Docs

# Update 2.3 (11.04.2023)

# Basic information

This Acure release introduced a few important improvements:

🔥 Automation Setting section is created to custom your own automation libraries

🔥 SM Settings section is introduced to define and manage CI types

🔥 Managing key parameters of a CI Type

🔥 Defining values for CI Type attributes

🔥 Functionality for setting personalization of the Signals table in the "SM Map" section was implemented

🔥 Metrics service is developed

🔥 Thresholds Rules section is added to handle metrics

Moreover, some more changes were made in the following sections of Acure platform:

  • SM Map & CMDB
  • Data Streams
  • Thresholds
  • Automation

⬇️ Let's take a closer look at some changes to Acure 2.3:

New sections were added to the Administration on the left sidebar menu (available only for Userspace administrators):

  • Automation settings - section for Automation Libraries managing.
  • SM Settings - section for SM Metamodel managing, which now allows to manage CI types.

New section that was added to the Data Collection (ETL) on the left sidebar menu (available for all users):

  • Thresholds Rules - section for settings thresholds rules.

# Metrics

Now CI status can be affected not only by collector events, but also by metrics. Threshold Rules section was added to the Data Collection (ETL) on the left sidebar menu. A user can create rules, on the basis of which received metrics will be checked. If rules conditions are met, a new object called Threshold will be created in the system.

What’s next, using automation scenarios, the user will be able to find configuration items in the system that correspond to specific thresholds and bind them.

The state of the metric also can be reflected on the CI status, automation scenarios will manage to do this. The user just needs to send a threshold for calculating signals and a relevant scenario will evaluate the situation and create the desired signal with the CI assigned to it, that will affect CI status.

# Threshold rules

Setting rules for checking the metric’s state is available to users:

  • Creation, configuration, deletion of the rules
  • Export, import of the ready rules
  • Rules activity management

Thresholds will be created on the basis of the rules.

# Thresholds

Thresholds can be viewed on the main SM Map page.

  • New Thresholds tab was added where all thresholds accessible to a user. They are displayed according to the configured filter.
  • The work with a threshold is available on the tab. Moreover, it is possible to see the metric’s state in different views, including timeline and graph.

# Signals

The Signals tab in the SM Map section was updated.

Now user has the following possibilities while working with the Signals table:

  • Change location of any column with the possibility to save the view for every user.
  • Select several signals at once and perform a number of actions on them such as closure and modification.
  • Change the settings of the displayed table fields and their location.
  • Use a new section of the “Signals” table settings.

# Automation

New Automation Scenario type ThresholdsProcessor and several functions were added, in order to provide the users with the opportunity to create scenarios for a threshold:

  • ThresholdsProcessor scenario type is responsible for receiving Thresholds processor events and binding thresholds to it.
  • New library for thresholds was added. It provides the functions of binding CI to threshold and filtration by threshold rule.
  • Moreover, if it is necessary to calculate signals by thresholds, the user can send an event for signal calculation.

In the SM autobuild scenarios new features were introduced:

  • A new block PartialUpdateConfigItemAttributesBatch was added. It makes a request to the API for a partial update of the amount of the CI attribute values at once. Only attribute values that are transmitted through an input are updated.
  • ConfigItemPost structure was changed. The CreateConfigItemExpanded function that uses the above mentioned structure was altered too. Now it has become possible to define attributes immediately at CI creation.
  • Manager of the Workgroup can limit the access to the scenarios of his/her Workgroup.
  • Scenario editor provides the possibility to delete the selected block with the Del button.
  • Selection of objects is available with the Ctrl key pressed.

⚠️ It is recommended to recompile scenarios that include the CI creation functions.

⚠️ Role model was updated. For already created roles within the Workgroup, which differ from standard ones, access grant for the Automation section will be set as “View”.

# Automation Settings

A new section called Automation Settings was added to the Administration on the left sidebar menu and it is created for administrators to custom their own libraries:

  • Creation of your own libraries in addition to system ones.
  • Creation and customization of global structures inside the libraries. After structure creation they start to be available in Automation Scenarios and during the CI types setting.

# SM Settings

Administrators can manage SM Metamodel on the SM Settings tab. CI Type settings were refreshed. Now there is an opportunity to define a set of attributes for all CIs of the same type. Also it is available to manage key parameters of CI Type. By key parameters, it is possible to uniquely identify and get the required CI through the public API or by using the GetConfigItemByUniqueKey new block in the Automation section. The method works quicker than a standard filtration by the same parameters. This method was created to reduce the execution time of SM autobuild scenarios.

The following features become available now:

  • Managing CI Type attributes
  • Managing key parameters of a CI Type
  • Defining default values for Attributes
  • Transition to the structures of the Automation Libraries, on the basis of which attributes are determined
  • Copying names and values of the attribute parameters

# SM Map. CI attributes

Parameters tab in the SM Map section was updated. Users got the following opportunities:

  • Browse the CI Type attributes
  • Change values of the CI Type attributes, however managing the attributes is available in the SM Settings section
  • Go to the structures of the Automation Libraries, on the basis of which attributes are determined (available only for administrators)
  • Go to the CI Type attributes settings (SM Settings section, which is available only for administrators)
  • Go to a CI owner Workgroup
  • Copy names and values of the attribute parameters

# SM Map & CMDB

SM Map section was updated:

  • In CMDB filter new properties for search/selection by CI, labels and attributes were added

  • Indication of the attributes key parameters has appeared - now key attributes are clearly visible in the CI card

  • Validation of key parameters of the attributes was added. A warning will be displayed if an invalid value is entered

  • Attributes of the Dynamic type are might be set in JSON format

  • Personal view settings were updated. Some improvements have been made:

    • All settings are immediately applied
    • Now users are able to set the thresholds table view
    • It has become possible to add columns with attributes parameters of any nesting level to the CI table
    • Users can turn off the detailed view tabs which are not being used
    • Now it’s available to reset settings of any selected section to default view

# Data Streams

Data Stream creation form was updated:

  • Now there is a search field when selecting a Workgroup owner.
  • A search field when selecting a Configuration template was added.
  • Any stream template was excluded from the available configuration templates. Now Default template completely performs the functions of the Any stream template.

The icon of all Data Streams created with the Any stream template was replaced by the Default template icon.

Moreover, the Configuration tab in the Data Streams section was updated. Now users have the following possibilities:

  • Run tasks in a Data Stream manually and one-time
  • Schedule tasks runs in the cron format taking into account seconds
  • Stop/run the scheduler for any task without stopping a Data Stream
  • Browse the schedule of the forthcoming runs and time of the last task run in a Data Stream

⚠️ And in addition, all intervals set in already created Data Streams were transferred on the new scheduler.