XML reference for SPIs

You can create or edit XML files to import HP OM Smart Plug-Ins (SPIs) into Infrastructure Management for monitoring and analysis. This topic describes the XML elements and attributes required to import an SPI into Infrastructure Management.

An XML generation tool is provided, through the command-line interface, to help create XML files for agent types that are not provided with the installation. For information about the pw ovxmlgenerator command, see pw ovxmlgenerator.
After you choose a provided XML specification file, or create your own, you can edit the file to reflect your environment and requirements.

The following example shows the elements and attributes used in the XML file for SPIs.

Example

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<SPI name="WINOSSPI-Win2k" calculation="no">
<GROUP name="WINOSSPI-Win2k" parent="WINOSSPI-Win2k" hasInstances="yes"
label="WINOSSPI-Win2k" nameIdentifier="_InstanceName"
groupIdentifier="SystemUpTime">
<parameter name="SystemUpTime">
<type>2</type>
<description>System Up Time</description>
<unit>#</unit>
<style>standard</style>
<factor>1</factor>
</parameter>
</GROUP>
</SPI>

The following list describes the elements and attributes in the XML file.

Elements/ Attributes	Description
SPI	The <SPI> root element contains the SPI group and parameter details. The <SPI> element contains the following attributes: name and calculation.
name	The value of the name attribute is the name of the SPI, exactly as it is provided by HP OM.
calculation	The value of the calculation attribute indicates whether one or more parameters in the SPI require mathematical manipulation. A yes value indicates that one or more parameters are calculated as a delta value or require a normalization factor. For information about calculating delta values, see the <style> element. For more information about using normalization factors, see the <factor> element. A no value indicates that none of the parameters are calculated as a delta value or require a normalization factor.
GROUP	Use one or more <GROUP> elements to define group details and to contain the parameter details of the group. If the SPI does not contain a group, add a group by using the SPI name as the group name. The <GROUP> element contains the following attributes: name, parent, hasInstances, label, nameIdentifier, and groupIdentifier.
name	The value of the name attribute is the name of the group, exactly as it is provided by HP OM.
parent	The value of the parent attribute is the name of the SPI, exactly as it is provided by HP OM. The attribute is reserved for future subgroup functionality of the adapter for HP OM.
hasInstances	The value of the hasInstances attribute indicates whether the group of parameters can have more than one instance. A yes value indicates that the group can have more than one instance, such as for CPUs or disks. A no value indicates that the group has only one instance, such as for GLOBAL parameters.
label	The value of the label attribute is the name of the group that appears in the Operations Console.
nameIdentifier	The value of the nameIdentifier attribute specifies the name of the parameter that provides the instance name. If no parameter provides the instance name, leave the nameIdentifier attribute empty. The instance name, in this case, is the same as the group name.
groupIdentifier	The value of the groupIdentifier attribute specifies the name of a parameter that uniquely identifies the group.
parameter	Use one or more <parameter> elements to define the name of each parameter and to contain elements with the parameter properties. Note The adapter for HP OM can use only numeric parameters for metric analysis. Do not add parameters with string values. The <parameter> element contains the name attribute.
name	The value of the name attribute specifies the name of the parameter, exactly as it is provided by HP OM.
type	The content of the <type> element is always 2, indicating a numerical value that you can use to generate a graph.
description	Type the content of the <description> element to add a description of the parameter and to identify it in the Operations Console.
unit	Type the contents of the <unit> element to specify the units of the parameter; for example, sec., #, or days, which causes the units to be displayed with the parameter in the Operations Console.
style	Type the contents of the <style> element to specify whether the parameter appears at its current value or as the difference since the previous collection. Use one of the following contents for the element: A standard value indicates that the Operations Console shows the current value of the parameter. A delta value indicates that the Operations Console shows the change in the parameter since the previously collected value. Note If the content of the <style> element is delta for any parameter in the SPI, ensure that the value of the calculation attribute in the <SPI> root element is yes.
factor	The <factor> element is a non-zero normalizing value. Depending on the system configuration, the Operations Console might display some values in the SPI as greater than or less than the defined units by a factor of 10, 100, or 1,000. Adjust the contents of the <factor> element as required for your system. Note If the content of the <factor> element does not equal 1 for any parameter in the SPI, ensure that the value of the calculation attribute in the <SPI> root element is yes.

XML reference for SPIs

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