PAWS Management Administration Guide
PAWS Management configuration
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PAWS Management configuration

Configuration checklist for PAWS Management

Procedure
     Command or ActionPurpose
    Step 1If you have not already done so, install the PAWS-M platform. 

    Install PAWS-M

     
    Step 2If you have not already done so, activate the Platform SOAP Services or Platform Administrative Web Service on any of the Cisco Unified Presence, Cisco Unified Communications Manager, or Cisco Unity Connection servers you want PAWS-M to access. This can be done by CLI or the application interface. For more information on activating this service, review the documentation for the specific application. 

    Refer to the component documentation for information on how to activate this service.

     
    Step 3Configure servers. Select Inventory > Servers then select Add Server to populate the server inventory on PAWS-M. 

    Server configuration

    Note   

    You can add servers either by importing them or entering each server individually. For more information see the “Import Servers” section or the “Add a Server” section.

     
    Step 4Configure server groups. Add the servers you want into your server inventory before creating server groups. Select Inventory > Server Groups, then Add Server Group to create server groups. 

    Configure server groups

     
    Step 5Configure file server. Select Inventory > File Servers, then Add File Server. 

    Configure file servers

     
    Step 6Create tasks. Select the appropriate task you want to create and enter the appropriate details. 

    Tasks

     

    Upgrade and application task management using PAWS Management

    Limitations and restrictions

    The following list describes the current limitations for PAWS-M.

    • PAWS-M is not a diagnostic tool. An error message does appear on the task list page if a task fails; however, you should use your usual set of tools and procedures to diagnose and correct the problem.
    • The SOAP services do not replace the existing OS Administration and CLI upgrade processes. You can still upgrade your servers using the application GUIs, or CLI commands. PAWS-M is just another way to upgrade, restart, or switch versions on the application servers.

    Best practices

    The following are recommendations for configuring your systems as suggested by Cisco development and testing teams.

    • Use the Add a server or Import servers functionality to populate the servers in your system if possible.
    • Use your standard pre- and post- upgrading procedures when performing this action. PAWS-M simplifies this process for you.
    • Create groups with multiple servers that you perform similar tasks on.
    • Use the sequencing feature in a task when you want a second group of servers to wait until the first group is done before performing that task.

    Server configuration

    Use the Server page to add, edit, delete, and manage servers.


    Note
    Use the Quick View button to the right of the IP address to see detailed server information.

    Add a server

    Procedure
      Step 1   Click the Add Server button.
      Step 2   In the Add Server window complete the following fields:
      1. In the Hostname/IP Address field enter a valid hostname or IP address for the server that you want to add.
      2. Enter the current OS Admin username defined on the server in the OS Admin Username field.
        Note    The username must be no more than 50 characters and begin with an alphanumeric character.
      3. Enter the current OS Admin password defined on the server in the OS Admin Password field.
        Note    The password must be between 4 and 32 characters.
      4. Click Next.
      5. Enter a description of the customer for the server in the Customer field.
      6. If a publisher field appears, choose the FQDN of the first node for this server. If your Cisco Unified Communications Manager is version 8.6(2) or higher, this field is be auto-populated.
      7. Check the role that will be associated with the server from the Server Roles checklist.
        Note    Server roles are labels to help users identify a server. Setting a server role does not activate any services. Mislabeling a server with not cause any service outages.
      Step 3   Click Save.

      Import servers

      Use the Import Servers feature located in Administration > Import Servers to import multiple servers from a .csv file. Each line of an import file defines a single Unified Communications server with six comma separated values: IP address, OS Administrator username, OS Administrator password, Customer name, server roles and FQDN of the first node. For 8.6(2) or higher servers, you do not need to add FQDN of the first node.

      To upload the .csv import file:

      Procedure
        Step 1   SFTP to the Platform Manager server using the adminsftp account and the OS Administration password with any SFTP client.
        Step 2   Change directories to the import directory, and upload the import file.

        To import the servers:

        Procedure
          Step 1   Follow the steps in the Import servers procedure.
          Step 2   Select the import file that you uploaded from the Import File drop-down list box.
          Step 3   Check the Overwrite a server if it already exists check box if you want to overwrite existing server information that is in the import file.
          Step 4   Click Start Import.
          Note    Import files must be uploaded to the /common/adminsftp/import directory using SFTP before they can be imported. An import file will be removed automatically after it has been imported.

          Manage servers

          You can perform a variety of actions on the Server page including filter, view, delete, and edit.

          Use the Show drop-down or Filter button to filter the server display. You can view content using Quick Filter, Advanced Filter, or All selection from the drop-down list box. The Set Default Filter button defines what the Show menu will be when you load the page.

          An Action column appears on the page for each server. The following table lists the options available in this column:

          Table 1 Actions on the Server page
          Action Detail

          Delete

          Click Delete to delete a single server. Delete multiple servers by checking the check box next to each server that you want to delete and click the Delete button.

          Edit

          Click Edit to edit a server.

          Configure server groups

          Use the Server Groups page to add, delete, and manage server groups.

          Add a server group

          Procedure
            Step 1   Click the Add Server Group button.
            Step 2   In the Add Server Group window complete the following fields:
            1. In the Server Group Details section, enter a name for the group and select a product type from the drop-down list. When you select a product type, only servers with the specified type are available to be added to the group.
            2. In the Add Servers to the Group section, check the check box next to the available servers that you want to include in the group and click the right arrow to select the servers.
            Step 3   Click Save.

            Manage server groups

            You can perform a variety of actions on the Server Group page including filter, view, delete, and edit.

            Use the Show drop-down or Filter button to filter the server display. You can view content using Quick Filter, Advanced Filter, or All selection from the drop-down list box. The Set Default Filter button defines what the Show menu will be when you load the page.

            An Action column appears on the page for each server group. The following table lists the options available in the this column:

            Action Detail

            View

            Click View under the Actions column to view details about a specific server group.

            Delete

            Click Delete to delete a single server group. Delete multiple server groups by checking the check box next to each server group that you want to delete and click the Delete button.

            Edit

            Click Edit to edit a server group.

            Configure file servers

            Use the File Servers page to add, edit, delete, and manage FTP/SFTP file servers.

            Add a file server

            To add a file server, complete the following steps.

            Procedure
              Step 1   Click Add File Server button.
              Step 2   Enter the following information in the Add File Server window:
              1. Enter the file server name in the File Server field.
                Note    The file server ID must contain no special characters. It may contain spaces, hyphens and underscores.
              2. Enter the hostname or IP address of the new file server in the Hostname/IP Address field.
              3. Enter the path to the files on the file server in the Directory field.
              4. Enter the Username and Password required to access the file server.
              5. Select either SFTP or FTP server type.
                Note    You can use the Show Files button to view all of the files in the specified directory.
              Step 3   Click Save.

              Manage file servers

              You can perform a variety of actions on the server group page including filter, view, delete, and edit. Use the Show drop-down or Filter button to filter the server display. You can view content using Quick Filter, Advanced Filter, or All selection from the drop-down list box. The Set Default Filter button defines what the Show menu will be when you load the page.

              An Action column appears on the page for each server group. The following table lists the options available in the this column:

              Table 2 Actions on File Servers Page
              Action Detail

              Test

              Click Test under the actions column to test that this File server can be reached successfully from the PAWS-M server.

              Delete

              Click Delete to delete a single file server. Delete multiple file servers by checking the check box next to each file server that you want to delete and click the Delete button.

              Show Files

              Click to view all of the files. You can also browse a file server by checking the check box next to the file server in the list display and clicking the Show option.

              Edit

              Click Edit to edit a file server.

              Unified Communications (UC) Applications Synchronization

              Use the UC Applications Synchronization page to keep Platform Manager up to date with OS changes such as active version and installed options made on the UC applications in the server inventory. Synchronize data for all servers immediately by clicking the Sync Now button. To schedule recurring syncs, indicate a start time and frequency and click Save. The lower half of the page shows the result of the latest server synchronization.

              Tasks

              Tasks are used to upgrade, switch versions, or restart groups of servers. You can create various tasks to perform on server groups. The following sections describes how to create various tasks.

              Create a new install or upgrade task

              Use the Upgrade Install Wizard to create and manage installation and upgrade tasks.


              Note
              Server groups containing both publisher and subscriber servers cannot be used for upgrade tasks.

              Create a new installation or upgrade task to automatically run on one or more server groups at scheduled times.

              Procedure
                Step 1   Enter a task name and click Next.
                Step 2   Select one or more of server groups from the list of available groups in the left pane and click the arrow buttons to move them to the Selected Server Groups list.
                Step 3   Click Next.
                Step 4   Select a file server from the drop-down list and click the Show Files button. Hostname, Directory, Type and User Name populate automatically.
                Note    The upgrade wizard only shows files that are valid for every server added to the task.
                Step 5   Click the Show Files button to retrieve a list of patches or COP files that can be used to upgrade.
                Step 6   Select the valid file that you want to apply to your server group upgrade and click Next.
                Step 7   Check the Automatically switch to the new version after a successful upgrade check box if you want to automatically switch to the upgraded partition.
                Step 8   Use the Sequence the Server Groups section to set the date, time and sequence for the upgrade tasks to be executed on the servers. Each server group can start at a specific time or after another server group.
                Step 9   Click Next.
                Note    If you are performing a refresh upgrade, do not select the Automatically switch to the new version option.
                Step 10   Use the Review and Schedule the Task section to verify the details of the task you created.
                Step 11   Click Finish to schedule the task.

                If you are performing a refresh upgrade, do not click the Reboot button while the task is running.

                Create a switch version task

                Use the Switch Version Task Wizard to create and manage switch version tasks.

                Create a switch version task to automatically switch one or more server groups to the upgraded version at scheduled times.

                Procedure
                  Step 1   Enter a name for the task in the Task Name box and click Next.
                  Step 2   Select one or more of server groups from the list of available groups in the left pane and click the arrow buttons to move them to the Selected Server Groups list.
                  Step 3   Click Next.
                  Step 4   Select the installed version that you want to switch to by selecting the radio button for either Inactive Version or Specific Version. If you select Specific Version you must specify a build number. If the inactive version installed does not match the build number specified, the switch will not occur.
                  Step 5   Click Next.
                  Step 6   Use the Sequence the Server Groups section to set the date, time and sequence for the switch version tasks to be executed on the servers. Each server group can start at a specific time or after another server group.
                  Step 7   Click Next.
                  Step 8   Use the Review and Schedule the Task section to verify the details of the task you created.
                  Step 9   Click Finish to schedule the task.

                  Create a restart system task

                  Use the Restart System Task Wizard to create and manage restart system tasks.

                  Create a restart system task to automatically restart one or more server groups to at scheduled times.

                  Procedure
                    Step 1   Enter a name for the task in the Task Name box and click Next.
                    Step 2   Select one or more of server groups from the list of available groups in the left pane and click the arrow buttons to move them to the Selected Server Groups list.
                    Step 3   Click Next.
                    Step 4   Use the Sequence the Server Groups section to set the date, time and sequence for the switch version tasks to be executed on the servers. Each server group can start at a specific time or after another server group.
                    Step 5   Click Next.
                    Step 6   Use the Review and Schedule the Task section to verify the details of the task you created.
                    Step 7   Click Finish to schedule the task.

                    Task list

                    The Tasks window displays a list of tasks created with the following methods:

                    • Install/Upgrade Task Wizard
                    • Switch-Version Task Wizard
                    • Restart System Task Wizard
                    • Tasks created using clone a task

                    Under the Actions column, you can cancel tasks, view details of a task, view history of a task, delete a task and clone a task. Cancel is only available for tasks that have not been run.

                    Use the Clone option to duplicate a task that was previously scheduled or run. Each cloned task starts the appropriate wizard depending on whether it was originally an Install/Upgrade, Switch-Version, or Restart task. Cloned tasks start the task wizard and default to the previously used task data. You can also edit the task data and run the task again. Using a cloned task, you can repeat a task while re-using the task parameters.

                    Use the Show drop-down or Filter button to filter the task display. You can view content using Quick Filter, Advanced Filter or All selection from the drop-down list. The Set Default Filter button defines what the show menu will be when you load the page.

                    Generate reports

                    Use the Generate Reports feature to generate reports that detail the current state of the server inventory.

                    Procedure
                      Step 1   Enter a unique name for your report in the Report File field.
                      Step 2   Click the Generate Report button. Reports are created on the server in the /common/adminsftp/log directory.

                      Download a report

                      To download a report:

                      Procedure
                         Command or ActionPurpose
                        Step 1SFTP to the Platform Manager server using the adminsftp account and the OS Administration password with any SFTP client.   
                        Step 2Navigate to the log directory, and download the report.