You can create a data collector for monitoring data that is generated as a result of running a script by using an SSH connection.
You cannot use this data collector to collect data that is generated as a result of running the binary files (or executable files). For example, .exe files on the Windows platform.
Recommendation
BMC recommends that you to not use scripts with infinite loops and provide a timeout duration so that you do not face issues with data collection.
This topic contains the following information:
Provide the following information, as appropriate:
Field | Description |
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Target/Collection Host | |
Target Host | (Optional) Select from a list of hosts that you have already configured under Administration > Hosts. The target host is the computer from which you want to retrieve the data. You can choose to select the target host and inherit the host-level tags and group access permissions already added to the host, or manually enter the host name in the Server Name field. |
Collection Host (Agent) | Type or select the collection host depending on whether you want to use the Collection Station or the Collection Agent to perform data collection. The collection host is the computer on which the Collection Station or the Collection Agent is located. By default, the Collection Station is already selected. You can either retain the default selection or select the Collection Agent. Note: For this type of data collector, the target host and collection host are expected to have different values. |
Collector Inputs | |
Server Name | The host name of the server on which the data is generated as a result of running the script. Note: If you selected a target host earlier, this field is automatically populated. |
Credentials | (Optional) Select one of the following options:
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User Name | Provide the user name for connecting with the server from which you want to retrieve the data. Note: This field is disabled if you applied a security profile earlier. The product supports only password-based authentication for connecting with the SSH server. |
Password | Provide the password for connecting with the server from which you want to retrieve the data. Click Add Credential Administration > Credentials. , provide a credential name, and click OK to create a new credential (profile) from the credentials that you provided in the user name and password fields. Once this credential is created, it is displayed underNote: This field is disabled if you applied a security credential earlier. |
Script Path | Provide the complete path to the script that you want to execute on the remote computer for retrieving data. You can also pass parameters dynamically while executing the script. For example, you can execute the following script that takes the input parameter as your name and prints "Hello."
Script example #!/bin/bash echo "Hello $1" In this case, you must enter script.sh MyName in this field. where: script.sh is the name of the file in which you saved the preceding script. MyName refers to the name that you want to pass as the input parameter. Note: If there is a space character in one of the directory names in your script path, then you must enclose the directory name with double quotes ("). |
Time Zone | By default, the Use file time zone option is selected. This means the data is indexed as per the time zone available in the data file. If the data file does not contain a timezone, then the by default the time zone of the Collection Host (Collection Station or Collection Agent) server is used. You can also manually select a timezone from the list available. This timezone must match the timezone of the server from which you want to collect data. If your data file contains a timezone and you manually specify the timezone, then the manually specified timezone overrides the file timezone. |
Data Pattern | |
Pattern | Select the data pattern to use for indexing the data file. Use one of the following methods to specify the data pattern:
Note: If you select both – a pattern and a date format, the product uses the date format to index the timestamp and the pattern to index rest of the event data. |
Date Format | When you select a data pattern, the matching date format is automatically updated. However, you can specifically find date formats matching the timestamp in your data file. Use one of the following methods to specify a date format:
Notes:
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Date Locale | You can use this setting to enable reading the date and time string based on the language selected. Note that this setting only applies to those portions of the date and time string that consist letters (digits are not considered). By default, this value is set to English. You can manually select a language to override the default locale. For a list of languages supported, see Language information. |
Script Time Out (mins) | Specify the time duration (in minutes) after which the script must time out. By default, this value is set to 10. |
Poll Interval (mins) | Specify the interval (in minutes) after which the script must be executed and the script output data must be collected. By default, this value is set to 1. The value of this field is passed as the last argument to the script. |
Start/Stop Collection | (Optional) Select this check box if you want to start the data collection immediately. |
To understand the troubleshooting scenarios related to this data collector, see Troubleshooting common issues with the Category filter set to Data collection.