Get started

This guide provides step-by-step instructions on how to activate and start using the F5 NGINX One Console. NGINX One is a management console for monitoring and managing NGINX data plane instances.

Enable the NGINX One service

To get started using NGINX One, enable the service on F5 Distributed Cloud.

1. Log in to the F5 Distributed Console.
2. Select NGINX One from the list of services.
3. Select Enable Service.
4. After the service has been enabled, select Visit Service to load the NGINX One console.

Add your NGINX instances to NGINX One

Next, add your NGINX instances to NGINX One. You’ll need to create a data plane key and then install the NGINX Agent on each instance you want to monitor.

Add an instance

Depending on whether this is your first time using the NGINX One console or you’ve used it before, follow the appropriate steps to add an instance:

• For first-time users: On the welcome screen, select Add Instance.
• For returning users: If you’ve added instances previously and want to add more, select Instances on the left menu, then select Add Instance.

Generate a data plane key

A data plane key is a security token that ensures only trusted NGINX instances can register and communicate with NGINX One.

To generate a data plane key:

• For a new key: In the Add Instance pane, select Generate Data Plane Key.
• To reuse an existing key: If you already have a data plane key and want to use it again, select Use existing key. Then, enter the key’s value in the Data Plane Key box.

Data plane key guidelines

Data plane keys are displayed only once and cannot be retrieved later. Be sure to copy and store this key securely.

Data plane keys expire after one year. You can change this expiration date later by editing the key.

Revoking a data plane key disconnects all instances that were registered with that key.

Install NGINX Agent

After entering your data plane key, you’ll see a curl command similar to the one below. Copy and run this command on each NGINX instance to install the NGINX Agent. Once installed, the NGINX Agent typically registers with NGINX One within a few seconds.

To install the NGINX Agent on an NGINX instance:

1. Check if NGINX is running and start it if it’s not:

   First, see if NGINX is running:

   sudo systemctl status nginx
   

   If the status isn’t Active, go ahead and start NGINX:

   sudo systemctl start nginx
   

2. Install NGINX Agent:

   Next, use the curl command provided to you to install the NGINX Agent:

   curl https://agent.connect.nginx.com/nginx-agent/install | DATA_PLANE_KEY="YOUR_DATA_PLANE_KEY" sh -s -- -y
   

   • Replace YOUR_DATA_PLANE_KEY with your actual data plane key.
   • The -y option automatically confirms any prompts during installation.

The install script writes an nginx-agent.conf file to the /etc/nginx-agent/ directory, with the data plane key that you generated. You can find this information in the nginx-agent.conf file:

server:
  token: "<YOUR_DATA_PLANE_KEY>"
  host: agent.connect.nginx.com
  grpcPort: 443

tls:
  enable: True
  skip_verify: False

If you followed the Installation and upgrade guides for installing NGINX Agent, you may need to add this information manually to nginx-agent.conf.

View instance metrics with the NGINX One dashboard

After connecting your NGINX instances to NGINX One, you can monitor their performance and health. The NGINX One dashboard is designed for this purpose, offering an easy-to-use interface.

Log in to NGINX One

1. Log in to the F5 Distributed Console.
2. Select NGINX One > Visit Service.

Overview of the NGINX One dashboard

Navigating the dashboard:

• Drill down into specifics: For in-depth information on a specific metric, like expiring certificates, click on the relevant link in the metric’s card to go to a detailed overview page.
• Refine metric timeframe: Metrics show the last hour’s data by default. To view data from a different period, select the time interval you want from the drop-down menu.

NGINX One dashboard metrics