Application Resources

Owned by Stonebranch (Deactivated)
Feb 06, 2023
8 min read

Overview

Application resource records are the core component of the Universal Controller Application Monitoring and Control feature.

These records define:

  • Names of the applications being monitored.
  • Name and location of the machines where they are running.
  • Start, Stop, and Query commands needed to perform the monitoring and control functions.

You can also use Application records and their associated Application Control tasks to start, stop, and query applications as part of your scheduling processes. You can execute Application Control tasks as you would execute any other task and include them in Workflows where applicable. In addition, you can define Application Monitor triggers to automatically launch one or more tasks of any type, depending on the status of one or more applications. For example, you might set up an Application Monitor trigger that sends an email to Windows technical support personnel if any Windows application goes to Impaired or Inactive status.

In order for the Controller to access the application, the application must be installed on a machine where Universal Agent (for Windows, Linux/Unix, or z/OS) is running.

If you set up the Controller to monitor your applications, you should always start and stop the applications from within the Controller. If you stop an application outside the Controller, you must also restart it from outside the Controller. If the Controller detects a problem with an application (the application goes to Impaired status), you should troubleshoot the problem and restart the application outside the Controller. The Controller will continue monitoring and when it detects that the application is back up, it will put the application back into Active status.

Built-In Variables

Application Monitor Trigger built-in variables are provided to pass information about an application being monitored into the task or tasks being launched by the trigger. You can pass the information into the launched tasks by including the variables in a text field in the task definition.

Creating an Application Resource Record

Step 1

From the Agents & Connections navigation pane, select System > Applications. The Applications list displays a list of all currently defined Application resource records.
 
To the right of the list, Application Details for a new Application resource record displays.
 

Step 2

Enter/select Details for a new Application resource record, using the field descriptions below as a guide.

  • Required fields display an asterisk ( * ) after the field name.
  • Default values for fields, if available, display automatically.

To display more of the Details fields on the screen, you can either:

  • Use the scroll bar.
  • Temporarily hide the list above the Details.
  • Click the  button above the list to display a pop-up version of the Details.

Step 3

Click a  button. The record is added to the database, and all buttons and tabs in the Application Details are enabled.
 
When you save a new Application resource record, the Controller also automatically creates three related Application Control Tasks, one each for starting, stopping, and querying the application.

Step 4

If appropriate, repeat these steps for any additional Application resource records that you want to add.

Note

To open an existing record on the list, either:

  • Click a record in the list to display its record Details below the list. (To clear record Details below the list, click the New button that displays above and below the Details.)
  • Clicking the Details icon next to a record name in the list, or right-click a record in the list and then click Open in the Action menu that displays, to display a pop-up version of the record Details.
  • Right-click a record in the a list, or open a record and right-click in the record Details, and then click Open In Tab in the Action menu that displays, to display the record Details under a new tab on the record list page (see Record Details as Tabs).

Application Details

The following Application Details is for an existing Application resource record. See the field descriptions, below, for a description of all fields that may display in the Application Details.

For information on how to access additional details - such as Metadata and complete database Details - for Application Resouirces (or any type of record), see Records.

Application Details Field Descriptions

The following table describes the fields, buttons, and tabs that display in the Application Details.
 

Field Name

Description

General

This section contains general information about the application.

Name

Name used within the Controller to identify this resource. Up to 40 alphanumerics. It is the responsibility of the user to develop a workable naming scheme for resources.

Version

Version number of the current record, which is incremented by the Controller every time a user updates a record. Click on the Versions tab to view previous versions. For details, see Record Versioning.

Description

Description of this record. Maximum length is 255 characters.

Member of Business Services

User-defined; allows you to select one or more Business Services that this Application resource belongs to. Click on the lock icon to unlock the field and select a Business Service.

Application Details

This section contains assorted detailed information about the application.

Application Type

User-defined; Type of application.
 
Options:

  • Windows Service
  • Linux/Unix Daemon
  • z/OS Started Task

Credentials


Login credentials that the Controller will use to access the remote machine. For z/OS application resources, make sure the credentials are in upper case.

Required if the Agent Credentials Required Universal Controller system property is true.


Windows Agent

If Application Type = Windows Service; Name of the Windows agent where the application will run.

Linux/Unix Agent

If Application Type = Linux/Unix Daemon; Name of the Linux/Unix agent where the application will run.

z/OS Agent

If Application Type = z/OS Started Task; Name of the z/OS agent where the application will run.

Environment Variables

If Application Type = Windows Service or Linux/Unix Daemon; Allows you to enter environment variables needed by the program to run.
 
To add a variable, click the + icon and enter a Name and Value. To delete a variable, select in the list of variables and click the - icon.
 
You can add a maximum of 4,000 characters for the combined Names and Values of all variables. The variable is listed in the space underneath.

Run as sudo

If Application Type = Linux/Unix Daemon; Instruction to run the command as Sudo (superuser do).

Runtime Directory

Directory where the application executes. Variables supported.

Start Command

Command used to start the application. This can be any process or command that starts the application. If you try to start an application monitor that is already started, you will see the message: Application already monitored with <status> status.

Stop Command

Command used to stop the application. This can be any process or command that stops the application.

Query Command

Command used to query the application. This can be any process or command that queries the application. You must first start the application monitor from the Controller before you can query the application.

Query Exit Code Processing

Specifies how the Controller should determine whether or not the application is running.
 
Options:

  • Success Exitcode Range - Application goes to or remains in Active status if its exit code falls within the range specified in the Query Exit Codes field (see below). Otherwise it has Impaired status.
  • Failure Exitcode Range - Application goes to or remains in Impaired status if its exit code falls within the range specified in the Exit Codes field (see below). Otherwise it has Active status.
  • Success Output Contains - Application goes to or remains in Active status if its output contains the text specified in the Scan Output For field (see below). Otherwise it has Impaired status.
  • Failure Output Contains - Application goes to or remains in Impaired status if its output contains the text specified in the Scan Output For field (see below). Otherwise it has Active status.

Query Exit Code

System-supplied if Query Exit Code Processing = Success Exitcode Range or Failure Exitcode Range; the most recent exit code returned by the application in response to a query.

Output Type

If Query Exit Code Processing = Success Output Contains or Failure Output Contains; type of output.
 
Options:

  • Standard Output (STDOUT)
  • Standard Error (STDERR)
  • File

Scan Output For

If Query Exit Code Processing = Success Output Contains or Failure Output Contains; string that the Controller should scan for in the output.

Output File

If Output Type = File; path and name of the file.

Startup Query Maximum

Maximum number of Query attempts to be made on the specified application.

Status

This section contains information about the current status of the task application.

Status

System-supplied; indicates the current status of the application.
 
Options:

  • Inactive - Application is not being monitored by the Controller.
  • Start Failure - Application failed to start. This may occur, for example, if you have problems with credentials or the start command itself is incorrect. When this occurs, the Controller is not monitoring the application. You should troubleshoot the problem and restart the application from the Controller.
  • Starting - Start command has been executed.
  • Active - Application has successfully started and is running, based on the parameters specified in the Exit Code processing fields.
  • Impaired - An application that is being monitored returned a response that, based on the specified exit code parameters, indicates it is not running. If this occurs, you should troubleshoot the problem and restart the application from outside the Controller. Unless you issue a stop command, the Controller continues monitoring during this process. When the application comes back up, the query process will recognize this and return the application to Active status.

Status Description

System-supplied; a more detailed status message describing why a status change occurred, in the format: "Query exit code <in-not in> <success-failure> exit code range. Query <success-failure> output not found."

Start Time

System-supplied; Date and time that the application was last started by the Controller.

Last Query

System-supplied; date and time of the last query response received from the application.

Startup Query Attempts

System-supplied; Number of queries that were executed before the Application went into Active or Impaired status.

Query Exit Code

Required if Query Exit Code Processing = Success Exitcode Range or Failure Exitcode Range; range of exit codes. Format is numeric.
 
Use commas to list a series of discontinuous exit codes; use hyphens to specify a series of continuous exit codes. For example: 1,5,11, 22-30.

Metadata

This section contains Metadata information about this record.

UUID

Universally Unique Identifier of this record.

Updated By

Name of the user that last updated this record.

Updated

Date and time that this record was last updated.

Created By

Name of the user that created this record.

Created

Date and time that this record was created.

Buttons

This section identifies the buttons displayed above and below the Application Details that let you perform various actions.

Save

Saves a new record in the Controller database.

Save & New

Saves a new record in the Controller database and redisplays empty Details so that you can create another new record.

Save & View

Saves a new record in the Controller database and continues to display that record.

New

Displays empty (except for default values) Details for creating a new record.

Update

Saves updates to the record.

Start

Executes the Start command associated with this Application resource and begins querying.

Stop

Executes the Stop command associated with this Application resource. the Controller stops the application and stops querying (monitoring).

Query

Executes the Query command associated with this Application resource. This allows you to get immediate status of the application instead of waiting for the next automated query.

Delete

Deletes the current record.

Refresh

Refreshes any dynamic data displayed in the Details.

Close

For pop-up view only; closes the pop-up view of the Details.

Tabs

This section identifies the tabs across the top of the Application Details that provide access to additional information about this Application resource.

Application Control Tasks

Lists all Application Control tasks associated with this Application resource.

Application Control Task Instances

Lists all Application Control task instances associated with this Application resource.

Application Monitor Triggers

Lists all Application Monitor triggers associated with this Application resource.