Working with Advanced Repeaters

The Advanced Repeater is the combination of an advanced file server and an Advanced Repeater server. Both the Advanced Repeater server and advanced file server are built on BMC Client Automation technology. The three key components are:

• Content Replicator (used to publish the content from the existing file server to the Transmitter on the advanced file server, and to pull the content down to the file system on the Advanced Repeater, using the BMC Client Automation proxy)
• Transmitter (used by the advanced file server)
• BMC Client Automation Proxy (used by the Advanced Repeater server)

See the following sections for more information about Advanced Repeaters and advanced file servers:

Benefits of using Advanced Repeater servers

An Advanced Repeater server provides scalable transport of data over wide-area networks, and is an alternate option when configuring file servers or repeater servers. If you are using deploy jobs in a large-scale environment, consider setting up advanced file servers and using Advanced Repeater servers. 

 Using advanced file servers and Advanced Repeater servers can help you improve the bandwidth utilization between the central file server and the repeaters. With the standard BMC Server Automation file server and repeater, the Depot objects are sent to the repeater in their entirety whenever they are required for a deployment. However, using an advanced file server on the existing file server with one or more Advanced Repeater servers uses a more efficient protocol to ensure that only changes to the content are downloaded across the network. You can also configure bandwidth throttling on links between the advanced file server and the Advanced Repeater server. When a Deploy Job is run and is set for indirect staging, any targets which have been configured through Routing Rules to use an Advanced Repeater server make use of the Advanced Repeater. Any targets which have been configured to use a standard repeater continue to do so. Any targets which are not configured to use a repeater stage the data directly on the target.

BMC recommends you to use Advanced Repeaters and advanced file servers if your environment meets one or more of the following conditions:

• The environment has a large number of target servers and you want to avoid duplicate data transfer across the network.
• You must control the bandwidth between the target servers and the Application Server or file server.
• You want to increase the security of data on the file server by hiding it from external networks.
• The network requires improved deploy job performance and execution times.
• Target servers are connected to the Application Server or file server by a Wide Area Network (WAN)

Overview of the installation and configuration process

To employ advanced file servers and Advanced Repeater servers in your environment, complete the following steps:

1. Run the BMC BladeLogic Advanced Repeater installation program on the following servers:
   1. File server which will be configured as an advanced file server
   2. Any server which will be configured as an Advanced Repeater server (the Advanced Repeater server and advanced file server are both installed from the same installation file)
2. Configure the advanced file server.
3. Configure the Advanced Repeater server.
4. Optionally, secure the communication between the advanced file server and the Advanced Repeater server.

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Requirements for using Advanced Repeater servers

The following table provides requirements and resource recommendations for allocating system resources for Advanced Repeaters.

Before you begin the installation, review the following installation requirements.

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Installing the Advanced Repeater

You can install the Advanced Repeater using the installation program or through a silent install.

Before you install

Note the following prior to installing the Advanced Repeater:

• BSA Application Server and Advanced File Servers are required to resolve all Advanced Repeater host names. This is true even if Advanced Repeaters are in local network or in WAN. 
• The Advanced Repeaters are required to resolve the hostname of the Application Servers and patching repositories (in case any patch repositories are configured outside of the Application Servers).  
• Ensure that the required ports are open and that the hostnames of all core infrastructure can be resolved by the Advanced Repeater hosts.  

• During the stage phase of deploy job execution, the Advanced Repeater must be able to contact the Advanced File Server (which is usually implemented on or near the Application Server infrastructure).  

• Check your host servers for the correct configurations. 

To install the Advanced Repeater using the installation program

1. Download the BMC BladeLogic Advanced Repeater installation file according to the download instructions in provided in Downloading the installation files. Those download instructions provide a standard method for downloading the product files from the BMC Electronic Product Download (EPD) website. The installer files applicable to the Advanced Repeater are labeled BMC BladeLogic Advanced Repeater for <hostPlatform> on the EPD site. The file names for each platform are:

   Operating system	Installer name
   Linux (Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Suse) (x86 and x64)	BBAR85-LIN32.bin
   Solaris (sun4u, sun4v, sun4us) 9,10 (sparc)	BBAR85-SOL8-SPARC.sh
   Windows 2003 and Windows 2003 R2 (both x86 and x64 architectures)	BBAR85-WIN32.exe
   Windows 2008 and Windows 2008 R2 (both x86 and x64 architectures)	BBAR85-WIN2008.exe
   Windows 2012 (both x86 and x64 architectures)	BBAR85-WIN2012.exe

2. Do one of the following:
   • In Microsoft Windows environments, copy the installation file to a directory on the server you want to configure as an advanced file server or Advanced Repeater server.
   • In Linux Environments, upload the installer bin to the file server or repeater server.

3. Start the installation program for your platform.
   Different installers are provided for 32-bit and 64-bit Windows.

   Note

   If the installation program fails to start on a Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6, you can use the LAX_VM flag to force the system to use the native JRE instead of the JRE in the installer. See the following example:

   ./BBAR-85-LIN32.bin LAX_VM /usr/bin/java

4. On the BMC Server Automation Advanced Repeater Installation screen, click OK.
5. On the Welcome screen, click Next.
6. Accept the license agreement and click Next.

7. Specify the destination directory, or accept the default. Click Next.

   Note

   The default installation folder (AdvancedRepeater ) is the same for both advanced file server and Advanced Repeater server.

   The Workspace Directory window opens.

8. Specify the workspace directory (where the Advanced Repeater stores its channels), or accept the default. Click Next.
   The Advanced Repeater Credentials window opens.
9. Specify the credentials for the Advanced Repeater administrator, or accept the default credentials by selecting Use default tuner credential settings. Click Next.
   The Advanced Repeater Service Port window opens.
10. Specify the following:

    • Transmitter RPC Port: If the server is using remote procedure calls (RPC), enter the port number used to establish a new connection for each RPC client connecting to the RPC server.

      Note

      You must use the RPC port number that was set during installation.port number to be used by the Advanced Repeater server. The default port is 7717.

    • Transmitter Listener Port: Specify the TCP port for the Transmitter service listener. Specify an integer between 0 and 65535. You can use any port, as long as the port number is not already in use. The default port is 5282.
    • Proxy Listener Port: Specify the TCP port for the Proxy Service listener. Specify an integer between 0 and 65535. Specify this TCP port if you are installing the Advanced Repeater server behind a firewall. The default port is 8081.
    • Click Next.
      A notification panel window appears if the installation program detects an existing installation. Click Next to upgrade the installation.
11. Review the current settings to confirm that you have specified the correct installation configuration, and then click Install.
12. When the installation completes, click Finish.

To uninstall the BMC BladeLogic Advanced Repeater

Do one of the following:

• On Microsoft Windows, select Start > All Programs > BMC BladeLogic Server Automation Suite > Uninstall Advanced Repeater and follow the prompts on the uninstall wizard.
• On Linux, enter the following command and follow the prompts on the uninstall wizard:
  

  :/opt/bmc/bladelogic/advancedrepeater/UninstallAdvancedRepeater # ./uninstall

To install the Advanced Repeater using silent mode

You can perform an unattended (silent) installation of the BMC Server Automation Advanced Repeater. Certain Terminal Server configuration options that pertain to temporary folders must be turned off, to enable running the installation wizard through a Terminal Services connection or a remote desktop session.

1. Create an options file using a text editor. 
2. Change directory to the location where the installer resides.

3. Run the installation program with the -i silent option by using the following command: 

   <AdvancedRepeaterInstallerName> -i silent -DOPTIONS_FILE=<silentOptionsFilePath>

   You must use an absolute path to the options file. 
   (Windows) 

   BBAR85-WIN32.exe -i silent -DOPTIONS_FILE=/opt/bmc/BladeLogic/silent_install.txt

   (Linux) 

   ./BBAR85-LIN32.bin -i silent -DOPTIONS_FILE=/opt/bmc/bladeLogic/silent_install.txt

   Note

   If the temporary directory does not have enough space, you must redirect the installation process to another temporary directory. Set the InstallAnywhere variable IATEMPDIR, as follow:

   • Windows operating systems:
     set IATEMPDIR=<new_temp_dir>

   • Linux and UNIX operating systems:
     

     $ IATEMPDIR=<new_temp_dir>

     $ export IATEMPDIR

To create the options file

To install the Advanced Repeater server in silent mode, create an options file using a text editor and add the options for the installation that you want to run. For example:

where:

Use the following guidelines to create the options file:

• Each option must be on a single line.
• Values for options can contain spaces.

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Configuring advanced file servers and Advanced Repeater servers

The following sections provide information and instructions for setting or adjusting the configuration for an advanced file server or Advanced Repeater server:

If you have not already done so, create an automation principal which contains the user-defined Administrator credential used to configure the advanced file server. An automation principal defines a user credential that can be used for accessing external systems. See the Creating automation principals for information about creating automation principals.

To configure an advanced file server

1. Create a file server as described in Setting up the file server.
2. Install the Advanced Repeater on the file server.
3. On the BMC Server Automation Console, select Configuration > Infrastructure Management.
4. Right-click the file server and select Properties to open the Modify File Server dialog box.
5. On the General tab, click Enable Advanced File Server.
6. Specify the following:

   1. If necessary, change the advanced file server root directory path to point to the Advanced Repeater installation directory. If you do not specify the install directory, the Transmitter and Performance tabs are not accessible.

      Note

      The Advanced File Server Root Directory path is different than the File Server Root Path. The Advanced File Server Root Directory points to the BMC BladeLogic Advanced Repeater installation directory, while the File Server Root Path points to the directory on the file server where data is stored.

   2. Choose where to store the state of the Content Replicator.
      • Store repository state in file server — Choose this option to store the local state of the Content Replicator on the file server.

      • Store repository state in specified directory — To store the Content Replicator state on the Application Server, instead of on the file server, enter a NSH path to a directory that exists on each Application Server that is hosting the advanced file server.

        Recommendation

        This option is recommended, particularly in complex environments such as multiple Application Server environments, multiple Advanced Repeater servers, and multiple Deploy Jobs running at the same time. For more information about this recommendation, click here to link to a knowledge article on the BMC Customer Support web site.

7. On the Security tab, specify the following:

   Option	Description
   SSL Settings	Specifies if the traffic between the advanced file server and advanced repeater is encrypted. By default the traffic between the advanced file server and advanced repeater is not encrypted. However, you can use SSL if your environment requires encryption. See Securing communication between advanced file servers and Advanced Repeater servers (optional). If you have configured secure communication for the file server, check SSL Enabled.
   Advanced File Server Administrator	Specifies the automation principal used to access and configure the advanced file server. Select an Automation Principal from the drop-down list. If you have not changed any credential during the installation or post-installation procedures, select "Default". This default automation principal matches the built-in administrator credential. If you specified a custom user/password combination during installation or in the post-install procedure, select the automation principal that was created for that user/password combination. This credential is needed by BMC Server Automation to access and configure the advanced file server.

8. On the Transmitter tab, specify the following:

   Option	Description
   Transmitter Host Name	Specifies the host name of the transmitter. By default, the transmitter is located on the same host as the File Server.
   Transmitter Root Directory	Specifies the installation directory for the transmitter. Select the Advanced Repeater installation directory. By default, the transmitter (in the advanced file server) is located on the same host as the existing file server. In this case, you only need to install one copy of the Advanced Repeater on the file server host. The Advanced File Server Root Directory field on the General tab is the same as the value specified here. The Host field on the General tab is the same as the Transmitter Host Name field on the Transmitter tab. In some cases, however, you might want the transmitter to be on a different host than file server. For example, if there is not sufficient disk space on the file server host. In this case, you must install two copies of the Advanced Repeater. Install Copy A on an existing file server host. The value Advanced File Server Root Directory on the General tab reflects the installation directory for Copy A. Install Copy B on a separate transmitter host. In this case, the value for the Transmitter Root Directory field reflects the installation directory for Copy B.
   Transmitter Listener Port	Specifies the port on which the Advanced Repeater listens for requests. You can use any port as the listener port, as long as the port number is not already in use.
   RPC Port	Specifies the RPC port number that was set during installation. The RPC port is used to administer the Advanced Repeater components.

9. On the Performance tab, specify the following:

   Option	Description
   Disk resources	Specifies the minimum amount of disk space (as a percentage) that the transmitter should keep free. To keep the specified amount of disk space free, the transmitter automatically deletes optional files, such as files in the index cache.
   File transfer efficiency	Specify the following: Compression enabled — specifies whether the advanced file server should compress the files it sends. Compression level— specifies the level of compression the transmitter should use for the files it sends. low — the compression is fast but the file size isn't reduced as much as on high (however the byte-savings difference is minimal). medium — balances time and size. high — the file is compressed as much as possible, but for large files the process can take a long time and can use many CPU resources. Differencing enabled — specifies whether the transmitter should use byte-level differencing, which allows the transmitter to send faster payload updates and to use less bandwidth. Instead of transferring entire files when updating payloads, the transmitter uses byte-level differencing to send only the changed bytes. Set the amount of memory to allocate for differencing.
   Versions	Specifies the number of versions of each file to store on the advanced file server. The default value of 3 is recommended.

10. On the Network tab, you can specify options that help you control the amount of network resources used during deployment. Specify the following:

    Option	Description
    Network connections	Specifies the number of clients (Advanced Repeater servers) allowed to connect to the advanced file server at one time.
    Network bandwidth	If you select the Enable bandwidth management option, specify the following: Percentage of bandwidth — enter the maximum amount of available bandwidth (as a percentage) that the transmitter can use. This setting limits the total traffic leaving the transmitter, across all parallel connections. A bandwidth setting of "0" (zero) sets specifies maximum bandwidth speed (unlimited). Maximum throughput — specify the number of kilobits per second that the advanced file server can use as throughput.

11. Click OK.

To configure an Advanced Repeater server

You must have first configured an advanced file server before you can configure an Advanced Repeater server.

1. Install the Advanced Repeater component on the system that you use as an Advanced Repeater server, as described in Installing the BMC Server Automation Advanced Repeater.
2. On the BMC Server Automation Console, select Configuration > Infrastructure Management.
3. Do one of the following:
   • Right-click Repeater Servers and select New Repeater Server to start the New Repeater Wizard.

   • Right-click an existing repeater server select Properties to open the Modify Repeater Server dialog box.

     Note

     The Advanced Repeater server must be able to access the advanced file server directly using the user name defined in the exports file on the file server. For more information, see the Exports File section.

4. On the General panel, click Enable Advanced Repeater.
   If necessary, change the Advanced Repeater root directory path.

5. On the Security tab, specify the following:

   Option	Description
   SSL Settings	Specifies if the traffic between the advanced file server and advanced repeater is encrypted. By default the traffic between the advanced file server and advanced repeater is not encrypted. However, you can use SSL if your environment requires encryption. See Securing communication between advanced file servers and Advanced Repeater servers (optional). If you have configured secure communication, check SSL Enabled.
   Advanced Repeater Server Administrator	Specifies the automation principal is used to access and configure the advanced file server. Select an Automation Principal from the drop-down list. If you have not changed any credential during the installation or post-installation procedures, select "Default". This default automation principal matches the built-in administrator credential. If you specified a custom user/password combination during installation or in the post-install procedure, select the automation principal that was created for that user/password combination. This credential is needed by BMC Server Automation to access and configure the Advanced Repeater server.

6. On the Cache and Port panel, specify the following:

   Category	Description
   Cache management options	Cache maximum size — Specifies the total size (in MB) for the Advanced Repeater server cache. The cache does not exceed this disk-space limit. After the cache reaches the maximum cache size, the Advanced Repeater server starts garbage collection to delete older channel files from the cache. Cache low watermark — Specifies the percentage that represents the lower limit (cache low watermark) for the Advanced Repeater server cache size. When the Advanced Repeater server starts cache garbage collection, it takes a snapshot of the cache and then determines the number of files it must delete to reach the low watermark. BMC recommends that you set the cache low watermark to a value between 75 and 80 (indicating that it is 75% to 80% of the maximum cache size).
   Port management options	Listener port — Specifies the port on which the Advanced Repeater server listens for requests. You can use any port as the listener port, as long as the port number is not already in use. RPC port — Specifies the RPC port number that was set during installation. The RPC port is used to administer the Advanced Repeater components. For more information about the ports used by BMC Server Automation, see BMC Server Automation ports.

7. On the Network panel, you can specify options that help you control the amount of network resources used during deployment. Specify the following:

   Option	Description
   Network connections	Specifies the number of concurrent connections to the Advanced Repeater server.
   Network bandwidth	If enabled, specify the following: Percentage of bandwidth — Enter the maximum amount of available bandwidth (as a percentage) that the Advanced Repeater server can use. This setting applies for each repeater to file server connection. A bandwidth setting of "0" (zero) sets specifies maximum bandwidth speed (unlimited). Maximum throughput — Specify the number of kilobits per second that the Advanced Repeater server can use as throughput.

8. Click OK.

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Securing communication between advanced file servers and Advanced Repeater servers (optional)

Optionally, all communication between the advanced file server and Advanced Repeater servers using the Advanced Repeater technology can be encrypted using SSL. You can secure the link between the Advanced Repeater server and the transmitter located on the advanced file server. All other traffic is all local and does not require encryption.

The following sections describe how to secure communication between advanced file servers and Advanced Repeater servers.

To set up the advanced file server for secure communication

1. Start the Advanced Repeater server, using one of the following methods:
   • (UNIX and Linux) Use the following command: /etc/init.d/advancedrepeater start

   • (Windows) From the Start menu, click Programs > BMC Software > BladeLogic Server Automation Suite > Advanced Repeater.

     Tip

     If you do not see any channels listed in the Channels list, select Channel > Show internal channels to populate the list.

2. Right-click the Certificate Manager option and select Start.
   The Certificate Manager dialog box is displayed.
3. In the left pane, select Root.
4. Click Import to display the Import Certificate dialog box.
5. Browse to the location of the root certificate and select it.
6. When prompted for a password or nickname, leave the entry field blank.
7. On the Root Certificates dialog box, select the root certificate you just imported and select SSL from the Trust Type group box.

The root certificate is now configured on the advanced file server.

To configure the Advanced Repeater server for secure communication

1. Copy the root certificate you created to the Advanced Repeater server. 
2. On the Advanced Repeater server, start the Advanced Repeater using one of the following methods:
   • (UNIX and Linux) Use the following command: /etc/init.d/advancedrepeater start
   • (Windows) From the Start menu, click Programs > BMC Software > BladeLogic Server Automation Suite > Advanced Repeater.
3. Right-click the Certificate Manager option and select Start.
   The Certificate Manager dialog box is displayed.
4. In the left pane, select Root.
5. Click Import to display the Import Certificate dialog box.
6. Browse to the location of the root certificate and select it.
7. Click OK to bypass the Enter Password and Enter Nickname dialog boxes. Do not enter a password or a nickname.
8. On the Root Certificates dialog box, select the root certificate you just imported and select SSL from the Trust Type group box.

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Upgrading the Advanced Repeater servers

To upgrade the Advanced Repeater server from an earlier version, you can use the installation program or silent mode. You cannot use console mode.

To upgrade the Advanced Repeater server using the installation program

To upgrade the Advanced Repeater server, run the installation program for the version to which you want to upgrade.

The upgrade uses the installation settings from the previous installation.

1. Navigate to the directory containing installation files and run the installation program for the Advanced Repeater server. (Installation program names follow the convention: BBAR<version>-<platform>.bin)
2. To begin the upgrade, click Next.
3. To complete the upgrade, click Finish.

To upgrade the Advanced Repeater server using silent mode

You can perform an unattended (silent) upgrade of the Advanced Repeater server.

1. In a text editor, create an options file that contains this option: 

   -A featureAdvancedRepeater

2. Change directory to the location where the installer resides.

3. Run the installation program with the -i silent option.
   <AdvancedRepeaterInstallerName> -i silent -DOPTIONS_FILE= <silentOptionsFilePath>
   You must use an absolute path to the options file.
   (Windows) 

   BBAR82-WIN32.exe -i silent -DOPTIONS_FILE=C:\Program Files\BMC Software\BladeLogic\silent_upgrade.txt

   (Linux) 

   ./BBAR82-LIN32.bin -i silent -DOPTIONS_FILE=/opt/bmc/bladeLogic/silent_upgrade.txt

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Troubleshooting Advanced Repeaters

The following sections might be useful if you are experiencing issues with advanced file servers and Advanced Repeater servers.

To configure bandwidth throttling between advanced file servers and Advanced Repeater servers

Both the advanced file server and Advanced Repeater server include options that you can use to control the use of network resources during file staging and deployment. The Network tab on the advanced file server or Advanced Repeater server Properties include options for controlling the number of network connections and the amount of network bandwidth. The options are

• Network connections
• Network bandwidth (Percentage of bandwidth and Maximum throughput)

These options enable you to enter a maximum amount of available bandwidth that the advanced file server or Advanced Repeater server can use, as well as the number of kilobits per second that the advanced file server or repeater can use as throughput. The options are particularly useful in large scale environments, where data is being pushed out to a large number of servers.

For more information about these options, see Configuring advanced file servers and Advanced Repeaters.

Location of Advanced Repeater log files

Log files specific to the Advanced Repeater are listed in the following table. 

Log files for Advanced Repeater

Location of Advanced Repeater configuration files

Configuration files specific to the Advanced Repeater are listed in the following table. 

In general these configuration files should not be modified. However, if you are experiencing problems on Linux or UNIX systems that are not running X-Windows, perform the following steps:

1. Add the following property to the properties.txt file (see the following table for location of file): 

   marimba.tuner.display.nodisplay=true

2. Restart the advanced file server.

Configuration files for Advanced Repeater servers

To start and stop the Advanced Repeater server

Use the following procedures to start and stop the Advanced Repeater server:

• (Windows) Use one of the following procedures:
  • From the Start menu, click Programs > BMC Software > BladeLogic Server Automation Suite > Advanced Repeater.
  • From the Services dialog box, start or stop the BMC BladeLogic Advanced Repeater Service.

• (UNIX) Use the following command: 

  /etc/init.d/advancedrepeater \start\|stop\

(Windows) Advanced Repeater UI not visible on console

On some Windows platforms, the Advanced Repeater user interface is not available on the remote desktop console if the remote desktop is not configured appropriately. Use the following configuration:

• Use mstsc /admin for all RDP connections to Windows machines where the BMC BladeLogic Advanced Repeater is installed.
• Connect using the following syntax:
  mstsc -v:< remote host > /f -console

Advanced Repeater installation is not successful

During installation of the BMC Server Automation Advanced Repeater on some Windows 2003 x64 systems, the installation process might seem to stop processing after issuing the following message:   

Waiting for Transmitter channel startup to complete 

The process times out after five minutes, and the installation is not successful. To avoid the unsuccessful result:

1. While the Waiting for Transmitter channel startup to complete message is displayed, navigate to the installation directory.
2. Manually launch Tuner.exe. The Advanced Repeater user interface is displayed and, after a few moments, the installer continues, completing successfully.

To change the administrator user and password for Advanced Repeater servers

You can change the administrator user and password for Advanced Repeater servers in any of the following ways:

• In the installation wizard, when running the installation program.
• If you know the administrator user/password combination, you can change it using a runchannel command.
  • Navigate to the Advanced Repeater server installation directory. (On Windows, the default directory is C:\Program Files\BMC Software\BladeLogic\AdvancedRepeater\tuner ).

  • From a command prompt, execute the following command: 

    runchannel http://localhost:5282/Marimba/Current/TunerAdministrator 

    -tuner localhost:7717 -username <oldAdminUser> 

    -password <oldAdminPwd> -set -property "marimba.tuner.admin" 

    -value "<newAdminUser>,plain:<newAdminPwd>"

• If you do not know the administrator user/password combination (for example, if you are using the built-in default user/password), you can use the Tuner program to override the current user/password combination. (Note that the Tuner program can only be run locally.)
  • Navigate to the Advanced Repeater server installation directory. (On Windows, the default directory is C:\Program Files\BMC Software\BladeLogic\AdvancedRepeater\tuner ).

  • From a command prompt, execute the following command: 

    tuner.exe -admin "newAdminUser,plain:newAdminPwd"

To change the advanced file server

BMC Server Automation supports the use of only one file server at a time, and you install your advanced file server on that one file server. (If you need to check to make sure you have just one file server, run the file_server_check script, as described in Checking file server references.) In certain cases, you might need to change the location of the file server and the advanced file server.

For example, you might decide to move the file server from a single application server (with a typical //myfileserver/ path) to a virtualized or centralized file server (with a path such as //localhost/ or //blfs/). After changing the location of the file server using blasadmin, new file server objects are created in the new file server path. However, all references to older objects still refer to the old file server path. A special script helps you correct these references to point to the location on the new file server. Before running the script, ensure that the contents of the old file server get replicated to the same relative path under the new file server.

The following instructions guide you through the special tasks that you must perform when you change the location of the file server and advanced file server. In this scenario, the existing file server has the host name FileServerA, and the machine that you want to move to has the host name FileServerB.

To change an advanced file server from one location to another

1. Prepare the new machine (FileServerB) as described in File server requirements.
2. Install the advanced file server on FileServerB, as described in Installing the BMC Server Automation Advanced Repeater.
3. Copy all files from FileServerA to FileServerB, as described in Moving files from one machine to another.
4. Run the following blasadmin commands:
   set fileserver name <hostname>
   where <hostname> is the name of the new file server to which you just moved the files (in this scenario, FileServerB).
   set fileserver location <directory>
   where <directory> is the directory on the new file server where data is stored. Use a Network Shell path to a directory, such as /c/FileServer, as opposed to a Windows path, such as C:\FileServer.
5. On the BMC Server Automation Console, select Configuration > Infrastructure Management.
6. Right-click the file server (in this case FileServerB) and select Properties to open the Modify File Server dialog box.
7. On the General tab, make sure Enable Advanced File Server is checked.
   Change the advanced file server root directory path to point to the Advanced Repeater installation directory where you just installed the advanced file server on this new machine.
8. Click the Transmitter tab and examine the Transmitter Host Name and Transmitter Root Directory fields:
   • By default, the transmitter uses the same host as the file server. So, if you were using the defaults on the old file server, Transmitter Host Name shows the host name of the old file server, FileServerA. If you want to continue using default behavior (transmitter on same host as file server), set the Transmitter Host Name field to FileServerB (the name of the new file server).
   • Set Transmitter Root Directory to the Advanced Repeater installation directory (the directory where you just installed the advanced file server).
   • As an alternative to the default, you might be using a standalone machine for the transmitter. In this case the Transmitter Host Name field shows the name of the standalone host, for example, TransmitterHostC. Similarly, the Transmitter Root Directory field shows the directory on TransmitterHostC where you installed the advanced file server.
   • If you want to continue using a standalone host, you do not need to change anything here. Simply click OK to resave the settings.
9. Run the file_server_change script so the database now references files at their new locations on the new advanced file server. (For information about how to do this, see Updating file server references.)

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Additional resources on BMC Communities

For related information, check out the BMC Communities blog,The Pulse: Troubleshooting issues with Advanced Repeater Servers in BSA Deploy Jobs.