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What are the system requirements for running Landscape?

Landscape was designed as a simple Web based management and monitoring tool that securely monitors your systems' by means of a client. No additional hardware or servers are needed to run Landscape which makes it simple to setup for any sized environment. Each server or desktop requires the installation of a simple client (~ 30 MB in size) that communicates status with the Landscape server. The administration client, that allows you to monitor and manage your systems, runs in any Web browser and does not require any additional software.

How much does Landscape cost?

Landscape is included with every Ubuntu server support contract from Canonical. A subscription can be purchased separately for desktop customers and for those who do not yet need support. Contact your sales representative,browse here to register for a free trial, or contact us for details.

Can I evaluate Landscape before purchasing?

Yes, we offer free, unrestricted, 60 day trials of Landscape to allow you to get a feel for how it works. To register for a free trail just browse to: http://www.canonical.com/landscape/register

How frequently is Landscape upgraded?

Builds of the server are posted every 2 weeks on Wednesdays and include updates, bug fixes and the latest features which are suitable for production. These biweekly updates are consolidated into a new package (dot release) every 3 to 4 months that simplifies the distribution of the new code. Please watch the blog for details.

What is the latest version of Landscape?

The server part is upgraded every Wednesday. The client packages, including smart, are always available at http://landscape.canonical.com/packages/ in their latest versions.

Where do I obtain more information about the roadmap for Landscape?

Landscape development is communicated on the blog. Check the blog or subscribe to the RSS feed to be made aware of the latest updates as they occur.

Why is Landscape not open source?

The Landscape client is open source and available under the GPL v2 license and is accessible as a Launchpad project here: https://launchpad.net/landscape-client. However, the Landscape server is part of a proprietary monitoring service offered by Canonical and is available only with a subscription from Canonical.

Is a Landscape subscription included with every Canonical Support plan?

A Landscape subscription is included with your server support contract from Canonical.Desktop support customers have the option of purchasing Landscape as a separate license.

As part of the server support plan, Landscape enables our tech support department to more rapidly access your issues because you can send them up-to-date information (in read-only format) on the status and configuration of your servers.

Is there a standalone Landscape server I can put in my network?

Yes, Landscape Dedicated Server provides all the management and monitoring features of the Landscape Hosted Edition in a version you install on your servers onsite so that all information about your Ubuntu systems transmits over your network without any need to access the public Internet. We also offer the Landscape Reseller Edition which is licensed so that ISPs and ISVs can offer Landscape service to their customers. Learn more about Landscape Dedicated Server.

landscape-client is leaking memory!

This is a known problem when running landscape-client in Ubuntu 6.06 LTS ("Dapper"). Please see bug #225820 for details.

I have hundreds of landscape-client processes!

This is a known problem in old versions of landscape-client. Please kill all existing landscape related processes, upgrade and restart the service.

How do I register a machine with Landscape?

Your account page in Landscape has the step by step procedure, already customized for your account, so all you need to do is copy and paste those commands. Here is a general guideline:

Add the Landscape package repository

Add the line below to /etc/apt/sources.list. Replace <distro-name> with the distribution name (i.e., dapper, feisty, gutsy, hardy or intrepid):

deb http://landscape.canonical.com/packages/<distro-name> ./

For example:

deb http://landscape.canonical.com/packages/hardy ./

Import the GnuPG key

The client package is digitally signed by the Landscape Team using OpenPGP. The package management system used by Ubuntu needs to know the public key in order to verify the client package authenticity and integrity. The needed key is available from the Ubuntu public keyserver, using the command:

gpg --keyserver-options http-proxy --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com --recv-key C605E80D

To make the OpenPGP public key available to APT, run the following command:

gpg --armor --export C605E80D | sudo apt-key add -

Once the OpenPGP public key has been imported, updating your repositories will complete the process:

sudo apt-get update

Install the client

Now landscape-client can be installed in one quick operation with the following command:

sudo apt-get install landscape-client

Register the machine

Now you can register the new computer with the following command, substituting the title of your computer where it says "My Web Server". Your computer's title can be any word or phrase that you want to use.

sudo landscape-config --computer-title "My Web Server" --account-name andreas.hasenack

Alternatively you can run the following command with no arguments:

sudo landscape-config

Running this program with no arguments will prompt you for the same information. Since your account does not require a registration password, you can just hit Enter when landscape-config asks you for it. After successfully running one of these commands your computer is now registered as a pending computer with Landscape.

Accept the registration request

Now that the machine is registered as a pending computer it can be accepted into your account. Log into landscape with your user account information and click on the Pending Computers link. There you will see the machine you just registered, as illustrated in this screen shot:

Select the new machine and click Accept. This will complete the registration process and cause the new machine to exchange information with Landscape.

Now that the machine is registered and accepted you can click on the Computers sidebar link and the new computer will be in that list. It may take a few minutes for Landscape and the machine to exchange all the necessary information, but after that you will be able to manage the system using all of the many powerful features in Landscape. Have fun, and don't forget to send us feedback by clicking on the Feedback sidebar link and let us know what you think!

What is the bandwidth usage of Landscape clients?

There are basically three types of traffic that can happen from a Landscape client. The image below shows a typical network, with machines managed by Landscape:

The picture shows different machines with different traffics just for clarity. Any Landscape client has these three types of traffic:

• ping: this is a very small HTTP ping which the client sends to the server every 30s just to know if there are pending messages for it. For example, when an administrator requests a package upgrade, a message will be queued waiting for the client to fetch it. The ping will tell the client that the message is waiting and trigger a message exchange (see next item)

• message exchange: this is where commands and responses are sent and received via HTTPS. Traffic is higher than in the ping case, specially during initial client setup. A message exchange can happen periodically or on demand, caused by an administrator's action.

• package download: this includes package download itself, and also repository data download. Every hour, each Landscape client will run the smart update command to update the repository information. Other than that, packages will be downloaded and installed whenever triggered by an administrator.

A setup as the one pictured above can greatly benefit if a proxy/cache such as Squid is configured to cache the packages that are being downloaded by the clients. Without it, a general package upgrade sent to all machines in the network will undoubtly download the same package several times.

How do I report a bug?

Please use the "Feedback" link from the left menu.