This chapter describes how to configure and manage the Subscriber Manager.
Configure and manage the Subscriber Manager by using configuration files and command-line utilities.
The configuration file and Command-Line Utilities (CLU) enable you to control the Subscriber Manager, which includes subscriber management, database management. The configuration file and CLU also enable you to perform Service Control Engine (SCE) network configuration and management.
The Subscriber Manager has a set of configuration files, located in ~pcube/sm/server/root/config/ .
The configuration files and command-line utilities enable you to configure all the parameters that define the behavior of the Subscriber Manager application. (See Appendix B, “Command-Line Utilities.” )
Each configuration file is comprised of sections. A unique name identifies each section. The name of the section appears in square brackets as in the following example:
Each section contains several parameters. Each parameter is defined as a key=value pair, as in the following example:
NoteThe equal sign ( The equal sign (=) is a key-value separator in the configuration file. To use the equal sign as part of the value, you must insert a backslash (\) before it, as in the following example:
[Sample Section]
key=value1\=value2
The p3sm.cfg configuration file contains the following types of parameters:
– Associating domains and SCE platforms
– Specifying domain properties
– Specifying NAS configuration
– Specifying properties configuration
Usually, you specify the parameters in the configuration file once when setting up the system. The parameters are then valid throughout the lifetime of the system. To modify the configuration file parameters, edit the file using any text editor. Reload the configuration file by using the CLU (see the “Reloading the Subscriber Manager Configuration (p3sm)” section). You can load the configuration file when you start or restart the Subscriber Manager or by explicitly running the CLU command.
The configuration file is designed so that you can use the same configuration file in multiple Subscriber Manager applications of a high availability setup. This enables you to replicate the configuration by copying the file from one machine to another.
The Subscriber Manager provides a set of Command-Line Utilities (CLU), which you can use in addition to the configuration file to configure the parameters that might change during the operation of the Subscriber Manager.
The CLU enables you to configure the Subscriber Manager by using shells that are installed on the machine. You can execute CLU commands are executable only when you are logged in to the machine. You must access the pcube user account, which is always installed (see Chapter4, “Installation and Upgrading”) Use the CLU mainly for viewing and for subscriber management.
In high availability setups, you cannot use the CLU to perform subscriber management operations on the standby Subscriber Manager. The standby Subscriber Manager refreshes the database before performing subscriber display operations, so the operation takes longer (than for the active Subscriber Manager). Therefore, you should perform all subscriber operations on the active Subscriber Manager.
This chapter explains how to perform various tasks using the appropriate CLU, but it does not describe the CLU in detail. For a complete, detailed description of the CLU, see the “Command-Line Utilities” section.
This section describes establishing a Cisco Service Control deployment consisting of several SCE platforms and Subscriber Manager systems in order to prepare the system for subscriber integration.
This section uses the terminology and tools explained in previous chapters.
This configuration procedure applies to a single group, consisting of the following components:
You can divide every subscriber management solution into such groups. You can apply this procedure to each of these groups.
Before configuring any of the components in your subscriber management solution, verify that all the items on the following checklist have been successfully completed:
Note Login Event Generators and the SCA BB application are installed by default on the Subscriber Manager.
Step 1 Edit the Subscriber Manager configuration file p3sm.cfg according to your system
definition, and reload it using the p3sm --load-config command.
Step 2 Configure the SCE platform repository.
Use the p3net CLU command to verify the connection state of each SCE Platform that should be provisioned by the Subscriber Manager.
After the physical installation of an SCE platform (connection to the management network), you must explicitly add it to the Subscriber Manager list, or repository, of existing SCE platforms before the Subscriber Manager will recognize it. Conversely, if you remove an SCE platform from that list, the Subscriber Manager will no longer recognize it, even though it is still physically connected.
Each SCE.XXX section defines the following configuration parameters that represent a single SCE platform, where XXX represents the SCE logical name:
Defines the IP address of a standalone SCE device or the two IP addresses of a cascade SCE pair.
Defines the port through which the SCE platform connects. The default is 14374.
To view the SCE platforms, use the p3net CLU. See “The p3net Utility” section.
For more information, see the “SCE.XXX Section” section.
a. Configure the SCE.XXX sections to add the SCE Platform to the repository.
b. Load the SCE configuration to the Subscriber Manager using the p3sm CLU.
c. Verify that the SCE platform was successfully connected.
d. Verify your configuration when you are finished.
Use the p3domains command to verify the domain configuration and that the SCE platforms are set to these domains.
When a system has more than one SCE platform, you can configure the platforms into groups, or domains. A subscriber domain is one or more SCE platforms that share a specified group of subscribers. Before adding an SCE platform to a domain, you must add the SCE platform to the SCE platform repository.
NoteThe Subscriber Manager is preconfigured with a single subscriber domain called The Subscriber Manager is preconfigured with a single subscriber domain called subscribers.
Each Domain.XXX section specifies the elements (SCE platforms), aliases, and properties for one domain. It contains the following parameters:
Defines the list of prefixes to be used in the pull lookup operation when an IPv6 pull request notification is received by the Cisco Service Control Subscriber Manager. For more than one prefix, separate the values using a coma (,). Possible value range is from 32 to 64. The default value is 64. Lookup order is always from the higher prefixes to lower prefixes. The changes takes effect only after a Cisco Service Control Subscriber Manager restart.
Specifies the names of the Cisco SCE platforms that are part of the domain.
Defines domain aliases. When the subscriber manager receives information from the LEG with one of the aliases (for example, alias1 ), the information is distributed to the domain that matches this alias (for example, domain_name1 ). A typical alias could be a network device IP address, where, for example, each string in the values can be the IP address of a NAS or a CMTS.
NoteEach alias (for example, alias_name1) can only appear in Each alias (for example, alias_name1) can only appear in one [Domain.XXX] section.
NoteOnly one domain may specify this option ( Only one domain may specify this option (aliases=*).
Defines the default policy property values for a domain. Unless the LEG/API overrides these defaults when it introduces the subscriber to the Subscriber Manager, the subscriber policy is set according to the default policy property values of its domain. Property values must be integers.
To view the domains, use the p3domains CLU. See “The p3domains Utility” section.
For more information, see the “Domain.XXX Section” section.
Step 4 Configure the Subscriber Manager General section.
This section of the configuration file is relevant to any deployment topology. It addresses the following systemwide parameters:
Defines whether the Subscriber Manager introduces the subscribers to the SCE platforms immediately after a login operation (Push mode), or only when the SCE requests the subscriber specifically (Pull mode).
Defines whether to lock subscriber-related operations (login, logout, etc.) at the application level. Set this parameter to true for cases in which several LEG components can update subscribers simultaneously.
Defines whether the Subscriber Manager supports the solution in which a Cisco 7600/6500 is used for load-balancing among several SCE platforms. In this solution, when one SCE platform fails, subscriber traffic is redistributed to a different SCE platform. The Subscriber Manager must remove these subscribers from the failed SCE platform and send the relevant subscriber information to the new SCE platform. This parameter is relevant only in the Pull mode.
Note When support_ip_ranges is set to ‘true,’ set the force_subscriber_on_one_sce parameter to ‘false’ or use a different load-balancing scheme on the Cisco 7600/6500.
Defines whether to enable the logging of subscriber log in events.
To view the Subscriber Manager settings, use the p3sm CLU. See “The p3sm Utility” section.
NoteSetting Setting logon_logging_enabled to true causes performance degradation. For additional information, see the “Subscriber Manager General Section” section.
Step 5 Configure the Data Repository section.
The Data Repository section defines the Subscriber Manager operation with the Subscriber Manager database In-Memory Database, via the following parameters:
Defines whether the Subscriber Manager supports IP-Ranges.
NoteDisabling this support provides better performance. Disabling this support provides better performance.
Determines the maximum IP range size used in the system. This parameter is used for improving performance of the Subscriber Manager in Pull mode when the [Data Repository] section is configured with support_ip_ranges=yes .
NoteDefining this parameter with too large a value may cause performance degradation in processing pull requests. Defining this parameter with too large a value may cause performance degradation in processing pull requests.
For more information, see the “Data Repository Section” section.
Step 6 Configure the High Availability section.
The High Availability section defines the type of topology in which the Subscriber Manager should work, via the parameter:
Defines the topology type in which the Subscriber Manager will work (cluster or standalone).
For more information, see the “Subscriber Manager High Availability Setup Section” section.
Step 7 Import subscribers to the Subscriber Manager from a CSV file.
Perform this step only when you are integrating manually, or when you perform a setup prior to the beginning of the automatic integration.
A csv file is a simple text file in which each line consists of comma-separated values. Because each line might contain subscriber properties, which are application dependant, see the documentation of the application that you installed on your system for the format of a csv import file.
In most cases, when importing csv files, you should use the p3subsdb --import CLU command. When integrating with a cable AAA system and working in the CPE as Subscriber mode, importing cable modems requires the p3cable --import-cm CLU command. (see Appendix C, “CPE as a Subscriber in a Cable Environment.” )
Step 8 Configure the SCE platforms
Perform this step only when you use the Pull mode to introduce subscribers, or when you perform a special operation on Subscriber Manager-SCE connection failure. Use the SCE platform Command-Line Interface (CLI) to configure several configuration parameters, according to the following explanation.
Configuring these parameters ensures that the SCE platform correctly applies appropriate defaults to subscribers in the period between subscriber detection and pull response (for unmapped subscribers). For additional details, see the SCE User Guides.
When the SCE platform encounters network traffic that is not assigned to any introduced subscriber, it checks whether the mapping of the unfamiliar subscriber belongs to one of the anonymous groups. If the subscriber belongs to an anonymous group, a new anonymous subscriber is created, and a request for an updated subscriber record is sent to the Subscriber Manager. The properties of the anonymous subscriber are taken from the subscriber template that is assigned to the newly created subscriber anonymous group.
An anonymous group is a specified IP range, possibly assigned a subscriber template (defined in the next section). If a subscriber template has been assigned to the group, the anonymous subscribers generated have subscriber properties as defined by that template. If no subscriber template has been assigned, the default template is used.
Use the appropriate CLI commands to import anonymous group information from a csv file, or to create or edit these groups explicitly.
Values for various subscriber properties for unmapped or anonymous subscriber groups are assigned in the system based on subscriber templates. A number from 0 to 199 identifies subscriber templates. CSV formatted subscriber template files define the subscriber templates 1 to 199. However, template 0 cannot change; it always contains the default values. If a template is not explicitly assigned to an anonymous group, the group uses template 0.
Use the appropriate CLI commands to import subscriber templates from a csv file, or edit these templates from the command line. Additionally, use the appropriate CLI commands to assign subscriber templates to the anonymous groups.
To prevent SCE capacity problems in Pull mode, configure the aging of introduced subscribers. The aging parameter defines a timeout. Any subscriber that does not generate traffic during this timeout interval is automatically logged out from the SCE.
To prevent incorrect classification of a subscriber’s traffic during a lengthy connection failure between the Subscriber Manager and the SCE, configure the Subscriber Manager connection failure parameters.
The SCE has several alternatives for managing connection failures:
– The SCE can clear the mappings of all of the subscribers
– The SCE can put the line in cut-off mode
This section presents common subscriber management scenarios, including the correct configuration parameters for these scenarios. The following scenarios are described:
The example in this section assumes that the following conditions of the system are established:
Figure 5-1 Cable Topology with Automatic Integration with a DHCP Server, Push Mode, and Fail-Over of SCE Platforms
NoteEnsure that everything is properly installed before you configure the Subscriber Manager. Ensure that everything is properly installed before you configure the Subscriber Manager.
The following general steps describe how to configure the Subscriber Manager for this scenario:
1. Edit the Subscriber Manager configuration file to add the SCE devices to the SCE device repository and group the SCE devices to domains as depicted in Figure 5-1.
2. Edit the Subscriber Manager configuration file as shown in Table 5-1 html#46499">.
3. Reload the Subscriber Manager configuration file using the p3sm CLU.
4. Import the cable modems to the Subscriber Manager database using the p3cable CLU.
This scenario does not need an SCE platform configuration.
The example in this section assumes that the following conditions of the system are established:
NoteEnsure everything is properly installed before you configure the Subscriber Manager. Ensure everything is properly installed before you configure the Subscriber Manager.
Figure 5-2 Topology with Manual Introduction of Subscribers and Pull Mode
The following general steps describe how to configure the Subscriber Manager for this scenario:
1. Edit the Subscriber Manager configuration file to add the SCE devices to the SCE device repository and group the SCE devices to domains as depicted in Figure 5-2.
2. Edit the Subscriber Manager configuration file as shown in Table 5-2 .
3. Reload the Subscriber Manager configuration file using the p3sm CLU.
4. Import the subscribers to the Subscriber Manager database by using the p3subsdb CLU (required for manual integration; there is no other way to bring subscribers into the Subscriber Manager).
5. Use the SCE platform CLI to configure the system for Pull mode:
– Subscriber templates—According to the application
– Anonymous groups—According to the network and subscribers
– Introduced subscriber aging—According to the network and IP address allocation scheme
For a set-up with Subscriber Manager fail-over (based on two Subscriber Manager nodes connected in a cluster), the configuration is identical to the regular configuration, with one exception:
In addition to that exception, configure Subscriber Manager fail-over normally via the p3sm.cfg configuration file. Manually copy the configuration file from the active Subscriber Manager to the standby Subscriber Manager.
For additional information on configuring the VCS, see Appendix E, “Veritas Cluster Server.”
This section introduces the Command-Line Utilities (CLU) and describes how to use the CLU for viewing, subscriber management, and other tasks for working with the Subscriber Manager.
NoteYou can specify some CLU operations and options with abbreviations. For the abbreviations and additional information about the CLU, see You can specify some CLU operations and options with abbreviations. For the abbreviations and additional information about the CLU, see Appendix B, “Command-Line Utilities.”
The procedures presented in the following sections invoke the following CLU commands:
This section contains the following topics:
All CLU commands support the following operations for informative output:
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Prints the Subscriber Manager program version number, then exits. |
Place in quotation marks a command operation or option containing any of the following characters:
You must insert an escape character before any of the following characters in a command operation or option.
Table 5-3 presents several examples of the preceding rules.
One-letter abbreviations are available for some of the operations and options. For example, -d is an abbreviation for --domain . Note that only one hyphen (-), not two, precedes the letter for an abbreviation, and that if the operation or option takes a parameter, there is a space and not an equal sign before the parameter.
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The abbreviations are useful if you want to specify an expression to be expanded by the UNIX shell, as in the following example:
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Use the p3sm utility to configure the Subscriber Manager by reloading the Subscriber Manager configuration file p3sm.cfg . Use any standard text editor to edit the configuration file.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, type:
[
--remote=
OTHER_SM_IP[:port]]
The configuration file is loaded, and the Subscriber Manager configuration updated.
The --remote option loads the configuration first to the local Subscriber Manager, and afterward to the remote Subscriber Manager (in High Availability setups).
Use the p3sm utility to manage the Subscriber Manager. The p3sm utility enables you to start, stop, and resynchronize the Subscriber Manager.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3sm operation [ --ne-name = SCE NAME ].
For a complete list of p3sm operations and options, see “The p3sm Utility” section.
The following example shows how to stop the server operation and then restart it.
The following example shows how to resynchronize an SCE whose logical name is SCE_1000A .
The following example shows how to extract the Subscriber Manager support information to a file named support.zip .
Use the p3subs utility to manage specific subscribers. You can add or remove subscribers. You can also manage subscriber properties and mappings with this utility.
Step 1 From the shell prompt run the p3subs CLU command.
The command should be in the following general format:
The subscriber on whom the operation is to be performed is specified by using the format --subscriber=subscriber-name . A mapping (IP address), property, or domain, if specified, uses the format displayed.
NoteIf a domain is not specified, the subscriber is added to the default If a domain is not specified, the subscriber is added to the default subscribers domain.
For a complete list of p3subs operations and options, see “The p3subs Utility” section.
The following sections present examples for managing subscribers, mapping, and properties.
The following examples show how to manage subscribers.
The following example shows how to add a subscriber with the specified IP address.
The following example shows how to overwrite subscriber information. Because the subscriber named “xyz” already exists, the add operation would fail; however, the overwrite option enables you to overwrite IP address.
The following example shows how to remove all the mappings for a specified subscriber.
You can specify the following mapping types for each subscriber:
NoteYou cannot specify different types of mappings for the same subscriber. You cannot specify different types of mappings for the same subscriber.
The application property names depend on the application running on your system. To find descriptions of the application property names and values, see the documentation provided with the application installed on your system.
This example shows how to set a property value for a specified subscriber.
This example shows how to clear the applicative state of the specified subscriber. Note that this command clears only the backup copy at the Subscriber Manager. It does not clear the applicative state record in the SCE platform.
NoteVPN and VLAN are not supported for IPv6 subscribers. VPN and VLAN are not supported for IPv6 subscribers.
Use the p3vpn utility to manage VPNs. You can add or remove VPNs.
Step 1 From the shell prompt run the p3vpn CLU command.
The command should be in the following format:
For a full list of p3vpn operations and options, see “The p3vpn Utility” section.
The following example shows how to add a VPN with the specified VLAN.
The following example shows how to add a VPN with the specified MPLS/VPN mappings.
Use the p3subsdb utility to manage the Subscriber Manager database. You can import subscriber information for a group of subscribers from a CSV file into the Subscriber Manager database. You can also export subscriber information from the Subscriber Manager database to a CSV file.
NoteThe format of the CSV file depends on the application. The documentation of a specific application specifies the CSV file format for that application. The format of the CSV file depends on the application. The documentation of a specific application specifies the CSV file format for that application.
For a complete list of p3subsdb operations and options, see “The p3subsdb Utility” section.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3subsdb operation
[
--domain =
domain-name ] [
filename ]
The following example shows how to list all subscribers in a specified domain.
The following example shows how to import subscribers from the specified CSV file.
The following example shows how to export subscribers with filtering options to a specified CSV file.
Use the p3net utility to view the connection status of network elements and to try to reconnect disconnected elements.
For a complete list of p3net operations and options, see “The p3net Utility” section.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3net operation
[
--ne-name =
logical-name ].
The following example shows how to display a network element's connection status.
Use the p3domains utility to view the subscriber domains. As explained in the “Cisco Service Control Subscriber Manager Overview” section, subscriber domains are groups of SCE devices that serve the same subscribers.
For a complete list of p3domains operations and options, see “The p3domains Utility” section.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3domains operation
[
--domain =
domain-name ]
In the cable environment, the Subscriber Manager supports two modes of operation: Cable Modem as Subscriber and CPE as Subscriber, as described in Appendix C, “CPE as a Subscriber in a Cable Environment.”
This section describes the support of the CPE as Subscriber mode. In this mode, the CPE is modeled as the subscriber, and it inherits its policy and domain from the cable modem through which it connects to the network. Each cable modem is linked with one or more CPEs. (For background information about special characteristics of the CPE as Subscriber mode in the cable environment, see Appendix C, “CPE as a Subscriber in a Cable Environment.”
Use the p3cable utility commands to import cable modem information from a CSV file to the Subscriber Manager, and to export the cable modem information from the Subscriber Manager to a CSV file. You can also use this utility to clear the repository of all cable modems, and to show whether to allow or deny the login of CPEs that belong to unfamiliar cable modems; that is, cable modems that do not exist in the Subscriber Manager database. However, for specifying whether to allow or deny such a login, use the Cable Adapter section of the p3sm.cfg configuration file. (See the “Cable Adapter Section” section.)
For a complete list of p3cable operations and options, see “The p3cable Utility” section.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3cable operation
[
--cm =
CM-name ] [
filename ] [
other cable modem options ].
This section presents examples of tasks for managing a cable support module.
The following example shows how to import cable modems from a CSV file.
The following example shows how to clear the repository of all cable modems:
The following example shows how to display login status (allow/deny) of CPEs that belong to cable modems that do not exist in the Subscriber Manager database:
Cisco provides a proprietary remote procedure call (PRPC) interface to the Subscriber Manager. Use the p3rpc utility to view the configuration and statistics of the PRPC server.
For a complete list of p3rpc operations and options, see “The p3rpc Utility” section.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3rpc operation.
The following example displays the statistics of the PRPC server.
Use the p3cluster utility to view the redundancy state of the Subscriber Manager and its components. This utility also supports operations that alter the redundancy state of the Subscriber Manager. These operations are used by the Subscriber Manager Cluster Agent and for administrative tasks.
For a complete list of p3cluster operations and options, see “The p3cluster Utility” section.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3cluster
operation.
The following example displays the redundancy status of the Subscriber Manager and it components.
Use the p3log utility to configure and manage the user log. All user-related events and errors are directed to the Subscriber Manager user log. You can extract the contents of the user log to a specified file to read and save its contents. You can also clear the user log.
For a complete list of p3log operations and options, see “The p3log Utility” section.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3log operation.
The following example shows how to extract the user log to a specified file.
Use the p3radius utility to view the statistics of the RADIUS Listener LEG. For information about this CLU, see the Cisco SCMS SM LEGs User Guide .
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3radius operation.
Use the p3batch utility to run a batch file and execute its commands. Using any text editor, you can create a batch file that contains a series of CLU commands, one command per line. This operation ( p3batch ) enables you to run multiple operations on a single connection to the Subscriber Manager.
For a complete list of p3batch operations and options, see “The p3batch Utility” section.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3batch [file-options] [error-options].
The following example shows how to run a batch file that will halt if an error occurs.
The following example shows how to run a batch file that will not halt if an error occurs.
Use the p3clu utility to print a list of all supported CLU utilities and operations.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, type p3clu --help.
Use the p3db utility to manage and monitor the Subscriber Manager database database. The CLU exposes capabilities of some of Subscriber Manager database CLUs for specific needs of the Subscriber Manager.
For a complete list of p3db operations and options, see “The p3db Utility” section.
Step 1 From the shell prompt, enter a command of the format p3db operation [options].
The following example shows how to request the status of the replication agent, and also lists a typical response: