Defining Container General Settings

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The second page of the New Container wizard enables you to define the Container general settings that are divided into several groups for your convenience. You can choose between creating a single Container and multiple Containers by entering the necessary number on the first step of the Container(s) creation wizard, and it is only in the latter case that the Multiple Container Configuration group is displayed.

The General Configuration group enables you to perform the following operations:

Provide a name and a description for the Container; available when configuring settings for a single Container only. If you need a specific name and description for one of Containers created simultaneously, you can assign them after the Containers are created.
Select a Container sample that defines the Container resources parameters.
Choose an OS template and its version you wish the Container to be based on.

The Multiple Container Configuration group appears if you are creating more than one Container at a time. Following is an explanation of the five drop-down menus that you find in this group:

Container IDs:

Assign Container IDs automatically	Parallels Infrastructure Manager will assign Container IDs itself.
Assign Container IDs starting from a specified one	On the following screen you will be able to specify the Container ID for the first Container created. All the remaining Container IDs will be assigned based on the sequential incrementation of this first Container ID.
Set Container IDs manually	On the following screen you will be able to specify the Container IDs manually for each Container.

Names:

Assign names based on a specified template	On the following screen you will be able to specify a template for assigning Container names, with the Container ID as the changing part.
Set names manually for every Container	On the following screen you will be able to specify the Container names manually for each Container.

Hostnames:

Assign hostnames based on a specified template	On the following screen you will be able to specify a template for assigning Container hostnames, with the Container ID as the changing part.
Set hostnames manually for every Container	On the following screen you will be able to specify the Container hostnames manually for each Container.

Routed Interface IP Addresses

Assign according to the Container sample	The host-routed interface settings are taken from the Container sample used to create the Containers. These settings just define if the host-routed interface is created inside the Containers (one interface in each Container). If it is created, its IP address is taken from the global IP addresses pool.
Get from the global IP addresses pool	The IP addresses for the host-routed interfaces will be taken from the global pool of IP addresses (that can be configured on the IP Address Pool tab of the Setup --> Network screen).
Assign from a specified IP addresses range	On the following screen you will be able to specify the IP address for the first Container created. All the remaining Container IP addresses will be assigned based on the sequential incrementation of this first IP address.
Specify manually for every Container	On the following screen you will be able to specify the IP addresses manually for each Container.

Bridged Interface IP addresses

Assign according to the Container sample	The bridged interface settings are taken from the Container sample used to create the Containers. These settings define the number of bridged interfaces to be created inside each Container, and if this number is 1 or more, whether their IP addresses are received from the DHCP server or is taken from the global IP addresses pool.
Get from the DHCP server	The IP addresses for the bridged interfaces will be received from the DHCP server.
Get from the global IP addresses pool	The IP addresses for the bridged interfaces will be taken from the global pool of IP addresses (that can be configured on the IP Address Pool tab of the Setup --> Network screen).
Assign from a specified IP addresses range	On the following screen you will be able to specify the IP address for the first Container created. All the remaining Container IP addresses will be assigned based on the sequential incrementation of this first IP address.
Specify manually for every Container	On the following screen you will be able to specify the IP addresses manually for each Container.

In the Administrative Password group, you should define and confirm the root/Administrator password. You will need this password to access the Container in the future, for example, through Parallels Power Panel.

Note: Remember that each Container user with the privileges of an administrator exercises full control over his/her Container, has his/her own user credentials (name and password) to access the Container and enjoys an unlimited access to other user accounts inside this Container, i.e. s/he has any right granted to a privately owned physical server as opposed to the Hardware Node administrator's authority or the rights of the other Containers users in regard to the given Container. Any Container user can be a member of an Active Directory domain (e.g. access any of the network shares to which the Container user has rights).

The Advanced Configuration group allows you to do the following:

Specify the Container ID, a 32-bit (ranging from 0 to 4294967295) integer number over 100. This option is available only if you are creating a single Container. Detailed information on the Container IDs allocation can be viewed in the Choosing Container ID subsection of the Parallels Virtuozzo Containers User's Guide.
WARNING! When deciding on a Container ID, do not use the ID of any Container that was ever present in the system unless you are sure that no data belonging to the old Container remains on the Node. The fact is that the administrator of the newly-created Container might have access to these data in this case, i.e. to the backups of the old Container, its logs, statistics, etc.
Start the Container after its creation;
Have the Container started on every boot of the Hardware Node.

The Capabilities subgroup of options in the Advanced Configuration group appears if you are creating more than one Container at a time. It enhances the operation of the Windows-based Containers you are creating by providing you with the ability to:

Switch on the network browsing feature for the Container being created.The Windows 2003 browser service allows the Container on a Windows 2003 network to view all the network environment available. The browser service maintains a list (called the browse list) of all available domains and computers. The browse list can be viewed using Windows 2003 Explorer and is provided by a browser in the Container. The default for the feature is the off status. You can learn more on the option from the Network Places overview article of the Windows 2003 Help system invoked by selecting Help and Support on the Windows Start menu.
Allow the packet QoS scheduler for the Container. This is one of the Quality of Service components in MS Windows 2003 Server that enable differentiation and preferential treatment for subsets of data transmitted over the network. The packet scheduler is the traffic control module that regulates how much traffic various applications are allowed, essentially enforcing the QoS parameters that are set for each particular application. For instance, you can use the feature to restrict a web site throughput to a certain maximum bandwidth value or differentiate between the data transmitted by critical applications (e.g. Plesk) and excessive data (e.g. multimedia applications), and allow preferential treatment for the important web sites or critical applications. The option is disabled by default. For additional information on the packet scheduler, address the MSDN Library > Win32 and COM Development > Network Protocols > Quality of Service (QOS) (http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/qos/qos/qos_start_page.asp).
Note: The concept of Quality of Service in MS Windows 2003 Server differs from that of Virtuozzo Quality of Service used to provide a fair share of the main system resources (disk space, CPU time, etc.) among Containers.
Have the Container ID displayed on the Container desktop when connected to it by the RDP protocol.
Enable/disable the Microsoft Cluster Server (MSCS) software to run inside the Container. The MSCS software integrated into the Windows Server 2003 operating system is designed to allow servers to work together as one server, thus, providing greater reliability for your applications and services. Running one and the same application on two or more servers in the cluster helps ensure high application availability if one of the servers fails. The clustering software controls the failover process so that the application continues running on the second server without any loss of data and without interruption in service. The Virtuozzo Containers software allows you to include Containers in a server cluster so that they can act as full participants (nodes) in the cluster. To learn more about the MSCS software, address MSDN Library > Servers and Enterprise Development > Windows Server > Windows Server 2003 > Technical Articles > Introducing Microsoft Cluster Service (MSCS) in the Windows Server 2003 Family (http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms952401.aspx).

To enable/disable any of the features listed under the Advanced Configuration group, select/clear the corresponding checkbox.

The Terminal Services group allows you to define in which one of the two standard Windows TS modes (Remote Desktop for Administration and Terminal Server) the created Containers will operate. By default, any Container is automatically set to work in the Remote Desktop for Administration mode during its creation. So, you do not need to perform any additional operations to start connecting to Containers using this mode. Like in any other system with Windows Server 2003 installed, the Remote Desktop for Administration mode allows you to simultaneously open no more than two remote sessions and a console session to any Container on the Hardware Node.

If you are planning to have more than 2 remote sessions to a Container at the same time, you should enable the Terminal Server mode for this Container. You may also need to switch on this mode in case some of the Container applications require Terminal Server for their functioning. While set in the Terminal Server mode, the Container starts using the same Terminal Server License (TSL) server as the Hardware Node does. So, you can log in to the Container in this mode provided the TSL server for the Node is accessible by the Container and has a number of free client access licenses (CALs) installed. You can also redefine the TSL server to be used by the Container or set additional TSL servers for it in the License Server Address field.

The Offline Management group allows you to set the offline management options by selecting the appropriate radio button. Offline management of the corresponding Container ensures the Container manageability by means of one or more offline services from any browser at its own IP address. After offline management is enabled for the Container, one port of its IP address becomes permanently active whatever the Container state. The currently supported services are vzpp and plesk (for managing Containers with the Plesk control panel installed in them). You can:

Disable the offline management of the Container.
Enable the offline management of the Container via the offline management settings operating on the Hardware Node. Whenever you need to manage the Container offline, its offline management settings will be brought into synchronization with those in effect on the Node. Should any service be removed from the default services list, the Container will be unable to be managed via the service off the list. This option subscribes the Container to the default offline services.
Manually compose the Container offline services list. You can select the service(s) you would like the Container to be subscribed to in the corresponding checkbox(es).

The Permissions group lets you create one or more permissions for the Containers to be created. As any permission is by definition a combination of a user or a group of users and a role in respect of a certain Infrastructure Manager object, you can indicate the corresponding user/group and role in the provided fields, thus creating a permission with respect to the Containers being created. To add more permissions, click the green plus sign to the right of the fields.

Click Next to submit the settings and move on to the next New Container wizard stage.

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