Walkthrough: Provisioning a LAMP stack using patch catalogs

TrueSight Server Automation can install the required software dependencies for a LAMP stack using a patch catalog and a Patching Job. (A LAMP stack refers to a collection of software applications, typically Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP.) This topic describes how to provision a LAMP stack using patch catalogs.

It includes the following sections:

Introduction
What do I need to do before I get started?
To provision a LAMP stack using patch catalogs
Wrapping it up
Where to go next

Introduction

In addition to patching servers, on Linux, Patching Jobs can be used to install new RPMs and any required dependencies. When you create the Patching Job, TrueSight Server Automation can determine the prerequisite or required RPMs to install along with the patch. This walkthrough describes how to create a Patching Job in "Install Mode" to deliver the LAMP stack and all required dependencies, regardless of what is installed on the target system.

What do I need to do before I get started?

This example assumes that you have performed all of the configuration steps outlined in the following table:

Task	For more information
Created a Red Hat, Oracle Enterprise or SuSE Linux patch catalog	Creating-a-patch-catalog
Provisioned a basic Red Hat, Oracle Enterprise or SuSE Linux system	Walkthrough-Provisioning-Linux Creating-a-Provision-Job

To provision a LAMP stack using patch catalogs

For this walkthrough, you log on as BLAdmin, the default superuser for TrueSight Server Automation, even though this procedure should be possible for any role that has permissions to create and run Linux Patching Jobs. Note that in live deployments, BMC recommends you grant access based on roles with a narrower set of permissions.

	Procedure	Example screen
1	In the Depot, locate a patch catalog for the desired OS.
2	Click the patch catalog and select Analyze using this catalog. The Patching Job wizard opens. Provide a name and a location to store the job and click Next. The Analysis Options panel opens.
3	Select Analyze for missing RPMs and updates available for installed RPMs on target servers (Install Mode). Then, in the Include/Excludes list, click Add . A dialog lets you select the required LAMP RPMs. The specific versions may differ for your environment. When you are done with your selections, click Next. The Remediation Options panel opens.
4	Enable auto-remediation on the Patching Job by checking the Create remediation artifacts. Auto-remediation means that when a Patching Job discovers missing RPMs, you can correct the deficiency automatically by running a job that deploys the correct patches. For Batch Job/Deploy Job/Package name prefix, enter a prefix that is added to the names of all objects that are automatically created. For Save package(s) in, identify a location in the Depot folder where automatically added objects are stored. For Save batch/deploy job(s) in, provide a location in the Jobs folder where automatically created jobs are stored. Click Deploy Job Options. A Deploy Job Options window opens. It lets you define options for a Deploy Job that the Patching Job launches automatically.
5	Select Execute job now to indicate that a Deploy Job should start automatically after the analysis phase completes. Click Next. The Targets panel opens.
6	Select the target servers where you want to do patch analysis and click Finish. Because you selected Execute job now, the Patching Job runs immediately. The RPMs you selected are compiled into a BLPackage and immediately deployed to any servers where the RPMs are missing. You can open the generated BLPackage and inspect RPMs that are deployed. The actual RPMs deployed may vary depending what is present on the target before the Patching Job is run. The example at right shows the dependent packages that may be deployed, in addition to the ones that are explicitly included.

Wrapping it up

In this walkthrough, you created a Linux Patching Job, defined it to use "Install" mode, and then deployed new RPMs as well as any required dependencies to the target system, using a patch catalog.

Where to go next

Because deploying a LAMP stack is typically done during or after template provisioning of a server, the next logical step is Walkthrough-Performing-post-install-activities-after-provisioning.