Monitoring Polycom HDX and VSX Series Endpoints

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The following sections describe how to configure Polycom HDX and VSX Series endpointss for monitoring by SL1 using the Polycom Endpoint PowerPack:

Configuring Polycom Endpoints for Monitoring by SL1

SL1 uses two protocols for monitoring Polycom Endpoints: SNMP and HTTP. Polycom Endpoints respond to HTTP requests that use the "admin" username and the room password that was configured using the initial Setup Wizard on the device. The default room password for the "admin" user is the 14-digit serial number of the system.

This section will describe how to:

  • Configure a new room password the "admin" user.
  • Configure SNMP on a Polycom Endpoint.

This section describes how to perform these tasks remotely from the web interface on a Polycom Endpoint. To perform these tasks, you must know the current room password for the "admin" user on the device.

These instructions assume that the Polycom Endpoint has been assigned an IP address and is visible to a Data Collector on the network.

To log in to the web interface on a Polycom Endpoint, perform the following steps:

  1. In a browser window, go to the IP address of the Polycom Series Endpoint. The Polycom Welcome page appears:

  1. Click Admin Settings on the top navigation bar. You will be prompted for a username and password. In the username field, enter "admin". In the password field, enter the room password for the admin user. The default room password for the "admin" user is the 14-digit serial number of the system. Click the OK button.

If you want to change the password that SL1 will use to perform HTTP requests on this device, perform the following steps:

Entering a new password will change the password for all administrators of this device that use the "admin" user.

  1. In the left navigation bar, click General Settings > Security > Security Settings. The Security page appears:

  1. Select the Change Password - Room checkbox.

  1. Supply values in the following fields:
  • Current Password. Type the current room password for the "admin" user.

  • New Password. Type the new password for the "admin" user.
  • Confirm Password. Re-type the new password for the "admin" user.
  1. Click the Update button.

To configure the SNMP settings on a Polycom HDX or VSX Series Endpoint, perform the following steps:

The device will automatically restart after you perform these steps.

  1. In the left navigation bar, click Global Services > SNMP. The SNMP page appears:

  1. Supply values in the following fields:
  • Enable SNMP. Ensure that this checkbox is selected.

  • Trap Version. Select v2c in this field.
  • Read-Only Community. Type the new SNMP community string for this device. When you configure an SNMP credential for this Polycom Endpoint in SL1, you will enter this community string in the SNMP Community (Read-Only) field.
  • Contact Name. Optionally, type the contact information for the administrator of this device.
  • Location Name. Optionally, type the location of this device.
  • System Description. Type a description of this device
  • Console IP Address. Type the IP address of the Message Collection Unit or Data Collection Unit that will collect SNMP trap messages from the device.
  1. Click the Update button to save the new SNMP settings. The device will automatically restart.

Creating an SNMP Credential

SNMP credentials allow SL1 to access SNMP data on a managed device. SL1 uses SNMP credentials to perform discovery, run auto-discovery, and gather information from SNMP Dynamic Applications.

Creating an SNMPv2 Credential

To create an SNMPv2 credential:

  1. Go to the Credentials page (Manage > Credentials).
  2. Click the Create New button and then select Create SNMP Credential. The Create Credential modal page appears:

An image of the SNMP Create Credential page

  1. Supply values in the following fields:
  • Name. Name of the credential. Can be any combination of alphanumeric characters, up to 64 characters. This is a required field.
  • 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.

To learn more about credentials and organizations, see the section Aligning Organizations With a Credential.

  • Timeout (ms). Time, in milliseconds, after which SL1 will stop trying to communicate with the device. The default value is 1500.
  • SNMP Version. SNMP version. Choices are SNMP V1, SNMP V2, and SNMP V3. The default value is SNMP V2.
  • Port. The port SL1 will use to communicate with the external device or application. The default value is 161. This field is required.
  • SNMP Retries. Number of times SL1 will try to authenticate and communicate with the external device. The default value is 1.

SNMP V1/V2 Settings

If you selected SNMP V1 or SNMP V2 in the SNMP Version field, complete these fields. These fields are inactive if you selected SNMP V3.

  • SNMP Community (Read-Only). The SNMP community string (password) required for read-only access of SNMP data on the remote device or application. For SNMP V1 and SNMP V2 credentials, you must supply a community string, either in this field or in the SNMP Community (Read/Write) field.
  • SNMP Community (Read/Write). The SNMP community string (password) required for read and write access of SNMP data on the remote device or application. For SNMP V1 and SNMP V2 credentials, you must supply a community string, either in this field or in the SNMP Community (Read Only) field.
  1. Click Save & Close.

If you would like to test your credential using the Credential Tester panel, click Save & Test. For detailed instructions on using the Credential Tester panel, see the Using the Credential Tester Panel section.

Creating an SNMPv2 Credential in the Classic User Interface

To monitor Polycom Endpoints in SL1, you will need to create an SNMP Credential for each Endpoint.

To create an SNMP Credential for a Polycom Endpoint, perform the following steps in SL1:

  1. Go to the Credential Management page (System > Manage > Credentials).

  1. Click the Create button, and then select SNMP Credential. The Credential Editor page appears.

  1. Supply values in the following fields:
  • Profile Name. Type a name for the credential.
  • SNMP Version. Select SNMP V2.
  • SNMP Community (Read-Only). Type the SNMP Read-Only community string you configured on the Polycom Endpoint.

You can optionally change the values in the Timeout (ms) and Retries fields.

  1. Click the Save button.
  2. When you configure a discovery session that includes the IP address of the Polycom Endpoint, select the SNMP credential you created in the SNMP Credentials field. For more information about discovery, see the section on Running a Discovery Session.

Creating an SNMPv3 Credential

SNMP credentials allow SL1 to access SNMP data on a managed device. SL1 uses SNMP credentials to perform discovery, run auto-discovery, and gather information from SNMP Dynamic Applications.

To create an SNMPv3 credential:

  1. Go to the Credentials page (Manage > Credentials).
  2. Click the Create New button and then select Create SNMP Credential. The Create Credential modal page appears:

An image of the SNMP v3 Create Credential page

  1. Supply values in the following fields:
  • Name. Name of the credential. Can be any combination of alphanumeric characters, up to 64 characters. This is a required field.
  • 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.

To learn more about credentials and organizations, see the section Aligning Organizations With a Credential.

  • Timeout (ms). Time, in milliseconds, after which SL1 will stop trying to communicate with the device. The default value is 1500.
  • SNMP Version. SNMP version. Choices are SNMP V1, SNMP V2, and SNMP V3. The default value is SNMP V2.
  • Port. The port SL1 will use to communicate with the external device or application. The default value is 161. This field is required.
  • SNMP Retries. Number of times SL1 will try to authenticate and communicate with the external device. The default value is 1.

SNMP V3 Settings

If you selected SNMP V3 in the SNMP Version field, complete these fields. These fields are inactive if you selected SNMP V1 or SNMP V2.

  • Security Name. Name for SNMP authentication. This field is required.
  • Security Passphrase. Password to authenticate the credential. This value must contain at least 8 characters. This value is required if you use a Security Level that includes authentication.

In addition to alphanumeric characters, you can also use the following special characters in an SNMP V3 security passphrase: ? - _ = , . : # + % $ [ ] { } & ! ( ) | /

You cannot use the following special characters in an SNMP V3 security passphrase: " ' \

  • Authentication Protocol. Select an authentication algorithm for the credential. This field is required. Choices are:
  • MD5. This is the default value.
  • SHA
  • SHA-224
  • SHA-256
  • SHA-384
  • SHA-512

The SHA option is SHA-128.

  • Security Level. Specifies the combination of security features for the credentials. This field is required. Choices are:
  • No Authentication / No Encryption.
  • Authentication Only. This is the default value.
  • Authentication and Encryption.
  • Engine ID. The unique engine ID for the SNMP agent you want to communicate with. (SNMPv3 authentication and encryption keys are generated based on the associated passwords and the engine ID.) This field is optional.
  • Context. A context is a mechanism within SNMPv3 (and AgentX) that allows you to use parallel versions of the same MIB objects. For example, one version of a MIB might be associated with SNMP Version 2 and another version of the same MIB might be associated with SNMP Version 3. For SNMP Version 3, specify the context name in this field. This field is optional.
  • Privacy Protocol. The privacy service encryption and decryption algorithm. This field is required. Choices are:
  • DES. This is the default value.
  • AES-128
  • AES-192
  • AES-256
  • AES-256-C. This option is for discovering Cisco devices only.
  • Privacy Protocol Passphrase. Privacy password for the credential. This field is optional.
  1. Click Save & Close.

Creating an SNMP v3 Credential in the Classic User Interface

To monitor Polycom Endpoints in SL1, you will need to create an SNMP Credential for each Endpoint.

To create an SNMP Credential for a Polycom Endpoint, perform the following steps in SL1:

  1. Go to the Credential Management page (System > Manage > Credentials).

  1. Click the Create button, and then select SNMP Credential. The Credential Editor page appears.

  1. Supply values in the following fields:
  • Profile Name. Type a name for the credential.
  • SNMP Version. Select SNMP V3.
  • SNMP Community (Read-Only). Type the SNMP Read-Only community string you configured on the Polycom Endpoint.

You can optionally change the values in the Timeout (ms) and Retries fields.

  1. Click the Save button.
  2. When you configure a discovery session that includes the IP address of the Polycom Endpoint, select the SNMP credential you created in the SNMP Credentials field. For more information about discovery, see the section on Running a Discovery Session.

Performing Bulk Retrieval Using SNMPv3

The snmpbulkwalk command is used to perform a bulk retrieval of SNMP data from a device using SNMPv3. You can use this command for device discovery and inventory tasks in network management, as it efficiently gathers detailed information from network devices.

At the shell prompt, run the following command:

snmpbulkwalk -v3 -n <context> -l authPriv -u <security_name> -a <authentication_protocol> -A <security_passphrase> -x <privacy_protocol> -X <privacy_protocol_pass_phrase> -ObentU <device_ip> .1 > device.walk

  • -v3: Specifies the SNMP version (v3).
  • -n <context>: Specifies the context name for SNMPv3 (optional, typically used in multi-context environments).
  • -l authPriv: : Specifies the security level. authPriv means both authentication and encryption (privacy) are used.
  • -u <security name>: Specifies the username for SNMPv3.
  • -a <authentication protocol>: Specifies the authentication protocol (e.g., MD5 or SHA).
  • -A <security_passphrase>: Specifies the passphrase for authentication.
  • -x <privacy_protocol>: Specifies the privacy (encryption) protocol (e.g., DES, AES).
  • -X <privacy_protocol_pass_phrase>: Specifies the passphrase for the privacy protocol.
  • -ObentU: Specifies options to format the output, such as showing numeric OIDs (-O), and excluding the leading dot from OIDs (-Ob).
  • <device_ip>: Specifies the IP address of the device to query.
  • .1: Indicates that the SNMP walk should start from the root of the MIB tree.
  • >device.walk: Redirects the output to a file named device.walk.

Configuring SOAP/XML Credentials

SOAP/XML credentials allow SL1 to access a web server on a managed device. SOAP/XML credentials are used in several places in SL1, including:

  • With Dynamic Applications of type "SOAP".
  • With Dynamic Applications of type "XML".
  • With Dynamic Applications of type "XSLT".
  • With Dynamic Applications of type "snippet". The snippet code must define the authentication protocol. Dynamic Applications of type "snippet" can use any type of credential.

Creating SOAP/XML Credentials

To create a SOAP/XML credential:

  1. Go to the Credentials page (Manage > Credentials).
  2. Click the Create New button and then select Create SOAP/XML Credential. The Create Credential modal page appears:

An image of the SOAP/XML Create Credential page.

  1. 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.

To learn more about credentials and organizations, see the section Aligning Organizations With a Credential.

  • Timeout (ms). Time, in milliseconds, after which SL1 will stop trying to communicate with the web service.
  • Content Encoding. Tells the SOAP server or XML data-store how the content is encoded, so the SOAP server or XML data-store knows how to decode the message. Select the encoding that is appropriate for your request and response.
  • Method. HTTP method to use to exchange credential data from the managed device. Choices are GET or POST.

Typically, Dynamic Applications of type "XML" use GET methods. Dynamic Applications of type "SOAP" and of type "XSLT" use POST methods.

  • HTTP Version. Version of HTTP to use. Choices are 1.0 or 1.1.
  • URL. Address of the SOAP server, HTML document, or XML document. This field is required and should be of the following format:

https://IP address:port/full path to desired SOAP, HTML, or XML document

The port is stored if it is specified in the URL; otherwise, SL1 uses the default port values 80 for HTTP and 43 for HTTPS.

  • You can include the variable %D in this field. SL1 will replace the variable with the IP address of the current device (device that is currently using the credential).

For component devices, SL1 will replace %D with the IP address of the root device.

  • You can include the variable %N in this field. SL1 will replace the variable with the hostname of the current device (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.
  • HTTP Auth User. Username with which to log in to the web server.
  • HTTP Auth Password. Password with which to access the web server.

Proxy Settings

If you use a proxy server in front of the SOAP server(s) or XML data-store(s) you want to communicate with, enter values in these fields. Otherwise, you can skip these fields.

  • Hostname/IP. The host name or IP address of the proxy server.
  • Port. Port on the proxy server to which you will connect.
  • User. Username to use to access the proxy server.
  • Password. Password to use to access the proxy server.

SOAP Options

These fields are optional. When a SOAP/XML credential is aligned with a SOAP or XSLT Dynamic Application, the requests defined in the Dynamic Application can use the values defined in these fields. To use a value defined in one of these fields, the request must include the substitution character associated with that value. For example, suppose a Dynamic Application request includes the XML tag <high_value=%1>. Suppose you specified "100" in the Embed Value [%1] field in the credential aligned with that Dynamic Application. The request will be sent with the XML tag <high_value=100>.

  • Embedded Password [%P]. Specifies a password value to include in a request. The value defined in this field is substituted in to the %P substitution character. The value will be encrypted in the request, will be masked in the Credential Editor, and will be stored in an encrypted form in the database.
  • Embed Value [%1]. The value defined in this field is substituted in to the %1 substitution character.
  • Embed Value [%2]. The value defined in this field is substituted in to the %2 substitution character.
  • Embed Value [%3]. The value defined in this field is substituted in to the %3 substitution character.
  • Embed Value [%4]. The value defined in this field is substituted in to the %4 substitution character.

HTTP Headers

  • If you require custom HTTP headers to communicate with the SOAP server, you can build the custom header here. To add a header, click the Add Header button

cURL Options

  • You can include the cURL command and various options in your credential. The list of cURL options lists all the options you can include in your credential. To include a cURL option in the credential, click the Add CURL Option drop-down and then select it from the list. You can then supply arguments in the blank text field to the right of the option.
  • For more information on cURL commands, see the cURL manpage at http://curl.haxx.se/docs/manpage.html.
  1. Click Save & Close.

If you would like to test your credential using the Credential Tester panel, click Save & Test. For detailed instructions on using the Credential Tester panel, see the Using the Credential Tester Panel section.

Creating SOAP/XML Credentials in the Classic User Interface

To use the Dynamic Applications in the Polycom Endpoint PowerPack, you must configure five SOAP/XML credentials for your Polycom device. The five credentials are:

  • Polycom - Advanced
  • Polycom - Interface
  • Polycom - Network
  • Polycom - System
  • Polycom CDR

These credentials enable SL1 to monitor and collect call detail records for Polycom Endpoints using unique combinations of URL, username, and password.

If you have multiple Polycom Endpoints, you will need one set of credentials for each unique room password for the "admin" user. For example, if you have configured three Polycom Endpoints with the same room password for the "admin" user, you need only one set of credentials.

To modify the templates, perform the following steps:

  1. Go to the Credential Management page (System > Manage > Credentials).

  1. Click the wrench icon () for the "Polycom - Advanced" credential. The Credential Editor modal window appears:

  1. In the Profile Name field, type a new name for the credential.
  2. In the HTTP Auth Password field, type the room password you configured for the "admin" user on the Polycom Endpoint.
  3. Click the Save As button.

  1. Repeat steps 2 - 5 for the following credentials:
  • Polycom - CDR

  • Polycom - Interface
  • Polycom - Network
  • Polycom - System

Dynamic Applications for Polycom Endpoints

The Polycom Endpoint PowerPack contains 13 Dynamic Applications that can be used to monitor Polycom Endpoints and Group Series (GS) devices. Some of the Dynamic Applications for Polycom Endpoints use the caching feature:

  • Four Dynamic Applications are used only to collect and cache data from Polycom Endpoints.
  • Three Dynamic Applications use the cached data. For these Dynamic Applications to display data, the Dynamic Applications that collect and cache data must be aligned to the same device.

Six Dynamic Applications for Polycom Endpoints and GS devices do not use the caching feature.

The Dynamic Applications in the Polycom Endpoint PowerPack include discovery objects. If you discover your Polycom Endpoint as an SNMP device and include all the SOAP/XML credentials you configured for your Polycom Endpoint in the Other Credentials field in the Discovery Session Editor page, SL1 will automatically align the Dynamic Applications from the Polycom Endpoint PowerPack to your Polycom Endpoint. However, the Dynamic Applications in the Polycom Endpoint PowerPack might take a significant amount of time to align with Polycom devices during discovery. If you are discovering multiple Polycom Endpoints or your Polycom Endpoints take several seconds to respond to HTTP requests, ScienceLogic recommends that you do not include SOAP/XML credentials in the discovery session.

If you do not include SOAP/XML credentials in the discovery session for your Polycom endpoints, you can manually align the Polycom Dynamic Applications using a device template. To create a device template for a Polycom Endpoint, perform the following steps:

  1. Go to the Configuration Templates page (Devices > Templates, or Registry > Devices > Templates in the classic SL1 user interface).
  2. Click the Create button. The Template Editor page appears.
  3. Type a name for your device template in the Template Name field.
  4. Click the Dyn Apps tab.

  1. For each Dynamic Application listed in the table below:
  • Select Add New Dynamic App Sub-Template.
  • Select the Dynamic Application in the Dynamic Application field.
  • Click the Credentials field, then select the credential listed for the Dynamic Application in the table below.

  1. Click the Save button.

If your discovery session includes IP addresses for only Polycom Endpoints, you can apply the device template to all devices discovered by that discovery session. To apply a device template to all devices discovered by a discovery session, select the device template in the Apply Device Template field in the Discovery Session Editor page.

If your discovery session includes IP addresses for other types of devices in addition to Polycom Endpoints, you can apply the device template to your Polycom Endpoints after discovery in the Device Manager page. To do this:

  1. Go to the Device Manager page (Devices > Classic Devices, or Registry > Devices > Device Manager in the classic SL1 user interface).
  2. Select the checkbox for each Polycom Endpoint.
  3. In the Select Action drop-down list, select Modify By Template and then click the Go button. The Bulk Device Configuration modal page appears.
  4. Select the device template in the Template field.
  5. Click the Apply button.
  6. In the confirmation page that appears, click the Confirm button.

The following table lists the Dynamic Applications in the Polycom Endpoint PowerPack, the dependencies between the caching and cache consuming Dynamic Applications, and the credential that must be aligned with each Dynamic Application:

Dynamic Application Credential Caching Type Dependencies
Polycom: Active Call N/A Consumes Cache Polycom: Cache Network
Polycom: Cache Advanced Polycom - Advanced Populates Cache N/A
Polycom: Cache Interface Polycom - Interface Populates Cache N/A
Polycom: Cache Network Polycom - Network Populates Cache N/A
Polycom: Cache System Polycom - System Populates Cache N/A
Polycom: Call Detail Records Polycom CDR No Caching N/A
Polycom: Call Quality Statistics N/A Consumes Cache Polycom: Cache Network and Polycom: Cache Advanced
Polycom: Configuration N/A Consumes Cache Polycom: Cache System and Polycom: Cache Interface
Polycom: SNMP Configuration SNMP Credential for Device No Caching N/A
Polycom GS: Active Call SNMP Credential for Device No Caching N/A
Polycom GS: Asset and Network Service SNMP Credential for Device No Caching N/A
Polycom GS: Call Quality SNMP Credential for Device No Caching N/A
Polycom GS: Status SNMP Credential for Device No Caching N/A