Configuring Device Credentials

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This section describes how to configure the credentials required by the run book actions in the "Datacenter Advanced Enrichment Actions" PowerPack:

Use the following menu options to navigate the SL1 user interface:

  • To view a pop-out list of menu options, click the menu icon ().
  • To view a page containing all of the menu options, click the Advanced menu icon ().

Creating a Credential

To use the run book actions in the "Datacenter Advanced Enrichment Actions" PowerPack to collect data from a device, you must create an SSH credential that includes the username and password for that device.

The run book actions in the PowerPack do not support SSH key-based authentication or non-standard SSH ports. You must use the Basic/Snippet credential type when creating credentials for the PowerPack.

To create a credential:

  1. Go to the Credentials page (Manage > Credentials).
  2. Click Create New and select Create Basic/Snippet credential. The Create Credential page appears.
  3. Supply values in the following fields:
    • Name. Name of the credential. Can be any combination of alphanumeric characters, up to 64 characters. This field is required.
    • All Organizations. Toggle on (blue) to align the credential to all organizations, or toggle off (gray) and then select one or more specific organizations from the What organization manages this service? drop-down field to align the credential with those specific organizations. This field is required.
    • Timeout (ms). Time, in milliseconds, after which SL1 will stop trying to communicate with the device from which you want to retrieve data.
    • Username. Username for a user that can log in to the device using SSH and execute diagnostic commands.
    • Password. Password for the user you entered in the Username field.
    • Hostname/IP. Hostname or IP address of the device from which you want to retrieve data. Enter "%D" in this field.
    • Port. To use SSH to connect to the device, enter "22" in this field.
  4. Click Save.

Aligning Credentials to Devices

The "Datacenter Advanced Enrichment Actions" PowerPack includes the "Automation Remote Login" Dynamic Application. When the "Enrichment: Util: Collect Enrichment Data" action executes, it uses the credential associated with the "Automation Remote Login" Dynamic Application for the device associated with the triggering event. The following sections describe how to align the "Automation Remote Login" Dynamic Application to devices using the credentials that you created.

For run book actions that are designed to trigger for events associated with component devices, such as the run book actions for Cisco UCS components, you will need to do the configuration on the root device. The "Automation Remote Login" Dynamic Application does not need to be associated with the component device or devices.

During discovery, you might see a significant number of connections made to network devices, as all Dynamic Applications that accept the Basic/Snippet credential type are tested against the specified devices. This might include testing Dynamic Application types that are not appropriate for network devices. Consider aligning Dynamic Applications and credentials using a device template. For more information, see Aligning a Credential Using a Device Template.

Aligning a Credential Manually to a Device

To manually align the "Automation Remote Login" Dynamic Application and credential to a device:

  1. Go to the Devices page () and select a device. The Device Investigator page appears.
  2. Click the Collections tab. The Dynamic Application Collections page appears.
  3. Click Edit and then click Align Dynamic Application. The Align Dynamic Application modal appears.
  4. Click Choose Dynamic Application. The Choose Dynamic Application window appears.
  5. Search for "Automation Remote Login" and select Automation Remote Login from the list of Dynamic Applications.
  6. Click Select. The name of the Dynamic Application appears in the Align Dynamic Application window.
  7. Uncheck the box next to Use Device SNMP Credential and click Choose Credential. The Choose Credential window appears.
  8. Search for the credential you created in the previous step and select it from the list of credentials.
  9. Click Select. The name of the selected credential appears in the Align Dynamic Application window.
  10. Click Align Dynamic Application. When the Dynamic Application is successfully aligned, it is added to the Collections tab, and a confirmation message appears at the bottom of the tab.

Aligning a Credential Using a Device Template

You can use a device template to align the "Automation Remote Login" Dynamic Application with a specified credential during discovery. This is useful when you want to limit the tests against certain devices, such as network devices, during discovery.

To align the "Automation Remote Login" Dynamic Application and credential using a device template:

  1. Create the credential you want to align to the devices. In this example, we will create a Cisco IOS credential.

    You will do this for each credential you want to apply for the Dynamic Application.

    1. Go to the Credentials page (Manage > Credentials).

    2. Click Create New and select Create Basic/Snippet credential. The Create Credential page appears.

    3. Supply values in the following fields:

      1. Name. Name of the credential. Can be any combination of alphanumeric characters, up to 64 characters. This field is required.
      2. All Organizations. Toggle on (blue) to align the credential to all organizations, or toggle off (gray) and then select one or more specific organizations from the What organization manages this service? drop-down field to align the credential with those specific organizations. This field is required.
      3. Timeout (ms). Time, in milliseconds, after which SL1 will stop trying to communicate with the device from which you want to retrieve data.
      4. Username. Username for a user that can log in to the device using SSH and execute diagnostic commands.
      5. Password. Password for the user you entered in the Username field.
      6. Hostname/IP. Hostname or IP address of the device from which you want to retrieve data. Enter "%D" in this field.
      7. Port. To use SSH to connect to the device, enter "22" in this field.

    4. Click Save.

  2. Create a device template that aligns the "Automation Remote Login" Dynamic Application, which includes the new credential.
    1. Go to the Configuration Templates page (Devices > Templates).
    2. Click Create. The Device Template Editor opens.
    3. Enter a Template Name in the field provided.
    4. Click the Dyn Apps tab.
    5. In the "Subtemplate Selections" pane, click Add New Dynamic App Sub-Template.
    6. Select "Automation Remote Login" as the Dynamic Application.
    7. Select the Credential you created in the previous step. Continuing our example, we will select "Cisco IOS".
    8. Click Save.
  3. Specify the device template for discovery.
    1. Create a discovery session by clicking Add Devices, or edit an existing discovery session on the Discovery Sessions (Devices > Discovery Sessions).
    2. In the Advanced Options section at the end of the wizard, select the device template that you just created in the Select Device Template drop-down.
    3. Click Save and Run.

Aligning Credentials Automatically During Discovery

The "Automation Remote Login" Dynamic Application includes a discovery object that you can use to automatically align the Dynamic Application to devices during discovery. To configure a discovery session to automatically align the "Automation Remote Login" Dynamic Application, select the credential you created in the previous section in the Other Credentials field in the Discovery Session Editor.