Get Metal as a Service

Metal as a Service (MAAS) gives you automated server provisioning and easy network setup for your physical servers for amazing data centre operational efficiency — on premise, open source and supported.

Install MAAS on your hardware

Follow the instructions below to download, configure and install MAAS.

Requirements

  • You will need one small server for MAAS and at least one server which can be managed with a BMC.
  • It is recommended to have the MAAS server provide DHCP and DNS on a network the managed machines are connected to.

Before you start, you’ll want this eBook

Server Provisioning: What Network Admins and IT Pros Need to Know

This document is designed to help system administrators and DevOps focused organisations to understand bare metal server provisioning, understand its value proposition, and learn about how leading companies are using server provisioning solutions within their hyperscale environments.

Canonical’s MAAS helps organisations to take full advantage of existing hardware investments by maximising hardware efficiency, and a pathway to leverage the performance and security of hardware based solutions with the economics and efficiencies of the cloud.

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  • All information provided will be handled in accordance with the Canonical privacy policy.

Install MAAS in 6 easy steps

  1. 1Install Ubuntu Server

    Download Ubuntu Server 16.04 LTS and follow the step-by-step installation instructions on your MAAS server.

  2. 2Install MAAS

    From the command line type the commands below and follow the step-by-step instructions:

  3. 3Create admin user

    Create your admin credentials by typing:

    Login to the MAAS UI at http://<your.maas.ip>:5240/MAAS/

  4. 4Turn on DHCP

    Go to the “Networks” tab, and select the VLAN for which you want to enable DHCP. On the “Take action” button select “Provide DHCP”.

    • Set the Rack controller that will manage DHCP.
    • Select the subnet where to create the DHCP dynamic range on.
    • Fill in details for the dynamic range.
    Screenshot of Networks tab

  5. 3Import images

    Go to the “Images” tab and choose the OS releases and architectures you want to install dynamically.

    Screenshot of Images tab

  6. 6Enlist and commission servers

    Now you are ready to enlist and commission machines.

    • Set all the servers to PXE boot.
    • Boot each machine once. You should see these machines appear in MAAS.
    • If your machines do not have a IPMI based BMC, proceed to edit them and enter their BMC details.
    • Select all the machines and “Commission” them using the “Take action” button.
    • When machines have a “Ready” status you can start deploying.
    Screenshot of Machines node list

Technical documentation

For those looking to self-support MAAS we provide extensive documentation covering:

  • What MAAS offers
  • How MAAS works
  • Key components and colocation of all services
  • Installation methods
  • Minimum requirements

Talk to our experts

Canonical makes MAAS amazing and we help people run critical infrastructure at scale with it. Contact us for more information or to discuss your specific needs.

Contact us ›

Deploy services in seconds using Juju

With Juju you can deploy, orchestrate and scale services in your MAAS cluster in seconds.

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Professional support for Ubuntu

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