Creating an asset group

Using the BLPackage editor, you can group certain items in a custom configuration object. BMC calls these asset groups. A Deploy Job processes all of the items in an asset group together rather than individually. For more information, see the following sections:

Asset group concepts

Custom configuration objects can be defined so that some or all of their assets can be grouped within a BLPackage. BMC calls these asset groups.

Asset groups are valuable because Deploy Jobs process all of the assets in an asset group together. No actions for items in the asset group take effect until the entire asset group is processed. Without an asset group, a Deploy Job processes each item in a BLPackage one at time.

Grouping restrictions

You can only group assets imported from one custom configuration object. After you have created an asset group, you can only add additional assets from the same custom configuration object to the asset group.

Auto-grouping

Custom configuration objects can be defined so that some or all of their assets should always be grouped within a BLPackage. BMC calls this behavior auto-grouping. When you import an auto-grouping asset into a BLPackage or the system adds the asset to a BLPackage as part of compliance remediation or audit results packaging, the asset being added must be automatically assigned to an asset group. This automatic grouping results in the following behavior:

  • If the last item in the BLPackage is not an asset group, when an auto-grouping asset is added, the system automatically creates an asset group and adds the newly imported asset to the group.
  • If the last item in the BLPackage isan asset group, when an auto-grouping asset is added, the system looks at the last asset group and does one of the following:
    • If the group is empty or contains assets that match the asset being imported, the asset is added to the last group.
    • If the group contains assets that do not match the newly imported asset, the system automatically creates an asset group and adds the imported asset to the group.

User-defined actions

You can specify actions for items in an asset group. You can always specify an Add, Modify, or Delete action for any asset. Additionally, you may be able to perform a custom action on items.

You can also define ActionOnFailure for items in an asset group. The available options (Abort, Ignore, and Continue) are the same as any ActionOnFailure setting in a BLPackage (see Setting-action-on-failure). The ActionOnFailure settings for items in an asset group determine processing behavior of items in the group, while the setting for the overall asset group determines processing behavior for the BLPackage. For example, if you set ActionOnFailure to Abort for the items in an asset group, and processing fails for an item, processing stops for all items in the asset group. However, if ActionOnFailure for the asset group is set to Ignore, processing for the rest of the BLPackage continues even though the asset group processing has aborted.

Rollback behavior

Deployments of items in an asset group can be rolled back if necessary. When a Deploy Job processes items in an asset group during the Commit phase, the job generates rollback information for each item. Processing an asset group during a rollback is the same as processing an asset group during the Commit phase — none of the rollback actions take effect until all of the items in the asset group are processed. However, note that during rollback, items in an asset group are processed in the reverse order of their processing during the Commit phase.

To create an asset group

  1. Import assets into a BLPackage from a custom configuration object that is defined to allow asset groups. For more information about importing assets, see Importing-assets-into-a-BLPackage.
  2. In the hierarchy view of the BLPackage editor, select one or more first-level nodes that you want to include in an asset group. Right-click and select Create Asset Group.
    The system creates an asset group called "New Asset Group" and adds the selected nodes to the group.
    The definition of a custom configuration object might not allow asset grouping for some nodes. If you select a node that cannot be included in a group, the Create Asset Group option is dimmed. For more information, see Asset group concepts.
  3. After defining an asset group, you can optionally take any of the following actions:
    • Define attributes for the group
      The attributes you can define include the group's name and its ActionOnFailure setting. For more information, see Changing-object-attributes-in-a-BLPackage.
    • Import assets
      Select an asset group in the BLPackage, right-click, and select Import Assets. A wizard appears. Use of the wizard as described in Importing-assets-into-a-BLPackage. Various factors can limit the assets you can import into an asset group as described in Asset group concepts.
    • Re-order assets
      Select a first-level asset in an asset group, right-click, and select options for re-ordering items as described in Moving-an-object-within-a-BLPackage.
    • Delete assets
      Select an item in an asset group, right-click, and select Delete as described in Deleting-an-object-in-a-BLPackage.
    • Cut and paste assets
      Select a first-level asset in an asset group, right-click, and select Cut or Paste as described in Cutting-and-pasting-in-a-BLPackage.
      Pasting in asset groups can behave differently than pasting other types of objects in a BLPackage. If you cut:
    • Items in an asset group, you must paste them into:
      • Another asset group based on the same custom configuration object.
      • The root of the same BLPackage.
      • Another BLPackage (the root, an empty asset group, or an existing asset group based on the same custom configuration object).
    • An item in an asset group and paste it into the root of the BLPackage and auto-grouping is enabled, the system creates a new asset group at the end of the BLPackage and places the item in that group. For more information about auto-grouping, see Asset group concepts.
    • An asset group and paste it into an asset group in another BLPackage, the contents of the asset group are pasted into the new group. An asset group cannot contain another asset group.

 

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