Installation and basic configuration of the Remote Inventory agent for ESX

Products

• CA Client Automation - Asset Management
• CA Client Automation - IT Client Manager
• CA Client Automation

Issue/Introduction

This document is to describe  how to implement the ITCM  Remote Virtual Inventory Agent for ESX. The installation process will be laid out and then a simple asset job will be walked through. This document details how the agent is discovered and shows some details on what is discovered once the inventory scan is performed.

Environment

CA Client Automation - All Versions

Resolution

Installation process of Remote Virtual Inventory Plug-in. This plug-in gets installed on any Windows Agent machine that will have direct access over port 80 to the ESX server. This will be the machine that makes the direct connection to the ESX Server to collect the inventory information for the host and its guest OS's.

1. Use Software Delivery to push the "CA DSM Agent AM RVI plugin 14.0" package to the desired Windows agent
   
   
   
   Or...
    
2. Run setup from the ITCM DVD and click modify
   
   
   
    
3. Click Next
   
   Warning: When you get to the screen below do not deselect any of the three options of they will be uninstalled
   
   
   
    
4. Click Next
    
5. When you get to the ITCM  Product Explorer screen choose the second to last option
   
   Remote Virtualization Inventory
   

   
   
   

    
6. Click Next, and allow the installation to complete.
    
7. Once that the RVI agent plugin has been installed it is now necessary to add a new collect task to that agent for the "Virtual Host Inventory"
   
   
   

How to run a collection job for the Remote Virtual Inventory:

This process is similar to the manner in which most asset collection jobs are configured but a new option is available (see next screenshot)

You perform this process via DSM Explorer.

Steps to add a new Collect Job for "Virtual Host Inventory"

1. On the machine you installed the RVI agent, expand configuration
    
2. Right Click on "Collect Tasks"
    
3. Select "New"
   

   

   
    
4. Select virtual inventory host and click ok
   

   

   
    
5. Give the job any name you choose (Do not leave the default below):
   
   
    
6. Click on the Virtual Hosts tab
   
   
    
   
   
7. Click 'add' and this will bring up the add virtual host configuration screen
   
   
   
   
   Enter the data requested for each field
   
   Host Type: VMWare (Or appropriate selection)
   Hostname: Enter the hostname or FQDN of the ESX Server
   Web service Username: Must be "root"
   Web service password: root account password
   Host Serial: N/A for ESX
   Web Service URL: https://%SERVERNAME%/sdk
   SSH key location: N/A for ESX
   
   Check the box for "remote inventory collection"
   
    
8. Click Ok.

You can now proceed to trigger an asset job check to collect from that virtual machine on ESX.

1. Right click on the machine you installed the RVI agent
    
2. Select Asset Jobs
    
3. Select Activate Job Check
   
   
    
4. Once the Asset Job check Window appears check all options and click ok
   
   
   
   
   NOTE: The amagent component will spawn another process that does the remote inventory for the remote virtual machines. When this completes and the engine collect for this agents Scalability Server is next run, you will have the ESX server we discovered listed under all computers [see screenshot below]
   
   
   
   
   The discovered VMware ESX server displays under all computers
   
   
   On the inventory page, you will see the following listed under the test machines displayed below are All file system, data stores and the virtual machines it discovered.
   
   
   
   The Inventory will display the status of the VM , Hostname ,Virtual machine Guest name, Operating system , IP address, Guest UUID, Memory Size,
   

   

   
   
   The remote virtualization inventory agent logs information into the TRC_UAM_AMVMINVUX_* which resides in the DSM\log directory.