Guidelines for customizing the workflows

When creating a new triage and remediation workflow, follow these guidelines:

• Create the set of applicable configuration parameters by first making a copy of the current framework module configuration elements and then renaming them with suitable parameters.
• Add new event identifiers and mappings.
• Add the appropriate access credentials to the Credentials Store module.
• Identify the existing triage and remediation commands that match the requirements of the new process.
• Copy and then customize the existing commands to satisfy the demands of the new process.

You can extend existing workflows by adding the following details:

• New event identifiers and mapping attributes
• New triage and remediation commands
• New adapters depending in the communication protocol

This topic provides the following details about customizing workflows:

Adding triage commands to the OS Disk Space Full workflow

This procedure applies to environments with or without a BMC Remedy IT Service Management integration.

1. Under the configuration module, select the Triage_Remediation: OS_Disk_Space_Full group.
2. Select the Triage group name.
3. To add a new OS group, select the Add Modular Configuration Group icon, enter the group name in the Name field, and click Save.
4. To enter a new command under a new or existing OS group, select the OS group name and click the Add Module Configuration Item icon.
5. In the Item Details pane, enter the name, such as command1 or command2; keep Static Value as the Type; and then, next enter the actual command in the Value field. Click Save.

When the workflow is run, the new command is used for the specified operating system, and its results are stored with the triage information.

Adding remediation commands to the OS Disk Space Full workflow

If you have a BMC Remedy IT Service Management integration, perform the first procedure and then follow the guidelines for adding a task template. For a non-BMC Remedy IT Service Management use case, perform only the first procedure.

To add remediation commands (both non-BMC Remedy IT Service Management and BMC Remedy IT Service Management use cases)

1. Under the configuration module, select the Triage_Remediation: OS_Disk_Space_Full group.
2. Select the Remediation group.
3. Click the Add Module Configuration Group icon, enter the group name of the command, such as Move, in the Name field, and click Save.
4. To add the operating systems, select the command name, and click the Add Module Configuration Group icon.
5. Enter the name of the operating system in the Name field, and click Save.
6. To add the command, select the operating system, and click the Add Module Configuration Item icon.

7. In the Item Details pane, enter the name, such as command1 or command2; keep Static Value as the Type; and then, enter the actual command in the Value field. Click Save.
   
   The following example shows sample Move commands that are entered for different operating systems under the Remediation group.

   Windows:
   move c:\temp\temp.txt c:\temp\test
   move c:\temp\temp.txt c:\temp\test
   ORACLE OS:
   mv /tmp/test.tx /var/tmp/ .
   mv /tmp/test.tx /var/tmp/ .
   AIX:
   mv /tmp/test.txt /var/tmp/ .
   mv /tmp/test.txt /var/tmp/ .
   Linux:
   mv /tmp/test.txt /var/tmp/.
   mv /tmp/test.txt /var/tmp/.
   HP-UX:
   mv /tmp/test.txt/var/tmp/.

8. If this is a non-BMC Remedy IT Service Management use case, you can run the workflow to apply the new remediation command.
   If you have a BMC Remedy IT Service Management integration, continue to the next set of guidelines to add a corresponding task template for the new command.

Guidelines for adding a task template

• Copy an existing task template or create a new task template for the new command
• Use the following naming convention: < solutionName >< workflowName >< nodeName >< otherDetails >. In the example of the Moveremediation command, the following values are substituted for the variables:
  • < solutionName > = Triage Remediation
  • < workflowName > = OS Disk Space Full
  • < nodeName > = Move (This value must be identical to the value defined in the configuration.)
  • < otherDetails > = File
    In the Move remediation command example, the full name of the task template would be Triage Remediation OS Disk Space Full Move File.
• After you finish updating the task template, add it to the appropriate task group.

The next time you run the workflow, the newly added remediation command is used for the corresponding operating system.

Adding a new workflow

This scenario presents a high-level walkthrough, showing the main stages in creating a workflow, with its unique triage and remediation actions. In this example, the workflow type is called Service Restart. The workflow type is made available to BMC Atrium Orchestrator through the mc-action-name value that the incoming event provides.

Whenever you create a new workflow, incorporate all the subworkflows of the common framework, which include the following actions:

• Processing incoming events
• Extracting configuration data
• Getting host credential information
• Creating or updating incidents
• Creating change actions

A new workflow type such as Service Restart is added to the framework's incoming event processing queue, as illustrated in the following figure:

Sample new workflow: Service Restart in the process incoming event subworkflow



You begin the workflow creation process by defining the workflow type and actions in the installationDirectory\pw\server\etc\cellName\kb\bin\ao_actions.mrl file. In the ao_actions.mrl file, you can define the workflow type and actions for

• A manual, on-demand launch of the workflow from the event view in the operator console
• An automated launch through a remote action policy

To define a manual, on-demand workflow type for Service Restart, enter the following definition in the ao_actions.mrl file. It includes the input parameters that you specify in the Execute Action dialog box.

action 'Atrium Orchestrator Actions'.'Triage and Remediate Service Restart':
{
	['Administrator', 'Full Access', 'Data Collection Administrator', 'Event Administrator', 'Event Operator', 'Data Collection Operator', 'Event Operator Supervisor', 'Data Collection Supervisor']
}
[
 'Create Change Request':MC_TRUEFALSE($CREATECHANGERQUEST), 
 'Change Request Type':MC_CHANGEREQUESTTYPE($CHANGEREQUESTTYPE),
 'Create/Update Incident' : MC_TRUEFALSE($CREATEINCIDENT),
 'Remediate' : MC_TRUEFALSE($REMEDIATE)
]
:EVENT($EV) where [ $EV.status != 'CLOSED' AND $EV.status != 'BLACKOUT']
#If you want this action to be context sensitive to PATROL Events monitoring Disk usage.
#Comment above line and uncomment below line.
#:PATROL_EV($EV) where [ $EV.mc_parameter within ['LDldDiskSpaceUsed' , 'LDLogicalDiskspace' , 'FSCapacity' , 'LDldFreeSpacePercent'] ]
{
	action_requestor($UID,$PWD);
	opadd($EV, "Triage and Remediate Service Restart manual", $UID);
	admin_execute(BEMGW,$EV,"Atrium_Orchestrator_Service_Restart",[$CREATECHANGERQUEST, $CHANGEREQUESTTYPE, $CREATEINCIDENT, $REMEDIATE,$UID],YES);
}
END

To define an automated workflow type for service restart, enter the following definition in the ao_actions.mrl file.

action 'Atrium Orchestrator Actions-Automatic'.'Triage and Remediate Service Restart':
{
	['Administrator', 'Full Access', 'Data Collection Administrator', 'Event Administrator']
}
:EVENT($EV) where [ $EV.status != 'CLOSED' AND $EV.status != 'BLACKOUT']
{
	opadd($EV, "Triage and Remediate Service Restart Auto", 
	"BMC Impact Manager");
	admin_execute(BEMGW,$EV,"Atrium_Orchestrator_Service_Restart_
	Workflow",["true","normal","true","true","BMC Impact Manager"],
	YES);
}
END
END

(See ProactiveNet server configuration for more information about configuring the ao_actions.mrl file.)

After modifying the ao_actions.mrl file, recompile the KB and restart the BMC TrueSight Infrastructure Management Server cell. See Configuring Infrastructure Management for the Triage and Remediation Solution for the steps to recompile the KB and restart the BMC TrueSight Infrastructure Management Server cell after modifying the ao_actions.mrl file.)

After formulating workflow type definitions in the ao_actions.mrl file in the BMC TrueSight Infrastructure Management Server, add the new workflow to BMC Atrium Orchestrator.

For example, you can add a node for the new workflow type (Service Restart) and the appropriate child nodes for items such as command actions, as illustrated in the following figure:

Sample new workflow: Service Restart nodes



Then, add the specific triage and remediation workflows and save them under the corresponding folders under the Triage and Remediation application, as shown in the following figure:

Sample new workflow: Service Restart triage and remediation folders



Then, write the main workflow that invokes the Service Restart triage and remediation actions, an example of which is shown in the following figure:

Sample new workflow: Service Restart main workflow



The specific workflow, Remediate Service Restart, is invoked inside the generic Perform Remediation workflow.

In a scenario with a functional and an integrated BMC Remedy ITSM, the workflow is tied to the change management process. In the change management process, the change is created, and tasks are added to the change. The workflow is invoked when it receives a notification from BMC Remedy ITSM indicating that a task (remediation action) is assigned. The task processing subworkflow is run. When the workflow receives a notification that the change is complete, it then proceeds to close the related incident. (You will need to modify existing task templates or create new ones in BMC Remedy Change Management to handle the new commands.)

In the non-BMC Remedy ITSM scenario, when the change management process is not enabled, the workflow is called directly from the workflow type, not through the change management process.