Configuring multitenancy

Multitenancy refers to a situation where a single application on a server supports multiple client organizations. In BMC Helix Discovery, this means the ability to scan the estates of multiple organizations, and to assign a company name attribute to that scan. Any CMDB CIs created as a result of that scan can be assigned the appropriate company name. The BMC Helix Discovery data is not segregated for multiple tenants, it is simply a way to pass company names to the CMDB.

The company name is assigned to the cdm_company attribute on the Discovery Run node. This is mapped onto CMDB CIs created as a result of that scan and assigned to the Company attribute.

Multitenancy is a global setting, it is either enabled or disabled. When you configure multitenancy, you select a default company. That becomes the default for all new discovery runs, though you can choose to set any other company name, or none (no company).

Important considerations when using multitenancy

Multitenancy obtains company names from the CMDB. Therefore, you must have a working CMDB Sync connection. Alternatively, you can also obtain company names from BMC Helix ITSM if it is installed. You do not need to have performed a synchronization, but the connection must be configured and have been successfully tested, with a CMDB user having administrator privileges. Once this is set up, the Lookup Companies list is populated.

The company list on the appliance is not automatically refreshed from the CMDB. If you do not see a company that you are expecting to see, request to refresh the list by clicking Test Connection on the CMDB Sync connection page. Similarly, if you add a new company name to BMC Helix ITSM, you must request to refresh the list by clicking Test Connection on any CMDB Sync connection page. However, the CMDB is only polled every 30 minutes so you might need to wait for up to 30 minutes before the list is refreshed.

If there is no company information available from BMC Helix ITSM, the Default Company does not contain any company names. Instead, it displays No Company.

To enable multitenancy

1. From the main menu, click Administration. The Administration page is displayed. From the Model section, click CMDB Sync.
2. The CMDB Sync page is displayed. If CMDB Sync connections exist, they are shown here.
   
   
3. Click the Multitenancy Disabled link. 
   The Multitenancy dialog box is displayed.
   
   
4. Select Enabled, choose a default company from the company list dropdown, and click Apply. The list of companies is not populated until one connection has been successfully tested.
5. The CMDB Sync page is displayed, and the Multitenancy Disabled link is replaced with Multitenancy Enabled: Company Name.
   
   
   
   You can also enable multitenancy when adding the first CMDB connection.

To disable multitenancy

1. From the CMDB Sync page, click the Multitenancy Enabled: Company Name link. 
2. Deselect Enabled and click Apply.
   
3. The CMDB Sync page is displayed, and the Multitenancy Enabled: Company Name link is replaced with Multitenancy Disabled.