Working with workflows

The components of the Workflow Builder are as follows:

The following table describes the components of the Workflow Builder:

To create a workflow

1. In the BMC AMI Capacity Reporting console, click Workflow Builder.

2. Under Workflow Builder Actions, click Create Workflow. 
   In the Create Workflow dialog box, you can either create your own workflow or select a product-provided template from the Workflow Templates.
   The product-provided workflow templates are indicated by the BMC logo . The user-created templates are indicated by.
   To delete a template that you created, click.  You cannot delete the product-provided BMC templates or the templates created by other users.

   Important

   If you have selected a product-provided workflow template and you want to deselect it and create a workflow from scratch, click Clear Template Selection from the workflow template list.

   The Workflow Template list displays the Getting Started templates first, followed by product-provided and user-created templates. The Workflow Template list displays product-provided (Getting Started) templates first, followed by advanced product provided templates and user created templates.
    

3. To create a workflow, in the Create Workflow dialog box, enter a name for the workflow.
4. (Optional) Enter a description in the Description field.
5. Select one of the following privacy settings:
   1. My Private Workflow—makes your workflow visible to you and to users you share it with.

   2. Make this Workflow publicly visible—makes your workflow visible to all content creators and product administrators.

      Important

      Regardless of which setting you select, only you can delete your workflows.

6. In the Source CDB Database area, either search for a source CDB database for your new workflow or select one from the Available Database DSNs list. The Source CDB Database field lists the databases defined in the CDB Automator catalog.

   Important

   You can now create workflows using the z/VM data that you collect using UIE/VM. 

   BMC AMI Capacity Reporting uses the z/VM data same as z/OS. However, categories, their hierarchy, and the metrics they contain differ from those for z/OS data. To create workflows using z/VM data, contact BMC Support Central.

   You can also perform the following tasks in this area:

   • To search for a database DSN, type the name of the DSN in the Search field.
   • To hide an available database DSN, click next to it or drag it to the Hidden Database DSNs list.
   • To display hidden database DSNs, turn on the Show Hidden Database DSNs toggle switch.
   • To restore a hidden database DSN to the Available Database DSNs list, click next to it or drag it to that list.
   • To reorder the lists, drag the database DSNs, as required.
7. Click Create Workflow.
   The product creates the workflow and the Add Report View pane is displayed.
   

To add a report view to a workflow

You can add a report view to a new or existing workflow as follows.

1. In the Add Report View pane, enter the following information:

   Field	Description
   (Required) View Name	Enter the name of the view.
   (Optional) Copy View	Select a View from the list. You can select an existing report view from the list to use as a starting point for the new report view. The View list includes the existing report views in the current workflow.
   (Optional) Description	Describe the purpose of the view. If you are creating a new report view, the field is empty and you can enter the description here. If you are using another report view as a template, then this will contain the template's description if it has one. You can modify the description later.
   Data Granularity	Select the type of data that is available in this view. The Data Granularity field provides you with a measured granularity of the data being compared. You can select one of the following options: Measured (UIE DURN value)—Selects the measured data for the selected intervals Measured as Hourly (Disabled if DURN=60)—Aggregates the measured data into hourly intervals Important This option is displayed only when the measured data interval length is less than an hour for example, 15-minute intervals.  Measured as Daily—Aggregates the measured data into daily intervals  Measured as Weekly—Aggregates the measured data into weekly intervals Measured as Monthly—Aggregates the measured data into monthly intervals Measured as OneSpan—Aggregates the entire date span selection including any time span, into a single average value for each metric-object. For example, you can use this option to see the biggest resource consumers over several days or weeks. When you select one of the Measured as data granularity options, the Time range field is displayed below the Dynamic and Fixed Date Timespan entries. Important The Time range field is not displayed for the Measured option. Using the Time range option, you can you can aggregate data to include a specific time range for each day. You can specify a start and end time to:   Include only specific hours of the day—The end time is greater than the start time. For example, 07:00 -18:00 hours. Exclude hours of the day—The end time value must be less than the start time. For example, 18:00 - 08:00 hours. In this case, for each day the aggregated intervals are 00:00 hours to 08:00 hours, and 18:00 hours to 24:00 hours. Produce with Measured as OneSpan—A single Average value of the metric for specific hours of the day. Important If you select Measured as OneSpan option, there is only one interval of data to display, by default the stacked column chart is used. When you select one of the Measured as options, the Banding option is replaced by the Min/Max option. For more information, see Using-the-Banding-and-the-Min-Max-options.
   Dynamic Date Timespan	Select a timespan for the view. A dynamic timespan provides date specifications that vary with each query according to the current date or the last date of data in the database.
   Fixed Date Timespan	Select the start and end date from the date picker. A fixed timespan uses a fixed date range for the data.
   Projection Days	Specify the number of days for which you want to project the data. You can select the number of days for which you need projections. By default the Projection Days field displays zero.
   Filter Options	Select Inherit common filter selections from parent view. The Filter Options is only displayed when creating a child view. Selecting the Inherit common filter selections from parent view option lets the child view inherit the common filters from the parent view.

   For more information about Report Views, see Managing-report-views.

2. Click Add Report View.
   The Add Category pane is displayed.

   Important

   If there is no data available in the CDB database for a given category, the category is grayed out in the list and cannot be selected.

   
    

3. To add categories to a workflow, see Working-with-reporting-categories.

To create a workflow using z/VM data

1. In the BMC AMI Capacity Reporting console, click Workflow Builder.

2. Under Workflow Builder Actions, click Create Workflow.
   The Create Workflow dialog box is displayed.

   

3. To create a workflow, in the Create Workflow dialog box, enter a name for the workflow.
4. (Optional) Enter a description in the Description field.
5. Select one of the following privacy settings:
   1. My Private Workflow—makes your workflow visible to you and to users you share it with.

   2. Make this Workflow publicly visible—makes your workflow visible to all content creators and product administrators.

      Important

      Regardless of which setting you select, only you can delete your workflows.

6. In the Source CDB Database section, select the data source that contains your z/VM data.
   For example, if XYZDaily is the data source that contains your z/VM data, select it.
   

   Important

   If this is the first time you are creating a workflow using z/VM data, do not use a template.

7. Click Create Workflow.
   A workflow is created and Add Report View dialog box is displayed.
8. In the Add Report View dialog box, add a category and metrics and then click Add Report View to save the details.
   Now close this workflow.
9. From the main console, click Create Workflow again.
10. Follow steps 1 to 5.
    In step 6, the Source CDB Database list now displays a data set name with z/VM data as its suffix.
    For example, in the first workflow, if you have selected XYZDaily as the source CDB database, then the Source CDB Database list will now include a DSN named XYZDaily; z/VM data.
    
     

11. Select this option and click Create Workflow.
    The product creates a z/VM workflow for you.

    Important

    • To create a z/VM workflow, each user with access to z/VM data must follow the steps provided here.

    • BMC AMI Capacity Reporting uses the z/VM data same as z/OS. However, categories, their hierarchy, and the metrics they contain differ from those for z/OS data. If you require further assistance, contact BMC Support Central.

To open a workflow

1. From the BMC AMI Capacity Reporting console, click Workflow Builder.

2. Under Workflow Builder Actions, click Open Workflow.

   

   The Open Workflow pane is displayed. The workflows are displayed under the following sections:

   • Favorite Workflows
   • My Workflows
   • Public Workflows
   • Workflows shared with me
3. To sort the workflows, use one of the following options:
   • Owner—Sorts the list by ownership.
   • Workflow Name—Sorts the list in alphabetical order.

   • Last Updated—Sorts the list by the Last Update field.

     

4. Use the Search field to search a specific workflow and open it. 
   A workflow in use by another user is indicated by. You cannot open a workflow that is in use.
   Similarly, if you are opening a workflow that is in use from the landing page, a appears next to it and you get a notification about it.
   
5. To mark a workflow as favorite, click next to the workflow name.
   The workflow is added to the Favorite Workflows list.
6. From the workflow list, select the workflow that you want to open, and click Open Workflow.
   The selected workflow is displayed.

To mark a workflow as favorite

Click on the title bar of a workflow to mark it as favorite.

The workflows that are marked as favorite also appear in the My Favorites bar when a workflow is opened. In My Favorites bar you can:

• Scroll the bar to see all your favorite workflows
• Re-order your favorite workflows by using drag and drop 
• Remove a favorite workflow by clicking X next to it
• Remove a favorite workflow off the bar by using drag and drop 
• Open a favorite workflow by clicking on it

To rename a workflow

1. Click next to the workflow name on the title bar and enter the new name.
2. Click to save the new name.

To expand or collapse the filter bar

To expand or collapse the filter bar, click  next to the report view name. 

Click next to the open view to see the hierarchy of the current report view.

To delete a workflow

1. From the BMC AMI Capacity Reporting console, click Workflow Builder.

2. Under Workflow Builder Actions, click Delete Workflows.

   

   The Delete Workflows pane displays the created workflows.

3. Select one or more workflows and click Delete Workflows.
   The delete confirmation message is displayed:
   
   A workflow in use by another is indicated by displayed next to it. You cannot delete a workflow that is in use.
   
4. Enter workflow and click Delete.
   You can also delete a workflow by selecting the Delete Workflows option from the left pane in an open workflow, or by clicking delete next to the workflow name in the title bar.
5. Use the Search field to search for a specific workflow and delete it.