11.0 Installation Checklist

Ensure that you have completed the following tasks before you start the installation:

  • Verify that your hardware and software meet the system requirements listed in Section 5.0, Meeting System Requirements.

  • If there was a previous installation of Sentinel, ensure that there are no files or system settings remaining from a previous installation. For more information, see Section B.0, Uninstalling.

  • If you plan to install the licensed version, obtain your license key from the Customer Care Center.

  • Ensure that the ports listed in Section 8.0, Ports Used are opened in the firewall.

  • For the Sentinel installer to work properly, the system must be able to return the hostname or a valid IP address. To do this, add the hostname to the /etc/hosts file to the line containing the IP address, then enter hostname -f to make sure that the hostname is displayed properly.

  • Synchronize time by using the Network Time Protocol (NTP).

  • On RHEL systems: For optimal performance, the memory settings must be set appropriately for the PostgreSQL database. The SHMMAX parameter must be greater than or equal to 1073741824.

    To set the appropriate value, append the following information in the /etc/sysctl.conf file:

    # for Sentinel Postgresql
kernel.shmmax=1073741824

  • For traditional installations:

    • The operating system for the Sentinel server must include at least the Base Server components of the SLES server or the RHEL server. Therefore, ensure that the following packages are installed before you install Sentinel:

      • bc

      • bash

      • coreutils

      • gettext

      • glibc

      • grep

      • libgcc

      • libstdc

      • lsof

      • openssl

      • sed

      • insserv

      • net-tools

      • libX (for RHEL 7.x)

      • zlib (up to SLES 12.x and RHEL 7.x, 8.x)

      • python-libs (up to SLES 12.x and RHEL 7.x)

      • netstat (up to SLES 12.x and RHEL 7.x) or ss (for SLES 15 and later)

      • pam-modules (available only when you install Legacy-Module on SLES 15.x)

  • For Sentinel with traditional storage:

    To view event visualizations, as a root user, set the property vm.max_map_count=262144 in the /etc/sysctl.conf file. After adding the property, run sysctl -p for the changes to take effect.