Launch instance of the AMI
Now that you’ve located the appropriate AMI, you can launch an EC2 server instance.
Note: You can launch as many different instances as you like. However, keep in mind that each instance is billed at the rates specified by iPOV for the DevPay product. So, for instance, launching two copies of a production server will cost twice as much as launching a single instance (assuming both are left running the entire month). No charges apply until you actually launch your first instance.
To launch an instance using the AWS Management Console, first select the AMI by clicking on the check box to the left of the image. This will cause the “Launch” button to become active. Then click on the Launch button to start the Launch Wizard, which will guide you through the activation process.
Some of the terms used in the remainder of the process can be a bit confusing, so let’s look at it step-by-step:
Launch Wizard part 1
First you are prompted to choose you instance “type” and location. The type controls aspects such as how much CPU power and computer memory (RAM) are available to your server. iPOV currently only publishes 32 bit AMIs; therefore, you are limited to either an “m1.small” or an “c1.medium” type. Currently the base Amazon prices are approximately 8 cents per hours for the “m1.small” type and 17 cents per hour for the c1.medium type. Most users will find that the “m1.small” is suitable for their needs. If not, it is relatively easy to launch a “c1.medium” instance later and transfer your data to it.
Launch Wizard part 2
The “availability zone” affects the data center that your instance will be launched in, based on geographic area. Anyone can access an instance from anywhere around the world with an internet connection. However, the geographic location can have an impact on the response times of the server to user connections, as well as the server’s default timezone, etc.
The availability areas are broken into East, West, and European zones. These primary zones are further broken down into their own zones.
For an initial launch, most customers will choose to concentrate on the geographic location that they anticipate users being in. Therefore, if most of your users are on the West Coast, you’ll probably want to select one of the west zones; if you’re operation is primarily in Europe, then you’ll probably want to select the European zone, etc. Note: If you have created an EBS device (covered later) and are launching a new instance to connect to that device, then you MUST launch the instance in the same availability zone as the EBS.It is possible to shutdown an EBS drive (or place it in read-only mode) and migrate the data from one zone to another, but that process is not covered here.
Leave the “Instance Details” page of the launch wizard set to the defaults.
If you are launching your first EC2 server instance it is likely that you will need to generate a cryptographic key pair in order to be able to control that instance. If you already have a key pair, you can select it here. If not, choose the “Create a new Key Pair” below and follow the instructions. Once a key pair is created you need to keep your copy in a secure location. The key pair is what is used to connect to your server and anyone who has access to your key pair can take control of your server. Do NOT loose the key pair, and do NOT email it, as email is not generally safe from interception.
Launch Wizard part 4
Next, you will need to configure the firewall settings you wish to apply to your server. By default, NO external connections are allowed to connect to your server. Therefore, it is important that you create the appropriate ones. Luckily the wizard makes this easy.
If you have previously defined security group, you can simply select it and move on. On the “Configure Firewall” screen, first select “Create a New Security Group”. Using the drop-down menu at the bottom of the screen, select the type of connection, and then click “Add Rule”. You should enable connection types: HTTP, HTTPS, and SSL. Once complete, click the “Continue” button.
Launch Wizard part 5
At this point you are asked to review and approve your selections. If everything is in order, click the “Launch” button.
In some rare cases, you may be told that there is not enough capacity in the availability zone you selected. If this happens, use the Back link at the bottom of the wizard to navigate back to the start of the wizard and try a different zone.
Launch Wizard part 6
Once you click the “Launch” button, your EC2 instance will begin the startup process, and the wizard will close. Start-up can take several minutes. You can monitor the start-up progress by going to the “Instances” section of the AWS Management Console (you can select this on the left). If your instance does not appear immediately, wait a few seconds and click your browser’s “reload” or “refresh” button.
Amazon Web Services: Definition and Technical Information.
Amazon’s AWS User guides provide complete details on the technical aspects of the service. They are located online:
Because of the way AMIs are packaged, you must do some additional configuration once the instance is running. The system comes prepackaged with all required system binaries, but some extra configuration is needed in order for CoSolvent Community Server to run properly.
Once your instance status is shown as “Running”, you should be able to connect to it. First, click on the check-box next to the instance ID, or anywhere in the row of information. A set of additional information will open on the bottom of the AWS Management Console. Scroll down until you see “Public DNS”. Note: In the near future, you will be able to connect to a web tool to complete the setup of your instance; however, for now, this must be done via the command line.
If you are not familiar with Linux server administration, iPOV can help you with setup and configuration services (not available for “Basic” subscriptions).
Essential configuration steps:
Configure a virtual hard drive for storing your files. For Production versions and above, iPOV provides assistance in configuring an EBS device for this purpose, which enables much more built in redundancy, as well as a much easier backup mechanism. For Basic subscriptions, iPOV will make a configuration tool available to setup an “instance store” drive, as well as daily backups to S3. (Amazon recommends not relying on the “instance store” method for permanent data.) Of course, you can setup your own EBS unit if you choose.
You will then need to “mount” the virtual hard drive so that your server can use it. For Professional and above, iPOV can assist in this process, including in configuring the cryptmount tool. This tool encrypts the data stored on the drive in a “transparent” manner, so that it can not be downloaded and read in an offline manner in the way it otherwise could. (This follows the Amazon recommendations for user’s who are concerned with security.)
Your “Public DNS” entry, as referenced above, is not very easy to people to type in. You probably want to use the “Elastic IP” option, which can be configured using the AWS Management Console.
Additionally, you may want to assign your server a “name” (e.g. www.myserver.com). For Professional subscriptions and above, iPOV can configure a name such as “MY_WORKGROUP.cosolvent.com”.
By default, web traffic is not protected from interception by interested third parties. This means that if you are on a standard network (and particularly when using a WiFi hotspot) your normal traffic can be seen by anyone else on that network. To prevent sensitive data such as passwords, and possible uploaded documents, from being exposed, we recommend configuring your server to use HTTPS for security. For Production versions and above. iPOV can provide a SSL certificate for a CoSolvent.com site, or assist in configuring a SSL certificate and DNS entry for a domain name of your choice.
For EBS users, you will want to reconfigure the server’s database to store its files on the EBS drive instead of in the transient “instance store” drive.
You will then need to run the CoSolvent Community Server install and setup tool to create the database and populate the initial settings.
Launch EC2 Instance
Launching an EC2 Instance of the CoSolvent Community Server is fairly straight forward, although somewhat technical. If you have any questions please contact iPOV.net
Note: The following steps are for customers who wish to perform their own setup of the CoSolvent Community Server. No prior IT experience is required. However, previous Linux server administration experience will help significantly. Keep in mind that these steps are NOT required, as iPOV will perform them for you as part of your purchase of a CoSolvent Community Server (Production or Enterprise). There are other ways to control your AWS products than those shown below, including the free Amazon command line tools, Firefox plugin “ElasticFox”, an Eclipse plugin, and a standalone Servlet project “AWS Manager”. There are also several commercial tools, although those are mostly geared towards medium to large deployments (of multiple EC2 Instances).
Launch a Server Instance
Now that you have an AWS account, you can launch an “instance” of a server. To do this, most people prefer to use the online “AWS Management Console,” which Amazon makes available for exactly this purpose. There is a prominent link to this tool on the AWS front page (as well as under the “My Account” tab):
When you first log in, you may be prompted to select your default view. If so, choose “EC2″.
Note: The AWS Management Console may not fully function in IE 6; if you can not upgrade to IE 8, then we recommend installing either Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome. In particular, there is a “Portable App” version of Firefox that can be run from a thumb drive or private folder without the need to install software new to your computer.
Locate AMI
Once you open the EC2 section of the AWS Management Console, you’ll see an Overview screen. If this is your first time using your AWS account, this view will simply show that you have no active services.
To locate the iPOV DevPay AMI(s) that you have purchased, first click on the “AMIs” link on the left navigation panel of the management console. Next, enter the iPOV account ID number, number 668764213069, into the search field, which is shown highlighted in the screenshot below.
Then select “All Images” from the first drop-down (shown expanded in the image above). This will allow you to view all of the iPOV AMIs that you have access to use.
Note: another way to locate your AMI(s) is to copy and paste the AMI ID number into the search field. DevPay AMI numbers are listed on the iPOV website and should be displayed to you during the DevPay purchase process.
Launch instance of the AMI
Now that you’ve located the appropriate AMI, you can launch an EC2 server instance.
Note: You can launch as many different instances as you like. However, keep in mind that each instance is billed at the rates specified by iPOV for the DevPay product. So, for instance, launching two copies of a production server will cost twice as much as launching a single instance (assuming both are left running the entire month). No charges apply until you actually launch your first instance.
To launch an instance using the AWS Management Console, first select the AMI by clicking on the check box to the left of the image. This will cause the “Launch” button to become active. Then click on the Launch button to start the Launch Wizard, which will guide you through the activation process.
Some of the terms used in the remainder of the process can be a bit confusing, so let’s look at it step-by-step:
Launch Wizard part 1
First you are prompted to choose you instance “type” and location. The type controls aspects such as how much CPU power and computer memory (RAM) are available to your server. iPOV currently only publishes 32 bit AMIs; therefore, you are limited to either an “m1.small” or an “c1.medium” type. Currently the base Amazon prices are approximately 8 cents per hours for the “m1.small” type and 17 cents per hour for the c1.medium type. Most users will find that the “m1.small” is suitable for their needs. If not, it is relatively easy to launch a “c1.medium” instance later and transfer your data to it.
Launch Wizard part 2
The “availability zone” affects the data center that your instance will be launched in, based on geographic area. Anyone can access an instance from anywhere around the world with an internet connection. However, the geographic location can have an impact on the response times of the server to user connections, as well as the server’s default timezone, etc.
The availability areas are broken into East, West, and European zones. These primary zones are further broken down into their own zones.
For an initial launch, most customers will choose to concentrate on the geographic location that they anticipate users being in. Therefore, if most of your users are on the West Coast, you’ll probably want to select one of the west zones; if you’re operation is primarily in Europe, then you’ll probably want to select the European zone, etc. Note: If you have created an EBS device (covered later) and are launching a new instance to connect to that device, then you MUST launch the instance in the same availability zone as the EBS. It is possible to shutdown an EBS drive (or place it in read-only mode) and migrate the data from one zone to another, but that process is not covered here.
Leave the “Instance Details” page of the launch wizard set to the defaults.
If you are launching your first EC2 server instance it is likely that you will need to generate a cryptographic key pair in order to be able to control that instance. If you already have a key pair, you can select it here. If not, choose the “Create a new Key Pair” below and follow the instructions. Once a key pair is created you need to keep your copy in a secure location. The key pair is what is used to connect to your server and anyone who has access to your key pair can take control of your server. Do NOT loose the key pair, and do NOT email it, as email is not generally safe from interception.
Launch Wizard part 4
Next, you will need to configure the firewall settings you wish to apply to your server. By default, NO external connections are allowed to connect to your server. Therefore, it is important that you create the appropriate ones. Luckily the wizard makes this easy.
If you have previously defined security group, you can simply select it and move on. On the “Configure Firewall” screen, first select “Create a New Security Group”. Using the drop-down menu at the bottom of the screen, select the type of connection, and then click “Add Rule”. You should enable connection types: HTTP, HTTPS, and SSL. Once complete, click the “Continue” button.
Launch Wizard part 5
At this point you are asked to review and approve your selections. If everything is in order, click the “Launch” button.
In some rare cases, you may be told that there is not enough capacity in the availability zone you selected. If this happens, use the Back link at the bottom of the wizard to navigate back to the start of the wizard and try a different zone.
Launch Wizard part 6
Once you click the “Launch” button, your EC2 instance will begin the startup process, and the wizard will close. Start-up can take several minutes. You can monitor the start-up progress by going to the “Instances” section of the AWS Management Console (you can select this on the left). If your instance does not appear immediately, wait a few seconds and click your browser’s “reload” or “refresh” button.
Amazon Web Services: Definition and Technical Information.
Amazon’s AWS User guides provide complete details on the technical aspects of the service. They are located online:
Step 4 : Finish Configuring the Instance
Because of the way AMIs are packaged, you must do some additional configuration once the instance is running. The system comes prepackaged with all required system binaries, but some extra configuration is needed in order for CoSolvent Community Server to run properly.
Once your instance status is shown as “Running”, you should be able to connect to it. First, click on the check-box next to the instance ID, or anywhere in the row of information. A set of additional information will open on the bottom of the AWS Management Console. Scroll down until you see “Public DNS”. Note: In the near future, you will be able to connect to a web tool to complete the setup of your instance; however, for now, this must be done via the command line.
If you are running Windows, then you will need to download Putty, or another SSH “Terminal” tool. Putty is free, and can be downloaded from http://the.earth.li/~sgtatham/putty/latest/x86/putty-0.60-installer.exe
If you are not familiar with Linux server administration, iPOV can help you with setup and configuration services (not available for “Basic” subscriptions).
Essential configuration steps: