5.2 Creating an Objective

Objectives are created as part of SLAs. Carefully consider the name of the objective before creating it. It is possible to rename an objective while creating it, but renaming is not allowed after it is saved.

After an objective is named and saved, the name cannot be changed.

Poorly defined objectives can result in an infinity value for service level metrics. For example, assume an objective is defined to calculate a percentage and the threshold is set as greater than 1.0 or 90.0. The threshold is illogical because the results should always be between 0 and 1. However, configuring the threshold to be greater than 100% or 90% makes sense. Operations Center can convert a percentage value to 1.0 or .90.

After an objective is created, it is possible to disable it, edit it, or make a duplicate copy to use as the basis for creating a new objective. These functions are accessed through icons on the Objective tab in the Service Level Agreements property page.

After an objective is defined, it appears on the Objectives tab of the Service Level Agreement property page for the element for which the SLA applies. To show and hide the details of objectives, double-click the title bar of the objective.

For information on the options to select when defining a new objective or editing an objective, see the section below for the specific type of objective.

To create an objective:

  1. In the Explorer pane, browse to an element, right-click the element, then select Properties. The Properties dialog opens.

  2. Under Administration, click Service Level Agreements.

  3. In the Service Level Agreements property page, click the Objectives tab.

  4. On the Objectives toolbar, click New Objective.

  5. Complete the settings for the new objective, as applicable for the objective type.

  6. Click the Threshold Condition drop-down list, then select the condition level that the element must reach before outage calculations begin.

  7. Click the Add New Action link to define actions that are performed when a violation occurs for the objective.

  8. Use the up and down arrow icons to reorder objectives.

  9. To save changes at any time, click Apply.