Manage SMB using the GUI

This page provides procedures for setting up an SMB cluster over Weka filesystems and managing the cluster itself, using the GUI.

Using the GUI, you can:

Note: Use ASCII format when configuring name fields, such as domain and shares.

Configure the SMB cluster

Define the Weka system hosts that participate in the SMB cluster.

Procedure

From the menu, select Manage > Protocols.
From the Protocols pane, select SMB.
On the Configuration tab, select Configure.

4. In the SMB Cluster Configuration dialog, set the following properties:

Name: A NetBIOS name for the SMB cluster.
Domain: The domain the SMB cluster joins.
Domain NetBIOS Name: (Optional) The domain NetBIOS name.
Hosts: List of 3-8 Weka system hosts to participate in the SMB cluster, based on the host IDs in Weka.
Encryption: Select the in-transit encryption to use in the SMB cluster: - enabled: enables encryption negotiation but doesn't turn it on automatically for supported sessions and share connections. - disabled: doesn't support encrypted connections. - desired: enables encryption negotiation and turns on data encryption on supported sessions and share connections. - required: enforces data encryption on sessions and share connections. Clients that do not support encryption will be denied access to the server.
IPs: (Optional) List of public IPs (comma-separated) used as floating IPs for the SMB cluster to serve the SMB over and thereby provide HA (do not assign these IPs to any host on the network). For IP range, use the following format: a.b.c.x-y.

In AWS installations, it is not possible to set a list of SMB service addresses. The SMB service must be accessed using the primary addresses of the cluster nodes.

5. Select Save.

Once the system completes the configuration process, the host statuses change from not ready (red X icon) to ready (green V icon), as shown in the following example:

Edit the SMB cluster

You can modify the encryption and IPs settings according to your needs.

Procedure

In the SMB Cluster Configuration, select the pencil icon.

2. In the Edit SMB Configuration dialog, update the encryption and IPs settings.

3. Select Save.

Join the SMB cluster in the Active Directory

To enable the organizational Active Directory to resolve the access of users and user groups to the SMB cluster, join the SMB cluster in the Active Directory (AD).

Before you begin

To enable the Weka storage nodes to join the AD domain, verify that the AD server is the DNS server.

Procedure

In the SMB Cluster Configuration, select Join.

2. In the Join to Active Directory dialog, set the following properties:

Username and Password: A username and password of an account that has access privileges to the Active Directory. Weka does not save the user password. A computer account is created on behalf of the user for the SMB cluster.
Server: (Optional) Weka identifies the AD server automatically based on the AD name. You do not need to set the server name. In some cases, if required, specify the AD server.
Computers Org. Unit: The default organization unit is the Computers directory. You can define any other directory to connect to in Active Directory, such as SMB servers or Corporate computers.

Once the SMB cluster joins in the Active Directory, the join status next to the domain changes to Joined.

To join a different Active Directory to the existing SMB cluster configuration, select Leave. To confirm the action, enter the username and password used to connect to the Active Directory.

Delete the SMB cluster

Deleting the SMB cluster resets its configuration data.

Procedure

In the SMB Cluster Configuration, select the trash icon.

2. In the SMB Configuration Reset message, select Reset.

Display the SMB shares list

The Shares tab displays the list of SMB shares that are already created in the system. You can also customize the table columns of the SMB shares list.

Procedure

From the menu, select Manage > Protocols.
From the Protocols pane, select SMB.
Select the Shares tab. You can filter the list using any column in the table.

Procedure

In the Shares tab, select +Create.

2. In the Add SMB Share dialog, set the following properties:

Name: A meaningful name for the SMB share.
Filesystem: The filesystem name that includes the directory to share. Select one from the list. A filesystem set with required authentication cannot be used for SMB share.
Description: A description or purpose of the SMB share.
Path: A valid internal path, relative to the root, within the filesystem to expose for the SMB share.
Encryption: Select in-transit encryption enforcement of the share. The cluster global encryption settings can affect the actual encryption.
Read Only: Select if you want to set the share as read only.
Hidden: Select if you want to hide the share, so it is not visible when viewing the list of system shares.
Allow Guest Access: Select if you want to allow guests to access without authentication.
Access Permissions: Define the share access permissions. If you select ON, select the access type, and the users or groups allowed to access the share (comma-separated users and groups list, add '@' as a group prefix).
Files/Directories POSIX Mode Mask: Set the new default file and directory permissions in a numeric (octal) format created through the share.
ACLs Enabled: Determines whether to enable the Windows Access-Control Lists (ACLs) on the share. Weka translates the ACLs to POSIX.

3. Select Save.

You can update some of the SMB share settings. These include encryption, hiding the share, allowing guest access, and setting the share as read only or not.

Procedure