Accessing the Virtual Appliance
Admin username and password update
Daemon startup and Appliance restart
Overview
This article provides step-by-step instructions for configuring the Login Enterprise Virtual Appliance for the first time. By following these instructions, you will set up essential parameters such as hostname, network configuration, and administrative access. Upon successful configuration, you will be able to access the web interface and perform further maintenance tasks.
Prerequisites
Before configuring the appliance, gather the following information:
- Appliance Hostname
- Appliance Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN)
- IP Address (not required if using DHCP)
- Netmask (Subnet) (not required if using DHCP)
- Gateway Address (not required if using DHCP)
- DNS Address (not required if using DHCP)
- Search Domain (FQDN)
- Admin Username for Configuration
- Admin Password for Configuration
Accessing the Virtual Appliance
- Power on the virtual appliance.
- Open the console in a new window.
You will see a welcome message with the following login details:
- Username: admin
- Password: admin
Logging in
In the Login field, enter the default credentials, and press Enter:
Initial configuration
Once logged in, the system will prompt you to provide the following information:
- Preferred Hostname: Enter your desired hostname. For example, loginenterprise
- Preferred Domain: Enter your desired domain. For example, demo.lab
- Network Configuration Mode: Choose the desired network configuration mode, DHCP (D) or Static (S)
Network configuration
The system will prompt you to configure the network settings based on your selection:
-
If you select Static: You will be prompted to provide the following information:
- IP Address: Enter the desired IP address.
- Netmask: Enter the subnet mask.
- Default Gateway: Enter the default gateway.
- Nameservers: Enter the DNS server addresses.
- DNS Search Suffix: Enter the DNS search suffix.
- If you select DHCP: The system will automatically configure the necessary network settings.
Admin username and password update
After completing the network configuration, you will be prompted to enter an updated admin username and password:
- Admin username: If "admin" is acceptable, simply press Enter. Otherwise, enter your desired username.
- Admin password: Enter a new password for the admin account.
Finalizing configuration
The system will update the password and continue running. After a brief moment, you will be prompted to log in using the admin username and the password you set earlier.
When you do that, the system will perform several automatic configuration operations. It will then prompt you whether to create a new encryption key or enter one. The encryption key is only used to encrypt sensitive data in the configuration database, like passwords. Connections to the appliance and between the containers are handled over HTTPS with the applied SSL Certificate (self-signed or custom).
Normally you would allow the system to auto-generate a new encryption key. You should only use an existing key if you plan to reconnect to an existing external MS SQL Server appliance database that already has its own encryption key, and you do not have access to the original appliance VM that created the database. In this case, you would manually type in the existing key. Otherwise, the system will generate a key for you. Be sure to screen-shot this key for future reference:
The system will automatically reboot. After it completes, you will see a screen like this on the console informing you that the appliance is up and operational. If you have a certificate for the appliance you can add it now. Otherwise, you can leave the console and move to the appliance web UI.
If you have not already added the DNS record for this host to your local DNS server, you should pause to do that now.
Daemon startup and Appliance restart
Once you have logged in, the system will start the Login VSI daemon and automatically restart the appliance.
Completion of configuration
After a few minutes, you will see a welcome message indicating that the appliance has been successfully configured. The message will include the following important information for accessing the web interface:
- IP-Based URL
- FQDN URL
Important note
- Please create an A record for the host to access the FQDN URL.
Congratulations! You have now successfully configured the virtual appliance. The next step is to access the Maintenance Menu.