Modeling service blueprints

Default blueprints

The following default blueprints are available out of the box, but you must first import them to be able to view them on the Service Blueprints page:

• Default Blueprint for Kubernetes (K8S): A blueprint with Kubernetes namespace as the starting node. Each node is of a single kind.
• Default Blueprint using Tags: It contains a node with multiple kinds included. This blueprint can be used as part of tag-based services.

As a service designer, you can create additional blueprints by starting with the default blueprints. For more information, see To create a service blueprint from another blueprint.

To import the default blueprints

On the Service Blueprints page, select the action menu> Import BMC default Blueprints to import the out-of-the-box default blueprints.

To create a service blueprint

1. From the Service Blueprints page, click Create.
2. Specify the name, description, and provider (domain) details for the blueprint.
   For example, Kubernetes (K8s) Upgrade Deployment, K8s deployment template, .itbiz.com.
3. 
4. In the Select CIs section, do the following actions:
   1. Click + Add CIs to Service. The Add CIs page displays a list of all available CIs for selection.
   2. Filter and add the CIs of interest by performing one of the following actions:
      • Type the name of the CIs (minimum three characters) of your interest.
      • Select a category to narrow down the list of CIs of interest.
        The filtered CIs are listed.
   3. Select one or more CIs and click Add (incl. related) to add the CI with all the related elements or click Add to add only the CI.
   4. (Optional) To undo the selected CIs and start over, click Clear Content and perform steps 5 a to 5 c again.
   5. (Optional) Set the service topology display option as either Organic or Hierarchic (default).
      
5. Click Next Step (Edit the Blueprint rules).
   

   1. (Optional) Select App to Infra (default) or Infra to App mode based on your service requirement type.

      Difference between App to Infra and Infra to App modes

      - App to Infra starts with an application node such as Namespace.

      - Infra to App starts with an infrastructure node such as Host.

   2. (Optional) To change the list view, from the Available CI Kinds section, select view as icons  or view as type .
   3. Type the name of the CI Kind or directly select the CI Kind of your choice from the list to add to the CI rules.
      For more information on resolving errors, see To resolve the errors when selecting a CI kind.
   4. Establish a valid connection between the CI Kinds selected by holding and dragging a CI Kind towards another CI Kind as shown in this image.
      
   5. Click the selected class to define CI rules.
   6. (Optional) Change the kind from the list by selecting one or more kinds. 
      Note: You can change a single kind to multiple kinds node as well as shown in the image after step h.
   7. (Optional) Select an unwanted CI kind from the map and delete it. 
   8. (Optional) Include (default) or exclude the content of a CI kind. You have an option to exclude the content of a CI kind and keep only the related nodes as part of a blueprint. 
      
   9. (Optional) Add or edit the filter criteria and save the changes. For more information on resolving the CI kind errors, see To resolve the errors when selecting a CI kind.
      
6. Click Next step (Preview result) to preview the blueprint model.
   
7. Save the blueprint. For more information on viewing the list of blueprints, see To view the service blueprint libraries.

To resolve the errors when selecting a CI kind

Perform the following instructions when you see an error icon above a CI kind while you create or edit a service, such as the one shown here :

Hover over the CI kind for the tips and based on the error tips, do one of the following actions:

• Ensure that there are no unconnected nodes. There must be only one starting node in the model.
• If there is only one starting node with an error icon, do the following steps:
  1. Click the node to display the Define CI Rule page.
  2. Either select Add New Filter > Add New Filter Criteria to add filter criteria or select Edit > Edit to edit filter criteria.
     You can add only one filter to a root node and a maximum of three filters to a child node.
     
     1. Click Set as variable and type a message in the Define user prompt message text box.
     2. Select a named attribute.
     3. (Optional) Select an extended attribute:
        1. From the Actions menu, select Use Extended Attributes.
        2. Select extended attributes from the displayed list.
  3. Save and close.
  4. Save and close the Define CI Rule page. The error message on the node disappears.
     

To view the service blueprint libraries

You can view a list of all enabled or disabled service blueprints from the Service Blueprints page.

1. To view the list of all enabled and disabled blueprints, click Show disabled (default). The button label changes to Hide disabled.
2. To view only the list of all enabled blueprints, click Hide disabled.
   

To create a service blueprint from another blueprint

1. From the Service Blueprints page, select a blueprint from the list and select Action > Create a new Blueprint from option.

1. Edit the Blueprint rules as required and click Next Step (Preview result) to preview the model.
2. Save the blueprint.

To view the details of a service blueprint

1. From the Service Blueprints page, select a blueprint from the list and select Action > View option.

1. (Optional) Change the display to Organic or Hierarchic (default) view. 
2. View and click Close.

(Alternatively) You can also view the blueprint from BMC Helix Discovery. For more information, see Creating models.

However, in BMC Helix Discovery, the blueprint name is sufficed with the text Rules_Template as shown in this image. 

To edit a service blueprint

1. From the Service Blueprints page, choose a blueprint from the list and select Action > Edit option.

1. Edit the Blueprint rules as required.
   For more information, see step 5 and step 6 of To create a service blueprint section.
2. Click Next Step (Preview result) to preview the blueprint model.
3. Save the blueprint.

To list the related services of a service blueprint

1. From the Service Blueprints page, choose a blueprint from the list and select Action > List related Services option.

1. (Optional) Use the action menu to sort the list in ascending or descending order.
2. Click Close.

To enable a service blueprint

Enabling a blueprint makes it available for a service model. 

1. From the Service Blueprints page, choose a blueprint from the list and select Action >Enable to enable the blueprint to be used as part of a service model.  
2. Click Hide disabled to view the list of all enabled service blueprints.
3. Check for the newly enabled blueprint in the list. 
4. (Optional) Verify that it is available for a service model by clicking Services and selecting a service to edit.
   1. Click Add Dynamic content.
   2. Search for and check that the enabled blueprint is available for selection.
      

To disable a service blueprint

Disabling a blueprint makes is unavailable for a service model.

1. From the Service Blueprints page, choose a blueprint from the list and select Action > Disable to disable the blueprint to be used in a service model.
2. Click Show disabled to view the list of all disabled service blueprints.
3. Check for the disabled blueprint in the list.
4. (Optional) Verify that it is not available for a service model by clicking Services and select a service to edit.
   1. Click Add Dynamic content.
   2. Search for and check that the disabled blueprint is not available for selection.
      

To export a service blueprint

1. From the Service Blueprints page, choose a blueprint from the list and select Action >Export to save the blueprint as a JSON file into your default download folder.
2. (Optional) Open the JSON file and verify it is exported correctly.

To import a service blueprint

1. From the Service Blueprints page, click Import Service Blueprint.
2. Navigate to the folder where you have saved or downloaded the exported JSON blueprint file.
3. Click Show disabled to view the imported blueprints in disabled state.

To delete a service blueprint

The following information applies to deleting a blueprint:

• You can only delete the blueprints that are not part of a service. The Delete option is disabled for a blueprint that is part of a service.
• Deleting a blueprint removes the blueprint from BMC Helix AIOps and BMC Helix Discovery.
• From BMC Helix Discovery, you can only unpublish but cannot delete a blueprint.

1. From the Service Blueprints page, choose a blueprint from the list and select Action > Delete.
2. Click Proceed to delete the blueprint.