Essential Concepts - VMware VCENTER APPLICATION DISCOVERY MANAGER 6.1.1 User Manual

ADM User's Guide

Where are the hidden optimization opportunities and how can I capitalize on them?

How will these application changes impact my business?

What are the risks?

What are the problems and how can I solve them?

Essential Concepts

Table 1‐1 defines essential concepts of ADM.
Table 1-1. Essential Concepts
Concept
Configuration Item (CI)
Discovery
Management Data
Repository (MDR)
Groups
Change
Change tracking
Application pattern
Entity aging
10
Definition
A CI is a host (this can also include network devices such as switches or routers), an
application (also known as a service), or a network connection. For example, a Linux
host, Cisco router, or VMware ® ESX™ Server are all host CIs. Oracle is an application
CI. HTTP and SSH are network connection CIs.
Discovery is a continuous process that creates and maintains a detailed model of your
application environment. ADM discovers CIs. Chapter
about discovery.
The MDR is the database of ADM. When configuration item information is
discovered, it is stored in the MDR after reconciliation.
A group is a built‐in or user‐defined collection of one or more CIs. The admin users can
create groups so that they can easily view, analyze, and track the specific subset of
data. Group creation allows the admin user to classify CIs into logical sets or
collections so that actions such as creating reports, policies, or viewing the inventory
is applied to specific groups, instead of the entire database of CIs. Chapter
more information about groups.
A change is any change to a CI. For example, a change to a configuration file on a host
is a change.
Change tracking refers to a change in the discovered environment, such as a change
in the amount of activity on a host, a change in the demand on a host or service, or a
new host or connection that is present in the discovered environment. Change
tracking refers to behavioral changes. ADM allows you to create change tracking
policies that track behavioral changes in your application environment.
ADM discovers business applications by creating application patterns. The admin user
can create these from the Manage tab, or a VMware Professional Services
representative can provide you these. An application pattern definition consists of set
of rules that describe the requested pattern. The two set of rules are node rules and
connectivity rules. ADM analyzes the application pattern definition and discovers
instances of the application pattern. Node rules are group‐like rules that describe the
instances in the topology graph. Connectivity rules describe the edges in the topology
graph (that is, the connectivity between two instances).
ADM lets you create entity aging policies. For example, a service running in your
network is populated in the MDR, and is therefore visible to you from the User
Interface (UI). If you uninstall this service at a later time, you should no longer see it
as a running service in the UI. Creating an entity aging policy lets you view the most
updated state of your network, since it is a constantly changing environment. (An
entity is a network element, service or dependency, and any of their derived elements
such as a J2EE or database instance.)
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