This section describes the web-based graphical configuration installer included as part of the NDB Cluster distribution. Topics discussed include an overview of the installer and its parts, software and other requirements for running the installer, navigating the GUI, and using the installer to set up and start or stop an NDB Cluster on one or more host computers.

The NDB Cluster Auto-Installer is made up of two components. The front end is a GUI client implemented as a Web page that loads and runs in a standard Web browser such as Firefox or Microsoft Internet Explorer. The back end is a server process (ndb_setup.py) that runs on the local machine or on another host to which you have access.

These two components (client and server) communicate with each other using standard HTTP requests and responses. The back end can manage NDB Cluster software programs on any host where the back end user has granted access. If the NDB Cluster software is on a different host, the back end relies on SSH for access, using the Paramiko library for executing commands remotely (see Section 22.2.1.1, “NDB Cluster Auto-Installer Requirements”).