Parallels Management Console uses one wizard to create and initially configure a Container.
You can launch the Create New Containers wizard by selecting the Virtuozzo Containers item
under the corresponding Hardware Node name in the Management Console left pane and
choosing the Create Container option on the Action menu:
Figure 6: Management Console - Choosing Sample Configuration File
The main Container parameters, including the templates and resource management parameters, can be retrieved on the basis of the Container configuration sample indicated in the very first
option (detailed information on Container configuration samples is provided in the Managing
Container Resources Configurations section (on page 156)).
After you have decided on the Container configuration sample, you are supposed to define the
number of Containers you wish to create in the Number of Containers to create field. By default,
specify an arbitrary name for your Container(s) in the Containers Name field; this name can then be used, along with the Container ID, to refer to the Container while performing this or that Container-related operation on the Hardware Node. In the case of creating several Containers at once, you should use the $VEID placeholder which is automatically replaced with the ID of the Container being created. For example, if you are creating Containers in the range from 101 to 103 and enter MyCT$VEID into the Container Name(s) field, your Containers will have the following names: MyCT101, MyCT102, MyCT103.
provide the description of the Container(s) in the Description field. You may enter any
Container-related information you consider reasonable.
Under the Container ID group, you can select the variant the Container ID assignment:
Select the Assign Container ID automatically radio button to automatically assign the first
unoccupied ID to the Container. For example, if you already have Containers with IDs from 101 thru 105 and 107, the Container will be assigned the ID of 106.
Select the Assign Container IDs starting from radio button to manually specify the ID to be
assigned to the Container. If you are creating several Containers at once, the specified ID will denote the starting ID for the first created Container. For example, if you are making 2 Containers and indicate 110 in the field provided, the first Container will be assigned the ID of 110 and the second one - the ID of 111 (provided you do not already have Containers with such IDs).
The Hostname group of options on the first page of the wizard shown above might help you make use of your DNS server. If your DNS server has records for the IP addresses that will be
assigned to the newly-created Containers, select the Assign hostname automatically radio button.
The hostnames will be assigned on the basis of DNS records found. Selecting the Hostname
radio button allows you to manually set a hostname for the Container. As in the case of assigning names to your Containers, you should use the $VEID placeholder if you are creating several Containers at once. This placeholder is then automatically replaced with the ID of the Container being created.
You should set the Administrator password for the Container being created on the first
page of the wizard by typing the desired password in the Password and Confirm password fields.
You will need this password in future to connect to the Container by means of Parallels Power Panel or by using the standard Microsoft Terminal Services Client/Windows Remote Desktop Connection applications. If you are creating several Containers, all Containers will be given the same Administrator password. However, you can change the password for each Container at a later time (see page 118).
Clicking the Next button displays the window where you can specify the settings for Container
Figure 7: Management Console - Configuring Container Network Adapters
This window allows you to:
Configure the settings of the venet0 virtual network adapter which is the default adapter
created for every Container on the Hardware Node. To configure the parameters of this
network adapter, select the adapter name in the Interfaces table and click the Properties
button. In the displayed window, you will be able to to the following:
change the operating mode of the virtual adapter;
specify one or more IP addresses to be assigned to the virtual adapter;
set the default gateway to be used by the virtual adapter to connect to external networks
(this option is available for adapters operating in the bridged mode);
indicate one or more DNS servers that the virtual adapter is supposed to use;
Create additional virtual network adapters for the Container by clicking the Add Interface button and entering the necessary information in the displayed window.
Note: Detailed information on adapter network modes and all network parameters that can be
set for Container adapters is provided in the Managing Virtuozzo Network chapter (on page 252).
On the next step, you should choose the OS template to be used as the basis for the Container creation:
Figure 8: Management Console - Specifying OS Template
All OS templates that are installed on the Hardware Node and can be used for the Container
creation are listed in the table on the Specify OS Template screen. To choose an OS template,
click its name in the Name column and choose its version, if necessary. Detailed information on
OS templates is provided in the Virtuozzo Template Management Guide shipped with Virtuozzo
You can click on the Finish button on this step of the wizard and create the Container with the configuration parameters specified in the configuration sample you chose on the first step of the
wizard. If you do not rely on any configuration sample, click the Next button instead of Finish.
In this case you will have to go through a number of steps of the wizard and set all the
parameters of the new Container separately. However, you can click Finish on every of the
following steps of the wizard to start creating the Container. All the pages of the wizard are self- explanatory, so there is no need in dwelling upon them here in detail. You have the possibility to:
Specify one or more application templates to be added to the Container. Detailed
information on application templates is provided in the Virtuozzo Template Management
Guide shipped with Virtuozzo Containers 4.0.
Configure Quality of Service parameters. The Quality of Service parameters are explained
in the Managing Resources chapter (on page 137); please consult it to gather more
understanding of this topic.
Change the default Container private area and root paths or leave them intact.
Add one or more hostnames to the Container search list for hostname lookups.
Indicate one or more search domains the Container is supposed to use. If you leave the
Search domains field empty, the search list for hostname lookups will contain the local domain name only. However, you will be able to add other hostnames for the Container later on.
Enable the offline management for the Container for it to be directly managed by its
Administrator from any browser at the Container IP address. Detailed information on offline
management is provided in the Configuring Container Offline Management section (on page
308).
Configure network shaping parameters. For detailed information on network shaping, please
turn to the Managing Network Accounting and Bandwidth section (on page 149).
Choose the Terminal Services mode in which the Container will start functioning right after
its creation and can specify one or more Terminal Server License (TSL) servers to be used by the Container if it is set to work in the Terminal Server mode. For more information on
managing Terminal Services inside Containers, please turn to the Configuring Terminal
Services Inside Container section (on page 45).
Specify whether the Container is to be started on the Hardware Node boot and the Container
ID string is to be displayed on the Container desktop.
Enable the network browsing feature and QoS packet scheduler inside the Container.
Detailed information on these features is provided in the Managing Network Resources
section (on page 147).
Save all the defined parameters as a configuration sample file to be used in future for
creating new Containers on its basis. The information on Container samples is provided in the Managing Resources chapter (on page 137). Please consult it to gather more understanding of these topics.
Creating a new Container may take some time. You can see the progress in the Actions pane.
Note: Any created Container has the time zone settings similar to those set on the Hardware Node at the moment of the Virtuozzo Containers 4.0 installation. You can change the default time zone for a Container as you would do it on a stand-alone server (e.g. by logging in to the
corresponding Container via RDP, opening Control Panel, clicking Date and Time, and changing
After you have created, for example, Containers with IDs 101, 102, and 103, you can see them in the right pane of the Parallels Management Console window:
Figure 9: Management Console - Viewing Container
You can also use the vzctl create command to create a new Container. Detailed
information on this command is provided in the Parallels Virtuozzo Containers for Windows