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Installing RSCD agents in a replicated domain controller environment


To install RSCD agents in a Windows replicated domain controller environment, you set Domain Controller Security Policies on one domain controller and then install RSCD agents in the correct sequence on all domain controllers.

In some situations it might be advisable to create a unique user for the Domain Controllers or each Domain Controller, as there are situations where member servers could cause the domain level BladeLogicRSCD account to lock. You can create this alternate account to use in place of BladeLogicRSCD (a user that is automatically created when you install the RSCD agent) either before or after agent installation. This is a known issue with certain utilities that run through the RSCD agent, as the utility first tries to authenticate to the domain with the credentials of the user that is running the utility, which in this case is the member server's BladeLogicRSCD account.

If you want to create a single account for each domain controller (instead of the default single account for all domain controllers), or if you want to use an alternate account name that differs from the default BladeLogicRSCD, you can perform the procedure described in this topic. Performing the installations in this way ensures that the BladeLogicRSCD account does not become locked during replication attempts by the domain controllers. 

The password for the BladeLogicRSCD user or an alternate user of non-domain controller machines is generated at run time. However in the case of a domain controller, the BladeLogicRSCD user or alternate user is assigned a password from a fixed set of passwords. Contact BMC Support for your default password. BMC recommends that you change the default password as per your company's password policies. For steps on changing the password, see Changing-the-BladeLogicRSCD-account-password-on-domain-controllers.

Before you begin

During RSCD agent installation, you map a client user to a local user on the target server. Make sure that the local user to which you are mapping is a direct member of the Builtin\Administrators group and you do not map to the BladeLogicRSCD account.  

Preparing an alternate user name for the agents in the Windows system

When creating an alternate user name for the RSCD agent, limit the length of the user name to a maximum of 20 characters. By design, the agent fails to create the account if you use more than 20 characters.

Installing RSCD agents in a replicated domain controller environment with the default, alternate, or per-server account name

On a domain controller, perform the following steps to set Domain Controller Security Policies for the BladeLogicRSCD user account (or any other equivalent account that you use for running the agent in the domain):

  1. Start the Group Policy Management Console (GPMC).
  2. In the GPMC console tree, right-click Default Domain Controllers Policy, and then click Edit.
  3. In the Group Policy Management Editor window, in the console tree, go to Computer Configuration/Policies/Windows Settings/Security Settings/Local Policies/User Rights Assignment.
  4. In the details pane, double-click Deny logon locally.
  5. Ensure that the Define these policy settings check box is selected, and then click Add User or Group.
  6. Type the name of the account that you want to deny the ability to log on locally (BladeLogicRSCD or any other equivalent account that you use for running the agent in the domain). As an alternative, click Browse to locate the account with the Select Users, Computers, or Groups dialog box, and then click OK.
  7. After you have the account name entered, click OK in the Add User or Group dialog box, and then click OK in the Deny Log on Locally Properties dialog box.
  8. Repeat for User Right Log on as a batch job.

    Note

    If Domain Controller Security Policies are not set to defined, as described in step 1, the RSCD agent creates Local Security Policies instead. In this situation, you must manually set the Domain Controller Security Policies to continue.

  9. If you use a unique account name per domain controller, each account name must be present in the above policies.
  10. Continue with the relevant task:

Installing with the default account

  1. Install the RSCD agent on the PDC emulator.

    Click here for installation instructions
    1. Navigate to the directory containing installation files and run the installation program for the RSCD agent. Different installers are provided for 32-bit and 64-bit Windows. (Installation program names follow the convention: RSCDversion-platform.)

      Note

      The installation program might display a message telling you to reboot. You must reboot the computer and then run the installation again.

    2. Accept the license agreement and click Next.
    3. Select a setup type for the installation. Then click Next.
      • Typical — Uses a "ready to install" setup with default settings for:
        • RSCD agent installation folder. The default is C:\Program Files\BMC Software\BladeLogic\RSCD
        • Security preferences defined in the secure, exports, and users.local configuration files
        • Location of agent log files. The default is C:\Program Files\BMC Software\BladeLogic\RSCD
        • Secure log files (enabled)
        • Logging of remote keystrokes (enabled)
      • Custom — The installation program displays windows on which you can change the default installation settings. For information about these settings, see Worksheet-for-installing-the-RSCD-agent-Windows.
    4. On the Ready to Install window, click Install.
    5. To complete the installation, click Finish.

    The installation program starts the RSCD agent.

  2. After the default account is created, force replication from Active Directory Sites and Services to the other domain controllers.
  3. Install the RSCD agent on the other domain controllers.

Installing or modifying an existing installation with an alternate or per-server account

  1. If the RSCD agent is already installed and running on the target Domain controller(s), stop the RSCD service (see Starting-and-stopping-the-RSCD-agent).
  2. On the PDC emulator in the domain, add (if this is a fresh installation) or modify (pre-existing installation) the registry value HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\BladeLogic\RSCD Agent\BladelogicRSCDUser. The registry value should be of type REG_SZ (string value), and be set to the desired account name.
  3. If you will be using the same account name on other domain controllers in the domain, complete the following steps:
    1. On the other domain controllers in the domain, add or modify the same registry value and use the same account name as on the PDC emulator.
    2. Install the RSCD agent or start the RSCD service on the PDC emulator.
    3. After the service has started and the service account exists, force replication to the other domain controllers from the Active Directory Sites and Services menu.
    4. Install or start the the RSCD agent on the other domain controllers.
  4. If you will use a unique account name for each domain controller, complete the following steps:
    1. On the other domain controllers in the domain, add or modify the same registry value and use the unique account name.
    2. Install or start the RSCD agent on each domain controller after making the registry change (there is no concern about replication or order here as each system gets its own account).

Notes

  • If the RSCD does not fully start, even though the User Rights have been set and allowed to replicate, you may need to reset the BladelogicRSCD account, as follows:
    1. Stop the BMC Server Automation RSCD Agent service on all domain controllers.
    2. On the PDC, delete the BladelogicRSCD user.
    3. Wait for (or force) replication.
    4. Start the BMC Server Automation RSCD Agent service on the PDC.
    5. Check the rscd.log file.
    6. If it is error free, you can start the BMC Server Automation RSCD Agent on the other domain controllers.
  • Windows Domain Controllers have no local users. To set up user privilege mapping on Windows Domain Controllers, map users to a member of a first-level group, such as BuiltIn\Administrators. The mapped user cannot receive administrative privileges via a group within another group. For example, if the mapped account is in Domain Admins and Domain Admins is in BuiltIn\Administrators, the mapping will not work. The default UPM mapping cannot traverse multiple groups. For details about user privilege mapping, see Impersonation-and-privilege-mapping.

 

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