---
title: "Installing NIOS"
canonical: "https://docs.infoblox.com/space/nios85/35477213/Installing%20NIOS"
format: markdown
---
NIOS comes with its own hardware box (appliance) on which NIOS will be installed.  Ensure that you verify the hardware that you receive. 

# <span style="color: #000000">Verifying the Hardware</span>

<span style="color: #000000">To verify the secure delivery of the hardware:</span>

- <span style="color: #000000">Use the tracking number of the order to review the status of the shipment.</span>
- <span style="color: #000000">Inspect the tamper-evident seals for any signs of tampering.</span>
- <span style="color: #000000">Verify the product by comparing the shipping slip with the invoice.</span>

# <span style="color: #000000">Prerequisites</span>

<span style="color: #000000">Before you begin the configuration, ensure that you have all the necessary components. The following are needed and must be acquired before continuing with this guidance:</span>

- Supported NIOS appliances
- <span style="color: #000000">A management station or computer from which you configure and manage the NIOS appliance. See </span>*[<span style="color: #000000">Support Matrix</span>](https://infoblox-docs.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/nios85/pages/35412151)*<span style="color: #000000"> for the system and browser requirements.</span>
- <span style="color: #000000">The IP address of the appliance on your network.</span>

# <span style="color: #000000">Supported Appliances</span>

<span style="color: #000000">For the list of physical and virtual appliances that NIOS is supported on, see the NIOS Release Notes available on the Infoblox Support site.</span>

# Downloading the NIOS Software

<span style="color: #000000">You can download NIOS from the Infoblox Support web site at </span>[*<span style="color: #000000">https://support.infoblox.com/</span>*](https://support.infoblox.com/)<span style="color: #000000">. You must be a registered user to access this web site.</span><span style="color: #000000"> </span>

<span style="color: #000000">To download the software:</span>

1. <span style="color: #000000">Log on to the Infoblox Support web site at </span>[*<span style="color: #000000">https://support.infoblox.com/</span>*](https://support.infoblox.com/)<span style="color: #000000">.</span>
2. <span style="color: #000000">Click the </span>**<span style="color: #000000">Downloads</span>**<span style="color: #000000"> tab.</span>
3. <span style="color: #000000">Select </span>**<span style="color: #000000">NIOS/vNIOS</span>**<span style="color: #000000"> from the </span>**<span style="color: #000000">Infoblox Software</span>**<span style="color: #000000"> drop-down list.</span>
4. <span style="color: #000000">Select the </span>**<span style="color: #000000">General maintenance products with full engineering support for routine patches and bug fixes on all significant issues</span>**<span style="color: #000000"> option.</span>
5. <span style="color: #000000">Select </span>**<span style="color: #000000">NIOS 8.5</span>**<span style="color: #000000"> from the </span>**<span style="color: #000000">Select version</span>**<span style="color: #000000"> drop-down list.</span>

<span style="color: #000000">The NIOS installer files are available for download. The installer files are of two sizes:</span>

- <span style="color: #404040">Files of size 250 GB</span>
- F<span style="color: #404040">iles of size 68 GB </span>

<span style="color: #000000">Infoblox recommends using a </span><span style="color: #000000">minimum size of</span><span style="color: #000000"> 68 GB for any of these files that has resizable as part of the file name and you can resize them depending on your requirement and deployment.</span>

<span style="color: #000000">If you download the resizable files, a default disk size is defined on the VM. You then change the default disk size using the VMware UI. When you start the VM for the first time, NIOS detects how much disk space has been reserved for the virtual disk and allocates partitions within that space. You can increase the disk size upto a maximum of 2.5 terabytes. </span>

<span style="color: #000000">If you want to resize the disk space from the current 250 GB to a lower size, remove the member from the Grid and add a replacement member with the required disk size. If you want to resize a smaller disk to a higher size, back up the Grid database, and deploy the new instance with the required disk size. After the deployment, restore the backed up database. Infoblox recommends configuring a scheduled backup so that if the disk limit is reached and the system is unresponsive, the earlier backup can be restored.</span>

<span style="color: #000000">Infoblox recommends configuring instances of only 250 GB and higher as Grid Master and Grid Master Candidate.</span>

> ⚠️ **Note**
> ⚠️ 
> ⚠️ - <span style="color: #000000">Images of types .vhd and .raw comprise only one file each and can be resized. The minimum size of the .vhd image is 250 GB and that of the .raw image is 43 GB.</span>
> ⚠️ - <span style="color: #000000">Infoblox recommends that you provision 68 GB or more disk space for the NIOS instance while deploying resizable images.</span>
> ⚠️ - <span style="color: #000000">Infoblox recommends that you have at least 25 GB of disk space if you are using a resizable image during a NIOS upgrade.</span>

## <span style="color: #000000">Limitations of Using the Scalable Image File</span>

<span style="color: #000000">The following are the limitations of using the scalable NIOS image:</span>

- <span style="color: #000000">You can use the scalable image only on the following appliances: IB-V805, IB-V1405, IB-V2205, IB-V4005, IB-V815, IB-V825, IB-V1415, IB-V1425, IB-V2215, IB-V2225, IB-V4015, IB-V4025, IB-FLEX, CP-V805, CP-V1405, CP-V2205</span>
- <span style="color: #000000">If you use ovftool to deploy the OVA image, there is no command line option to increase the disk-size. As a workaround, you can use ovftool to upload the image but before powering on the VM, you will need to use the UI to change the disk size based on your requirement.</span>
- <span style="color: #000000">The Parental Control feature fails to start because of no space left on the device when downloading Zvelo data. </span>
- <span style="color: #000000">The primary disk size is full if you enable the bloxTools service on the member provisioned with the lower disk size.</span>
- <span style="color: #000000">Infoblox recommends to not run DNS/DHCP/updates on the member provisioned with the lower disk size.</span>
- <span style="color: #333333">Do not try to join a resizable disk image to a Grid running an NIOS version earlier than 8.5.</span>
- <span style="color: #333333">Infoblox does not recommend auto-synchronizing or downgrading resizable disk images to NIOS versions earlier than 8.5.</span>
- <span style="color: #333333">If you have resizable members whose provisioned disk space is lower than 85 GB, disable the rsync-batch mode by running the </span>`set upgrade_dist rsync_batch disable`<span style="color: #333333"> command on Grid Master.</span>
- <span style="color: #333333">If you have a reporting member as part of your Grid, then you must have a minimum disk space of 250 GB by default.</span>

<span style="color: #404040"> </span>