Importing historical data from a VMware environment

This topic describes how you can import historical data from a VMware environment using the VMware - vCenter and ESX Server History Extractor ETL module. Use this ETL task, for example, when you want to:

• Add existing VMware vCenter and ESX servers to your network of managed entities
• Fill in data gaps created by a suspension of the VMware Extractor Service.

For more information, refer to the following sections:

• • Before you begin
  • Integration steps

Before you begin

You must ensure that:

• The ETL Engine server has access to the URLs of the web services exposed by the vCenter Servers and ESX Server hosts.

• The ETL Engine uses JRE, and requires special Security considerations for old SSL keys that may have been created with a  key < 1024 bits. For more information, see

  User credentials for ETL modules.
  

Integration steps

To integrate TrueSight Capacity Optimization with the VMware - vCenter and ESX Server History Extractor, perform the following task:

1. Navigate to Administration >  ETL & SYSTEM TASKS > ETL tasks.
2. In the ETL tasks page, click Add > Add ETL under the Last run tab.

3. In the Add ETL page, set values for the following properties under each expandable tab.

   • Basic
   • Advanced

   Note

   Basic properties are displayed by default in the Add ETL page. These are the most common properties that you can set for an ETL, and it is acceptable to leave the default selections for each as is.

   Basic properties

   Note

   To view or configure Advanced properties, click Advanced. You do not need to set or modify these properties unless you want to change the way the ETL works. These properties are for advanced users and scenarios only.

   Advanced properties
4. Click Save.
   You return to the Last run tab under the ETL tasks page.
5. Validate the results in simulation mode: In the ETL tasks table under ETL tasks > Last run, locate your ETL (ETL task name), click  to run the ETL.
   After you run the ETL, the Last exit column in the ETL tasks table will display one of the following values:
   • OK: The ETL executed without any error in simulation mode.
   • WARNING: The ETL execution returned some warnings in simulation mode. Check the ETL log.
   • ERROR: The ETL execution returned errors and was unsuccessful. Edit the active Run configuration and try again.
6. Switch the ETL to production mode: To do this, perform the following task:
   1. In the ETL tasks table under ETL tasks > Last run, click the ETL under the Name column.
   2. In the Run configurations table in the ETL details page, click  to edit the active run configuration.
   3. In the Edit run configuration page, navigate to the Run configuration expandable tab and set Execute in simulation mode to No.
   4. Click Save.
7. Locate the ETL in the ETL tasks table and click  to Run it, or schedule an ETL run.
   After you run the ETL, or schedule the ETL for a run, it will extract the data form the source and transfer it to the TrueSight Capacity Optimization database.