Use Rancher to create a Kubernetes cluster in Azure.

1. From the Clusters page, click Add Cluster.

2. Choose Azure.

3. Enter a Cluster Name.

4. Use Member Roles to configure user authorization for the cluster.

   • Click Add Member to add users that can access the cluster.
   • Use the Role drop-down to set permissions for each user.

   
   

5. Use Cluster Options to choose the version of Kubernetes, what network provider will be used and if you want to enable project network isolation. To see more cluster options, click on Show advanced options.

6. Add one or more node pools to your cluster.
   
   A node pool is a collection of nodes based on a node template. A node template defines the configuration of a node, like what operating system to use, number of CPUs and amount of memory. Each node pool must have one or more nodes roles assigned.

   Notes:

   • Each node role (i.e. etcd, Control Plane, and Worker) should be assigned to a distinct node pool. Although it is possible to assign multiple node roles to a node pool, this should not be done for production clusters.
   • The recommended setup is to have a node pool with the etcd node role and a count of three, a node pool with the Control Plane node role and a count of at least two, and a node pool with the Worker node role and a count of at least two. Regarding the etcd node role, refer to the etcd Admin Guide.

   1. Click Add Node Template.

   2. Complete the Azure Options form.

      • Account Access stores your account information for authenticating with Azure. Note: As of v2.2.0, account access information is stored as a cloud credentials. Cloud credentials are stored as Kubernetes secrets. Multiple node templates can use the same cloud credential. You can use an existing cloud credential or create a new one. To create a new cloud credential, enter Name and Account Access data, then click Create.

      • Placement sets the geographical region where your cluster is hosted and other location metadata.

      • Network configures the networking used in your cluster.

      • Instance customizes your VM configuration.

   3. The Docker daemon configuration options include:

      • Labels: For information on labels, refer to the Docker object label documentation.

      • Docker Engine Install URL: Determines what Docker version will be installed on the instance. Note: If you are using RancherOS, please check what Docker versions are available using sudo ros engine list on the RancherOS version you want to use, as the default Docker version configured might not be available. If you experience issues installing Docker on other operating systems, please try to install Docker manually using the configured Docker Engine Install URL to troubleshoot.

      • Registry mirrors: Docker Registry mirror to be used by the Docker daemon

      • Other advanced options: Refer to the Docker daemon option reference

   4. Click Create.

   5. Optional: Add additional node pools.
      

7. Review your options to confirm they’re correct. Then click Create.

Optional Next Steps

After creating your cluster, you can access it through the Rancher UI. As a best practice, we recommend setting up these alternate ways of accessing your cluster:

• Access your cluster with the kubectl CLI: Follow these steps to access clusters with kubectl on your workstation. In this case, you will be authenticated through the Rancher server’s authentication proxy, then Rancher will connect you to the downstream cluster. This method lets you manage the cluster without the Rancher UI.
• Access your cluster with the kubectl CLI, using the authorized cluster endpoint: Follow these steps to access your cluster with kubectl directly, without authenticating through Rancher. We recommend setting up this alternative method to access your cluster so that in case you can’t connect to Rancher, you can still access the cluster.