Create an Azure Red Hat OpenShift 4 cluster

Before you begin

If you choose to install and use the CLI locally, you'll need to run Azure CLI version 2.30.0 or later. Run az --version to find the version. If you need to install or upgrade, see Install Azure CLI.

Azure Red Hat OpenShift requires a minimum of 40 cores to create and run an OpenShift cluster. The default Azure resource quota for a new Azure subscription doesn't meet this requirement. To request an increase in your resource limit, see Standard quota: Increase limits by VM series.

• For example, to check the current subscription quota of the smallest supported virtual machine family SKU "Standard DSv3":

  LOCATION=eastus
  az vm list-usage -l $LOCATION \
  --query "[?contains(name.value, 'standardDSv3Family')]" \
  -o table
  

Verify your permissions

In this article, you'll create a resource group which contains the virtual network for the cluster. To do this, you'll need Contributor and User Access Administrator permissions or Owner permissions, either directly on the virtual network or on the resource group or subscription containing it.

You'll also need sufficient Microsoft Entra permissions (either a member user of the tenant, or a guest assigned with role Application administrator) for the tooling to create an application and service principal on your behalf for the cluster. See Member and guests and Assign administrator and non-administrator roles to users with Microsoft Entra ID for more details.

Register the resource providers

1. If you have multiple Azure subscriptions, specify the relevant subscription ID:

   az account set --subscription <SUBSCRIPTION ID>
   

2. Register the Microsoft.RedHatOpenShift resource provider:

   az provider register -n Microsoft.RedHatOpenShift --wait
   

3. Register the Microsoft.Compute resource provider:

   az provider register -n Microsoft.Compute --wait
   

4. Register the Microsoft.Storage resource provider:

   az provider register -n Microsoft.Storage --wait
   

5. Register the Microsoft.Authorization resource provider:

   az provider register -n Microsoft.Authorization --wait
   

Get a Red Hat pull secret (optional)

A Red Hat pull secret enables your cluster to access Red Hat container registries, along with other content such as operators from OperatorHub. This step is optional but recommended. If you decide to add the pull secret later, follow this guidance. The field cloud.openshift.com is removed from your secret even if your pull-secret contains that field. This field enables an extra monitoring feature, which sends data to RedHat and is thus disabled by default. To enable this feature, see https://docs.openshift.com/container-platform/4.11/support/remote_health_monitoring/enabling-remote-health-reporting.html .

1. Navigate to your Red Hat OpenShift cluster manager portal and sign-in.

   You'll need to log in to your Red Hat account or create a new Red Hat account with your business email and accept the terms and conditions.

2. Select Download pull secret and download a pull secret to be used with your ARO cluster.

   Keep the saved pull-secret.txt file somewhere safe. The file will be used in each cluster creation if you need to create a cluster that includes samples or operators for Red Hat or certified partners.

   When running the az aro create command, you can reference your pull secret using the --pull-secret @pull-secret.txt parameter. Execute az aro create from the directory where you stored your pull-secret.txt file. Otherwise, replace @pull-secret.txt with @/path/to/my/pull-secret.txt.

   If you're copying your pull secret or referencing it in other scripts, your pull secret should be formatted as a valid JSON string.

Prepare a custom domain for your cluster (optional)

When running the az aro create command, you can specify a custom domain for your cluster by using the --domain foo.example.com parameter.

If you provide a custom domain for your cluster, note the following points:

• After creating your cluster, you must create two DNS A records in your DNS server for the --domain specified:

  • api - pointing to the api server IP address
  • *.apps - pointing to the ingress IP address
  • Retrieve these values by executing the following command after cluster creation: az aro show -n -g --query '{api:apiserverProfile.ip, ingress:ingressProfiles[0].ip}'.

• The OpenShift console will be available at a URL such as https://console-openshift-console.apps.example.com, instead of the built-in domain https://console-openshift-console.apps.<random>.<location>.aroapp.io.

• By default, OpenShift uses self-signed certificates for all of the routes created on custom domains *.apps.example.com. If you choose to use custom DNS after connecting to the cluster, you will need to follow the OpenShift documentation to configure a custom CA for your ingress controller and a custom CA for your API server.

Create a virtual network containing two empty subnets

Next, you'll create a virtual network containing two empty subnets. If you have existing virtual network that meets your needs, you can skip this step.

1. Set the following variables in the shell environment in which you will execute the az commands.

   LOCATION=eastus                 # the location of your cluster
   RESOURCEGROUP=aro-rg            # the name of the resource group where you want to create your cluster
   CLUSTER=cluster                 # the name of your cluster
   

2. Create a resource group.

   An Azure resource group is a logical group in which Azure resources are deployed and managed. When you create a resource group, you're asked to specify a location. This location is where resource group metadata is stored, and it is also where your resources run in Azure if you don't specify another region during resource creation. Create a resource group using the az group create command.

   Note

   Azure Red Hat OpenShift is not available in all regions where an Azure resource group can be created. See Available regions for information on where Azure Red Hat OpenShift is supported.

   az group create \
     --name $RESOURCEGROUP \
     --location $LOCATION
   

   The following example output shows the resource group created successfully:

   {
     "id": "/subscriptions/<guid>/resourceGroups/aro-rg",
     "location": "eastus",
     "name": "aro-rg",
     "properties": {
       "provisioningState": "Succeeded"
     },
     "type": "Microsoft.Resources/resourceGroups"
   }
   

3. Create a virtual network.

   Azure Red Hat OpenShift clusters running OpenShift 4 require a virtual network with two empty subnets, for the master and worker nodes. You can either create a new virtual network for this, or use an existing virtual network.

   Create a new virtual network in the same resource group you created earlier:

   az network vnet create \
      --resource-group $RESOURCEGROUP \
      --name aro-vnet \
      --address-prefixes 10.0.0.0/22
   

   The following example output shows the virtual network created successfully:

   {
     "newVNet": {
       "addressSpace": {
         "addressPrefixes": [
           "10.0.0.0/22"
         ]
       },
       "dhcpOptions": {
         "dnsServers": []
       },
       "id": "/subscriptions/<guid>/resourceGroups/aro-rg/providers/Microsoft.Network/virtualNetworks/aro-vnet",
       "location": "eastus",
       "name": "aro-vnet",
       "provisioningState": "Succeeded",
       "resourceGroup": "aro-rg",
       "type": "Microsoft.Network/virtualNetworks"
     }
   }
   

4. Add an empty subnet for the master nodes.

   az network vnet subnet create \
     --resource-group $RESOURCEGROUP \
     --vnet-name aro-vnet \
     --name master-subnet \
     --address-prefixes 10.0.0.0/23
   

5. Add an empty subnet for the worker nodes.

   az network vnet subnet create \
     --resource-group $RESOURCEGROUP \
     --vnet-name aro-vnet \
     --name worker-subnet \
     --address-prefixes 10.0.2.0/23
   

Create the cluster

Run the following command to create a cluster. If you choose to use either of the following options, modify the command accordingly:

• Optionally, you can pass your Red Hat pull secret, which enables your cluster to access Red Hat container registries along with other content. Add the --pull-secret @pull-secret.txt argument to your command.
• Optionally, you can use a custom domain. Add the --domain foo.example.com argument to your command, replacing foo.example.com with your own custom domain.

az aro create \
  --resource-group $RESOURCEGROUP \
  --name $CLUSTER \
  --vnet aro-vnet \
  --master-subnet master-subnet \
  --worker-subnet worker-subnet

After executing the az aro create command, it normally takes about 35 minutes to create a cluster.

Selecting a different ARO version

You can select to use a specific version of ARO when creating your cluster. First, use the CLI to query for available ARO versions:

az aro get-versions --location <region>

Once you've chosen the version, specify it using the --version parameter in the az aro create command:

az aro create \
  --resource-group $RESOURCEGROUP \
  --name $CLUSTER \
  --vnet aro-vnet \
  --master-subnet master-subnet \
  --worker-subnet worker-subnet \
  --version <x.y.z>

Before you begin

Sign in to the Azure portal.

Register the Microsoft.RedHatOpenShift resource provider. For instructions on registering resource providers using Azure portal, see Register resource provider.

Create an Azure Red Hat OpenShift cluster

1. On the Azure portal menu or from the Home page, select All Services under three horizontal bars on the top left hand page.

2. Search for and select Azure Red Hat OpenShift clusters.

3. Select Create.

4. On the Basics tab, configure the following options:

   • Project details:
     • Select an Azure Subscription.
     • Select or create an Azure Resource group, such as myResourceGroup.
   • Instance details:
     • Select a Region for the Azure Red Hat OpenShift cluster.
     • Enter an OpenShift cluster name, such as myAROCluster.
     • Enter a Domain name.
     • Select Master VM Size and Worker VM Size.
     • Select Worker node count (i.e., the number of worker nodes to create).

   

   Note

   The Domain name field is pre-populated with a random string. You can either specify a domain name (e.g., example.com) or a string/prefix (e.g., abc) that will be used as part of the auto-generated DNS name for OpenShift console and API servers. This prefix is also used as part of the name of the resource group that is created to host the cluster VMs if a resource group name is not specified.

5. On the Authentication tab, complete the following sections.

   Under Service principal information, select either Create new or Existing. If you choose to use an existing service principal, enter the following information:

   • Service principal client ID is your appId.
   • Service principal client secret is the service principal's decrypted Secret value.

   Note

   If you need to create a service principal, see Creating and using a service principal with an Azure Red Hat OpenShift cluster.

   Under Pull secret, enter the Red Hat pull secret (i.e., your cluster's pull secret's decrypted value). If you don't have a pull secret, leave this field blank.

   

6. On the Networking tab, configure the required options.

   Note

   Azure Red Hat OpenShift clusters running OpenShift 4 require a virtual network with two empty subnets: one for the control plane and one for worker nodes.

7. On the Tags tab, add tags to organize your resources.

8. Check Review + create and then Create when validation completes.

9. It takes approximately 35 to 45 minutes to create the Azure Red Hat OpenShift cluster. When your deployment is complete, navigate to your resource by either:
   • Clicking Go to resource, or
   • Browsing to the Azure Red Hat OpenShift cluster resource group and selecting the Azure Red Hat OpenShift resource.
     • Per example cluster dashboard below: browsing for myResourceGroup and selecting myAROCluster resource.

Next steps

Learn how to connect to an Azure Red Hat OpenShift cluster.