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How to Deploy an Appliance

This guide walks through deploying a Marketplace appliance from the portal. A deployed appliance is a standard NetActuate virtual machine with the software already installed and seeded, so once it builds you manage it like any other VM.

Prerequisites​

  • A NetActuate account with access to the portal at portal.netactuate.com.
  • An SSH key added to your account, or a root or user password you will set at deploy, so you can connect to the appliance after it builds. See SSH Keys.
  • For a BYOL appliance, a valid license key from the software vendor. The appliance page lists where to obtain one.

Steps​

  1. In the portal, go to Platform → Marketplace.
  2. Browse or filter the catalog by category, protocol, or use case, then open a listing to review its overview, sizing, and configuration fields.
  3. Click Deploy on the listing.
  4. Choose a location. Pick the PoP closest to your users, contributors, or origin. Placing the appliance near the traffic it serves shortens the network path and reduces latency.
  5. Choose a server size. Each appliance shows a Minimum and a Recommended size. Minimum is for testing and light workloads; Recommended is a production-ready starting point. See Billing and Sizing.
  6. Fill in the seed fields. These are the appliance-specific configuration values (for example backend servers, ports, an admin user, or a license key). Required fields are marked. For secret fields such as passwords and API tokens, you can leave the field blank to have a strong value generated for you and stored write-only in your account.
  7. Confirm and deploy. Review your choices and start the build.
  8. Wait for the build to complete. The appliance boots and applies your seed values at first boot.

After the Build​

  1. Find the appliance's IP address on its VM detail page in the portal.
  2. Connect over SSH using the key or password you set at deploy. Most appliances use the ubuntu user; the appliance page notes the exact login.
  3. If the appliance has a management console, open it in a browser at the port and path shown on the appliance page (for example a stats page, a streaming-engine manager, or an admin UI).
  4. Retrieve any generated secret (such as a console password or API token) from your secret list in the portal. Generated secrets are stored write-only and are never echoed back after deploy.

Note: Many appliance consoles are served over plain HTTP or with a self-signed certificate for the instance IP so they come up immediately. Before production use, put the appliance behind a domain with a trusted TLS certificate, or restrict console access to trusted source IPs. Each appliance page describes its exposure posture.

Manage It as a VM​

A deployed appliance is a normal NetActuate virtual machine. You can resize, reinstall, snapshot, and manage it through the portal and the platform like any other server. See Virtual Machines.

Need Help?​

Contact support@netactuate.com or open a support ticket from the portal.