Installation Guide
For information about specific feature limitations, see Specifications and Usage Limits.
For installation information for other software versions and search appliance models, see the Archive page, which contains links to previous versions of the search appliance documentation.
About This Document
This document is for you if you are a network administrator or if you need to install the Google Search Appliance. You need some knowledge of networking and web concepts before you install. If you are not a network administrator, work with your network administrator to ensure that all the requirements described in Planning for Search Appliance Installation are met.
About the Google Search Appliance
Mount the Google Search Appliance on a rack in a location that meets the temperature and electricity requirements. For complete information on those technical requirements, read the section Electrical and Other Technical Requirements in Planning for Search Appliance Installation.
Before You Install
Before you install a search appliance, read the installation planning document, Planning for Search Appliance Installation. You may have received the planning document as an attachment to the Welcome email you received after purchasing the search appliance. If not, read Planning for Search Appliance Installation. If you have read the planning document and collected the information described in the preinstallation checklists, you can proceed to install the Google Search Appliance.
About Technical Support
Google provides technical support through a web application at the for Work Technical Support portal. The Google for Work Support Information web page (https://support.google.com/googleforwork/answer/142244#search) has information on how to connect to the Support portal.
You can also find useful information in the user forums on Google Groups for the Google Search Appliance (http://groups.google.com/group/Google-Search-Appliance).
About the Google for Work Technical Support Web Site
Technical Support Requirements
Under the terms of the Technical Support Agreements for the Google Search Appliance, Google for Work Technical Support requires direct access to your search appliance to provide some types of support. For example, technical support engineers require direct access to determine whether a search appliance that is experiencing problems is eligible to be returned to Google and exchanged for a new search appliance. Different access methods have different requirements. The requirements for remote access are discussed in Remote access methods for technical support (http://support.google.com/gsa/answer/2644822).
After you create a technical support account, review the terms of the Technical Support Guidelines for your search appliance (https://support.google.com/gsa/answer/3246290).
Installing the Google Search Appliance
This section contains instructions for connecting the Google Search Appliance to the network and performing the initial software configuration. Before you connect the search appliance, complete the preinstallation checklists, which are in Planning for Search Appliance Installation.
Installing the Google Search Appliance has two phases:
The Welcome letter that is in the box with the Google Search Appliance also contains instructions for connecting the search appliance to the network and starting the search appliance. If you have already connected the search appliance to the network, you can skip to Configuring the Network Settings and continue configuring the software.
Connecting the Search Appliance to the Network
A Google Search Appliance has four Ethernet ports and they might be labeled LAN1 through LAN4.
To connect the Google Search Appliance to the network:
Continue to the next section, Configuring the Network Settings, and proceed with the instructions there.
First-Time Startup of Older Models of the Google Search Appliance
The first time you start a Google Search Appliance, you may see an error message saying
The battery has recovered, but cached data was lost.
Press any key to continue or 'C' to load the configuration utility.
Configuring the Network Settings
This section provides instructions for configuring the search appliance software so that the Google Search Appliance can connect to your network and communicate with the other computers located on the network. To configure the search appliance, you need the values described in the preinstallation checklists that are in Planning for Search Appliance Installation.
When you perform these steps, you run the Network and System Settings wizard from the computer that you connected to the search appliance. If the web browser on the computer uses a proxy to connect to the Internet, disable the proxy, which prevents access to the search appliance.
To configure the search appliance software:
http://192.168.255.1:1111/
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If the Network and System Settings wizard does not start, check the browser proxy settings. If the browser is using a proxy, disable the proxy, wait two minutes, and enter http://192.168.255.1:1111/ in the browser address bar again.
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6.
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Click Accept & Continue to Step 1.
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If you accept the license agreement, you see the Network Settings page of the Network and System Settings wizard.
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a.
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Define a particular network speed and duplex setting for the network interface card by clicking the appropriate radio button in the Network Speed section. By default, the search appliance autonegotiates network speed and the duplex setting with your network.
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b.
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In the IP Address field, enter the IP address assigned to the search appliance.
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c.
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Edit the Subnet Mask field so that it matches the value on the completed preinstallation checklist. If the field contains a value, the search appliance obtained the value using DHCP.
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d.
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Edit the Default Gateway field so that it matches the value on the completed preinstallation checklist. If the field contains a value, the search appliance obtained the value using DHCP.
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e.
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In the IP Address field, enter the IP address assigned to the search appliance.
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f.
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In the Prefix Length field, specify the length of the address prefix used for search appliance administration.
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g.
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Edit the Default Gateway field so that it matches the value on the completed preinstallation checklist. If the field contains a value, the search appliance obtained the value using DHCP.
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8.
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To use the dedicated port (white label) for search appliance administration, check Dedicated Admin NIC and complete the following steps. The Admin NIC is IPv4 only.
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a.
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Define a particular network speed and duplex setting for the dedicated network interface card by clicking the appropriate radio button in the Network Speed section. By default, the search appliance autonegotiates network speed and the duplex setting with your network.
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b.
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In the IP address field, enter the IP address to use for search appliance administration.
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c.
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In the Subnet mask field, enter the subnet mask for search appliance administration.
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d.
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In the Gateway field, enter the gateway to be used for outbound search appliance administration traffic.
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9.
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In the DNS Servers field, enter a comma-separated list of Domain Name System (DNS) servers.
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10.
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In the DNS Suffix field, enter a comma-separate list of suffixes for DNS resolution.
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products.example.com,
mydivision.example.com,
support.example.com
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In the SMTP Server field, enter the name of a Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) server, which the search appliance needs for sending notifications and alerts.
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12.
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In the Sender of Outgoing Email field, enter a name for the account that sends email messages and alerts from the search appliance.
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13.
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In the Time Zone field, select the time zone to use for times recorded in logs, for host load scheduling, and for other time-based information.
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14.
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In the NTP Servers field, enter a comma-separated list of IP addresses of Network Time Protocol (NTP) servers.
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15.
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In the Password field, enter a new password for the admin account, then retype the password to confirm it.
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16.
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In the Email Address field, enter the email address to which the search appliance sends notices intended for the admin account.
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17.
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If you select Local Authentication, administrators and managers are authenticated using credentials you enter directly on the Admin Console.
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If you select LDAP Authentication, administrators and managers are authenticated against an LDAP server. To use this option, you must initially connect to the Admin Console using the credentials you entered in step 15, then configure the LDAP administrator group and server. After you save the LDAP configuration, LDAP authentication for administrators and managers takes effect.
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If you select Local and LDAP authentication, the search appliance attempts to authenticate administrators and managers against both the local credentials and the LDAP server. If an account can be authenticated against either the local credentials or the LDAP server, the login attempt succeeds.
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18.
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Click Continue.
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19.
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In the Test URLs field, enter one URL per line, representing locations of content you want crawled and indexed.
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http://corp.example.com/
http://www.example.com/products/
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Click Check Access to Web Servers.
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Congratulations! You have configured the appliance. If no warnings or errors
have been displayed, you can now disconnect your laptop and use the appliance.
Use the Admin Console application for day-to-day administration.
Determining Whether the Software Version is Current
To determine the version of the software current installed on your search appliance, click the About link on any Admin Console page. You see a new page that displays the search appliance version.
Visit the following URL for instructions on how to log in to the Support portal:
The next section, Setting Up the Crawl, contains instructions for connecting to the Admin Console and configuring the initial crawl of your content.
Setting Up the Crawl
When you complete the process described in Configuring the Network Settings, the crawl is not started. This section contains instructions for connecting to the Admin Console, entering start URLs and URL patterns, starting the crawl process, and confirming that the crawl is proceeding normally. For complete information on crawl, start URLs, and URL patterns, see Administering Crawl.
The high-level steps for setting up the initial crawl are:
Logging in to the Admin Console
You can log in to the Admin Console using HTTP or HTTPS:
It’s best to use HTTPS on port 8443.
To retain changes you make on any Admin Console page, click the Save button. If you navigate to another page without clicking Save, your changes are lost.
To log in to the Admin Console:
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For secure access, type https://hostname:8443/ or https://IP_address:8443/, where hostname is the host name assigned to the search appliance or IP_address is the IP address assigned to the search appliance.
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For insecure access, type http://hostname:8000/ or https://IP_address:8000/, where hostname is the host name assigned to the search appliance or IP_address is the IP address assigned to the search appliance.
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When the Admin Console login page appears, type admin in the user name field and type the password you assigned to the admin account during configuration in the password field.
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After you log in to the Admin Console, you can configure crawling or perform other administrative tasks. If you cannot log in to the Admin Console, refer to Troubleshooting, search the search appliance documentation on code.google.com, or contact Google for Work Technical Support (https://support.google.com/googleforwork/answer/142244#search) for additional troubleshooting information.
The next section, Setting Up and Starting the Crawl, discusses how to configure the initial crawl of your content files. For more information on crawl and configuring crawl, see Administering Crawl.
Setting Up and Starting the Crawl
To set up and start the crawl:
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In the left-hand menu, click Content Sources > Web Crawl > Start and Block URLs.
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2.
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In the Start URLs field, type one or more start URLs.
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protocol://host[:port]/[path]/
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4.
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In the Do Not Follow Patterns field, scroll through the list of patterns that can be blocked from being crawled.
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Click Save.
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In the left-hand menu, click Content Sources > Diagnostics > Crawl Status.
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Click Resume Crawl.
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Checking the Crawl Status
You can check the progress of the crawl from the Home page.
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In the side menu, click Home.
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Checking the Serving Status
The Search > Diagnostics > Search Status page reports on search results serving. The graph shows a summary of queries per second by the half hour. If the crawl has just begun, there is a delay before the Search Status page shows any activity.
After the Installation Process is Completed
After the installation process is finished, perform the following tasks:
Recording the Appliance ID
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On the Admin Console on the Administration > License page
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Running Test Queries Using the Test Center
Run test queries in these circumstances:
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Click the Test Center link in the horizontal blue bar at the top right of the page.
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Providing a Search Page to Your Users
Both techniques are discussed in Customizing the User Interface in Creating the Search Experience.
Exporting the Search Appliance Configuration
To export the search appliance configuration information:
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Click Administration > Import/Export.
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4.
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Click Export.
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Starting and Shutting Down the Google Search Appliance
Use the instructions below to start or shut down the search appliance.
Starting the Search Appliance
This section contains instructions for starting the Google Search Appliance.
To start the search appliance:
See the instructions in Shutting Down the Search Appliance for information on shutting down the search appliance safely.
Shutting Down the Search Appliance
This section contains instructions for safely shutting down the Google Search Appliance.
You must perform a safe shut down before you unplug the power cord. Do not shut down a running search appliance by unplugging it or by depressing the power button for four seconds or more. Use one of the methods described in this section.
Shutting Down the Search Appliance Normally
The following two methods are the preferred ways to shut down the search appliance.
To shut the search appliance down normally when you have network access:
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Click Administration > Shutdown.
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Click the button Shut the System Down Now.
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To shut the search appliance down normally when you have physical access:
Rebooting the Search Appliance
To reboot the search appliance from the Admin Console:
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Click Administration > Shutdown.
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Click the button Reboot the System Now. The system reboots.
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To reboot the search appliance from a physical or virtual keyboard:
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2.
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Troubleshooting
This section contains information on the following topics:
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2.
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If the problem occurred while you configured the initial crawl, read Administering Crawl for Web and File System Content and the help system in the Admin Console.
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If you cannot find the solution to your problem in this document, Administering Crawl for Web and File System Content, or the help system in the Admin Console, see Fix a problem (https://support.google.com/gsa/topic/2707842).
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If you cannot resolve the problem and you have access to the Technical Support web site, review the information at https://support.google.com/enterprisehelp/answer/1120726, which directs you to the Support Portal.
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The appliance ID (also known as the serial number) is on a tag on the back of the chassis and can also be found on the Admin Console on the Administration > License page.
Resolving Installation and Configuration Problems
ping 192.168.255.1 ping 127.0.0.1 |
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You type a URL in the Test URLs box in the configuration wizard and you see the error message URLs to Test: connection refused appears. |
The server located at the test URL is not running a web server. |
You type a URL in the Test URLs box in the configuration wizard and you see the error message URLs to Test: not a valid URL appears. |
The URL does not include the protocol, the domain name, or additional path information. For example, http://www.google.com/ is a valid URL, but http://www.google.com is not valid because it does not include path information (the final slash “/”). |
You type a URL in the URLS to Test box and you see the error message URLs to Test: connection timed out appears. |
The server that you identified might have an access control list (ACL) that is blocking access. |
On the DNS Settings page, you see the message DNS: connection refused: server down when you click Continue and attempt to navigate to the next page. |
Network-Related Error Messages
Increase the capacity of the DNS server and monitor network traffic to correct any traffic problems. |
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Cannot resolve server (SMTP, SYSLOG, NTP servers, test URLs) |
Ensure that you entered the server name correctly and correct any typographical errors. |
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URLs to Test: returns code nnn instead of 200, where n=any numeral |
The web server specified responded, but returned an error code.
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Note: A complete list of HTTP error codes is available from http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc2616.txt, on pages 39 and 40.
Notices
This section contains safety and other notices.
Safety Notice
Retain all safety and operating instructions for future use.
The product should be operated only from the type of power source indicated on the rating label.
Do not use this product near water or a heat source.
Set up the system on a stable work surface so as to ensure stability of the system.
Never insert objects of any kind into the ventilation openings.
To avoid electrical shock, never attempt to remove the covers of the Google Search Appliance.
If you are working with the modem or local area network:
To reduce the risk of fire, only use No. 26 AQG or larger telecommunications line cord.
Do not plug a modem or telephone cable into the network interface controller receptacle (NIC).
Search Appliance Security and Resilience
Anti-Hacking Measures
All services within the Google Search Appliance sit behind a firewall. The firewall is the main source of security for the device against malicious hackers. No communication can connect to or connect from these servers without first going through the firewall. The firewall allows only a small set of ports to pass into the system. For a complete list of the port numbers and their functions, see What Ports Does the Search Appliance Use? in Planning for Search Appliance Installation.
Lockdown Security
Compliance Notice
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Statement
Copyrights
This product includes Python software version 1.5.2, developed by Stichting Mathematisch Centrum.
This product includes timeoutsocket.py
Copyright 2000, 2001 by Timothy O’Malley <timo@alum.mit.edu> All Rights Reserved
This product includes Outside In® HTML Export
© 1992-2002 2003 Stellent Chicago, Inc. All rights reserved.