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Creating automation processes

This section provides an overview of the automation process and information about creating automation processes:

After you set the workflow of the request (see Managing-requests) and the application model, you can run the request through the deployment process after adding automation. Automation modules are specific to a tool, language, or the integration product. The automation framework is similar for each type of automation. In BMC Release Process Management, you use scripts to run automation. That is, you must write a valid BMC Release Process Management script and assign it to a step. During runtime, a header is appended to the script with framework routines, facilitating the authoring process. Only the Admin and Deployer types of users can access the Automation tab.

Note

The supported automation processes are BMC BladeLogic Server Automation, Hudson (experimental only), and Secure Shell. The system provides a library of scripts that is available from an Import from library link for each of the scripts. You can tailor the scripts to your requirements, or you can write your own scripts in the Ruby scripting language.

The automation engine places the following files in the automation_results folder to form a repository of information on any specific run of automation in a step:

  • Script file
  • Input file that contains a dictionary of properties and intrinsic values of the step or request that is running
  • Output file that summarizes the run and gets the results

The automation_results folder is placed outside of the BMC Release Process Management application directory so that it can persist between successive installations.

In BMC Release Process Management, you can use the following automation types:

  • SSH — Secure Shell. BMC Release Process Management must be enabled for SSH from the Settings > General tab. To learn about SSH automation and the steps, see Automating-by-using-SSH.
  • BMC Bladelogic — BMC BladeLogic Server Automation (referred to in this documentation as BMC BladeLogic) lets IT organizations automate the management of enterprise-class data centers. You can use the automation if it is enabled from the Settings > General tab. To learn about BMC Bladelogic Server Automation and the steps, see Automating-by-using-BMC-Bladelogic-Server-Automation
  • Hudson — Hudson is build automation software that consists of an open-source, continuous integration, open server. To learn about Hudson automation and steps, see Automating-by-using-Hudson.

For each of these processes, you must add and run scripts to test that your processes are correct. Scripts are distinct from the core code of the application and are usually written in a different language. You can create and modify the scripts according to your requirements. To learn the basics about scripts in BMC Release Process Management, see Scripts.

Note

You must activate the settings to see the SSH, BMC Bladelogic, and Hudson tabs. The application might be enabled for one, two, or all three automation types.

 

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