Preparing your Azure platform to install Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows

Before you begin

• Download Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows from Product Downloads. For more information, see Downloading installation files.
• Obtain a Qlik product license. To learn about the licensing options, see Qlik product licenses.
• Log into your Azure portal.

Considerations for a multi-node deployment

Your business requirements determine the best way to deploy Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows on Microsoft Azure. These instructions describe the basic configuration for a single Azure virtual machine. For larger multi-node sites, you should determine the architecture requirements of your multi-node deployment before you begin. Here are some important things to consider when planning a multi-node deployment:

• Ensure your Azure region is geographically close to your on-premises network and data sources when possible. This reduces network latency.
• Deploy your Azure cluster across availability zones. This helps you build a highly available solution. For more information, see, Building solutions for high availability using Availability Zones.

• Take advantage of the native Azure features, such as Azure SQL Database, for your Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows deployment. For more information see, Azure SQL Database.

  Information noteStorage layer resiliency is a requirement for central node failover with Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows. See Storage layer resiliency to understand the requirement.

Create a resource group

A Microsoft Azure resource group is a container for your Azure resources that you create for your Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows deployment. For more information about Azure resource groups, see Manage Azure Resource Manager resource groups by using the Azure portal.

1. From the Microsoft Azure console, click Resource groups.

   Information noteIf you cannot find the Azure service you are looking for, click More services then All services from the console.
2. Click Add to create a new resource group.

3. Enter a resource group name, description, and location.

4. Click Create.

Create a network security group

Microsoft Azure network security groups filter traffic to and from your Azure resources. For each security group, configure the inbound and outbound rules. For more information about Azure network security groups, see Network security groups.

1. From the Microsoft Azure console, click Network security group.
2. Click Add to create a new Network security group.
3. Under the Basics tab, select your subscription and the resource group you created above.

4. Enter a network security group name and choose the location.

   Information noteThe location should be the same location as the resource group.

5. On the Tags tab, you can optionally add tags but it is not required. Tags are key-value pairs that you can use to categorize your resources. This might help you organize your Azure costs and keep track of resource owners.

6. Click Review + create.

   If the details for your security group are correct, click Create.

7. Under Deployment details, click the network security group to open it.

Create inbound rules

Security rules filter traffic to and from a resource. When you first create a network security group, there are three default inbound rules and three default outbound rules. For information about security rules, the default rules, how rules are evaluated, and other advanced features of security rules, see Security rules.

1. From the network security group overview page, under Settings, click Inbound security rules.

2. For each new rule, click the Add button.

   Add the following Inbound rules to the network security group, as shown below. After adding each rule, click Refresh to see the new rule in the list.

   Source	Source port ranges	Destination	Destination port ranges	Protocol	Action	Priority	Name	Description
   Any	*	Any	80	Any	Allow	100	HTTP	optional
   Any	*	Any	443	Any	Allow	110	HTTPS	optional
   Any	*	Any	3389	TCP	Allow	140	RDP	optional

   Information noteThese rules are only for testing and for the initial setup of your Azure virtual machine. You might need to change your rules for a production environment. For example, the RDP inbound rule below shows a warning because port 3389 is exposed to the internet. You might want to use a VPN or a private connection instead.

When finished, a summary of the rules you created is displayed. Inbound rules are ranked, with lower priority values taking precedence over larger values.

Create a storage account

Microsoft Azure storage accounts contain all of your Azure data objects. Each storage account is assigned a unique namespace. For more information about Azure storage accounts, storage account types, redundancy, and other advanced features of storage accounts, see Storage account overview.

1. From the Microsoft Azure console, click Storage Account.
2. Click Add to create a new storage account.
3. Under the Basics tab, in the Project details section, select your subscription and the resource group your created earlier.
4. In the Instance details section, enter the following information:
   • Storage account name: Enter any generic name.
   • Location: Enter the same region as the resource group.
   • Performance: Standard
   • Account kind: StorageV2 (general purpose v2)
   • Replication: Read-access geo-redundant storage
   • Access tier (default): Hot

5. Do not modify default settings on the other tabs.

   Information noteFor a production environment, you might want to configure the other settings, depending on your requirements.

6. Under the Review + create tab, review your storage account settings, then click Create.

7. Click Go to resource to verify that it is running.

Create a virtual network

Azure Virtual Network (VNet) helps your Azure resources communicate with each other. For more information about Azure Virtual Networks, see What is Azure Virtual Network?

1. From the Microsoft Azure console, click Virtual Networks.
2. Click Add to create a new virtual network.
3. On the Basics tab:
   • In the Project details section, select your subscription and the resource group your created earlier.
   • In the Instance details section, enter a generic name for the virtual network and choose the same region as your resource group.

4. On the IP Address tab:

   Information noteThe IP address ranges below are examples. Enter the appropriate values for your deployment.

   • IPv4 address space: 10.0.0.0/16

   • Click Add subnet:
     • Subnet name: Enter a generic name for the subnet.
     • Subnet address range: 10.0.0.0/24
   Information noteFor the remaining options, use the default values.
5. On the Review + create tab, review your virtual network, then click Create.
6. Click Go to resource to verify that it is running.

Create a virtual machine

Microsoft Azure virtual machines are scalable and highly-available. When you deploy Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows on an Azure virtual machine, you can take advantage of the Azure-native scaling, backup, and load balancing features.

1. From the Microsoft Azure console, click Virtual machines.
2. Click Add to create a new virtual machine.
3. Under the Basics tab:
   1. In the Project details section, select your subscription and the resource group your created earlier.
   2. In the Instance details section, enter the following information:
      • Virtual machine name: Enter any generic name.
      • Region: Select the same region as the resource group.
      • Availability options: Use the default setting. If you are building a production-ready, multi-node deployment, see Availability options for virtual machines in Azure.
      • Image: Select a Windows instance that meets the System requirements for Qlik Sense Enterprise

      • Size: Choose a size that meets the System requirements for Qlik Sense Enterprise

   3. In the Administrator account section, enter the administrator username and password for the virtual machine.

   4. In the Inbound port rules section, choose Allow selected ports, and then select RDP (3389) and HTTP (80) or HTTPS (443) from the list.

4. Under the Networking tab, select the virtual network and subnet you created earlier. Leave the remaining settings as their default values.

   Information noteThe remaining virtual machine options can be configured to meet your specific requirements. You can keep their default values to continue these instruction for a single virtual machine.

5. Click Review + create tab, then click Create.

6. Click Go to resource to verify that it is running.

Add a DNS label

Add a DNS label to associate your public IP address. This helps you connect to an IP address that is not static.

1. From the virtual machine overview page, locate DNS Name, then click Configure.
2. In the configuration dialog, enter the following information:
   • Assignment: Set it to Static.
   • Idle timeout: Set to 4 minutes (default).
   • DNS name label: Enter any unique name.
3. Click Save.

Connect to the Microsoft Azure virtual machine through a Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP)

1. From the virtual machine overview page, click Connect.

2. Click RDP.
3. Select the IP address and Port number from the drop-down menus.
4. Click Download RDP file.

5. Open the RDP file using an RDP client, then log into the RDP using your Azure username and password.

   Information noteUse your Azure username and password. When you connect, you must accept the certificates to continue.

Create Windows user accounts

On your virtual machine, you must set up an administrator service account to install and run Qlik Sense. You can also create additional local user accounts to access Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows after installation.

1. From the Windows virtual machine you created, open the Computer Management application.
2. Under Local Users and Groups, right-click on Users, then select New User.
3. Enter a user name and a password. Optionally add a full name and description.
4. Clear User must change password at next logon.

5. Select Password never expires.

   
6. Click Create.
7. Right-click the user your created, then select Properties.
8. Click Member Of.
9. Click Add.
10. Type Administrators, then click Check Names. The field will populate with the Administrators group.


11. Click OK.

12. Under Member of, Click Users.

13. Click Remove.

14. Click OK.

Install Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows on the Azure virtual machine

After the virtual machine is configured, and the user accounts are created on the virtual machine, you can install Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows on your Azure virtual machine.

• Installing Qlik Sense Enterprise on Windows on a single node
• Installing Qlik Sense in a multi-node site