Linux/Unix Task

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Contents 1 Before You Begin 2 Creating a New Linux/Unix Task 3 Linux/Unix Task Field Descriptions 4 Specifying When a Task Runs 5 Monitoring Task Execution

Before You Begin

The Linux/Unix agent task allows you to run a platform-specific application on a Linux/Unix machine. To run a Linux/Unix task, you must first complete the following tasks:

• Install an OpsWise Automation Center Linux/Unix agent on a Linux/Unix machine.
• Launch the agent. When the agent connects with the core processor, it automatically creates an agent resource definition in the database.
• Optionally, customize the agent heartbeat and log levels, as described in Linux/Unix Resource Field Definitions.

Creating a New Linux/Unix Task

1. From the Navigation Pane, select Linux/Unix Tasks.
2. From the trigger wizard, select New. OpsWise Automation Center displays the Linux/Unix task screen, shown below.
3. Using the field descriptions provided below as a guide, complete the fields as needed.
4. Click the Submit button to save the record and return to the menu, or, right-click on the title bar and select Save to save the record and remain on the current display.
5. If appropriate, repeat these steps for any additional tasks you want to add.

Shown below is a sample Linux/Unix task screen. The task run statistics shown at the bottom appear after the first time this task has been launched.

Linux/Unix Task Field Descriptions

The table below describes the fields, buttons, and tabs on the Linux/Unix Agent task definition and task instance screens. Most fields appear on both screens; however they do not always appear at the same spot. In the latter case, the table provides a field description at the location found on the task definition screen. Some fields appear only on one of the screens. Field labels shown in bold appear only on the task instance screen and are labelled as such.

Field Name	Description
Task Name	Required. Name used within OpsWise Automation Center to identify this task. Up to 40 alphanumerics; variables supported. It is the user’s responsibility to develop a workable naming scheme for tasks.
Invoked by	Task instance only; system-supplied. How the task instance was launched. Options: Trigger: [Trigger Name] - The instance was launched by the named trigger. Workflow: [Workflow Name] - The instance was launched by the named workflow. Manually Launched - The instance was launched by a user. To identify the user who launched the instance:
Task	Task instance only; system-supplied.
Execution User	Task instance only; system-supplied.
Instance Reference Id	Task instance only; system-supplied.
Credentials	Optional. The login credentials OpsWise Automation Center will use to access the remote machine. See Credentials.
Credentials Variable	Optional. If enabled, the Credentials field (see above) converts from a reference field (where you browse and select a record) into a text field that allows you to enter a variable. Use the format: ${variable name}. The variable must be a supported type as described in Using Variables.
Run as sudo	Optional. Run the command as Sudo (superuser do).
Agent	Optional. The name of the Linux/Unix agent resource that describes the machine where the application will run. If you do not specify an agent, you must specify an agent cluster (see below).
Agent Cluster	Optional. You can specify an agent cluster in addition to or in place of a specific agent. An agent cluster is a group of agents, one of which the system will choose to run this task. If you specify an agent and an agent cluster, OpsWise Automation Center first tries to run the task on the specific agent. If the agent is not available, the system reverts to the agent cluster. See Configuring Agent Clusters for more information.
Agent Variable	Optional. If enabled, the Agent field (see above) converts from a reference field (where you browse and select a record) into a text field that allows you to enter a variable. Use the format: ${variable name}. The variable must be a supported type as described in Using Variables.
Agent Cluster Variable	Optional. If enabled, the Agent Cluster field (see above) converts from a reference field (where you browse and select a record) into a text field that allows you to enter a variable. Use the format: ${variable name}. The variable must be a supported type as described in Using Variables.
Hold on Start	Optional. If enabled, when the task is launched it appears in the Activity display with a status of Held. The task runs when the user releases it. .
Cluster Broadcast	Optional. You can specify a Cluster Broadcast in addition to or in place of a specific agent and/or Agent Cluster. When you specify an agent cluster in the Cluster Broadcast field, OpsWise Automation Center runs the task on all the agents in the cluster. Each instance of the task running on its own agent becomes a separate task instance record in the database and displays separately in the Activity monitor. See Configuring Agent Clusters for more information about defining agent clusters.
Summary	Optional. User-supplied description of this task.
Status	Task instance only; system-supplied. See Task Status.
Status Description	Task instance only; system-supplied. Provides additional information, if any, about the status of the task.
Queued Time	Task instance only; system-supplied. The time the task was queued for processing.
Process ID	Task instance only; system-supplied. The ID of the process that was launched.
Start Time	Task instance only; system-supplied. The time the task started.
CPU Time	Task instance only; system-supplied. The amount of CPU time the task took to run.
End Time	Task instance only; system-supplied. The time the task completed.
Duration	Task instance only; system-supplied. The amount of time the task took to run.
Member of Groups	Optional. Allows you to select one or more Opswise groups that this task definition belongs to. Click on the lock icon to unlock the field and select groups.
User-Estimated Duration	Optional. The estimated amount of time it should normally take to run this task. The value in this field is used by OpsWise Automation Center to calculate the User Estimated End Time when the task is launched. You can view this information by selecting the Task Instance record from the Activity screen.
Command	Required. The command being executed on the remote machine. Variables supported.
Parameters	Optional. Any arguments needed by the program to execute properly. Variables supported.
Runtime Directory	Optional. The directory where the application should be executed from. Variables supported.
Exit Code Processing	Required. Specifies how OpsWise Automation Center should determine whether the each step in the JCL failed or completed successfully. Options: Success Exitcode Range - The program is considered completed successfully if its exitcode falls within the range specified in the Exit Codes field (see below). Failure Exitcode Range - The program is considered failed if its exitcode falls within the range specified in the Exit Codes field (see below). Success Output Contains - The program is considered completed successfully if its output contains the text specified in the Scan Output For field (see below). Failure Output Contains - The program is considered failed if its output contains the text specified in the Scan Output For field (see below).
Output Type	Required if Exit Code Processing = Success Output Contains or Failure Output Contains. This field specifies the type of output. Options: Standard Output (STDOUT) Standard Error (STDERR) File
Exit Codes	Required if Exit Code Processing = Success Exitcode Range or Failure Exit Code Range. This field specifies the range. Each step in the JCL must end with an exit code that falls within the specified range or the step goes to a Failed status. Format: Numeric. Use commas to list a series of exitcodes; use hyphens to specify a range. Example: 1,5, 22-30.
Scan Output For	Required if Exit Code Processing = Success Output Contains or Failure Output Contains. This field specifies the text for which OpsWise Automation Center should scan the output file.
Output File	Required if Output Type = File. This field specifies the path and file name of the file containing exit code processing data.
Environment Variables: Name and Value	Optional. Allows you to enter environment variables needed by the program to run. Type in the name of the variable and its value, and click Add. The variable is listed in the space below. You can add as many variables as needed. To delete a variable, click the X button.
Automatic Output Retrieval	Optional. Allows you to specify whether you want the system to automatically retrieve any output from the job and attach it to the task instance record. Options: None - Do not attach any output to the task instance record. Standard Output - Attach all standard output. Standard Error - Attach standard error output. File - Attach the file specified in the Output File field.
Output File	Required if Automatic Output Retrieval=File. This field specifies the path and filename containing the output that you want attached to the task instance.
Starting Line	Optional. Allows you to instruct the system to fetch data beginning at the line indicated.
Number of Lines	Optional. Allows you to limit the retrieved data to the number of lines specified. The default is 100. You can change the default by modifying the record Configuration > Properties > Retrieve Output Default Maximum Lines.
Scan Output For	Optional. Instructs the system to scan the data for the text specified and retrieve only that.
Late Start	Optional. If enabled, and if the task instance starts after the time specified in the Late Start Time field (see below), the task instance is flagged as late. To determine whether a task instance started late, open the task instance and locate the Started Late field; the field is checked if the instance started late.
Late Start Type	Required if Late Start is enabled. Options are: Time - Flag the task if it starts after the specified time. Duration - Flag the task if it starts a certain amount of time after the programmed start time. The task must have a specific start time.
Late Start Time (hh:mm)	Required if Start Type=Time. The time after which the task start time is considered late. Use hh:mm, 24-hour time.
Late Finish	Optional. If enabled, and if the task instance finishes after the time or period specified, the task instance is flagged as late. You can specify a time or duration to determine a late finish (see Late Finish Type below). To determine whether a task instance finished late, open the task instance and locate the Finished Late field; the field is checked if the instance finished after the specified time or lasted longer than expected.
Late Finish Type	Required if Late Finish is enabled. Use this field to specify whether you want to use time (see Late Finish Time below) or duration (see Late Finish Duration below) to determine whether the task instance finished late.
Late Finish Time (hh:mm)	Required if Late Finish Type=Time. Use this to specify the time after which the task finish time is considered late. Use hh:mm, 24-hour time.
Late Finish Duration	Required if Late Finish Type is Duration. Use this to specify the longest amount of time this task instance should take to run. You can specify any combination of days, hours, minutes, and seconds.
User Estimated End Time	Task instance only; system-supplied.
Shortest Estimated End Time	Task instance only; system-supplied.
Average Estimated End Time	Task instance only; system-supplied.
Longest Estimated End Time	Task instance only; system-supplied.
Early Finish	Optional. If enabled, and if the task instance finishes before the time or period specified, the task instance is flagged as early. You can specify a time or duration to determine an early finish (see Early Finish Type below). To determine whether a task instance finished early, open the task instance and locate the Finished Early field; the field is checked if the instance finished before the specified time or did not last as long as expected.
Early Finish Type	Required if Early Finish is enabled. Use this field to specify whether you want to use time (see Early Finish Time below) or duration (see Early Finish Duration below) to determine whether the task instance finished early.
Finished Early	Task instance only; system-supplied. This field is flagged if the task finished earlier than specified in the Early Finish fields.
Early Finish Time (hh:mm)	Required if Early Finish Type is Time. Use this to specify the time before which the task finish time is considered early. Use hh:mm, 24-hour time.
Early Finish Duration	Required if Early Finish Type is Duration. Use this to specify the shortest amount of time this task instance should take to run. If the task finishes before the amount of time specified, it is flagged as early. You can specify any combination of days, hours, minutes, and seconds.
Task Priority	Task instance only; system-supplied.
Maximum Retries	Optional. Allows you to specify the maximum number of times the system should retry running the task if technical problems are keeping it from running.
First Time Ran	System-supplied. Displays on task definition record after task has been run. The date and time this task first ran.
Lowest Instance Time	System-supplied. Displays on task definition record after task has been run. The shortest amount of time this task has taken to run.
Last Time Ran	System-supplied. Displays on task definition record after task has been run. The last date and time the task ran.
Average Instance Time	System-supplied. Displays on task definition record after task has been run. The average amount of time this task takes to run.
Number of Instances	System-supplied. Displays on task definition record after task has been run. The number of times this task has run.
Highest Instance Time	System-supplied. Displays on task definition record after task has been run. The longest amount of time this task has taken to run.
Last Instance Duration	System-supplied. Displays on task definition record after task has been run. The amount of time the task took to run the last time it ran.
Submit button	Submits the new record to the database.
Update button	Saves updates to the record.
Launch Task button	Manually launches the task.
Delete button	Deletes the current record.
Output tab	Displays output generated from the process.
Task Virtual Resources tab	Allows you to create virtual resource definitions for controlling access to resources by multiple tasks. See Creating Virtual Resources.
Variables tab	Displays all variables associated with this task.
Actions tab	Allows you to specify actions that the system will take automatically based on events that occur during the execution of this task. Events supported are task instance status, exit codes, late start, late finish, and early finish. Actions include: Abort Action - Abort the task if certain events occur. For details, see Setting Up Abort Actions. Email Notification - Send an email if certain events occur. For details, see Creating Email Notifications. SNMP Notification - Send an email if certain events occur. For details, see Creating SNMP Notifications. Set Variable - Set a variable if certain events occur. For details, see Setting Variables in a Workflow.
Task Instances tab	System-supplied. Displays a list of all instances generated by this task.
Triggers tab	Displays a list of all triggers that have been defined to launch this task. Also allows you to add new triggers. For instructions, see Triggers.
Notes tab	Displays all notes associated with this task. See Runbook Notes.

Specifying When a Task Runs

You can run the task as part of a workflow, specify triggers that run the task automatically based on times or events, or run the task manually.

Monitoring Task Execution

You can monitor all system activity from the Activity screen and can view activity history from the Activity History screen.