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    BMC Release Process Management 4.3

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    A step is an individual and complete part of a request. Steps indicate the way a request is executed. A step includes components and automation scripts assigned to the application that you are dealing with. A step can also indicate a phase or run time phase (for example, “third phase of release”). Steps can be completed in a series, where each step must be completed before starting the next, or completed in parallel, where execution can proceed asynchronously to accommodate different dependencies in the work. There are also anytime steps, which can be performed at any time during the request, but must be completed to complete the request (for example, “update documentation”).

    Steps move through a series of states:

    1. Locked
    2. Ready
    3. In Process
    4. Blocked
    5. Process
    6. Hold
    7. Complete
    8. Reopened

    After the request with steps started, information about the current states of each step update automatically.

    To see steps that currently have Ready, In Progress, or Problem status, go to Dashboard > Currently Running Steps or Requests > Currently Running Steps. You can use the following filters for displaying the currently running steps:

    • Status — Displays steps that have the selected status
    • Work task — Displays steps that have the selected work tasks assigned
    • Owner — Displays steps that have the selected users assigned as the step owner
    • Server — Displays steps that are assigned to the selected servers
    • Component — Displays steps that that are associated with the selected components
    • Group — Displays steps that are associated with the selected user groups

    You can organize multiple steps into groups by using procedures.

    To add steps to a request

    1. On the Requests tab, click the appropriate request.

      Note

      You can add steps only for a request with the Created or Planned status.

    2. Click the New Step link below the request to add multiple steps.
      In the New Step dialog box, enter the following information for the various fields.
      (Click each of the items to expand it and see the description)

      Represents a name to identify the step. This is an optional field. You can save the step without specifying the name and identify it by the number or the sequence with which the step gets automatically created on saving.

      Select from the list of components available. You can see a list of those components assigned to that environment which is specified in the request, under which you are adding the step.

      Select from a list of groups or users available in the database with which you want to associate the step.

      This field is available only when you select one of the components from the list available for Component.

      The following image displays the New Step dialog box and the options available under the General tab.
      New Step dialog box - General tab
      (Click the image to expand it)

      Specify information for the following items displayed on the General tab:

      • Step Description:
        Enter any necessary or additional information to describe the deployment task for which you are creating the step. Click the [expand] or [collapse] link under the field at the bottom rightmost corner, to expand or collapse the writing area for this field.

      • Step Time:
        You can define an estimated duration and the time for completing the step by using the date-picker and the time list boxes available in the format Hours:Minutes:AM/PM by default as shown in the following image. The date and the time format shown here follows the same format specified under Settings > General > Date and Time Settings. When you set date and time in the Start and the Complete boxes, the time in the Estimatebox gets automatically updated.

        Note

        The date and time set in the Complete box must be greater than that set in the Start box.

      • Set Start to End of Previous Serial Step:
        Select this option so that this step is run when the previous step in the sequence (added under the same request) is completed. You must have at least one step already added under the request to use this capability.
      • Set Start to Start of Previous Serial Step:
        Select this option so that this step is run simultaneously (parallel way) when the previous step in the sequence (added under the same request) is run. You must have at least one step already added under the request to use this capability.
      • Phase:
        Select from a list of phases available. To be able to select from a list available you must first create them by navigating to Environment > Metadata > Manage Phases.
      • Runtime Phase:
        Select from a list of runtime phases available. A list of runtime phases is displayed depending on the phase that you selected. Runtime phases are assigned at the time when phases are created. To be able to select from a list of runtime phases, you must first add them under a particular phase by navigating to Environment > Metadata > Manage Phases and then editing one of the phases listed. You can use the runtime phases in conditional procedures for the request. For more information about conditional procedures, see Managing procedures.
      • Work Task:
        Select from a list of work tasks available. You can see a list of work tasks depending on those created under Environment > Metadata > Manage Work Tasks.

      The following image displays the the Automation tab in the New Step dialog box with automation scripts available for the BMC Remedy 7.6.x option selected.
      New Step dialog box - Automation tab
      (Click the image to expand it)

      Specify the following information:
      Step Action:
      Select from the following list of options.

      The following image displays the the Tickets tab in the New Step dialog box.
      New Step dialog box - Tickets tab
      (Click the image to expand it)

      The Tickets  tab is displayed only if the request under which you are adding this step is assigned to that plan with which the tickets are associated. For example, if you navigate to Environment > Metadata > Manage Tickets and create tickets, TKT1000, TKT1001, and TKT1002 and associate all of them to plan, BRPM2.6_December and if you create a step under a request associated to plan, BRPM2.6_December, the Tickets tab is displayed. You can use tickets displayed in two ways:

      1. While creating a manual step (without using automation scripts), you can associate relevant tickets displayed on this tab by selecting them under the Actions column. With this, you can associate relevant information about tickets with the step that you want to create.

      2. While using automation scripts in the step, the tickets displayed under this tab can be associated to the automation script in use. For example, if you are select BMC Remedy 7.6.x from the list displayed for Step Action on the Automation tab and then select Remedy update change request from the list displayed for Task, and if you provide all the details except the change_request_id, the tickets selected on the Tickets tab are associated with the automation script. This means the selected tickets (change requests) will be updated with the other details specified in the fields displayed for the Remedy update change request automation script.
        You can also set filters for the tickets displayed by clicking the Open Filterslink at the top right hand side of the table displayed. These filter options are described in the following table:

        Filter

        Description

        Integration

        Under Integration, click the add link, to choose from a list of integration servers with which the tickets are associated and then click the done link.

        To modify your selection, click the edit link under Integration, and then click the done link.

        Type

        Under Type, click the add link, to choose from a list of ticket types and then click the done link.

        To modify your selection, click the edit link under Type, and then click the done link.

        Status

        Under Status, click the add link, to choose from a list of options that denote the various states of the tickets listed in the table and then click the done link.

        To modify your selection, click the edit link under Status, and then click the done link.

        Application

        Under Application, click the add link, to choose from a list of applications with which the tickets are associated and then click the done link.

        To modify your selection, click the edit link under Application, and then click the done link.

        Association

        Under Association, you can select one of the following options:
        Selected: Click this to filter all the tickets selected under the Actions column in the table.
        Unselected: Click this to filter all the tickets not selected under the Actions column in the table.

        To modify your selection, click the edit link under Application, and then click the done link.

      The following image displays the the Documents tab in the New Step dialog box.
      New Step dialog box - Documents tab
      (Click the image to expand it)

      You can add files containing additional information that might be required for executing the step or performing the deployment task. To do this, on the Documents tab, click Choose File, select the file located on your computer that you want to add, and then click Open. You can add multiple files by clicking the Add link displayed at the bottom of the dialog box on the left hand side. To delete a file that you already added, click the remove link next to the file that you want to delete.

      The following image displays the the Properties tab in the New Step dialog box.
      New Step dialog box - Properties tab
      (Click the image to expand it)

      This tab displays the properties associated with the component selected while adding the step. The properties displayed under this tab help you with additional information required for performing your deployment task. You can use the properties displayed under this tab in different ways. The following points describe some of the ways in which properties can be changed.

      1. You add a number of steps associated to the same component (using the same properties) under one request. Now if you change the property value for any one of the steps, the changed value is applied to the same property throughout all the steps under that request. Also, once the request is completed the changed value is applied to the component assigned to the environment used for that request. This can be verified by navigating to the Applications tab, clicking the environment used by that request, and then clicking the relevant component.
      2. You create a request template with steps using the same component. Now you create a request by using the request template that you just created and selecting a particular environment. You navigate to the Applications tab and click the same environment that used for creating the request. Now you edit the component under that environment and change the value of a certain property. The same value will be updated in all the steps using that component under the request.

      You can edit the property value for the step. In this case, the specified value is applied only to the current step.

      Note

      Starting with BMC Release Process Management version 4.3.01.07, you cannot edit a custom value for the property in the Properties tab if this property is locked for the application. For more information, see Managing properties.

      The following image displays the the Server Properties tab in the New Step dialog box.
      New Step dialog box - Server Properties tab
      (Click the image to expand it)

      You can use this tab to select a list of targets or servers on which you want to execute your deployment task. When you click the Server Properties tab, a table listing those servers which are assigned to the environment associated with the request (under which you are adding this step) is displayed.

      Note

      Starting with BMC Release Process Management version 4.3.01.08 and later, if the component that you use in a step is associated with a server group, server level, or server level group, you can see this server group, server level, or server level group at the top of the target servers list.


      You can also assign additional servers to the step other than those displayed in the table. To do this, click the Target alternate servers link and select the application, environment, and component to which the additional servers are assigned and click Target. The first list box represents a list of applications, the second list box represents a list of environments, and the third list box represents a list of components as indicated in the preceding figure. When you select the application, environment, and component, the system presents a list of servers if they are present in the database. You can select multiple servers from the list. When you save the step the selected servers are added to the step.

       

      Note

      If you create a new server and associate it with the component, this new server is not automatically added to the existing steps that use this component. To add a newly created server to the step, select that server on the Server Properties tab and save your changes.

      The following image displays the the Design tab in the New Step dialog box.
      New Step dialog box - Design tab
      (Click the image to expand it)

      You can use this tab to customize the additional settings for a step:

      SettingDescription
      Default TabFrom the list of available step tabs, select the tab that displays when you open the current step
      Additional Step Options
      • Protected — select this check box if you do not want other users to reorder or turn off the step or to edit the automation script for the step
      • Suppress notification — select this check box if you do not want to send email notifications for the events associated with the step
      • Executor data entry — select this check box if you want to allow users with the Executor role to enter the following step settings:

      Notes

      • The Design tab is available only if the corresponding request is in the Created state.
      • The following settings are available only in BMC Release Process Management version 4.3.01.07 or later:
        • Protected
        • Suppress notification
        • Executor data entry

    3. Click Add Step & Close to save the step.
    4. Click Add Step & Continue to save the step and keep the New Step dialog box open so as to add additional steps.
    5. Select the Execute Anytime check box to enable this step to start anytime manually.
    6. Click Save Step.
      The Administrator must configure notifications for each stage of a step. For more information about configuring the notifications, see Changing notification options.

    To use the links associated with the steps

    When you click open any request, you have access to the following links that you can use to work with the steps.

    The set of links is divided into the following parts: Select and Actions. The following table describes how to use these links in BMC Release Process Management.

    Name of the link

    Description

    Select

    All

    Click this link to select all the steps under a request.

    None

    This link clears the selection of any or all steps selected by a previous action.

    On

    Click this link to display all the steps that are on in the current action.

    Off

    Click this link to display all the links that are off in the current action.

    Actions

    Delete

    Use this link to delete steps that are not required in this request under the current action.

    1. Select the check boxes of the steps that you want to delete.
    2. Click Delete.

    Modify Assignment

    Use this link to change the assignments of the steps to individuals or groups.

    1. Select the check boxes of the steps whose assignments you want to change.
    2. Click the Modify Assignment link.
    3. If you want to change the assignments to groups, select Groups from the Assigned to drop down field, or select Names if you want to assign to any individual.
    4. Select the name or the group as the case may be from the Name drop down field.
    5. Click Update.

    Modify Task/Phase

    Use this link to modify the work task or the phases of steps.

    1. Select the check boxes for the steps for which you want to modify the work tasks or phases.
    2. Click Modify Task/Phase.
    3. In the Modify Step Task/Phase dialog box that opens, select the required work task from the Work Task drop down field.
    4. Select the phase from the Phase drop down field.
    5. Select the run time phase from the Runtime Phase drop down field.
    6. Click Update.

    Turn On/Off

    Use this link to either turn on or turn off a selected number of steps in a request.

    1. Select the check boxes for the steps for which you want to turn off or on.
    2. From the Status drop down field, select OFF or ON as you require.
    3. Click Update.

    To import steps

    1. On the Requests tab, click the appropriate request.
      The request page opens.
    2. On the right pane, click Import Steps.
      The Import/Paste Steps text box opens.

    3. In the Import/Paste Steps text box:

      1. As the first line, enter the step parameters separated by comma.

      2. As the second line, enter values for the appropriate parameters, separated by comma.

         

        ParameterDescription
        nameName to identify the step
        descriptionInformation to describe the deployment task for which you are creating the step
        componentName of the component for the step, that is assigned to the request environment
        assigned_to

        Owner of the step — a group or a user that you want to associate with the step

        Note: For users, enter the user's first name and then the last name.
        estimateEstimated duration of the step in minutes
        automationAutomation script name

        Notes

        • For multiline values and values containing special symbols, use quotes.
        • All step parameters are optional. You do not need to specify the unused parameters for the imported steps.
        • To import multiple steps, add a new line with the appropriate parameter values for each new step.
    4. Click Create Steps.
      The new step with the specified parameters is added to the request.

    For more information about the step parameters, see To add steps to a request.

    Related topics

    Managing requests

    Managing procedures

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