Note This documentation supports the 20.15.01 version of BMC Remedyforce.To view the latest version, select the version from the Product version menu.

Importing data from BMC Client Management

You can import data from BMC Client Management into BMC Remedyforce by using the Pentaho Data Integration tool. The BMC Remedyforce job files are applicable only if a Microsoft SQL Server data source is used in BMC Client Management.

The following sections are provided:

Before you begin

Before importing data from BMC Client Management, you must meet the following requirements:

  • Install JRE.
  • Download the Pentaho Data Integration tool.
  • Register at the BMC Communities website.

For more information about these procedures, see Prerequisites for importing data to BMC Remedyforce.

KJB and KTR files for importing data from BMC Client Management

In Pentaho, metadata is stored in XML format in the file system as KTR (transformations) or KJB files (jobs).

Depending upon the CMDB version that you are using, you must use different Pentaho package folders. For more information about which Pentaho folder is applicable to you, see Pentaho packages for CMDB 1.0 and 2.0.

A KTR file contains a single transformation. The KTR files that are provided to you include the following transformations for all the CI types:The [confluence_table-plus] macro is a standalone macro and it cannot be used inline.

A job file contains a series of transformations. A KJB file that is provided to you includes the following steps:The [confluence_table-plus] macro is a standalone macro and it cannot be used inline.

The KTR files contain mapping of the fields in the BMC Client Management database tables or views to the fields in the CMDB staging object. The CMDB staging object contains a flat structure of all the fields of the CMDB database as columns. The imported data is first saved into the CMDB staging object before being saved in the CMDB database.

List of KJB files for importing data from BMC Client Management

Different job files are provided for different jobs. These job files are bundled with related files and provided to you in folders. The following table provides the names of the folders and the description of the jobs for which the job files in these folders are used.The [confluence_table-plus] macro is a standalone macro and it cannot be used inline.

To import data from BMC Client Management by using Pentaho packages

Before importing data from BMC Client Management, perform all of the actions in Before you begin.

  1. To download the job files from the BMC Communities website, perform one of the following actions:
    • If you are using CMDB 1.0, click https://communities.bmc.com/docs/DOC-21630.

    • If you are using CMDB 2.0, click https://communities.bmc.com/docs/DOC-28436.

      Note

      If you have upgraded to CMDB 2.0 and you were using CMDB 1.0 packages, you can continue using the CMDB 1.0 packages. However, BMC recommends that you use packages for CMDB 2.0 for faster imports.

      BMC recommends that you download the job files in the folder in which you have unzipped the Pentaho Data Integration tool.

      Note

      Do not change the folder structure because doing so can interfere with the running of the batch files provided in the CombinedJobs folder.

  2. To launch the Pentaho Data Integration tool, in the \pdi-ce-4.x.0-stable\data-integration or pdi-ce-5.0.1.A-stable\data-integration folder, double-click the Spoon.bat file, and open the required KJB file.

    Note

    If you are running a combined job, update the KTR files of each job with the required BMC Client Management database and Salesforce organization credentials.

  3. To open the KTR file, based on the CMDB and Pentaho version that you are using, perform one of the following actions:The [confluence_table-plus] macro is a standalone macro and it cannot be used inline.
  4. To provide details to access BMC Client Management database, perform the following actions:
    1. In the Explorer pane, expand Database connections and double-click BMC Remedyforce Client Management Source.
    2. In the Database Connection window, enter the host name and the BMC Client Management database name, user name, and password.
       The host name is the name of the computer where the BMC Client Management database is installed.
      If you have configured Windows authentication on the BMC Client Management database, the user name and password are not required when the following conditions are met:
      • The logged-on user must run the job from a Pentaho Data Integration tool that is installed on the BMC Client Management database server.
      • The logged-on user must have access to the BMC Client Management database.
    3. (Optional) To verify the connection, click Test.
    4. Click OK.
  5. To provide your Salesforce organization access details, perform the following actions:
    1. Double-click the Upsert into class <CI type name> step.
    2. In the Salesforce Upsert window, enter your Salesforce organization user name and password.

    3. (Optional) To update the predefined mapping between the BMC Client Management fields and the BMC Remedyforce CMDB, click Edit Mapping.
       For more information, see Overview of how CIs are imported in CMDB 1.0.

      Note

      If you are using a previous versions of Pentaho data integration tool (for example, Pentaho 4.1 or 4.2), you must modify the Salesforce Webservice URL to https://www.salesforce.com/services/Soap/u/20.0.

    4. (Optional) To verify the connection, click Test connection.
    5. Click OK.
  6. (For CMDB 2.0 only) To provide Salesforce access details in the Salesforce Input[CMDB_Class] step, perform the following actions:
    1. Double-click Salesforce Input[CMDB_Class].
    2. In the Connection section, enter the Salesforce organization access details.
    3. (Optional) To test the connection, click Test connection.
    4. Click OK.
  7. (Optional)If you have enabled the setting to access your Salesforce organization from limited IP addresses, to enable communication between Salesforce and the Pentaho Data Integration tool, perform the following actions:

    1. In Salesforce, navigate to Setup > Reset My Security Token.

      Note

      If you have enabled the improved Setup user interface in your Salesforce organization, navigate to My Settings > Personal > Reset My Security Token. For more information, see http://help.salesforce.com/apex/HTViewHelpDoc?id=admin_setup_improved.htm&language=en_US.

    2. Click Reset Security Token.
       An email message is sent to your email address stored in Salesforce.
    3. In the Password field of the Upsert into class <CI type name> step, append the security token to the password.
       For example, if your password is mypassword and your security token is XXXXXXXXX, then you must enter mypasswordXXXXXXXXX in the Password field.
  8. To save the KTR and KJB files, click pentaho_save.gif.
  9. In the KJB file tab, click run_green.gif.
  10. In the Execute a job window, click Launch.
     Data is imported into the appropriate CMDB class.
    Transformation status is indicated by using the following icons:
    • pentaho_green_right.gif — Complete
    • in_progress_tasks_pentaho.gif — Running
    • unsuccessful_transformations_pentaho.gif — Unsuccessful
  11. (Optional) To view logs, in the Execution results section, click the Logging tab.
     All errors are displayed in red.
     The relationship between the Computer System as a source and the Product as a destination is not displayed in the Configuration Items Explorer because the Configuration Items Explorer can display only a limited number of relationships (due to platform limitations). Displaying Computer System and Product relationships might hide other important relationships between the Computer System and other CIs.

    The BMCServiceDesk_AssemblyId_c field is required to create a relationship between the computer system and various CIs. The source is the computer system and the destination can be operating system, processor, LAN End Points, or products.

    For example, the value of the BMCServiceDesk_AssemblyId_c field is 1 for a computer system record and a processor record has a Assembly ID value as 1, a relationship is automatically created between the computer system (source) and processor (destination).

User scenarios for importing data from BMC Client Management

David is a member of the Infrastructure team for Downtown Bank, responsible for managing the laptops for ABC project. He signs up for BMC Remedyforce and expects to use the pre-configured, ITIL based incident and problem management processes for managing CIs. Also, David wants to use the CMDB to represent the physical, logical, and conceptual items and to track the relationships between the different CIs.

Mary, a BMC Remedyforce administrator, helps David to import details of the laptops provided to the team members of ABC project from BMC Client Management to BMC Remedyforce CMDB.

The following table provides user scenarios for importing data from BMC Client Management.

Related topics

Overview of how is data imported in BMC Remedyforce

Importing-data-to-custom-attributes

Scheduling-jobs-to-import-data

Troubleshooting-issues-with-importing-data

 

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