GitLab Distribution Team Demos, 19 Jun 2023

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From YouTube: Distribution Team Demo - June 15 - How to install GitLab Omnibus on GCP VM

Description

Also include us debugging and issue that occurred after we lost SSH connection during install.

A

Hi everyone: this is the distribution team demo on the 15th of June 2023, and we are.

B

A

Going through the docs on how to install Omnibus in the clouds and this, uh this is a demo that is targeted to team members that wants to set up Omnibus for testing purposes. I'm gonna share my screen.

A

Right and okay, installation docs start here and just like uh also a disclaimer that uh we will assume that you have access to the our sandbox Cloud realm and you have your own gcp account or you have some gcp account that you're able to test it so getting back to the dogs, let's check. First, the requirements.

A

This is a long page, but basically cover the most important things. uh Then gcp VM that you're going to create. We already have like a a storage that will work good enough uh for your testing. So we can skip this part, but this basically says that if you want like to have a local volume, an extra something or you want to share your your volume with multiple, multiple instances, then you need to prepare like a better storage uh as CPU.

A

We will need four cores as the minimum recommended and for memory we say we need four gigabytes, but as my testing went, this is not up to date anymore. We actually have an issue opened by Robert for us to investigate, to buy. Is that and but for this testing purposes, I'm going to set up a bigger memory size. Eight giga would be okay uh but yeah that those are the main disclaimers here. The rest will just use the default.

A

You can look into it more if you're testing something specific, but you can just keep it for now. So beside the requirements, uh this section talks about what are our installation methods? You have Linux package, which is our Omnibus, a Helm chart Docker starting from source using get and the gitlab operator, and today we're going to talk about Linux package I'm going to skip this part 2. If we go to Cloud providers, it shows where we have docs on how to install gitlab we'll choose the gcp one. As I said.

A

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A

And here yeah, just basically some prereqs that you can Skip it's it should be all set up in our sandbox and first thing we have to do is create again so just go to the VM page and create a vml. Let's do that.

A

So here is the gcp main dashboard. We can go to compute engine, we can eat and create instance.

A

You can give you your instance, a name. Let's call it gitlab.

A

Here you see the price summary of what you expect to pay. In a month, um I usually like to use I think we can use E2, but I usually use N2, because I think it's more modern, um and here we need four CPU and eight giga I think there is no such match for CPU and 8 giga, so either 8 CPU and 8 Giga or four CPU and 16 Giga should do it.

A

um If she wants like to have like a better performance like I, said on storage, you can also change the default disk, which is like the defaults, the balance, persistent disk. You can change to SSD if you want, but it will be a little bit more expensive too, um and since we're going to allow our instance to be like available to the open world, we're also going to check this allow HTTP and allow gtps traffic, and this is all you need for your gitlab DM. So just go ahead and hit create.

A

It shouldn't take too long to create I, think about less than a minute, I think, and we can also go to read the rest of the docso I have since creating so here. It's just suggesting how you create what we just did.

A

um So installing gitlabs, the next phase, it tells us to tap the SSH button to connect to the instance and make note of our external AP. We will need that and SSH window will appear and then we should follow the install instructions that are in this link.

A

We're going to stop for Debian, since this is the default VM OS you. We could also have chosen Ubuntu there, but we chose the default.

A

So first thing it tells us to do is to update apt-get install some dependencies and, let's see if our VM is up, it is let's hit the SSH button.

A

Also takes first time, you click a few seconds.

A

You have to approve this, the first time you do it since I've already approved it went right away so I'll paste the comments here to install this dependencies update app to get.

A

There, it is next command is like it tells us to install postfix in case. We want to use um emails and allow our instance to send emails, or you can use something else, and then there is like documentation, spelling something else, but you can do the default here.

A

We should use internet site so just hit enter for the default here. You can choose if you have already set up your external DNS, like for your, how you want to reach your gitlab and have this as part of your email. You can set it up here since I'm not going to use emails for anything. This demonstration just allow this, like local name of my VM, to to be it.

A

And the next step will be step two, which will tell us to run this script.

A

If you don't trust the script, you can open it on a other tab to see what it's doing, but it will basically detect the US that we are check that we can really install the package install check if you have current gpg, set up detective version of the OS set up, some gpg keys and key rings for apt and yeah. So that's basically just setting up the Repository.

A

um So I'll go ahead and run this sorry.

C

It'll be quick.

D

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um Next next thing it says: okay, it's time to install gitlab, make sure you have correctly set up your DNS. There is a link for it and change the gitlabexample.com to the URL, which you want to access. Your gitlab instance um installation will automatically configure and start gitlab.

A

If you savage DPS, then it will automatically use, let's encrypt, to create like a certificate. For you, um that's great. You can also use your own certificates. I won't cover this um and you have the option to use to define an initial root password for your instance. I'll just use the initial one that git Library generate for me.

A

So this is the command that we have to run.

A

And we have to like, like said to replace this, for our DNS. Well, here is the case that I want to completely cover, but you should be able like, if you have like your own domain, to point your own domain as an a record to this external IP.

A

You can also use wildcard records for many of the gitlab service, but on Omnibus, it's not like in the chart that it setups everything for you right away, so you have to set up one by one, so I won't do this. I will just use this one and.

A

Replace it here using the nip.io service I, don't know if you're all familiar with it, but just I'm going to call it gitlab. My external IP neap.io .io is just like this neat service that uh works like a white Guardian s and basically Maps whatever you put in front of nip.io to be resolved to that, so ip.nip.io resolves to ID or app.ip.deep.io also resolves like so we're gonna make use of this because we don't. We don't want to use like our own register with a different domain.

A

Although we could.

A

um And that's it and then we can just hit enter I think this is all correct, and this will take a little bit, so we can check what's going on in the rest of the docs, why this is running.

A

This will like install the package, run the bring style scripts that comes with the Linux package, um which will like configure gitlab, run the it live, control, reconfigure, command and start all the services check. The services are running all this kind of stuff.

A

um Well, we were here we ran this command, so the next thing would be like to get the initial root password that we generate for us.

A

um This will be like a um I think it would be invalidated after 24 hours or just actually I think it would be just like a stored for 24 hours, not too validated yeah. So you should probably just change this password as soon as you log in and after we change the password.

A

Well, there are some notes on email subscription, Center, I think this is more like to the users when they hold an instance for that long, and they can choose what kind of notifications they want to receive security alerts newsletter and all that, so we can skip um recommended steps. This is an interesting one. After install gitlab, there are some important things here: I guess it's like from here. You will be able to go to like setting up your runners.

A

Setting up your registry. There are there'll be like different documentations and we plan to also cover setting up your registry since I think there is a lot to talk about in a different demo.

A

um What else yeah?

A

That's? Basically it, let's check how.

C

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Oops connection failure.

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B

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Little bit unfortunate, but because we won't see all the logs, but we can always check how what's the state of the instance.

A

Okay, so this is a good moment to share a little bit of some comments that we have available after install gitlab, we can run sudo, gitlab, sorry sudo, uh oh yeah, kids lab control status, which would tell us the status of our well. It's not it's not there. Yet.

A

It's still running.

A

hmm I wonder if, because I lost the SSH connection at the time, if, like a stopped, the install.

E

Well, that's a simple check of a PS, that's good.

A

And the command: well, let's just check everything.

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C

A

A

Something's running something's, running right, yeah.

E

uh Run it again so that you have a wider output, see if it picks it.

A

Up you mean the.

D

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A

Oh Omnibus control and.

E

The sync client, um so my guess, is that it's still in the middle of doing the install so.

D

E

This have top or each top just go. Look. You might need to run that as sudo, though.

E

Yep see, there's d-package still running, so it's still in the middle of.

A

Actually, installing.

E

The package- okay.

A

That's a good thing: that's just sweet that it'd be more than.

A

uh Perhaps when the package is gone from this window, then we can check right.

A

We can check the status again.

E

Yeah, probably looking for what app to get gets done, because it's what actually makes the call.

A

On Google yeah.

D

A

B

Watch this two lines.

A

Oh I think it's on post install, maybe all right.

E

Yeah, it's probably it's in the post, install script inside of D package, running omnibus, run and get my control, which is doing Omnibus. So you can see the sync client is running, so it's in the middle of doing all of the processing and starting all the processes and configuration and all that stuff.

D

E

um We should be able to tail the reconfigure log.

B

E

It's on top of watching d-package. uh It's far long gitlab.

A

D

E

Yeah, it's gonna be slash, VAR log gitlab.

E

Is it gitlab rails.

A

Reconfigure there is a reconfigured yep, that's the one.

B

E

Well, the last up to that to that was five minutes ago. Okay,.

E

B

There only one log file in there.

A

B

There is this one.

D

A

Yeah, let's get rails already.

A

Let's empty right: well, it's.

D

A

Okay and get back to Stockton.

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B

Think it's gone, isn't.

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E

A

We're not seeing.

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E

A

No, it's still here if it's kind of a.

A

Not be able not being able to see the logs, not knowing where it is, what's happening, it's kind of tricky.

B

A

The demo gods were not so happy today.

A

But it already feels like too long for me: I think it.

E

Doesn't yeah I'm a little thrown off by there's no CPU usage.

A

Yeah I would, if you don't mind, just restart, maybe if I just run install again, but then it's like debugging crazy I could like just restart a new VM and try it again. What do you prefer, but you want to debug this.

E

I guess the bigger question in my mind, is what happened to the sync client and Omnibus control that they're hung, because this is now stuck in a state of like d package doesn't even know what's going on. If we stop it right and we don't really want to fully restart from scratch, but we could.

A

Yeah, maybe we could run the, maybe we could stop it and run the links command and install it again. We.

E

Could try, you may not have access to the cleanse command? Oh.

A

C

I think um yeah the uh we can do it either way, but what uh you know the debug process might be good for what someone else might experience right. So, however, you see fit on, you know someone who isn't a distribution engineer like step in their POV, what they might try and do here.

A

Yeah so since it's a fresh, install I think a good alternative might be this like what we just discussed it, which is like killing the process app to get I. Think which is the parent I think, um and can you get the idea of it? It keeps jumping.

A

Okay, like this four four one, four, five, five zero one here.

A

Okay, I'll assume this is what we wanted and we can try now sudo gitlab control uh cleans, which should nuke everything after one minute.

A

And after that we will run the install command again.

A

B

The question now will.

A

Be did it failed because of the commands, or did it fail because of we losing the connection to the process? Somehow.

E

I I have no idea. It might be that, because the connection went away in the SSH client away went away. That standard out was disconnected and then sync doesn't know what to do.

E

I actually have no idea.

A

That's fun, though, let's find out.

E

That'd be a fun one for QA to find out what happens if a client uses SSH and then determinates the connection mid reconfigure.

A

A

Okay, do I have a history of the app to get up at get installed? No I, don't wait, no I! Don't let's take the comments back around the install page, this one, let's override the URL once again, oh this will be once and let's call it all right. So our external IP again this thing.

A

Dot: nib dot, IO and now oops, okay,.

A

Do we believe, is it really done that quick.

A

A

Okay, now it's not done.

E

Okay so at this point we know that it says it's done. It also says you need to run reconfigure um and just because it says it's done doesn't mean we actually know that there's anything listening, so we'd have to do an ssntlp, SS command and then the arguments Dash ntlp, and then that would tell us if anything's, actually listening on Port A before we bother to try to connect to it.

A

uh You mean the parts uh which Port 80.

E

46., remember that there's many components.

A

E

Take out the number and just run the command without the the number.

E

Yeah so we have SSH, we have no processes listening, so nothing is started so.

B

E

Do pseudo gitlab control status? What do we get.

A

E

Blank yeah, that's weird,.

A

Yeah, it looks like because we shoot the package the clings also and the reinstall after the clinch didn't quite work too.

E

Right so we may have to do effective. The manually go nuke. It.

D

Well, go back go back to the output real quick because it looked like it wanted you to configure the instance and then reconfigure what actually started. Yes,.

E

Now the weird part is that it does actually status is blank; normally, it would have a whole bunch of stuff, um but it's worth trying to get light control reconfigure. As you know, pseudo electrical reconfigure and see what happens.

A

B

What we wanted to see.

A

So maybe it works now, let's see.

A

Just to make it clear for one that it to be watching this video this demo, if you don't get your you, don't need to run the git Library configure because it should have been run automatically.

B

B

A

Diabetes, let's see if the website is now available.

A

E

Does it look like it is run the same SS ntlb.

A

We have stuff listening.

E

A

Not on Port 443, so I'm baby, let's encrypt, didn't get.

C

Click ah because we.

A

Didn't specify as the install process with the external URL with https, then I think you just use the example.com.

E

By editing the configuration file yeah.

A

Yeah, that's probably it so the lab we can edit gitlab letter B. This is the file where you set up your omnibus, and we can say here, external URL I believe so you need to do that as sudo I need to do that. That's correct, but is it external URL, Do, You Remember by heart.

E

It's it is external underscore URL, and then it is a string. Okay, but.

B

D

Thing is you can't.

E

D

A

So let's try once more our IP this one but neep.

C

A

I'll leave everything as before, all the rest and reconfigure it again.

A

It would be a quicker reconfigure, this time.

A

There it is um SS command again perfect. Three.

B

A

Good once more okay, this might mean that it's just uh reloading. Yes,.

E

Loading that is nginx passing to Workhorse and then Workhorse, trying to reach rails and rails, hasn't fully booted. Yet cool.

A

And now we can log in um and we can catch.

A

Center uh git lab- and this is the initial root password- that's in the docs- and this is the one you should change soon.

A

uh Good ideas also to follow the tips on deactivating, your sign up restrictions as soon as you're. Looking for the first time, this would be unchecking. This checkbox saving the changes, and from from here we can poke the instance a little bit to see. If all is up, we can I, don't know, create a project from a template rails project.

A

And in private you need to be on a namespace: let's choose the root, one.

A

Okay, it's created. Where else we can wrap up or do you have any suggestions on anything you'd like to test.

A

We can create Runners, I guess.

C

Is there anything else you might do uh with the knowledge that this might be a test instance now that you're testing, maybe a new feature or something that we've implemented in distribution.

A

Well, I think it's depends on what you want to do. I guess what feature you want to do right like this, should already give you uh like all this service running like sudo, and your.

D

A

So you should have even registry is running because we in if we've enabled https and I believe when you enable GPS it also setups the registry on part 50 50., but you have everything you have cash here. So if you want to test cash, El is obviously working um Prometheus. Possibly it's it's all there that you should need like infrastructure, wise, I, think so, but yeah you would need to install a runner I guess so you don't have a runner.

A

So probably if you want to run like Ci pipelines, then, but it's all kind of self-explanatory here, like just go into settings, CI, CD and then I clicked on create project to Runner I have to install the runner first. Then you can copy this here for Linux amd's architecture.

A

You can install a runner.

A

You can take this command to set up register your run against the instance just hit enter to specify the domain. The name you can hit enter. The executor can be a shell or a Docker. If it's a Docker, then you probably need to install Docker in your VM.

A

And you can run this command.

A

And there you go, you have created a runner. If we go to the runners page, it should be there it's connected. If you go to Pipelines, we can run a pipeline.

A

And there is this: good job should get picked up. So, okay, it failed, but it got picked up interview for some, whatever reason, but they run around um yeah. I! Guess that's! That's! It um is this. This answer your question or were you asking for something more specific.

C

No, that's good. uh You know. The intent of these demos is uh to enable anyone, but also maybe more specifically, other teams that get lab, who uh you know when a self-serve testing features um so yeah.

D

Also from the perspective of testing an emerge, request, I believe the package is built in CI and then you can download that artifact from CI and install it so it'll look a little different than the installation command used here from the official package. Repository.

A

A

um Yeah that was just like show showing that it's you have like this gitlab control command. It has a lot of good insights and things that you can use so have a read on the help option after you print the help option like checking.

A

What's the active config defend the config once you change it before I reconfigure, yeah, there are a lot of things you can do here check if you're ready to upgrade with the current config cleansing, which is like looking everything showing the current config yeah a lot of interesting things here for you to check connecting to to rails, console I think you can also do this through here and database commands yeah. So that's it. If there are no more questions, I'm going to stop the recording.

A

Okay thanks, everyone.