Enabling Change Automation for TrueSight Server Automation jobs

As part of the BMC Continuous Compliance for Server Automation solution, you can set up an integration with the BMC Change Automation solution, which is based on TrueSight Server Automation, TrueSight Orchestration, and BMC Remedy ITSM Change Management. This integration enables you to track infrastructure change actions initiated by a TrueSight Server Automation operator and automate the Change creation and approval process. 

To fully enable the integration, complete the following configuration tasks in TrueSight Server Automation:

• Related videos
• Before you begin
• Setting up the connection to TrueSight Orchestration
• Setting up the connection to BMC Remedy ITSM
• Configuring the connection with BMC Change Automation
• Selecting job types to which to apply job options for Change Automation
• Assigning job approval permissions
• Where to go from here

Related videos

The following videos demonstrate the basic process.

Configure job approval video

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaHc4JrKg0A&feature=youtu.be

Configure the TrueSight Orchestration server in TrueSight Server Automation video

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaHc4JrKg0A&feature=youtu.be

Before you begin

• For a successful integration of your TrueSight Server Automation environment, ensure that the RSCD agents on the target servers are of the same version as the Application Server. If the Application Server was upgraded from an earlier version of TrueSight Server Automation, the RSCD agents can also be of that earlier version.
• To avoid time offset and ambiguity, ensure that the server time zones for TrueSight Server Automation, TrueSight Orchestration, and BMC Remedy IT Server Management are all the same.

• From the TrueSight Server Automation Console, ensure that your role is granted the following authorizations:

  For task	Required authorizations
  Setting up the connection to TrueSight Orchestration	AOConfig.* and AutomationPrincipal.*
  Setting up the connection to BMC Remedy ITSM	ITSMConfig.*
  Configuring the connection with BMC Change Automation	ChangeAutomationConfiguration.*

Setting up the connection to TrueSight Orchestration

You must provide the configuration information required to connect to TrueSight Orchestration.

1. Select Configuration > Integration Configuration > AO Configuration.
2. On the AO-Configuration-dialog-box, click Add.

3.  On the Add New AO Configuration dialog box, enter the configuration information required to connect to TrueSight Orchestration, and then click OK.

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4. To add additional CDP connections to TrueSight Orchestration to ensure high availability, repeat step 2 and step 3 for each additional CDP instance of the same grid.
   If you define multiple TrueSight Orchestration CDP instances, ensure that only one of your CDPs is set as the primary instance (using the Primary AO check box). Multiple CDPs installed on a grid form an HACDP environment and allow communication to continue even if a connection with one CDP fails.
5. In the AO Configuration dialog box, click OK to save your changes and close the dialog box.

Setting up the connection to BMC Remedy ITSM

You must provide the basic definitions of the connections to the BMC Remedy Action Request (AR) System server and BMC Remedy Mid Tier server, which are used in the integration between TrueSight Server Automation and BMC Remedy ITSM Change Management.

1. Select Configuration > Integration Configuration > ITSM Configuration.
2. In the ITSM-Configuration-dialog-box, click provide the required connection details.
3. To test the connection with BMC Remedy ITSM Change Management using the specified details for the BMC Remedy AR System server and the BMC Remedy Mid Tier server, click Check Connection.
4. Click OK.

Configuring the connection with BMC Change Automation

You must set up the connection with the Change Automation solution.

1. Select Configuration > Integration Configuration > Change Automation Configuration.
   The Change Automation Configuration wizard opens.
2. In the Operator Initiated Change panel of the wizard, perform one of the following actions:
   • If this is the first time that you are performing this configuration, enable the newest Change Automation solution:
     1. Select Enable Operator Initiated Change.
     2. Click Next.
   • If you have already configured the newest Change Automation solution, you can perform the following actions:
     • To test the connection between TrueSight Server Automation, TrueSight Orchestration, and BMC Remedy ITSM, click Test Connection.
     • To modify the connection from TrueSight Orchestration back to TrueSight Server Automation, click Next and move on to the BSA Configuration panel.
3. In the TrueSight Server Automation Configuration panel of the wizard, provide the details of the connection from TrueSight Orchestration back to TrueSight Server Automation, and then click Next.
   This configuration is stored in the TrueSight Orchestration database. Through this connection, TrueSight Orchestration calls TrueSight Server Automation web services. Secure Remote Password (SRP) is used as the authentication protocol used for this connection.

4. In the AO Configuration Status panel, the wizard displays the progress and results of the following actions:

   • Configuration of adapters for incorporation of all configuration details (that pertain to TrueSight Server Automation, TrueSight Orchestration, and BMC Remedy ITSM) into the TrueSight Orchestration database.
   • Testing end-to-end connectivity between the BMC products involved in Change Automation.

   If issues are encountered, obtain details by clicking each of the Details  buttons. This opens Details dialog boxes with further information about each action.

5. After the connection is successfully established, click Finish.

   Note

   If a connection is successfully established with the primary AO instance, but errors are encountered in the connection with a secondary AO instance, you can still complete the setup. A message appears, asking you if you want to proceed with the setup using the details of the primary instance and skipping the setup of the secondary instance.

Selecting job types to which to apply job options for Change Automation

The following Change Automation options are available for a variety of TrueSight Server Automation job types. By default, these options are turned off for all job types.

• Require BMC Remedy ITSM approval prior to the execution of the job, to support the Operator-Initiated-Change (OIC) use case of BMC Change Automation.
• Create an incident in BMC Remedy ITSM if the job fails.
• Publish the job as a task template in BMC Remedy ITSM, to support the Change-Initiated-Job (CIJ) use case of BMC Change Automation.

To select job types for job options for Change Automation

1. From the TrueSight Server Automation Console, select Configuration > Integration Configuration > Approval Configuration.
2. On the Job-Configuration-for-Change-Automation dialog box, select the job types to which you want to apply each of the options:
   • Approval Required? — Require BMC Remedy ITSM approval prior to job execution.
     When you attempt to execute or schedule execution of a job of a selected type, you are prompted for approval information.
   • Create Incident? — Create an incident in BMC Remedy ITSM if the job fails.
     For any individual job (of the selected job type), you decide whether to apply this option during job creation or modification, through the Default Notifications panel or tab.
   • Enabled for ITSM? — Publish the job as a task template in BMC Remedy ITSM.
     For any individual job (of the selected job type), you decide whether to apply this option during job creation or modification, through the General panel or tab.
3. Click OK.

Assigning job approval permissions

Use this procedure to assign permissions to different TrueSight Server Automation roles for integrating job execution with BMC Remedy ITSM. Assign the appropriate change request types to each user role. When a user logs on, only the change request types assigned to the user's role are listed when executing a job that requires ITSM approval. 

1. In the RBAC Manager workspace of the TrueSight Server Automation Console, select Roles.
2. Right-click a role and select Open.
3. On the Role-General tab, click the Systems sub-tab.

4. To enable specific approval-related permissions to users with this role, choose and assign the relevant combination of authorizations from the RequestType.* family of authorizations. These authorizations control the choice of BMC Remedy ITSM request types for job approval.

   Note

   By default, the BLAdmins Role has permissions for all change request types.

   For more information about these change request types, see Executing-a-job-with-BMC-Remedy-ITSM-approval.

   1. Select any of the following authorizations in the the Available Authorizations list. Use Shift-click or Control-click to select multiple items.
      
      • RequestType.NoApproval
      • RequestType.Emergency
      • RequestType.Expedited
      • RequestType.Normal
      • RequestType.NoImpact
      • RequestType.Standard
   2. Click the right arrow to move your selections to the Selected Authorizations list.

   For example, you may create a role for junior operators that has only normal permission, ensuring that any jobs that they initiate are reviewed and approved by BMC Remedy ITSM before execution.

5. Save the role.

Where to go from here

Proceed to BMC Continuous Compliance for Server Automation solution in the TrueSight Automation Suite online documentation to execute the Continuous Compliance for Servers use cases.