Configuring Device Credentials

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This section describes how to configure the credentials required by the automation actions in the Microsoft Automations PowerPacks.

Creating a Credential

If you are creating a credential for the Windows PowerShell Automations PowerPack and do not have the Microsoft: Windows Server PowerPack installed, you must create a credential that includes the username and password to communicate with your Windows devices.

To prepare your Windows systems for monitoring, follow the instructions in Configuring Windows Servers for Monitoring with PowerShell.

If you have the Microsoft: Windows Server PowerPack installed and configured, you may skip this section.

To define a PowerShell credential in SL1:

  1. Collect the information you need to create the credential:
  • The username and password for a user on the Windows device.
  • If the user is an Active Directory account, the hostname or IP address of the Active Directory server and the domain.
  • Determine if an encrypted connection should be used.
  • If you are using a Windows Management Proxy, the hostname or IP address of the proxy server.
  1. Go to the Credential Management page (System > Manage > Credentials).
  2. In the Credential Management page, click the Actions menu. Select Create PowerShell Credential.
  3. The Credential Editor page appears, where you can define the following fields:
  • Profile Name. Name of the credential. Can be any combination of alphanumeric characters. This field is required.
  • Hostname/IP. Hostname or IP address of the device from which you want to retrieve data. This field is required.
  • You can include the variable %D in this field. SL1 will replace the variable with the IP address of the device that is currently using the credential.
  • You can include the variable %N in this field. SL1 will replace the variable with the hostname of the device that is currently using the credential. If SL1 cannot determine the hostname, SL1 will replace the variable with the primary, management IP address for the current device.
  • You can include the prefix HOST or WSMAN before the variable %D in this field if the device you want to monitor uses a service principal name (for example, "HOST://%D" or "WSMAN://%D"). SL1 will use the WinRM service HOST or WSMan instead of HTTP and replace the variable with the IP address of the device that is currently using the credential.
  • Username. Type the username for an account on the Windows device to be monitored or on the proxy server. This field is required.

NOTE: The user should not include the domain name prefix in the username for Active Directory accounts. For example, use "em7admin" instead of "MSDOMAIN\em7admin".

  • Encrypted. Select whether SL1 will communicate with the device using an encrypted connection. Choices are:
  • yes. When communicating with the Windows server, SL1 will use a local user account with authentication of type "Basic Auth". You must then use HTTPS and can use a Microsoft Certificate or a self-signed certificate.
  • no. When communicating with the Windows server, SL1 will not encrypt the connection.
  • Port. Type the port number used by the WinRM service on the Windows device. This field is automatically populated with the default port based on the value you selected in the Encrypted field. This field is required.

  • Account Type. Type of authentication for the username and password in this credential. Choices are:
  • Active Directory. On the Windows device, Active Directory will authenticate the username and password in this credential.
  • Local. Local security on the Windows device will authenticate the username and password in this credential.

  • Timeout (ms). Type the time, in milliseconds, after which SL1 will stop trying to collect data from the authenticating server. For collection to be successful, SL1 must connect to the authenticating server, execute the PowerShell command, and receive a response within the amount of time specified in this field.
  • Password. Type the password for the account on the Windows device to be monitored or on the proxy server. This field is required.
  • PowerShell Proxy Hostname/IP. If you use a proxy server in front of the Windows devices you want to communicate with, type the fully-qualified domain name or the IP address of the proxy server in this field.
  • Active Directory Hostname/IP. If you selected Active Directory in the Account Type field, type the hostname or IP address of the Active Directory server that will authenticate the credential.
  • Domain. If you selected Active Directory in the Account Type field, type the domain where the monitored Windows device resides.
  1. To save the credential, click the Save button. To clear the values you set, click the Reset button.

For more information about configuring credentials in SL1, see Credentials.