8.2 Viewing the Virtual NIC Configuration in the Development Client

You can visually expose a vNIC Grid object in the Development Client in two ways:

Figure 8-1 The Virtual NIC Info/Groups Page

The page that opens under the Info/Groups tab includes fields where you can configure the general information and attributes (facts) of the vNIC.

NOTE:Whenever you make changes to vNIC object facts, the write icon is superimposed on the object’s icon , signifying that the object has been altered. If you want to save the changes you have made, you need to click the Save icon on the Development Client toolbar.

This section includes the following additional information:

8.2.1 The Virtual NIC Info Panel

The Virtual NIC Info panel on the Info/Groups page includes the following sections:

Show Inherited Fact Values Check Box

Select this check box to show facts with overridden values supplied through attached and/or inherited policies. Such fact values are read only (non-editable).

Virtual NIC Information

The Virtual NIC Information panel on the Info page includes the following fields:

NOTE:Tool tip text is available when you mouse over any of these fields.

Description: A free-form field you can use to add any description about this vNIC.

In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.description:

<fact name="vnic.description" value="" type="String" />

Healthy: In most cases, this check box is selected by default, which designates the vNIC as being in good health.

NOTE:We recommend that you do not change the Healthy value from its default.

In the Fact Editor, this is fact is listed as vnic.health:

<fact name="vnic.health" value="true" type="Boolean" />

MAC Address: Specifies the MAC address assigned to this vNIC. An empty string implies an auto-generated MAC address, as does an asterisk (*).

When the VM appears on the network, this will be its MAC identifier. A MAC address must be unique on the network to avoid routing conflicts.

There are some situations when you might want to define a static MAC address. For example, if a VM uses DHCP, you might want the DHCP service on the network to give the VM a static address. When the VM boots up and attempts to get an IP address, it contacts the DHCP server, which sees its statically-defined MAC address and then provides the same IP address (not a new one) each time the VM boots up. In this way, the VM is consistently configured with the same IP address. You might also want to define a static MAC address for audit trails or other security reasons.

In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.mac:

<fact name="vnic.mac" value="" type="String" />

vBridge: Specifies the name of the actual host bridge used by this vNIC. When the VM is not running, this field is blank. When a VM is provisioned, a vBridge is chosen for this vNIC based on the available VM hosts and the specified network group. When the VM is running, the associated vBridge is identified in this field. For more information, see Section 9.0, The Network Group and its Virtual Bridge Objects.

In the Fact Editor, this read-only fact is listed as vnic.vbridge:

<fact name="vnic.vbridge" value="" type="String" />

VM: Specifies the name of the VM resource that uses this vNIC .

In the Fact Editor, this read-only fact is listed as vnic.vm:

<fact name="vnic.vm" value="" type="String" />

This is a fact junction referencing the associated VM. Conversely, the resource.vm.vnics fact visible from the VM Grid object is a fact junction showing the associated vNICs associated with the VM. A vNIC cannot be shared between two VMs. Each VM has its own vNIC objects.

Network: The network (vBridge group) that should be used by this vNIC when the VM is provisioned. This fact will be used in combination with the VM host placement constraints to choose a suitable vBridge at provision time.

In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.network:

<fact name="vnic.network" value="eth1" type="String" />

Autoprep/Sysprep Network Adapter

VMs can be prepared for provisioning by configuring the facts in this panel. Click Define on each field if the value has not been previously configured.

NOTE:When you change any of the settings in this panel, you need to right click the VM and select Personalize for the changes to take effect.

  • MAC Address: The MAC address of the interface. Specify an asterisk (*) to generate a new MAC address. If the value is not set, the existing vnic.mac is used.

    IMPORTANT:An unset MAC Address fact generates a new MAC address. This is contrary to the current tool tip text.

    In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.provisioner.autoprep.MACAddress:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.MACAddress" value="" type="String" />
    
  • Use DHCP: When this check box is selected (it has a value of true), the VM will be configured to retrieves its network settings from a DHCP server. If the check box is not selected (it has value of false), you should make sure that the IP address, subnet mask, and gateway address facts are defined.In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.provisioner.autoprep.UseDHCP:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.UseDHCP" value="false" type="Boolean" />
    
  • IP Address: The IP address for the adapter.

    In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.provisioner.autoprep.IPAddress:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.IPAddress" value="" type="String" />
    
  • Subnet Mask: The subnet mask for this adapter.

    In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.provisioner.autoprep.subnetMask:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.subnetMask" value="" type="String" />
    
  • Gateway IP Addresses: (Windows Sysprep only) A list of the gateway IP addresses available to the interface.

    In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as an array:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.Gateways">
      <array type="String">
      </array>
    </fact>
    

    You can edit this array by clicking the button to open an array editor. In this dialog box you can add or remove the IP address or change its order in the array of element choices.

  • DNS from DHCP: (Optional. SUSE VM only) When this check box is selected (it has a value of true), the SUSE VM is configured to retrieve its DNS server settings from DHCP.

    In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.provisioner.autoprep.DNSFromDHCP:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.DNSFromDHCP" value="false" type="Boolean" />
    
  • DNS Server IP Addresses: (Windows VM only) The adapter’s list of DNS servers used for name lookup.

    In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as an array:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.DNSServers">
      <array type="String">
      </array>
    </fact>
    
  • DNS Domain: (Windows VM only) The adapter’s DNS domain name.

    In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.provisioner.autoprep.DNSDomain:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.DNSDomain" value="" type="String" />
    
  • Primary WINS Server: (Windows VM only) The name of the adapter’s primary WINS server.

    In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.provisioner.autoprep.primaryWINS:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.primaryWINS" value="" type="String" />
    
  • Secondary WINS Server: (Windows VM only) The name of the adapter’s secondary WINS server.

    In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as vnic.provisioner.autoprep.secondaryWINS:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.secondaryWINS" value="" type="String" />
    
  • DNS Suffixes: (Windows VM only) A list of the suffixes associated with this adapter that are appended to the name for lookup.

    In the Fact Editor, this fact is listed as an array:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.DNSSuffixes">
      <array type="String">
      </array>
    </fact>
    

    You can edit this array by clicking the button to open an array editor. In this dialog box you can add or remove the DNS suffix or change its order in the array of element choices.

  • NetBIOS: (Windows VM only) The NetBIOS options for this VM. Options include:

    • EnableNetBIOSviaDhcp

    • EnableNetBIOS

    • DisableNetBIOS

    In the Fact Editor this fact is listed as vnic.provisioner.autoprep.netBIOS:

    <fact name="vnic.provisioner.autoprep.netBIOS" value="" type="String" />
    

8.2.2 The Virtual NIC Policies Tab

The Policies tab opens a page that contains a policy viewer for each of the policies associated with a Grid object.

NOTE:You can edit a policy by right-clicking a policy icon, selecting Edit Policy and clicking the Save icon.

8.2.3 The Virtual NIC Health Debugger Tab

The Health Debugger is a common Admin view in the Development Client for most Grid objects. For information about this tool, see Section A.3, The Health Debugger.

8.2.4 The Virtual NIC Constraints/Facts Tab

The Constraints/Facts tab opens a page that shows all of the effective constraints and facts for a Grid object. Each Grid object has an associated set of facts and constraints that define its properties. In essence, by building, deploying, and running jobs on the PlateSpin Orchestrate Server, you can individually change the functionality of any and all system resources by managing an object’s facts and constraints. The Orchestrate Server assigns default values to each of the component facts, although they can be changed at any time by the administrator, unless they are read-only. Facts with mode r/o have read-only values, which can be viewed (that is, using the edit “pencil” icon) but changes cannot be made.

For information about using the Fact Editor on this page to rename the Virtual NIC object, see Section 8.2.5, Virtual NIC Object Naming and Renaming.

8.2.5 Virtual NIC Object Naming and Renaming

Some resource names are generated by the Orchestrate system and can therefore receive generic, arbitrary names such as mysql-vnic1, mysql-vnic2, and so on. A Virtual NIC (vNIC) you name at creation time might also change later in its purpose or facilities.

As the quantity of these vNIC objects grows in your grid, you might find it helpful or necessary to rename them, assigning more meaningful, intuitive names to suit the purpose of the object. The object’s “display name” is visible in the Development Client interface, the VM Client interface, the Server Portal, and in optional zos and zosadmin commands.

NOTE:Resource object groups (that is, the folders that contain these vNIC objects) can also be renamed. Objects such as jobs, events, and users cannot be renamed.

A vNIC object’s name is stored in the ${objectType}.displayname fact, which exists on every Grid object type, even those objects that cannot be renamed.

You can rename a vNIC object in the Orchestrate Development Client using one of three methods:

  • Right-click the vNIC object in the Explorer tree, then select Rename to allow editing of the display name.

  • Triple-click the vNIC object in the Explorer tree to allow editing of the display name.

  • In the Constraints/Facts page, where you can select the vNIC object .displayname fact and then open the Fact Editor to enter a new value for that fact.

As you begin to rename using one of these methods, you will notice that the fact value is pre-populated with the ${objectType}.id fact. This functions as the name value for the object name until you decide to change it.

NOTE:Even after being renamed, the vNIC object retains its associated resource ID in the .id fact. This is not editable.

For more information about making the Resource object display names visible from the zos or zosadmin command line, see the PlateSpin Orchestrate 2.5 Command Line Reference.