Batch Installation - Use Cases - Homogeneous environment

Introduction

This article is one of a series describing how to configure the JobScheduler Universal Agent Batch Installer so that a number of Universal Agents can be readily installed on a number of servers.

Article Scope

This article describes how to use the Universal Agent Batch Installer to install Agents in a homogeneous environment. Other use cases in this series of articles are listed in the introductory JobScheduler Universal Agent - Batch Installation and Update of Agents article.

A general introduction to installation of the JobScheduler Universal Agent can be found in the JobScheduler Universal Agent - Installation & Operation article.

The JobScheduler Universal Agent - Batch Installation and Update of Agents article provides an overview of how the Batch Installer works. New users are strongly recommended to read this article before proceeding with the instructions presented here.

The Batch Installation - Reference Documentation article provides a detailed guide to configuration of the batch installer with, for example, full lists of parameters.

Installation Environment

This article describes the use of the JobScheduler Universal Agent Batch Installer in a homogeneous environment - that is an environment in which a number of JobScheduler Agents will be installed according to the same prerequisites:

• A JobScheduler Master is up and running.
• The Agent installations are to be performed on any number of servers that have the same operating system. One Agent is to be installed per server.
• The Agents will be operated with the same user, listening port and installation path.

Installation Procedure

Download the Batch Installer and Agent Files

The following steps have to be carried out. Files can be downloaded from http://www.sos-berlin.com/jobscheduler-downloads

1. Unix
   • Download the "JobScheduler Universal Agent" tarball for Unix.
   • Download the "Universal Agent Batch Installer". The archive contains the following: 
     • a config/live/batch_installer_agent folder, with the jobs and job chains. Extract these files to the the live folder of the JobScheduler Master: SCHEDULER_DATA/config/live.
     • a config/batch_installer folder with the configuration files for the Batch Installer. Extract these files to the config directory of the JobScheduler Master: SCHEDULER_DATA/config.
     • Copy the JobScheduler Universal Agent installation file to the SCHEDULER_DATA/config/batch_installer folder.
2. Windows
   • Download the "JobScheduler Universal Agent" for Windows.
   • Download the "Universal Agent Batch Installer". The archive contains the following
     • the config/live/batch_installer_agent folder with the jobs and job chains. Extract these files to the live folder of the JobScheduler Master SCHEDULER_DATA/config/live.
     • the config/batch_installer folder with the configuration files for the Batch Installer. Extract these files to the JobScheduler configuration directory SCHEDULER_DATA/config.
     • Copy the JobScheduler Universal Agent installation file to the folder SCHEDULER_DATA/config/batch_installer.

Configuration

XML files

Configuring complex XML files with a text editor is often a tedious and error-prone procedure. To get around this, we recommend that you use our XML Editor to manage the configuration files required for the Batch Installer. The XML Editor automatically validates configuration files and therefore reduces the possibility of configuration errors. See the Using the XML Editor chapter below for more detailed information about using the XML Editor. 

• After downloading the XML Editor, extract the contents of the zip file to a convenient folder (an installation routine is not required) and start the sos.xml.editor.exe program.
• Open your yade_agent_batch_installer_settings.xml YADE configuration file, which is located in the config/batch_installer folder and assign the XSD schema http://www.sos-berlin.com/schema/yade/YADE_configuration_v1.0.xsd. See the YADE profiles for the file transfer chapter below for instructions on how to configure the YADE configuration file.
• Open your batch_installer_config_file.xml configuration file in the XML Editor and assign the scheduler_universal_agent_installations.xsd schema: both files are located in the config/batch_installer folder. See the Batch Installer Configuration File chapter below for instructions on how to configure the Batch Installer configuration file.

JobScheduler Jobs

Carry out the following once the job and job chain have been extracted to the live folder of your JobScheduler Master: 

• AgentBatchInstaller job: set the parameter values for the AgentBatchInstaller job in your JobScheduler Master.

  • Set the installation_definition_file job parameter to the path that points to the Batch Installer configuration file.

Installation of the Agents

The Agents can be installed after the XML configuration files and JobScheduler jobs have been configured. Start a task for the AgentBatchInstaller job as follows:

1. Open a JobScheduler Operating Center (JOC) browser window for the JobScheduler master.
2. Go on the "Jobs" Window and open the "batch_installer_universal_agent" folder.
3. Right click on the job to open the context menu.
   
4. Select the Start task immediately operation.
5. This job will create the appropriate JobScheduler orders as explained in the chapter Batch Installer Application.

Example: Installation of two Agents

The following example describes the installation of two Agents on separate servers. First of all, the YADE configuration file for the file transfer will be configured (in XML format), it will then be converted to the YADE settings file format (.ini) and finally the Batch Installer configuration file will be specified.

YADE Configuration File for File Transfer

We assume that you  have opened the yade_agent_batch_installer_settings.xml YADE configuration file in the XML Editor and assigned the http://www.sos-berlin.com/schema/yade/YADE_configuration_v1.0.xsd XSD schema.

A separate profile in the YADE configuration file is required for each Agent installation. The default profile name is <host>:<port> where:

• <host> will be substituted with the value from the <installation><agent_option><scheduler_ip_address> element and
• <port> will be substituted with the value from the <installation><agent_option><scheduler_http_port> element.

Now carry out the following steps:

1. Add a <ProtocolFragments> element and nodes for each host that you want to install the Agent for. The best way to add another <ProtocolFragments> element using the XML Editor is copying the element and pasting it to the parent element - in this case <Fragments>.
2. Add a <Profile> element and nodes for each host that you want to install the Agent for. The best way to add another <Profile> element using the XML Editor is copying the element and pasting it to the parent element - here <Profiles>.
3. The default profile_id is <host>:<port>. If you do not use the default then you have to specify the profile name in the Batch Installer configuration file.

The contents of the YADE configuration file for the example is listed in the following code block:

 <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Configurations xsi:noNamespaceSchemaLocation="http://www.sos-berlin.com/schema/yade/YADE_configuration_v1.0.xsd" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
  <Fragments>
    <ProtocolFragments>
      <SFTPFragment name="SFTP_192.11.0.111:4445">
        <BasicConnection>
          <Hostname><![CDATA[192.11.0.111]]></Hostname>
        </BasicConnection>
        <SSHAuthentication>
          <Account><![CDATA[test]]></Account>
          <AuthenticationMethodPassword>
            <Password><![CDATA[xxxx]]></Password>
          </AuthenticationMethodPassword>
        </SSHAuthentication>
      </SFTPFragment>
      <SFTPFragment name="SFTP_192.11.0.95:4445">
        <BasicConnection>
          <Hostname><![CDATA[192.11.0.95]]></Hostname>
        </BasicConnection>
        <SSHAuthentication>
          <Account><![CDATA[test]]></Account>
          <AuthenticationMethodPassword>
            <Password><![CDATA[xxxx]]></Password>
          </AuthenticationMethodPassword>
        </SSHAuthentication>
      </SFTPFragment>
    </ProtocolFragments>
  </Fragments>
  <Profiles>
    <Profile profile_id="192.11.0.111:4445">
      <Operation>
        <Copy>
          <CopySource>
            <CopySourceFragmentRef>
              <LocalSource />
            </CopySourceFragmentRef>
            <SourceFileOptions>
              <Selection>
                <FileSpecSelection>
                  <FileSpec><![CDATA[.*\.(sh|gz)$]]></FileSpec>
                  <Directory><![CDATA[C:\Program Files (x86)\sos-berlin.com\jobscheduler\vg_4444\scheduler_data\config\batch_installer]]></Directory>
                </FileSpecSelection>
              </Selection>
            </SourceFileOptions>
          </CopySource>
          <CopyTarget>
            <CopyTargetFragmentRef>
              <SFTPFragmentRef ref="SFTP_192.11.0.111:4445" />
            </CopyTargetFragmentRef>
            <Directory><![CDATA[/home/test/tmp/]]></Directory>
          </CopyTarget>
        </Copy>
      </Operation>
    </Profile>
    <Profile profile_id="192.11.0.95:4445">
      <Operation>
        <Copy>
          <CopySource>
            <CopySourceFragmentRef>
              <LocalSource />
            </CopySourceFragmentRef>
            <SourceFileOptions>
              <Selection>
                <FileSpecSelection>
                  <FileSpec><![CDATA[.*\.(sh|gz)$]]></FileSpec>
                  <Directory><![CDATA[C:\Program Files (x86)\sos-berlin.com\jobscheduler\vg_4444\scheduler_data\config\batch_installer]]></Directory>
                </FileSpecSelection>
              </Selection>
            </SourceFileOptions>
          </CopySource>
          <CopyTarget>
            <CopyTargetFragmentRef>
              <SFTPFragmentRef ref="SFTP_192.11.0.95:4445" />
            </CopyTargetFragmentRef>
            <Directory><![CDATA[/home/test/tmp/]]></Directory>
          </CopyTarget>
        </Copy>
      </Operation>
    </Profile>
  </Profiles>
</Configurations>

YADE Settings File for File Transfer

Note that the file shown above is in the YADE XML format and that YADE versions 1.10 and older require a .ini file to perform the transfer that is specified in the <globals><install_path><transfer><settings> element in the Batch Installer configuration file.

• We recommended that you use the XML Editor to convert configuration files from XML to the .ini format (see the XML Editor for converting YADE configuration files (XML) into YADE setting files (.ini) section below for more information).
• The following example shows as an example a .ini file that has been converted from the XML file above. You can download the example using this link: yade_agent_batch_installer_settings.ini.
  
  

[protocol_fragment_sftp@SFTP_192.11.0.111:4445]
protocol                            = sftp
host                                = 192.11.0.111
user                                = test
ssh_auth_method                     = password
password                            = xxxx

[protocol_fragment_sftp@SFTP_192.11.0.95:4445]
protocol                            = sftp
host                                = 192.11.0.95
user                                = test
ssh_auth_method                     = password
password                            = xxxx

[192.11.0.111:4445]
operation                           = copy
source_protocol                     = local
file_spec                           = .*\.(sh|gz)$
source_dir                          = C:\Program Files (x86)\sos-berlin.com\jobscheduler\vg_4444\scheduler_data\config\batch_installer
target_include                      = protocol_fragment_sftp@SFTP_192.11.0.111:4445
target_dir                          = /home/test/tmp/

[192.11.0.95:4445]
operation                           = copy
source_protocol                     = local
file_spec                           = .*\.(sh|gz)$
source_dir                          = C:\Program Files (x86)\sos-berlin.com\jobscheduler\vg_4444\scheduler_data\config\batch_installer
target_include                      = protocol_fragment_sftp@SFTP_192.11.0.95:4445
target_dir                          = /home/test/tmp/

Batch Installer Configuration File

We assume that you  have opened the Batch Installer configuration file batch_installer_config_file.xml in the XML Editor and assigned the scheduler_universal_agent_installations.xsd XSD schema.

The Batch Installer configuration file contains an <installation> element for each Agent instance. In addition, the <global> element can be used in a homogeneous environment to specify parameters that will be applied to all Agent installations. If a parameter is specified in both the <global> element and in an individual <installation> element then the setting for the individual element will overwrite the global setting.

The following configuration steps should be carried out:

1. Specify the Global parameters:
   • Specify the <install_path> to point to a location where the Agent should be installed.

   • Specify the path to the YADE settings file (.ini file) in the Batch Installer configuration file with the element <globals><transfer><settings>. 

   • Specify the credentials for the SSH connection:

     • <user>: SSH login user 
     • <password>: Password for the login user
     • <sudo_password>: Password for sudo actions
     • <auth_method>: SSH authentication method
     • <port>: SSH port 

   • Specify the filename (not the path) for the Agent that has to be installed with the <installation_file> element. This filename contains the version of the Agent which you are installing and it is helpful for recognizing the version of the Agents that are installed.

   • Use the <postprocessing> element to specify the post-processing commands for the Agent server's operating system. The default commands for an Ubuntu distribution will place the Agent start script under /etc/init.d and will setup the autostart for the Universal Agent:
     

     • echo ${ssh.sudo_password} | sudo -S cp ${install_path}/jobscheduler_agent/bin/jobscheduler_agent_${agent_options.scheduler_http_port}.sh /etc/init.d/jobscheduler_agent_${agent_options.scheduler_http_port}

     • echo ${ssh.sudo_password} | sudo -S update-rc.d jobscheduler_agent_${agent_options.scheduler_http_port} defaults
2. Specify the installation parameters for each Agent installation:
   • Agent options:
     • <scheduler_user>: the Agent user
     • <scheduler_log_dir>: the Logs folder for the Agent
   • <host>: SSH Host 
     
     

The Batch Installer configuration file for the example can be downloaded here: batch_installer_config_file.xml and its contents are  listed in the following code block:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
<installations lastRun="2015-11-20 14:11">
    <globals>
        <install_path>/opt</install_path>
        <transfer>
            <settings>C:\Program Files (x86)\sos-berlin.com\jobscheduler\vg_4444\scheduler_data\config\batch_installer\yade_agent_batch_installer_settings.ini</settings>
        </transfer>
        <ssh>
			<user>test</user>
            <password>xxxx</password>
            <sudo_password>xxxx</sudo_password>
            <auth_method>password</auth_method>
            <port>22</port>
        </ssh>
  	    <installation_file>jobscheduler_unix_universal_agent.1.10.2.tar.gz</installation_file>
        <postprocessing>
            <command>echo ${ssh.sudo_password} | sudo -S cp ${install_path}/jobscheduler_agent/bin/jobscheduler_agent_${agent_options.scheduler_http_port}.sh /etc/init.d/jobscheduler_agent_${agent_options.scheduler_http_port}</command>
            <command>echo ${ssh.sudo_password} | sudo -S update-rc.d jobscheduler_agent_${agent_options.scheduler_http_port} defaults</command>
        </postprocessing>
    </globals>
    <installation lastRun="2015-11-20 14:11">
        <agent_options>
            <scheduler_user>test</scheduler_user>
            <scheduler_log_dir>/var/log/sos-berlin.com/jobscheduler/agent</scheduler_log_dir>
        </agent_options>
        <ssh>
            <host>xxxx</host>
        </ssh>
    </installation>
    <installation lastRun="2015-11-20 14:11">
        <agent_options>
            <scheduler_user>test</scheduler_user>
            <scheduler_log_dir>/var/log/sos-berlin.com/jobscheduler/agent</scheduler_log_dir>
        </agent_options>
        <ssh>
            <host>xxxx</host>
        </ssh>
    </installation>
</installations>

Using the XML Editor

The XML Editor can be used to manage the Batch Installer configuration file and the YADE configuration file.

XML Editor for Batch Installer configuration file

An example Batch Installer configuration file for the installation of a single Agent is shown in the following screenshot:

XML Editor for YADE configuration file

An example YADE configuration file for the installation of a single Agent is shown in the next screenshot:

XML Editor for converting YADE configuration files (XML) into YADE setting files (.ini)

The "YADE Xml2Ini Converter" function in the XML Editor is available for converting YADE files from XML to the .ini format required by versions of YADE before 1.11. Clicking on the button of the same name will open the following form:

Note that it is not necessary to create a Profile for the Batch Installer, as conversion will take place automatically once the "Autotransform" option has been chosen. Every time a change in the XML file is saved the XML file will be automatically converted and saved in .ini format. 

A pop-up window will show every time a change is saved if the option "Show notification on autotransform" is chosen.