In a Hierarchy, Unable to Download Package Due to No Package Sources Have Been Received

Products

• IT Management Suite
• Client Management Suite

Issue/Introduction

You have a package to deploy and when endpoints try downloading it, they're presented with "no package sources" and the download just keeps "retrying".

These client machines report to a Child SMP in a Hierarchy. There are multiple package servers that have the package ready reporting to that Child SMP but any of them belongs to the same Site as the client machines.

Environment

ITMS 8.x

Cause

The Site in which the child SMP resides was missing Site Servers with package services installed. The SMP logs were also indicating this problem. 

Resolution

Because the Site that contains the child SMP does not have a site server with package services assigned to it, it caused that the proper codebases were not generated:

1. Add a site server with package services installed back into the site assignment where the Child SMP (or Parent SMP as well) resides.
2. Run a package refresh (under the Scheduled Tasks on the Child SMP, run "NS.Package Refresh" schedule).
3. Request a new configuration on the Site Server that you just added to the same Site as the Child SMP.
4. Request a new configuration on the problematic endpoints. 

In a Hierarchy, it is very important to have a package server on the same Site as the SMP. Both Parent and Child SMPs need to have a package server (site server with package services installed) on their Site. See KB 184143 "Why we have the requirement to always have a Package Server for each SMP in a Hierarchy? Can we work without it?"