Setting a static IP on the AWS Transform discovery tool

When deploying the new AWS Transform discovery tool, the only option for the deployed virtual machine is IPv4 DHCP. Some VMware customers have security policies forbidding DHCP on server subnets. This post shows you how to configure a static IP on the deployed VM.

Prerequisites

This article assumes you have basic knowledge of navigating a Linux directory tree, creating files, and deleting files.

Deploy the OVA appliance using the Deploy the discovery tool section of the setup instructions. Boot the VM with the network disconnected: uncheck the Connect at Power On box on the VM's NIC in vCenter.

Procedure

1. Access the deployed VM's console using the Accessing the discovery tool VM section of the setup instructions.

   It may take as long as 10 minutes for the VM to show a login prompt on the console.

2. su to root

   sudo su
   [sudo] for discovery:

3. Create a file to disable cloud init network configuration

   /etc/cloud/cloud.cfg.d/99-disable-cloud-init-network.cfg

   #cloud-config
   network:
     config: disabled

4. Delete the automatically generated DHCP file in /etc/systemd/network

   rm /etc/systemd/network/10-ethernet.network

5. Create a static network configuration. Replace the example below with IP addresses relevant to your environment.

   /etc/systemd/network/20-eth0-static.network

   [Match]
   Name=eth0
   
   [Network]
   DHCP=no
   Address=192.168.110.224/24
   Gateway=192.168.110.1
   DNS=10.200.102.11
   DNS=10.200.103.11
   
   [Link]
   RequiredForOnline=yes

6. Shut down the VM

   shutdown -h now

7. Check the Connect at Power On box on the VM's NIC in vCenter.

8. Power up the VM

The collector UI on this example VM is now available from the static IP https://192.168.110.224:5000. It may take as long as 10 minutes for the the UI to become available.