NetIQ Aegis General Adapters
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Missing a specific adapter for a tool you use? No problem. NetIQ Aegis includes a number of general adapters that can be used to integrate with practically anything. General adapter facilities include: web services, XML, file transfers, command line interface, database connections, email and even direct Graphical User Interface (GUI) interactions. Additionally, NetIQ Aegis includes general activities that can be used to interact with third-party products.
NetIQ Aegis General Adapters
NetIQ Aegis Adapter for Databases-
The NetIQ Aegis Adapter for Databases allows NetIQ Aegis to communicate with any Microsoft SQL Server 2000 or 2005 database to:
- Receive events and initiate processes. If your environment has an internal database that consolidates events from multiple data sources, the database adapter sends events to Aegis when there is a new row in a database table. If an event matches a trigger associated with a workflow, Aegis initiates a process.
- Add inventoried resources to Aegis for event correlation. If your environment has an internal configuration management database (CMDB) or inventory database, the database adapter adds the inventoried resources to the Resource Management database.
NetIQ Aegis Adapter for Microsoft® Exchange®
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The NetIQ Aegis Adapter for Microsoft Exchange allows NetIQ Aegis to send and receive email via a MAPI profile to:
- Receive email and initiate processes. Email in text, rich text or HTML format is received and interpreted, supplying information to working processes (work items) or initiates a new work item. Attachments can also be received and interpreted.
- Send email notifications as part of process. Email can include attachments.
Additional General Adapters are planned, and can also be created through use of the NetIQ Aegis Software Development Kit (SDK).
NetIQ Aegis General Activities
| Description | Example | |
| Command Line Interface | Execute a Windows command via instructions typed into a command line | A workflow uses a command line activity to initiate a notification sequence in an external paging application. |
| VBScript | Execute a VBScript on a remote Windows computer (via WMI) or locally on the Aegis server | In response to a failure event from a management tool, a workflow calls a VBScript remotely on the affected computer to repair the problem. |
| Send e-mails, including attachments; receive incoming e-mails; and extract attachments from received e-mails | A workflow uses e-mail to forward information to an external management application that has an e-mail listener. | |
| Web Service | Execute a remote SOAP Web service method; includes GUI WSDL browser, method picker, and parameterization UI | An internal business application exposes a Web service API, which is called by an Aegis workflow to validate proper function of the business application. |
| Web Page | GET web page and POST to web pages | A workflow creates tickets in a web-based home-grown ticket tracking tool. |
| Search Engine | Conduct searches on internal and external search engines; Includes ability to add new search engines and search pages | A workflow is triggered by an observed change and needs to reconcile the change against approved change requests. The change request tool has a web-based search facility which is used by the workflow to find relevant change requests. |
| Text Files | Read and write text files, including single-row log files | A workflow reads a text configuration file and uses the output to execute the appropriate branch. The workflow logs the results into a single-line log file, which is read by an external application. |
| XML Files | Read and write XML files; parse XML files using xpath | A workflow creates a ticket in a helpdesk tool by writing an XML file to a directory monitored by the helpdesk tool. |
| CSV Files | Read and write CSV (comma- or other character-delimited) files; read CSV as table object which can be searched or referenced by specific cells, rows, and columns | An external management application is configured to export an object list to CSV at scheduled intervals. An Aegis workflow periodically reads the CSV, searches for specific records, and then executes response actions for each match. |
| Windows Registry | Read and write to Windows Registry entries | A workflow uses the Windows Registry to share information with another application running on the same computer. |
Additional General Activities are planned, and can also be created by anyone with .net programming skills.
Key Benefits
Aegis gives you the ability to immediately automate mundane, repetitive aspects of IT operations while providing the foundation for aggregating those tasks to achieve the larger goal of automating processes that span functional groups, such as those defined by ITIL.
- Get more done with your current staff – Through automation, Aegis acts like a force multiplier, offloading routine or mundane tasks so operators and administrators become more productive.
- Leverage your existing tool investments and processes – Aegis enables rapid translation of existing processes into automated workflows without needing to rip and replace tools already in use.
- Buy Aegis, get a correlation engine – Aegis includes a built-in correlation engine that reduces the number of events from multiple sources and re-prioritizes events based on service impact, reducing the cost of incident and problem management.
- Reduce wasted efforts – Aegis supplies built in performance metrics that help you benchmark performance, identify bottlenecks, streamline operations and apply continuous improvement methods.
