Agentless Monitoring of the IIB server

If the eG agent is required to monitor the IIB server from a remote location, then the eG agent communicates with the IIB server through an Active Directory server. This way, the security of the eG agent and the IIB server communication is not compromised. Prior to monitoring the IIB server in an agentless manner, you will be required to create a user in the Active Directory server.

Creating a user in the Active Directory server

If the eG agent monitors the IIB server from a remote location, then the Active Directory user needs to be created using which the JMS Administered Object is stored. By default, the user attributes store the JMS Administered Object. Follow the below-mentioned steps to create a new user in the Active Directory server prior to creating a JMS Administered Object:

  1. Login to the Active Directory server host and follow the menu sequence mentioned in Figure 1.

    Figure 1 : Following the menu sequence in the Active Directory server host

  2. The Active Directory Users and Computers page will then open listing the domain on which the Active Directory server operates. In our example, the name of the domain is DIATEST.COM. Follow the menu sequence mentioned in Figure 2 to create a new Organizational Unit in the domain.

    Figure 2 : Creating a new Organizational Unit

  3. Figure 3 will then appear where you would be required to specify the name of the Organizational Unit.

    Figure 3 : Specifying the name of the Organizational Unit

  4. Specify the Name of the Organizational Unit that you wish to create in Figure 3 and click the Ok button. In our example, the Name of the Organizational Unit is eg_IIB_OU.
  5. The Organizational Unit will now be created and will be listed under the DIATEST.COM node as shown in Figure 4. If the eG agent is required to communicate with the IIB server through the Active Directory server, a new user needs to be created whose attributes are authenticated by the IIB server while being monitored by the eG agent. The user attributes store the message details of the connection factory and destinations of the IIB server which are then extracted by the eG agent during monitoring. Follow the menu sequence in Figure 4 to create a new User.

    Figure 4 : Creating a new user

  6. Figure 5 then appears. Specify the First name of the user and the User logon name of the user in Figure 5. In our example, the First name and User logon name of the user is egibmibuser.

    Figure 5 : Specifying the name of the user

  7. Clicking the Next button in Figure 5 will lead you to Figure 6 where you would be required to specify the Password for the new user. Confirm the password by retyping it in the Confirm password text box and select the Password never expires check box.

    Figure 6 : Providing the password for the new user

  8. Figure 7 will then appear listing the credentials of the user .Clicking the Finish button in Figure 7 will ensure the successful creation of the user.

    Figure 7 : Displaying the credentials of the newly created user

  9. Once the user is created, the attributes of the user will store the messages published by the IIB server. The eG agent will communicate with the IIB server through the Active Directory server and collect the required metrics for monitoring from these attributes.

Automatically creating a JMS Administered Object using scripts

Follow the steps mentioned below to automatically create a JMS Administered Object:

  1. By default, the following files will be available in the <EG_INSTALL_DIR>\lib\ folder say for e.g., C:\egurkha\lib\ of the target environment:

    • eGJMSIIBCreateConfig.bat
    • eGJM
  2. If the IIB server is installed on a Windows environment, execute the eGJMSIIBCreateConfig.bat file from the command prompt of the IIB server host as follows:

    C:\egurkha\lib\>eGJMSIIBCreateConfig.bat

    Then proceed to step 5.

  3. If the IIB server is installed on a Linux environment, execute the eGJMSIIBCreateConfig.sh file from the shell script

    /opt/egurkha/lib/>eGJMSIIBCreateConfig.sh

  4. Now, specify the exact location on which the MQ Java installation directory is installed. In our example, the installation path is /opt/mqm/java/.

    Please enter the MQ java installed path: /opt/mqm/java/

  5. Once the respective files for the Windows and Linux environments are executed successfully, you will be asked to provide the input parameters that are required for creating the JMS Administered Object. To begin with, specify the location of the JNDI namespace as mentioned below:

    Where is the JNDI namespace located?

    1. File System

    2. LDAP Server

    Enter your choice [1]: 2

  6. Selecting the LDAP Server option indicates that the JNDI namespace will be created on the Active Directory server. Once you have chosen the LDAP Server option, you will be required to provide the IP address of the LDAP server.

    Enter the IP address of the LDAP server: 192.168.8.79

  7. Next, specify the port number of the LDAP server.

    Enter the LDAP Listener port: 389

  8. Then, specify whether the LDAP server is SSL enabled. By default, the LDAP server is not SSL enabled.

    Is the LDAP server SSL enabled? Yes/No [No]: No

  9. Next, specify the credentials of the user that you have created in Section 1.1. The credentials of the user should be in the format: cn=<name of the user>,ou=<name of the Organizational Unit>,dc=<name of the domain controller>. In our example, the user credentials will be as follows:

    Enter the User DN: cn=egibmibuser,ou=eg_IIB_OU,dc=DIATEST,dc=COM

  10. Enter the password of the user that you have specified while creating the user (see Figure 6).

    Enter your password:**********

  11. Once all the inputs for the LDAP server are provided, you will be specified to provide the IP address of the IIB server host.

    Enter the host IP address on which the IBM Integration Bus is installed: 192.168.9.165

  12. To create the Connection Factories and the Destinations, specify the name of the queue manager.

    Enter the name of the QManager: IB9QMGR

  13. Now, specify the name of the node in the IIB server host that is to be monitored as shown below:

    Enter the name of the Integration node: IB9NODE

  14. Finally, specifying the port on which the QManager listens will automatically create the JMS Administered Object along with the Connection Factories and the Destinations.

    Enter the port on which the QManager listens: 2414

  15. If all the input parameters are successfully validated, then the following details will appear.

    ****************************************************************************

    Following are the parameters that need to be provided while configuring the tests:

    HOST = 192.168.9.165

    QMANAGER NAME = IB9QMGR

    QMANAGER PORT = 2414

    INTEGRATION NODE NAME = IB9NODE

    JNDI NAMESPACE LOCATION = LDAP

    SSL = No

    USERDN ==> cn=egibmibuser,ou=eg_IIB_OU,dc=DIATEST,dc=COM

    JNDI PROVIDER URL ==> ldap://192.168.8.79:389/cn=egibmibuser,ou=eg_IIB_OU,dc=DIATEST,dc=COM

    TOPICCONNECTIONFACTORY = eG_TCF_192.168.9.165_2414

    JMS RESOURCE STATS = eG_Res_Topic_192.168.9.165_2414

    JMS FLOW STATS = eG_Msg_Topic_192.168.9.165_2414

    ****************************************************************************

  16. Specify the values mentioned above against the appropriate fields while configuring the tests for the IIB server that is to be monitored. To know how to configure the tests, refer to Chapter 2 of this document.

Note:

If you fail to notice the details mentioned in Step 15, then you can figure them out in the <EG_INSTALL_DIR>\lib\IIB\eG_IIB_test_config.log file. If multiple IIB nodes are monitored in the target environment, then the test parameter values will be stored for each IIB node separately. 

Manually creating a JMS Administered Object in the IIB server using MQ Explorer console/GUI

Follow the steps mentioned below to create a JMS Administered Object:

  1. From the IIB server host, follow the menu sequence: Start -> All Programs -> IBM Integration Bus 9.0 -> IBM Integration Explorer (see Figure 8).

    Figure 8 : Opening the IBM Integration Explorer menu

  2. Open the IBM Integration Explorer as shown in Figure 8. Figure 9 will then appear.

    Figure 9 : Opening the IBM WebSphere MQ Explorer

  3. Right clicking the JMS Administered Objects node from the MQ Explorer – Navigator panel will display the Add Initial Context option (see Figure 9). An initial context is the root of the JNDI namespace that is used to access the JMS objects that are stored in them.

    Figure 10 : Choosing the location of the JNDI namespace

  4. In Figure 10 that appears, you will be required to provide the location of the JNDI namespace on which the JMS Administered Object is stored. If the eG agent monitors the IIB server from a remote location, then set the Where is the JNDI namespace located? to LDAP server.
  5. Specify the IP address and the Port number of the Active directory server that is used by the eG agent to communicate with the IIB server in the Host text box of Figure 10. In the Distinguished name text box, specify the credentials of the user that you have created in Creating a user in the Active Directory server. The credentials of the user should be in the format: CN=<name of the user>,OU=<name of the Organizational Unit>,DC=<name of the domain controller>. In our example, the user credentials will be as follows: CN=egibmibuser,OU=eg_IIB_OU,DC=DIATEST,DC=COM. Once the Host and the Distinguished name are specified, the Provider URL will be displayed automatically as shown in Figure 11.

    Figure 11 : Specifying the exact path of the JNDI namespace

  6. Clicking the Next button in Figure 11 will navigate you to Figure 12. Provide a name of your choice in the Context nickname textbox.

    Figure 12 : Providing a nickname for the JMS Administered Object to be created

  7. Clicking the Finish button in Figure 12 will invoke Figure 13. Specify the User DN as mentioned in the Distinguished name text box of Figure 12 and the Password as mentioned in Figure 6. Clicking the OK button in Figure 13 will complete the initial context specification.

    Figure 13 : Specifying the login credentials of the new user

  8. The nickname specified in Figure 12 will be displayed as the name of the JMS Administered object in the MQ Explorer – Navigator section. In our example, the nickname is not specified and the Provider URL is automatically displayed as the JMS Administered Object with two default folders named Connection Factories and Destinations (see Figure 13).

    Figure 14 : Viewing the created JMS Administered Object

Now let us discuss the steps that need to be followed for creating a connection factory and the destinations.

Creating a Connection Factory

For an eG agent to connect to the IIB and collect the desired metrics, a connection needs to be established between the eG agent and the Queue manager of the IIB that is to be monitored. To establish such a connection, you would be required to create a connection factory. Follow the below mentioned steps to create a connection factory:

  1. Right click the Connection Factories folder of Figure 15 and follow the menu sequence: New -> Connection Factory (see Figure 15).

    Figure 15 : Creating a new connection factory

  2. In Figure 16 that appears, specify the Name of the connection factory. In our example, the name of the connection factory is EgTopicConnectionFactory.

    Figure 16 : Specifying the name of the connection factory

  3. By default, the messages from the IIB are published on the WebSphere MQ. The eG agent is required to subscribe to the messages in order to monitor the IIB. Select WebSphere MQ as the Messaging provider so that the eG agent can communicate with the WebSphere MQ to collect the required metrics while monitoring the IIB.

    Figure 17 : Selecting the type of the connection factory

  4. Clicking the Next button in Figure 16 will enable you to select the Type of the connection factory. Since the eG agent subscribes to the published messages to collect the metrics, select Topic Connection Factory option as the Type. Clicking the Next button will navigate you to Figure 18.

    Figure 18 : Selecting the transport type of the connection factory

  5. Select MQ client as the Transport type from Figure 18 and click the Next button.
  6. The Change Properties page will then appear displaying the general settings of the connection factory. Click the Connection option in the left panel to select the base queue manager of the IIB node that is to be monitored (see Figure 19). Clicking the Select… button will list out all the available Queue managers in the Select the Base Queue manager pop up window. Select the queue manager of your choice and click the OK button in Figure 19.

    Figure 19 : Selecting the Base queue manager

  7. In the Connection list of Figure 20, specify the host name i.e., the IP address of the chosen queue manager and the port on which the queue manager listens in the following format: IP address(Port).

    Figure 20 : Specifying the host name and port number of the chosen queue manager

  8. If you have chosen to use a custom server connection channel for monitoring by the eG Enterprise, then you may be required to select the server connection channel of your choice from the Channels option of the Change Properties page. The default server connection channel will be listed in the Channel text box as shown in Figure 21.

    Figure 21 : The default server connection channel

  9. Clicking the Select button against the Channel text box in Figure 21 will lead you to Figure 22 where you will be required to choose the server connection channel that you have created for monitoring purpose by the eG Enterprise.

    Figure 22 : Selecting a server connection channel of your choice

  10. Clicking the OK button in Figure 22 will populate the Channel text box of Figure 21 with the chosen server connection channel as shown in Figure 24.

    Figure 23 : Displaying the chosen server connection channel

  11. Clicking the Apply button in Figure 23 will let the chosen server connection channel to communicate with the eG agent to collect the required metrics from the target server.
  12. To identify the port at which the queue manager is listening, select the Listeners node available below the IIB node that is to be monitored in the MQ Explorer – Navigator panel (see Figure 24). The port number will be displayed in the Listeners panel as shown in Creating the JMS Destinations section.

    Figure 24 : Identifying the port number of the chosen queue manager

  13. Clicking the Finish button in Figure 20 will create the connection factory successfully.

Creating the JMS Destinations

By default, the eG agent collects the metrics from the IIB by subscribing to the default topics that are available in the IIB. To store the messages retrieved from the subscribed topics, two new destinations need to be created. Follow the steps below to create the destinations:

  1. Right click the Destinations folder of Figure 8 and follow the menu sequence: New -> Destination (see Figure 25).

    Figure 25 : Creating a new JMS destination

  2. In Figure 26 that appears, enter the Name of the destination that you wish to create. Choose the destination Type i.e., the Topic that you wish to subscribe.

    Figure 26 : Figure 49: Providing the name of the JMS destination

  3. Clicking on the Next button in Figure 26 will lead you to the Change properties page as shown in Figure 27.

    Figure 27 : Providing the Topic for storing the resource statistics

  4. By default, message flow statistics are stored in one destination and the resource statistics are stored in another destination. To create a destination to store the resource statistics, provide the following string in the Topic text box of Figure 27.

    $SYS/Broker/<Name of the IIB node>/ResourceStatistics/#

    In our example, the string will be as follows:

    $SYS/Broker/IB9NODE/ResourceStatistics/#

  5. Clicking the Finish button in Figure 27 will create the desired JMS destination.
  6. In order to create a new destination named EGStatisticsAccounting, follow the steps 1-3 mentioned above. In the Change properties page as shown in Figure 28, provide the following string in the Topic text box.

    $SYS/Broker/<name of the IIB node>/StatisticsAccounting/#

    In our example, the string will be

    $SYS/broker/IB9NODE/StatisticsAccounting/#

    Figure 28 : Providing the Topic for collecting the message flow statistics

  7. Clicking the Finish button in Figure 28 will create the JMS destination successfully.