Event Management and Best Practices

Appendix A. Suggested NetView configuration 417

Now you can display your seed file from the Web console. Select

Tools

→Mytools →View seed file from the Web console menu. A browser

window (Figure A-8) opens that shows the result of the operation.

Figure A-8 The resulting output

A smartset example

Smartsets are great when you need to group objects of the same type or in a

specific location. They provide an overview of the status of the type of selected

object without clicking through multiple submaps. An additional advantage is, in

case you defined the correct rule, the dynamic nature of a smartset.

You can define rules to include NetView objects based on the actual contents of

an attribute. For example, we define a smartset, which displays only those

connection objects, switches, and routers that are marked in a status other than

normal.

The status for a switch is maintained in two object attributes:

򐂰 IP Status attribute: Is set by the layer 3 topology management components

only. In case of a switch, it never shows the status

marginal.

418 Event Management and Best Practices

򐂰 Layer2Status attribute: Is set by IBM Tivoli Switch Analyzer and shows a

status that is

not equal normal in case IBM Tivoli Switch Analyzer cannot

status poll the ports discovered for that node.

Based on these conditions, we can develop a simple rule, which matches only

those switches that are not up and running:

򐂰 The device or object being included must be of type connector.

򐂰 Its IP status or Layer2 status must be other than normal.

Now we need to bring this into a smartset rule definition:

(('isConnector' = True) && ('IP Status' != 'Normal') || ('Layer2Status' !=

'Normal')

Then define the rule with the ruleset editor:

1. From the NetView EUI, select Tools

→Smartset Editor.

2. In the window that opens, select the Text Editor button and click Add.

3. The compound rule editor opens. The editor window that you normally use to

define simple rules cannot be used in our case, because we compare status

attributes. The simple rule editor only allows us to define an equal condition in

the form <status attribute = ‘<enumeration of states>’. It negates the

result at once, which makes an ineffective definition. In our case, we want to

test for a status not equal normal.

Give the rule a name and a description. Enter the rule definitions as shown in

Figure A-9. Then click OK.

Appendix A. Suggested NetView configuration 419

Figure A-9 The rule definition

4. If you have some failing connector devices, you can test the rule. Otherwise

save it. Saving the rule creates a smartset, which remains in

Unknown status

until it is opened for the first time. Then it shows you the objects similar to

what you see in Figure A-10. This example contains the failing objects from

test case 2 in 5.2.7, “Real-life example” on page 161.

Figure A-10 A dynamic smartset

420 Event Management and Best Practices

After you resolve the failure conditions, NetView removes the affected objects

from the smartset submap as shown in Figure A-11.

Figure A-11 Test situation resolved