vtl-appliance/docs/AUTO_START_CONFIGURATION.md

🚀 VTL Auto-Start Configuration

📋 Overview

All critical VTL system components are now configured to automatically start on boot, ensuring the system is fully operational after every restart.

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✅ Auto-Start Services

1. MHVTL Service ✅ ENABLED

Service: mhvtl.service
Status: Enabled (auto-start on boot)
Description: Virtual Tape Library core service

What it does:

• Loads mhvtl kernel module
• Starts vtltape processes for each drive
• Starts vtllibrary process for the changer/robot
• Creates SCSI devices (/dev/sg*)

Verify:

systemctl is-enabled mhvtl
# Output: enabled

systemctl status mhvtl
# Should show: Active: active (running)

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2. Apache Web Server ✅ ENABLED

Service: apache2.service
Status: Enabled (auto-start on boot)
Description: Web server for MHVTL Web UI

What it does:

• Serves Web UI at http://localhost/mhvtl-config/
• Provides REST API for configuration management
• Enables remote management of VTL

Verify:

systemctl is-enabled apache2
# Output: enabled

systemctl status apache2
# Should show: Active: active (running)

# Check web UI access
curl -I http://localhost/mhvtl-config/
# Should return: HTTP/1.1 200 OK

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3. TGT iSCSI Target ✅ ENABLED

Service: tgt.service
Status: Enabled (auto-start on boot)
Description: iSCSI target service for network access

What it does:

• Provides iSCSI target functionality
• Allows remote clients to access VTL over network
• Manages iSCSI targets, LUNs, and ACLs

Verify:

systemctl is-enabled tgt
# Output: enabled

systemctl status tgt
# Should show: Active: active (running)

# List iSCSI targets
tgtadm --lld iscsi --mode target --op show

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🔄 Boot Sequence

What Happens on System Boot:

1. Kernel Module Loading

   • mhvtl kernel module is loaded
   • Creates SCSI host adapter

2. MHVTL Service Start (via systemd)

   • Executes /opt/adastra-vtl/scripts/start-mhvtl.sh
   • Starts vtltape processes (drives 11, 12, 13, 14)
   • Starts vtllibrary process (library 10)
   • Creates SCSI devices

3. Apache Web Server Start

   • Starts Apache HTTP server
   • Web UI becomes accessible

4. TGT iSCSI Service Start

   • Starts iSCSI target daemon
   • Loads saved target configurations (if any)

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📊 Verification Script

A comprehensive verification script has been created to check all components:

Location: /builder/adastra-vtl/scripts/verify-vtl-startup.sh

Usage:

sudo /builder/adastra-vtl/scripts/verify-vtl-startup.sh

What it checks:

1. Service Status

• ✅ MHVTL service running
• ✅ Apache web server running
• ✅ TGT iSCSI service running

2. Auto-Start Configuration

• ✅ MHVTL enabled for boot
• ✅ Apache enabled for boot
• ✅ TGT enabled for boot

3. MHVTL Components

• ✅ vtltape processes (4 drives)
• ✅ vtllibrary process (1 library)

4. SCSI Devices

• ✅ Library/changer detected
• ✅ Tape drives detected (4 drives)

5. Web UI Access

• ✅ Web UI files installed
• ✅ Web server listening on port 80

6. iSCSI Targets

• ℹ️ Lists configured targets (if any)

7. Configuration Files

• ✅ device.conf present
• ✅ library_contents.* present

Output Example:

==========================================
VTL System Startup Verification
==========================================

1. Service Status Check
✅ MHVTL (Virtual Tape Library) - Running
✅ Apache Web Server (Web UI) - Running
✅ TGT (iSCSI Target) - Running

2. Auto-Start Configuration
✅ MHVTL Service - Enabled (auto-start on boot)
✅ Apache Web Server - Enabled (auto-start on boot)
✅ TGT iSCSI Target - Enabled (auto-start on boot)

...

Summary
Status: 10/10 checks passed

✅ ALL SYSTEMS OPERATIONAL

VTL system is fully functional and will auto-start on boot!

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🛠️ Manual Service Management

Start Services

sudo systemctl start mhvtl
sudo systemctl start apache2
sudo systemctl start tgt

Stop Services

sudo systemctl stop mhvtl
sudo systemctl stop apache2
sudo systemctl stop tgt

Restart Services

sudo systemctl restart mhvtl
sudo systemctl restart apache2
sudo systemctl restart tgt

Check Status

sudo systemctl status mhvtl
sudo systemctl status apache2
sudo systemctl status tgt

Enable Auto-Start (Already Done)

sudo systemctl enable mhvtl
sudo systemctl enable apache2
sudo systemctl enable tgt

Disable Auto-Start (If Needed)

sudo systemctl disable mhvtl
sudo systemctl disable apache2
sudo systemctl disable tgt

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📁 Service Files

MHVTL Service

File: /etc/systemd/system/mhvtl.service

[Unit]
Description=mhvtl Virtual Tape Library
Documentation=man:vtltape(1) man:vtllibrary(1)
After=network.target

[Service]
Type=forking
ExecStart=/opt/adastra-vtl/scripts/start-mhvtl.sh
ExecStop=/opt/adastra-vtl/scripts/stop-mhvtl.sh
RemainAfterExit=yes

[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.target

Apache Service

File: /lib/systemd/system/apache2.service (system default)

TGT Service

File: /lib/systemd/system/tgt.service (system default)

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🔍 Troubleshooting

MHVTL Not Starting on Boot

Check:

# Verify service is enabled
systemctl is-enabled mhvtl

# Check service status
systemctl status mhvtl

# Check logs
journalctl -u mhvtl -n 50

Fix:

# Enable service
sudo systemctl enable mhvtl

# Start service
sudo systemctl start mhvtl

Web UI Not Accessible

Check:

# Verify Apache is running
systemctl status apache2

# Check if port 80 is listening
sudo netstat -tuln | grep :80
# or
sudo ss -tuln | grep :80

# Check web UI files
ls -la /var/www/html/mhvtl-config/

Fix:

# Start Apache
sudo systemctl start apache2

# Enable Apache
sudo systemctl enable apache2

Devices Not Appearing

Check:

# Check if kernel module is loaded
lsmod | grep mhvtl

# Check SCSI devices
lsscsi -g

# Check processes
ps aux | grep vtl

Fix:

# Reload kernel module
sudo rmmod mhvtl
sudo modprobe mhvtl

# Restart mhvtl service
sudo systemctl restart mhvtl

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🎯 Post-Reboot Checklist

After every reboot, the system should automatically:

1. ✅ Load mhvtl kernel module
2. ✅ Start MHVTL service
3. ✅ Create 4 tape drives + 1 library
4. ✅ Start Apache web server
5. ✅ Make Web UI accessible
6. ✅ Start TGT iSCSI service
7. ✅ Load iSCSI target configurations

Quick Verification:

# Run verification script
sudo /builder/adastra-vtl/scripts/verify-vtl-startup.sh

# Or manual check
lsscsi -g
systemctl status mhvtl apache2 tgt

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📚 Related Scripts

1. verify-vtl-startup.sh - Comprehensive system verification
2. start-mhvtl.sh - MHVTL startup script (called by systemd)
3. stop-mhvtl.sh - MHVTL shutdown script (called by systemd)
4. clean-reboot-mhvtl.sh - Clean reboot with verification
5. fix-mhvtl-config.sh - Fix drive ID configuration

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✅ Summary

Current Status:

Component	Auto-Start	Status
MHVTL Service	✅ Enabled	Will start on boot
Apache Web Server	✅ Enabled	Will start on boot
TGT iSCSI Target	✅ Enabled	Will start on boot
Web UI	✅ Ready	Accessible after boot
Kernel Module	✅ Auto-load	Loaded on boot

What This Means:

🎉 System is fully configured for automatic operation!

After every reboot:

• VTL will be fully operational
• Web UI will be accessible
• iSCSI targets will be available
• No manual intervention required

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Status: ✅ FULLY CONFIGURED
Date: December 9, 2025
Tested On: Ubuntu 24.04.3 LTS
Auto-Start: All services enabled