Note This documentation supports the 20.18.01 version of BMC Remedyforce.To view the latest or an earlier version, select the version from the Product version menu.

Importing data from BMC Client Management by accessing the database


You can import data from BMC Client Management (known before version 12.0 as BMC FootPrints Asset Core) into BMC Remedyforce 2.0 by using the Pentaho Data Integration tool. The Pentaho packages for importing data from BMC Client Management are available on the BMC Communities website. For information about how configuration items (CIs) are imported and relationships are created in BMC Remedyforce CMDB 2.0, see Overview of how data is imported into BMC Remedyforce.

The following topics provide information about the Pentaho package for importing data by accessing the BMC Client Management database. The BMC Remedyforce job files are applicable only if a Microsoft SQL Server data source is used in BMC Client Management.

For information about importing data by using the Representational State Transfer (REST) web API, see Importing-data-from-BMC-Client-Management-by-using-the-REST-Web-API.

Important

This Pentaho package for importing data by accessing the BMC Client Management database supports BMC Client Management versions 12.0 and later. For information about the BMC Client Management versions that BMC Remedyforce supports, see Supported-browsers-mobile-devices-and-integrations.


Before you begin

Before you can import data from BMC Client Management by accessing the database, you must perform the following tasks:

To import data from BMC Client Management

 

Note

If you are running a combined job, update the KTR files of each job with the required BMC Client Management database and Salesforce organization credentials.

  1. To launch the Pentaho Data Integration tool, perform the following actions:
    1. Navigate to the location where you downloaded and unzipped the Pentaho Data Integration tool.
    2. Navigate to the data-integration folder and double-click the Spoon.bat file.
  2. In Pentaho Spoon, select File > Open, navigate to the folder where you downloaded the Pentaho package, and open the appropriate KJB file.
    For example, to import LAN Endpoint CIs into BMC Remedyforce CMDB, open the TransferAssetCoreLANEndPointinfotoCMDB.kjb file in the LANEndpoint folder.
  3. In the KJB file, right-click the Update BE table with Asset Core <CI type name> information step, select Open referenced object, and then select Transformation.

  4. Enter the information required to access the BMC Client Management database.

    Click here to see the detailed steps.
    1. In the Explorer pane, expand Database connections and double-click BMC Remedyforce FootPrints Asset Core Source.
    2. In the Database Connection window, enter the host name and the BMC Client Management database name, user name, and password.
      The host name is the name of the computer where the BMC Client Management database is installed.
      If Windows authentication is configured on the BMC Client Management database, the user name and password are not required when the logged-on user has access to the BMC Client Management database and runs the job from the Pentaho Data Integration tool that is installed on the BMC Client Management database server.
    3. (Optional) To verify the connection, click Test.
    4. To save your changes and close the window, click OK.

  5. Enter the information required to access your Salesforce organization.

    Click here to see the detailed steps.
    1. Double-click the Upsert into class <CI type name> step.
    2. In the Salesforce Upsert window, enter your Salesforce organization user name and password.
      BMC recommends that you do not change the default API version in the Salesforce Webservice URL.
    3. (Optional) To verify the connection, click Test connection and then click OK.
    4. To save your changes and close the window, click OK.
    5. Double-click the Salesforce Input[CMDB_Class] step and in the Salesforce Input window, repeat step 5b to step 5d.

    Important

    If you have enabled the setting to access your Salesforce organization from limited IP addresses, you must append the security token to your Salesforce organization password.

    For example, if the password for your Salesforce organization is mypassword and your security token is XXXXXXXXX, specify mypasswordXXXXXXXXX in the Password fields.

  6. (Optional) Update the predefined mapping between the BMC Client Management fields and the BMC Remedyforce CMDB.

    Click here to see the detailed steps.

    1. Double-click the Upsert into class <CI type name> step.

    2. In the Salesforce Upsert window, click Edit Mapping.

    3. In the Enter Mapping window, update mappings for fields based on your requirements.
      For information about updating the out-of-the-box mapping, see Field mapping in CMDB 2.0.

    4. To save your settings and close the Enter Mapping window, click OK.

    5. To save your changes and close the Salesforce Upsert window, click OK.

  7. To save the KTR and KJB files, click Save pentaho6_saveicon.png.
  8. In the KJB file tab, click Run this job pentaho6_runjobicon.png.

  9. Perform one of the following actions based on the Pentaho version that you are using:

    Pentaho version

    Action

    6.1

    In the Run Options window, click Run.

    6.0

    In the Execute a job window, click Launch.

    Data is imported into the appropriate CMDB class.

    Transformation status is depicted by using the following icons:

    • pentaho6_successfulicon.png— Complete
    • pentaho6_runningicon.png — Running
    • pentaho6_failureicon.png — Unsuccessful
  10. (Optional) To view logs, in the Execution results section, click the Logging tab.
    All errors are displayed in red.
    For the imported records, the Source field is set to BCM. You can use the Source field to generate reports and also when you enable and configure reconciliation. 


To schedule jobs to import data

On the BMC Communities website, the Pentaho packages for importing data from external data sources into BMC Remedyforce page contain a Scheduling Files folder. This folder contains a sample batch file that you can use as a base to create your batch files for scheduling data import. For more information about scheduling a job, see http://wiki.Pentaho.com/display/EAI/Kitchen+User+Documentation.

  1. Navigate to the folder where you have extracted the Pentaho package for which you want to schedule import jobs.
  2. Open the Scheduling Files folder and create a copy of the sample batch file, such as SchedulingComputerSystem.bat.

  3. Open the batch file that you created in step 2, perform the following actions, and save the file:

    1. Update the path of the Kitchen.bat file based on your version of the Pentaho Data Integration tool:KETTLE_HOME="<path>\<PentahoFolder>\data-integration"
    2. Update the path of the Kitchen.bat file and the KJB file:<path>\<PentahoFolder>\data-integration\kitchen.bat /file:"<JobFile>\<JobFileName>.kjb"/level:Detailed

    In these steps, the following definitions apply:

    • <path> is the location where you have extracted the Pentaho installer ZIP file.
    • <PentahoFolder> is the extracted root folder for your version of the Pentaho Data Integration tool.
      For example, for version 6.1 of the Pentaho Data Integration Tool, the extracted root folder is pdi-ce-6.1.0.1-196.
    • <JobFile> is the location where you have extracted the job files.
    • <JobFileName> is the KJB file that you want to run at the scheduled interval.
    • The level option specifies the level of logging for the job. The values that you can specify for the level option are Minimal, Basic, Detailed, Debugging, and Row Level. The log files are saved in the same folder where KJB files are saved.
    See an example of the updated batch file.

    The following figure shows an example of the updated SchedulingComputerSystem.bat file.

    pentaho_scheduling_example.gif

  4. Go to Start > Control Panel > Administrative Tools > TaskScheduler.
  5. In the Task Scheduler window, in the Actions area, click Create Basic Task.
  6. In the Create Basic Task Wizard, type the name and description of the task, and click Next.
  7. Select the appropriate option for starting the task, and click Next.
    For example, you can select Daily or When the computer starts as the option for starting the task.
  8. Configure the additional options for starting the task, and click Next.
    The additional options are displayed based on the option that you selected in step 7. For example, if you select the Daily option for starting the task, you must configure the start date and frequency at which you want to run the batch file.
  9. Select the Start a program radio button, and click Next.
  10. Click Browse to locate the batch file that you have created to schedule the job, and click Next.
  11. Select the Open the Properties dialog for this task when I click Finish check box, and click Finish.

User scenarios for importing data from BMC Client Management


David is a member of the Infrastructure team for Downtown Bank, responsible for managing the laptops for ABC project. He signs up for BMC Remedyforce and expects to use the pre-configured, ITIL based incident and problem management processes for managing CIs. Also, David wants to use the CMDB to represent the physical, logical, and conceptual items and to track the relationships between the different CIs. 

Charlotte, a BMC Remedyforce administrator, helps David to import details of the laptops provided to the team members of ABC project from BMC Client Management to BMC Remedyforce CMDB.

The following table provides user scenarios for importing data from BMC Client Management.


KJB and KTR files for importing data from BMC Client Management


The Pentaho packages contain job (KJB) and transformation (KTR) files that are created in the Pentaho Data Integration tool. The KJB files (jobs) and KTR files (transformations) store metadata in XML format. A KJB file contains a series of transformations that are run in a sequence. A KTR file contains a single transformation. The KJB (job) files retrieve data from external sources into BMC Remedyforce CMDB.

For information about the KJB and KTR files in the Pentaho packages for BMC Client Management, see KJB files in the Pentaho package and KTR files in the Pentaho package.

KJB files in the Pentaho package

The Pentaho package includes different KJB (job) files for importing different types of CIs, such as computer systems and LAN endpoints, from BMC Client Management. These job files are bundled with related files and provided to you in folders. The folder names correspond to CI types in BMC Remedyforce CMDB.

The following table provides information about the job files that you must run to import specific CI types to BMC Remedyforce CMDB:

KTR files in the Pentaho package

All job (KJB) files for importing data from specific CI types contain a series of transformations that are run in a sequence. Each transformation maps to a KTR file that is available, along with the KJB file, in the folder for each CI type. The KTR files contain mapping of the fields in BMC Client Management to the fields in the Remedyforce CMDB.

The following table provides information about the KTR files and the corresponding transformations that the KJB file for each CI type contains:

The following table provides information about the steps that are included in the TransferAssetCore<CIType>infotoCMDB.ktr file (Update BE Table With Asset Core <CI type name> Information transformation). The Pentaho package runs these steps to transfer data from BMC Client Management into BMC Remedyforce CMDB. You can view these steps only when you open the KTR file in the Pentaho Data Integration tool.


Troubleshooting

The following topics provide troubleshooting tips to resolve issues that might occur when you import data from BMC Client Management:

Mappings cannot be updated from the Salesforce Upsert window

In the Salesforce Upsert window, the drop-down fields listed in the Module field column in the Fields area might not display any values. In this case, you must update the mapping between the data from BMC Client Management and BMC Remedyforce CMDB by using the Edit Mapping option.

Data that is imported from BMC Client Management is corrupted

The job (KJB) files in the Pentaho package send a REST web API request to the BMC Client Management server to initiate the export of data to a .csv file. Each job file contains the list of BMC Client Management fields that are available by default in the .csv file.

If the data imported from BMC Client Management is corrupted or the import does not complete successfully, the .csv file that contains the data exported by BMC Client Management might have been modified. You might have added, deleted, or changed the order of fields in the .csv file. To resolve this issue, you must update the Pentaho jobs and map the fields and the order in which they are listed to the .csv file.

Perform the following actions to fix the corrupted data that is imported from BMC Client Management:

  1. Navigate to the location where you downloaded and unzipped the Pentaho Data Integration tool.
  2. To launch the Pentaho Data Integration tool, navigate to the data-integration folder.
  3. Double-click the Spoon.bat file and open the job (KJB) file that corresponds to the .csv file that you have updated.
    For example, if you have updated fields in the .csv file for computer system CIs, open the TransferAssetCoreCSinfotoCMDB.kjb file.
  4. In the job (KJB) file, right-click the Import Records in Remedyforce CMDB step, and select Open Referenced Object > Transformation.
  5. In the transformation (KTR) file that is opened, double-click the CSV file input step.
  6. In the CSV Input window, map the fields and the order in which they are listed to the .csv file that contains data from the BMC Client Management server.
  7. You can right-click a field and select an option such as Move up and Insert before this row.
  8. To save your changes, click OK.
  9. To save the KTR and KJB files, click pentaho_save.gif.

Troubleshooting common issues when importing data

The following table describes the troubleshooting tips that you can use to resolve common issues that you might face when importing data.

Related topics

Applying-models-while-importing-CIs-and-assets

Scheduling-jobs-to-import-data

Troubleshooting-common-issues-when-importing-data

Troubleshooting-issues-when-importing-data-from-BMC-Client-Management