⁠Chapter 11. Reusing Parts of the Configuration

Table of Contents

Pacemaker provides multiple ways to simplify the configuration XML by reusing parts of it in multiple places.

Besides simplifying the XML, this also allows you to manipulate multiple configuration elements with a single reference.

⁠11.1. Reusing Resource Definitions

If you want to create lots of resources with similar configurations, defining a resource template simplifies the task. Once defined, it can be referenced in primitives or in certain types of constraints.

⁠11.1.1. Configuring Resources with Templates

The primitives referencing the template will inherit all meta-attributes, instance attributes, utilization attributes and operations defined in the template. And you can define specific attributes and operations for any of the primitives. If any of these are defined in both the template and the primitive, the values defined in the primitive will take precedence over the ones defined in the template.

Hence, resource templates help to reduce the amount of configuration work. If any changes are needed, they can be done to the template definition and will take effect globally in all resource definitions referencing that template.

Resource templates have a syntax similar to that of primitives.

⁠

Example 11.1. Resource template for a migratable Xen virtual machine

<template id="vm-template" class="ocf" provider="heartbeat" type="Xen">
  <meta_attributes id="vm-template-meta_attributes">
    <nvpair id="vm-template-meta_attributes-allow-migrate" name="allow-migrate" value="true"/>
  </meta_attributes>
  <utilization id="vm-template-utilization">
    <nvpair id="vm-template-utilization-memory" name="memory" value="512"/>
  </utilization>
  <operations>
    <op id="vm-template-monitor-15s" interval="15s" name="monitor" timeout="60s"/>
    <op id="vm-template-start-0" interval="0" name="start" timeout="60s"/>
  </operations>
</template>

Once you define a resource template, you can use it in primitives by specifying the template property.

⁠

Example 11.2. Xen primitive resource using a resource template

<primitive id="vm1" template="vm-template">
  <instance_attributes id="vm1-instance_attributes">
    <nvpair id="vm1-instance_attributes-name" name="name" value="vm1"/>
    <nvpair id="vm1-instance_attributes-xmfile" name="xmfile" value="/etc/xen/shared-vm/vm1"/>
  </instance_attributes>
</primitive>

In the example above, the new primitive vm1 will inherit everything from vm-template. For example, the equivalent of the above two examples would be:

⁠

Example 11.3. Equivalent Xen primitive resource not using a resource template

<primitive id="vm1" class="ocf" provider="heartbeat" type="Xen">
  <meta_attributes id="vm-template-meta_attributes">
    <nvpair id="vm-template-meta_attributes-allow-migrate" name="allow-migrate" value="true"/>
  </meta_attributes>
  <utilization id="vm-template-utilization">
    <nvpair id="vm-template-utilization-memory" name="memory" value="512"/>
  </utilization>
  <operations>
    <op id="vm-template-monitor-15s" interval="15s" name="monitor" timeout="60s"/>
    <op id="vm-template-start-0" interval="0" name="start" timeout="60s"/>
  </operations>
  <instance_attributes id="vm1-instance_attributes">
    <nvpair id="vm1-instance_attributes-name" name="name" value="vm1"/>
    <nvpair id="vm1-instance_attributes-xmfile" name="xmfile" value="/etc/xen/shared-vm/vm1"/>
  </instance_attributes>
</primitive>

If you want to overwrite some attributes or operations, add them to the particular primitive’s definition.

⁠

Example 11.4. Xen resource overriding template values

<primitive id="vm2" template="vm-template">
  <meta_attributes id="vm2-meta_attributes">
    <nvpair id="vm2-meta_attributes-allow-migrate" name="allow-migrate" value="false"/>
  </meta_attributes>
  <utilization id="vm2-utilization">
    <nvpair id="vm2-utilization-memory" name="memory" value="1024"/>
  </utilization>
  <instance_attributes id="vm2-instance_attributes">
    <nvpair id="vm2-instance_attributes-name" name="name" value="vm2"/>
    <nvpair id="vm2-instance_attributes-xmfile" name="xmfile" value="/etc/xen/shared-vm/vm2"/>
  </instance_attributes>
  <operations>
    <op id="vm2-monitor-30s" interval="30s" name="monitor" timeout="120s"/>
    <op id="vm2-stop-0" interval="0" name="stop" timeout="60s"/>
  </operations>
</primitive>

In the example above, the new primitive vm2 has special attribute values. Its monitor operation has a longer timeout and interval, and the primitive has an additional stop operation.

To see the resulting definition of a resource, run:

# crm_resource --query-xml --resource vm2

To see the raw definition of a resource in the CIB, run:

# crm_resource --query-xml-raw --resource vm2

⁠11.1.2. Using Templates in Constraints

A resource template can be referenced in the following types of constraints:

order constraints (see Section 5.3, “Specifying the Order in which Resources Should Start/Stop”)
colocation constraints (see Section 5.4, “Placing Resources Relative to other Resources”)
rsc_ticket constraints (for multi-site clusters as described in Section 15.3, “Configuring Ticket Dependencies”)

Resource templates referenced in constraints stand for all primitives which are derived from that template. This means, the constraint applies to all primitive resources referencing the resource template. Referencing resource templates in constraints is an alternative to resource sets and can simplify the cluster configuration considerably.

For example, given the example templates earlier in this section:

<rsc_colocation id="vm-template-colo-base-rsc" rsc="vm-template" rsc-role="Started" with-rsc="base-rsc" score="INFINITY"/>

would colocate all VMs with base-rsc and is the equivalent of the following constraint configuration:

<rsc_colocation id="vm-colo-base-rsc" score="INFINITY">
  <resource_set id="vm-colo-base-rsc-0" sequential="false" role="Started">
    <resource_ref id="vm1"/>
    <resource_ref id="vm2"/>
  </resource_set>
  <resource_set id="vm-colo-base-rsc-1">
    <resource_ref id="base-rsc"/>
  </resource_set>
</rsc_colocation>

Note

In a colocation constraint, only one template may be referenced from either rsc or with-rsc; the other reference must be a regular resource.

⁠11.1.3. Using Templates in Resource Sets

Resource templates can also be referenced in resource sets.

For example, given the example templates earlier in this section, then:

<rsc_order id="order1" score="INFINITY">
  <resource_set id="order1-0">
    <resource_ref id="base-rsc"/>
    <resource_ref id="vm-template"/>
    <resource_ref id="top-rsc"/>
  </resource_set>
</rsc_order>

is the equivalent of the following constraint using a sequential resource set:

<rsc_order id="order1" score="INFINITY">
  <resource_set id="order1-0">
    <resource_ref id="base-rsc"/>
    <resource_ref id="vm1"/>
    <resource_ref id="vm2"/>
    <resource_ref id="top-rsc"/>
  </resource_set>
</rsc_order>

Or, if the resources referencing the template can run in parallel, then:

<rsc_order id="order2" score="INFINITY">
  <resource_set id="order2-0">
    <resource_ref id="base-rsc"/>
  </resource_set>
  <resource_set id="order2-1" sequential="false">
    <resource_ref id="vm-template"/>
  </resource_set>
  <resource_set id="order2-2">
    <resource_ref id="top-rsc"/>
  </resource_set>
</rsc_order>

is the equivalent of the following constraint configuration:

<rsc_order id="order2" score="INFINITY">
  <resource_set id="order2-0">
    <resource_ref id="base-rsc"/>
  </resource_set>
  <resource_set id="order2-1" sequential="false">
    <resource_ref id="vm1"/>
    <resource_ref id="vm2"/>
  </resource_set>
  <resource_set id="order2-2">
    <resource_ref id="top-rsc"/>
  </resource_set>
</rsc_order>