Install OpenStack and launch your first instance

1. Overview

Before you get started!

Welcome to OpenStack!

In this series of tutorials, we will walk you through all the necessary steps to install, configure and get started with OpenStack. Using just a single machine, you will learn how to use OpenStack for cloud infrastructure implementation purposes, from a single-node installation to large-scale clusters.

This tutorial is the first in the “Phase 1 - Learn OpenStack” series.

Explore other tutorials >

What is OpenStack?

OpenStack is a collection of open source projects designed to work together to form the basis of a cloud. OpenStack can be used for both private and public cloud implementation.

What is Sunbeam?

Sunbeam is an upstream project under the governance of the OpenInfra Foundation (OIF), which was created to lower the barrier to entry for OpenStack, simplify its adoption process, and set the foundation for an autonomous private cloud. Sunbeam uses cloud-native architecture and total bottom-up automation to make OpenStack more accessible to newcomers and to help users get to grips with the platform immediately.

What is MicroStack?

MicroStack (based on Sunbeam) is an OpenStack distribution designed for small-scale cloud environments. While it is available with full commercial support from Canonical, it can also be self-deployed with no friction, effectively eliminating the need for a paid consulting engagement. MicroStack currently includes core OpenStack services only, but is expected to evolve quickly to ensure full feature parity with Canonical’s Charmed OpenStack soon.

In this tutorial, you will learn how to:

  • Install OpenStack with Sunbeam
  • Launch your first instance on OpenStack

You will only need:

One fresh physical or virtual machine with:

  • Ubuntu 22.04 LTS installed,
  • Static IP address assigned to its primary network interface,
  • OpenSSH server installed and configured,
  • 4+ core amd64 CPU,
  • 16 GB of RAM,
  • 50 GB of SSD storage.

2. Install OpenStack

We’re going to follow MicroStack quickstart installation instructions. Those aim to install OpenStack in the most straightforward way possible by making a number of assumptions. For more configurable installation, refer to guided installation instructions.

! openstackclients
If you have the openstackclients snap installed, you have to remove it first to avoid namespace conflict. Sunbeam ships with the latest version of the OpenStack client, so the openstackclients snap is redundant.

Install OpenStack

In order to install OpenStack, execute the following command:


$ sudo snap install openstack --channel 2024.1/beta

Install dependencies

In order to install all necessary dependencies, execute the following command:


$ sunbeam prepare-node-script | bash -x && newgrp snap_daemon

Bootstrap the cloud

In order to bootstrap the cloud, execute the following command:


$ sunbeam cluster bootstrap --accept-defaults

This command takes a while to finish. Be patient.

Configure the cloud

In order to configure the cloud with default options, execute the following command:


$ sunbeam configure --accept-defaults --openrc demo-openrc

For more advanced scenarios, refer to guided installation instructions.

Launch an instance

In order to launch your first instance, execute the following command:


$ sunbeam launch ubuntu --name test

Sample output:


Access instance with `ssh -i /home/ubuntu/.config/openstack/sunbeam [email protected]`

At this point the instance should be accessible over the SSH protocol. In order to connect to it, execute the command from the output:


$ ssh -i /home/ubuntu/.config/openstack/sunbeam [email protected]

That’s it. You’re connected to the instance. You can use regular shell commands to execute various tasks.


$ uptime
 11:08:36 up 2 min,  1 users,  load average: 0.05, 0.05, 0.01

In the following tutorials, we’ll demonstrate how to use other images and how to customise instances during the provisioning process.

To disconnect from the instance, type exit (or press CTRL+D).

3. Next steps

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