System Registration
Registering your ClearOS installation to the ClearCenter Service Delivery Network (SDN) is required to access any features that communicate with the SDN, such as:
Community vs. Business Edition
The Community Edition and the Business Edition differ in that registration using a key/subscription is required in the Business Edition. Keys can be obtained in one of four ways:
- Purchasing a ClearBOX (no additional fees - your subscription is included)
- Purchasing a ClearOS Business subscription
- Purchasing a ClearOS Business Software Bundle
- Requesting a free 30-day evaluation subscription
Menu
You can find this feature in the menu system at the following location:
In addition, system registration is part of the post-installation wizard, which, while not mandatory, is recommended. Clicking on any page related to the ClearCenter Marketplace will also automatically redirect you to the registration page.
ClearCenter Account
Any number of ClearOS systems can be registered back to a single account, regardless of whether you are registering a ClearOS Community or Business install.
ClearCenter vs. ClearFoundation
Some users may have already have created a ClearFoundation account on the ClearFoundation website. You *cannot* use this account to register your ClearOS server. Why? ClearFoundation's website is designed to support forums and community social-building. ClearCenter's portal is responsible for handling sensitive data like billing information, invoicing, etc. Keeping these two datasets completely isolated (in both software and hardware) was done to ensure best-practises are implemented in keeping users data private and secure.
Creating a new ClearCenter Account
New to ClearOS? You can create a new account here or during ClearOS registration. Creating a ClearCenter Portal account is quick, secure, and free.
Account Username
Select a unique username - please note, this is not the same as logging into webconfig. Your username will be used to authenticate you to ClearCenter's SDN for actions requiring access to your account.
Password / Confirm Password
If you are using ClearOS Business or intend on purchasing paid apps via ClearCenter's Marketplace, there will be confidential information such as contact and invoice details. We recommend the use of a strong password.
Registration Options
Below is a screenshot of the registration form for ClearOS Business and ClearOS Community.
If you already have a ClearCenter account, complete the form and click on Register System. If you are new to ClearOS, you will need a ClearCenter account. Click on Create Account.
Account (ClearCenter)
This is your ClearCenter account, used to secure login to the ClearCenter portal.
Password
Your ClearCenter account password.
Type
This is the type of registration your are performing. Registrations fall into two categories:
- New installations
- Re-installs or Upgrades
A new installation is when you intend to register a ClearOS system for the first time. Essentially, you are starting from a clean slate.
A re-install should be selected when you have a completely new installation, but it is intended to replace an existing system that was previously registered. You will be presented with a list of valid systems in your ClearCenter account. Select the one that you are replacing.
Common cases of re-installation are:
- Moved to new hardware
- Recovering from a disaster event - theft, damage, hardware failure etc.
- Wanted to 'start again' but use same services originally configured
The screenshot below illustrates the dropdown menu that will automatically populate if you have entered the correct authentication credentials to your ClearCenter account *and* select “Reinstall/Upgrade” from the registration type.
Eligible Systems
The eligible systems dropdown is a list of all ClearOS systems registered to your account that could be used to re-register an existing system by way of a re-install or upgrade.
System Name
This is a nickname used so you can easily identify the unit in your account. For example, and organization with offices in Toronto, Vancouver and Halifax might use the city names as the system name to refer to each gateway/server.
The system name field will be disabled (read only) when the type of registration selected is Reinstall/Upgrade. This is because the name will automatically be inherited from the previous registration.
Data Reporting
Your ClearOS server occasionally connects to the ClearCenter ClearSDN network. The webservice payload is minimal (< 1Kbyte) and contains information that is used to help ClearCenter maintain services & infrastructure and plan for future upgrades.
Mandatory Data
The following data is always sent up to the ClearSDN web-services:
- Device ID
- Language
- System Mode (Standalone, Master or Slave)
- Locale setting (en_US, fr_FR etc.)
- Uptime
Opt-Out Data
The following data is included by default; however, the user can opt-out of sending this information provided no apps requiring this data for licensing and audits are installed.
- Number of users
- Number of unique IP addresses
- Number of unique MAC addresses
The apps where this information is required include:
- Active Domain Connector
- Google Apps Synchronization
- Apps powered by Kaspersky Antimalware
If you would prefer not to send up one or more of the opt-out data sets, please run the following command, replacing PARAM for the field in the accompanying table:
echo "exclude_PARAM = 1" >> /etc/clearos/registration.conf
PARAM | Description |
---|---|
user | Number of defined users in directory |
ip | Number of unique IP addresses (passing traffic across an interface) |
mac | Number of unique MAC addresses (passing traffic across an interface |
Example
To prevent your system from reporting the number of users in your directory, you would run:
echo "exclude_user = 1" >> /etc/clearos/registration.conf
If you would like to re-enable the sending of this data, edit the registration.conf file and set the value to zero (0) or remove the line entirely and save the file.