Importing data from Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager

You can import data from System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) into the BMC Remedyforce configuration management database (CMDB) by using the Pentaho Data Integration tool.

The following topics are provided:

Before you begin
KJB and KTR files for importing data from SCCM
List of KJB files for importing data from SCCM
To import data from SCCM by using Pentaho packages
User scenarios for importing data from SCCM

Before you begin

Before importing data from SCCM, you must meet the following requirements:

Install JRE
Download the Pentaho Data Integration tool
Register at the BMC Communities website
Configure Windows authentication to enable communication between the Pentaho Data Integration tool and SCCM

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

KJB and KTR files for importing data from SCCM

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, 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 KTR files contain mapping of the fields in SCCM to the fields in the Remedyforce CMDB. In CMDB 1.0, the SCCM fields are mapped to the CMDB staging object that 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. In CMDB 2.0, the data is saved in the CMDB directly.

List of KJB files for importing data from SCCM

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.

To import data from SCCM by using Pentaho packages

Before importing data from SCCM, perform all of the actions in Before you begin.

Based on the CMDB version that you are using, use one of the following links to download the job files from the BMC Communities page:
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.
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.
To open the KTR file, based on the CMDB and Pentaho version that you are using, perform one of the following actions:
To enter the information required to access SCCM, perform the following actions:
1. In the KTR file, double-click the SCCM Input step.
2. Next to the Connection list, click Edit.
3. In the Database Connection window, enter the host name, database name, user name, and password.
  The host name is the name of the computer where the SCCM database is installed.
  Note
  If you have configured Windows authentication on the SCCM database, user name and password are not required.
4. (Optional) To verify the connection between the SCCM server and the Pentaho Data Integration tool, click Test.
5. Click OK.
To enter the information required to access your Salesforce organization, 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 SCCM fields and the BMC Remedyforce CMDB, click Edit Mapping.
  For more information about mapping, see Field mapping in CMDB 1.0.
  Note
  If you are using an earlier version 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 test the connection, click Test connection.
5. Click OK.
(For CMDB 2.0 only) To provide Salesforce log on details in the Salesforce Input[CMDB_Class] step, perform the following steps:
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.
(Optional) If you are importing data from an unidentified network, 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.
To save the KJB and KTR files, click .
In the KJB file, click .
In the Execute a job window, click Launch.
Transformation status is depicted by using the following icons:
- — Complete
- — Running
- — Unsuccessful
(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 Software Server 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 Software Server relationships might hide other important relationships between the Computer System and other CIs.
Note
In the folder that you downloaded from the BMC Communities page, double-click the sub-folders one by one, copy all the KTR and KJB files from the ComputerSystem, IPEndPoints, LANEndPoints, OS, Processor, and SoftwareServer folders and paste the files in the SCCM folder.
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, IP End Points, LAN End Points, or software server.

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 SCCM

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.

John Doe, a BMC Remedyforce administrator, helps David to import details of the laptops provided to the team members of the ABC project from SCCM to BMC Remedyforce CMDB.