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Non-Kubernetes

Simplyblock does not require Kubernetes. A full storage cluster can be deployed on plain Linux hosts, a mode also referred to as Docker mode, where the control plane and the storage plane run as containers on separate hosts. Storage nodes are typically bare-metal servers, while management nodes are typically virtual machines. Basic Docker knowledge is helpful, but the entire cluster is managed through the sbctl command-line interface or the management API.

Once a cluster is running, its capacity can be consumed by any NVMe over Fabrics initiator. Simplyblock provides integrations for Proxmox Virtual Environment and OpenStack, and volumes can be attached directly to plain Linux hosts that run neither Kubernetes nor a virtualization platform.

Before deploying, review the node sizing, network, and erasure coding guidance in Deployment Preparation. That guidance applies to all deployment models.

What This Section Covers

  • Install Simplyblock: Prepare the hosts and the network, then install the control plane (management nodes) and the storage plane (storage nodes) on plain Linux.
  • Plain Linux Initiators: Perform the host-level configuration required to attach simplyblock volumes to Linux hosts that are not running Kubernetes, Proxmox, or OpenStack.
  • OpenStack Integration: Use simplyblock as a Cinder backend for OpenStack.
  • Proxmox Integration: Provision volumes for KVM virtual machines and LXC containers through the simplyblock Proxmox storage plugin.
  • Usage: Provision, expand, snapshot, clone, encrypt, and remove logical volumes with sbctl.
  • Operations: Monitor cluster health, scale capacity, back up and restore volumes, upgrade the cluster, apply quality of service, and replace or migrate storage nodes.

Info

To deploy simplyblock on Kubernetes with the simplyblock operator and consume storage through the CSI driver, see Kubernetes.