Software and application models
Software and application models are used in service impact modeling, configuration, license management, and reporting use cases. Software and applications on a computer can be modeled in two ways, each of which represents a different aspect of the software:
Installed software and applications on a computer are modeled by using the
BMC_Product
class.Running instances of software and applications are modeled by using
BMC_SoftwareServer
,BMC_Application
, andBMC_ApplicationSystem
classes. Instances of these classes capture the deployed run-time aspects of long-lived applications and not the installed aspects. Running software modules on a software server such as a J2EE application server are modeled by using theBMC_ApplicationService
class.
This section provides information about modeling installed software and running instances of software and applications.
Application characteristics
Applications have characteristics that help you determine the best way to use CDM in your modeling strategy. The following table maps the characteristics of an application to the type of class that you can use to model that application. All objects and relationships are not required to model certain types of applications. For example, patch information may not be required in the case of software license management.
Characteristic | Description | Class |
---|---|---|
Run-time aspect | Running instances of applications and software servers | BMC_SoftwareServer, BMC_ApplicationInfrastructure, BMC_Application, BMC_ApplicationSystem |
Installation aspect | Identifies the product that is installed, its version, and any patch | BMC_Product |
Service aspect | Business applications. (For business applications supporting a particular function, such as payroll and trading, use the | BMC_BusinessService |
The following figure shows how the installed, run-time, and service aspects of an application relate to each other:
Applications running on servers
The BMC_SoftwareServer
class represents the deployed, run-time aspects of applications; in other words, the instances of software actually running on a server. You instantiate this class to capture long-lived, server-type applications in your environment. When modeling applications, you must remember this distinction. To model static, installed components such as Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Word, create a BMC_Product
instance.
You can also use the BMC_Product
class to model noncommercial products, such as in-house software. One application can be installed once, yet have multiple instances running. For example, you can create a BMC_Product
instance to represent the installed version of WebServer and create several BMC_SoftwareServer
instances to represent actual instances of WebServer, one listening on port 80, another on port 8000, and a third on port 8080.
For complete descriptions of the classes described in this section for modeling applications, including examples of usage, see the BMC CMDB Data Model Help. For more information about using the BMC_Product
class to model components, see Software inventory models.
For example, you can model a WebLogic application first by instantiating the BMC_Product
class (to indicate where it is installed, the number of licenses, product name, and version). To add the run-time aspect, you can instantiate a BMC_SoftwareServer
class. The following figure shows an example of this model, where two instances of a WebLogic application server (server1 and server2) are actually instances of the same installed product:
Accounting for the run-time aspect of the application in this context is very important for understanding the impact of an application on a business service. You must consider capturing WebLogic patches by using the BMC_Patch
class, because the patch will then be connected to the service through the installed product, run-time, applications and, ultimately, the service and its relationships. Consequently, an IT administrator responsible for updating patches on WebLogic would understand how the change relates to the business that WebLogic supports.
Applications running on application servers or systems
The BMC_Application
class stores information about standalone applications, applications deployed on servers (such as SAP), and applications deployed on distributed systems (such as SAP).
The BMC_ApplicationInfrastructure
class stores information about the framework that supports applications in a distributed or composite system. This class represents the platform to model your applications. For example, you would model SAP® as an instance of BMC_ApplicationInfrastructure
. After an application is deployed in that platform, it can run on any application server in the SAP environment. An application can be hosted by different types of environments: an application server or application system, or a physical or virtual system.
To model applications to run directly on top of an application server or application system, relate an instance of the BMC_Application
class to a hosting BMC_ApplicationInfrastructure
instance.
In this model, the application has only one relationship. A dependency on the application infrastructure hosting the application. This dependency is modeled by a BMC_Dependency
relationship, as illustrated in the following figure. When using the relationship, set the Name
value to DEPLOYEDAPPLICATION.
An application infrastructure cannot have any direct relationship to computers. Only applications and software servers have relationships to computers.
This model can also be applied to an application or set of applications that support or collaborate to provide a particular business function. For example, an Oracle® application infrastructure supports two applications, TimeCard and HR personal data, both stored in the BMC_Application
class. The two classes relate to each other through the BMC_Dependency
relationship, meaning that both the TimeCard and HR personal data applications are dependent on the supporting Oracle application infrastructure. To decompose the system into its functional components, relate an instance of this class to its component BMC_SoftwareServer
instance with the BMC_Dependency
class.
Applications running on computer systems
To model applications to run on computer systems (physical or virtual), relate an instance of the BMC_Application
class to a hosting physical or virtual BMC_ComputerSystem
instance.
Relationships for applications
The relationships for modeling applications are described in the following table:
Relationship | Relationship class | Value of Name attribute |
---|---|---|
Application infrastructure hosting the application. |
| APPLICATIONSYSTEMHIERARCHY |
System hosting the application (mandatory). |
| APPLICATIONSYSTEMCOMPUTER |
Operating system running the application (optional). |
| APPLICATIONSYSTEMOS |
Product representing the installed software of which this application is an instance (optional). |
| APPLICATIONSYSTEMPRODUCT |
Business application and service models
To model the business aspect of applications, use the BMC_BusinessService
class. Business applications support a particular business function (such as payroll or trading) and are, generally, made up of a set of applications, servers, and databases that collaborate to provide a particular service.
The following figure illustrates a business services model:
In this model, the BMC_BaseElement
name is typically an application or database.
Comments
Under "Software components running in an application server" we can see an example with class BMC_APPLICATIONSERVICE. The relationship class in that specific diagramm is a black line without any description. May I ask you to 1) Add a description as available for the other relationships (e.g. Dependency, Component, etc.) 2) color the lines to make it clearer (red, green, etc.) Thank you very much in advance
Hello Thomas,
Thanks for your suggestion. We will incorporate your suggestions.
Regards,
Kanchana
Hello Thomas,
We have incorporated your suggestions.
Regards,
Kanchana
Hi Kanchana, and how did you achieve that? By deleting the whole picture? very interesting approach .... hmmm .....
Hello Thomas,
The graphic has not been deleted. It's been moved within this topic-Logical high-level application model.
Thanks and regards,
Kanchana
Thank you, I have found it. But it seems to be incorrect.
Hello Thomas,
Thanks for your query. I will check with the SME and update the diagram.
Regards,
Kanchana
Log in or register to comment.