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Elasticsearch:Create an Alibaba Cloud Elasticsearch cluster

Last Updated:Mar 07, 2024

Alibaba Cloud Elasticsearch can help you build a basic engine with complex query features or search for and analyze data in large datasets. This topic describes how to create an Alibaba Cloud Elasticsearch cluster.

Procedure

Note

In this example, an Elasticsearch cluster is created in the Alibaba Cloud Elasticsearch console. You can also create an Elasticsearch cluster by calling an API operation. For more information, see createInstance.

  1. Log on to the Alibaba Cloud Elasticsearch console.
  2. In the left-side navigation pane, click Elasticsearch Clusters.
  3. In the upper-left corner of the Elasticsearch Clusters page, click Create.

    Parameter

    Description

    Billing Method

    • Subscription: If you plan to use an Elasticsearch cluster for an extended period of time, we recommend that you select the subscription billing method. You need to pay an upfront fee for a subscription Elasticsearch cluster. The subscription billing method is more cost-effective than the pay-as-you-go billing method.

    • Pay-as-you-go: If you want to use an Elasticsearch cluster for a short period of time or for program development or functional tests, we recommend that you select the pay-as-you-go billing method. You are charged for a pay-as-you-go Elasticsearch cluster on an hourly basis. You can release a pay-as-you-go Elasticsearch cluster at any time. After you release the cluster, the billing of the cluster immediately stops.

      You can create a pay-as-you-go Elasticsearch cluster first. After you confirm that the created Elasticsearch cluster meets your business requirements, you can switch the billing method of the Elasticsearch cluster to subscription.

    Note

    For more information, see Billing methods.

    Region and Zone

    Select a region based on your business requirements. After an Elasticsearch cluster is created, you cannot change the region of the cluster.

    • A region that is closer to the geographical location of your users provides lower latency and higher access speed.

    • If you want an Elasticsearch cluster to communicate with other Alibaba Cloud services over an internal network, deploy the cluster in the same region as the services.

    Number of Zones

    • 1-AZ: This deployment method is the default deployment method. It is used to handle non-critical workloads.

    • 2-AZ: This deployment method implements cross-zone disaster recovery. It is used to handle production workloads.

    • 3-AZ: This deployment method provides high availability. It is used to handle production workloads that require high service availability.

    Note

    Network Type

    The value of this parameter can be only VPC.

    VPC

    Select a virtual private cloud (VPC) in the specified region.

    Note
    • If you want an Elasticsearch cluster to communicate with other Alibaba Cloud services over an internal network, we recommend that you deploy the cluster in the same VPC as the services.

    • If no VPC meets your business requirements, create a VPC first. For more information, see Create a VPC and a vSwitch.

    VSwitch

    Select a vSwitch in the specified VPC. Only available vSwitches in the specified zone are displayed.

    Note

    If no vSwitch meets your business requirements, create a vSwitch first. For more information, see Create a VPC and a vSwitch.

    Instance Type

    • Standard Edition: Elasticsearch clusters of this edition are fully compatible with all open source Elasticsearch features and provide all advanced features of the X-Pack plug-in for free.

    • Kernel-enhanced Edition: In addition to open source Elasticsearch features, Elasticsearch clusters of this edition provide more than 10 enhanced features based on the optimized kernel AliES.

    For more information, see Version features and Features supported by the Kernel-enhanced Edition.

    Version

    • Standard Edition: 8.9, 8.5, 7.7, 6.8, 6.3, 5.6, and 5.5

    • Kernel-enhanced Edition: 7.10, 7.16, and 6.7

    For more information, see Version features and Release Notes.

    Note

    The versions supported in different regions and zones may vary. You can view the supported versions on the buy page.

    Parameters for different types of nodes

    Configure nodes based on your business requirements.

    Note

    Resource Group

    Select a resource group. You can use resource groups to manage Elasticsearch clusters. For more information, see Use RAM to create and authorize resource groups.

    Username

    The value of this parameter can be only elastic. The elastic account is used to access the Elasticsearch cluster and log on to the Kibana console of the cluster.

    Note

    If you change the password of the elastic account, you cannot use the elastic account to access the cluster before the new password takes effect. Therefore, we recommend that you do not use the elastic account in your business. You can log on to the Kibana console of your Elasticsearch cluster and create a user with the required role to access the cluster. For more information, see Use the role-based access control (RBAC) mechanism provided by Elasticsearch X-Pack to implement access control.

    Password

    The password of the elastic account. This parameter is required.

    Duration

    You need to configure this parameter if you set Billing Method to Subscription.

    We recommend that you select Auto-renewal to prevent your business from being affected due to cluster suspension or release after the cluster expires.

    • Monthly subscription: The auto-renewal period is one month.

    • Yearly subscription: The auto-renewal period is one year.

  4. Click Buy Now. The Confirm Order page appears. Confirm the order, read the terms of service, and select the check box for Terms of Service. Then, click Activate Now.

  5. In the top navigation bar of the Elasticsearch Clusters page, select the region where the newly created Elasticsearch cluster resides. Then, view the cluster.

    A period of time is required before an Elasticsearch cluster can provide services after it is purchased. The period of time varies based on the specifications, data structure, and data volume of the cluster. In most cases, a few hours are required. You can view the status of the cluster in the Status column.

FAQ

What to do next

  • View the basic information about the cluster, such as the internal endpoint, status, and node information of the cluster. For more information, see View the cluster status and node information.

  • Access the cluster. Multiple access methods are available. For more information, see Access an Elasticsearch cluster.

  • Migrate or collect data from other services to the cluster. For more information, see Best practices.

  • Log on to the Kibana console of the cluster to analyze, visualize, and search for data. For more information, see Log on to the Kibana console.

  • Configure the cluster to improve query efficiency and service security. For more information, see Configure an Elasticsearch cluster.

  • Create a user with the required role and specify a password that corresponds to the user in the Kibana console of the cluster. You can use the user and password to access the cluster. For more information, see Use the RBAC mechanism provided by Elasticsearch X-Pack to implement access control.

    Note

    If you change the password of the elastic account, you cannot use the elastic account to access the cluster before the new password takes effect. Therefore, we recommend that you do not use the elastic account in your business.

  • Use a scenario-based template to modify the configurations of the cluster to achieve optimal cluster and index configurations and avoid cluster exceptions and performance issues that are caused by incorrect configurations. For more information, see Use a scenario-based template to modify the configurations of a cluster.

  • If you purchase warm nodes for the cluster, you can use the index lifecycle management (ILM) feature to separate hot data and cold data in the cluster. For more information, see Use ILM to separate hot data and cold data.

  • If the cluster no longer meets your business requirements, you can use the upgrade or downgrade feature to change the configurations of the cluster. For example, you can change the node specifications and capacity of the cluster. For more information, see Upgrade the configuration of a cluster and Downgrade the configuration of a cluster.

    Note

    If the dedicated master nodes of the cluster are free of charge before the upgrade, the nodes are charged after the upgrade.

  • If the cluster is a subscription cluster and the auto-renewal feature is not enabled, you can enable the feature for the cluster. For more information, see Renew a cluster.