FlexNet Manager Suite
2024 R1
(On-Premises)
Armed with your amended license from IBM, and with data flows established and populating at least one
IBM sub-capacity PVU or VPC license (so that you can be sure that hidden targets are
initialized), you are ready to switch into high-frequency mode for calculation of
sub-capacity consumption using FlexNet Manager Suite as the source of
calculations.
Because of the times required for all processes to reach production conditions (as
described below this procedure), it is good practice to make this change at the
start of a weekend when you expect the environment to be stable. This allows 48
hours or more for the switchover to stabilize.
Setting
Enable frequent hardware scanning for IBM sub-capacity
license calculations, as
described below, has the following effects:
- Adds the default All devices consuming IBM PVU
points target (remembering that this target also includes devices consuming from
VPC sub-capacity licenses) to the list of targets available for IBM
sub-capacity-related hardware scans
- Adds the default Known vCenter or OVM Manager
servers target to the list of targets available for remote scans by appropriate
inventory beacons of all known VMware vCenter and Oracle VM Manager
servers
- Enables frequent hardware scanning of all target inventory devices where the
FlexNet inventory agent is locally installed, as required by IBM (this
setting is distributed to the installed FlexNet inventory agents through the
inventory beacons, which in turn receive it through the
IBMPVUEnableScanning=true
setting in the
BeaconSettings.xml file)
- Enables the reassessment of peak consumption values for the three IBM
regions, taking into account the latest data inputs, that now occurs as part
of the nightly full compliance calculations
- Prevents IBM PVU licenses incorporating any points imported from ILMT, where
this remains available as an auxiliary inventory source
Tip: When
imports are still available from ILMT, and high-frequency scanning is
enabled, there is a report provided that compares the current
sub-capacity results imported from ILMT with those calculated by
FlexNet Manager Suite.
- Reveals additional settings in the web interface, as described below.
To configure higher frequency processing for IBM sub-capacity
licenses:
-
Navigate to . Scroll down to the IBM reporting and archiving
settings section.
-
Select the Enable frequent hardware scanning for IBM sub-capacity
license calculations
check box.
-
In the Perform extra inventory scanning every
time-interval drop-down list, choose
30 minutes.
This is the setting required by IBM. Other values are available for testing
and development. This control sets the frequency for hardware inventory checks
by the installed FlexNet inventory agent on target inventory devices, and
uploads of hardware inventory where there have been any changes.
-
Select the Collect inventory from VMware vCenter or Oracle VM
Manager
servers
check box.
This is the control that turns on use of the default inbuilt rule for direct
inventory gathering from these servers, as well as automatic maintenance of the
hidden target, derived from the list of discovered devices, that is used for
that rule.
Note: Although Oracle VM Manager servers are scanned for changes, all
calculations for VMs on these servers are full capacity calculations. This
is because currently IBM accepts Oracle VM servers only on SPARC and
UltraSPARC architectures for sub-capacity consumption, and FlexNet Manager Suite supports Oracle VM servers only on x86 platforms.
-
In the drop-down list to Collect inventory from VMware vCenter or Oracle VM
Manager
servers
choose a target.
This may be the built-in target for Known vCenter or OVM Manager
servers. This target, automatically updated after each discovery import, lists all
vCenter and OVM virtual management servers. Independently of this setting, you
may choose to create a separate custom target to target sub-set of VMware
vCenter or Oracle VM Manager servers that you want to scan.
-
If you want to include another target that you have defined, click the
+ button to the right of the list.
A new line appears below your previous choice, and you can repeat the
selection process for other targets you have defined.
Tip: When the
selected target is present in the closed list, it is included in data saved
when you click Save.
-
In the drop-down list to Enable frequent hardware scans by installed
inventory agents within the following targets, choose the built-in target for All devices consuming IBM PVU
points.
This target, automatically updated daily, lists all computers with installed
software linked to either IBM PVU or IBM VPC sub-capacity licenses. If you have
some special reason to do so, you may add additional targets using the same
controls.
- One possible reason for adding targets might be for 'remedial adoption'.
If you include a separate target that includes the target setting
Allow these targets to be adopted, this has
the effect of discovering new devices running software linked to an IBM
PVU or IBM VPC license. If the FlexNet Inventory Agent is found on these
devices, inventory gathering is left to the installed FlexNet Inventory Agent; and if not, the appropriate inventory beacon
remotely installs the FlexNet Inventory Agent (that is, it 'adopts' the
target device) and then leaves it to complete inventory gathering.
- However, keeping in mind that IBM high-frequency mode requires maximum
performance, it would be better to attach such a target to a separate
rule, run on (say) a daily schedule (especially in enterprises with
large subnets). This has the benefit of returning inventory from
newly-discovered devices in time for the daily automated update of the
hidden target All devices consuming IBM PVU
points.
-
When you are satisfied with your settings, click Save
(in the bottom right of the page).
-
Configure FlexNet Manager Suite for your IBM reporting cycle and switch-over
date.
-
Navigate to System Settings. Select the Licensing tab, and scroll down to
the IBM reporting and archiving
settings section.
Tip: This section is visible only after high-frequency mode
is enabled.
-
Select Automatically adjust the calculation period start
date.
This is best practice, and saves having to remember future manual work
as each reporting period rolls around. See the online help about these
settings for more details. Selecting this option reveals another line of
controls.
-
Insert the length of your reporting cycle to IBM (typically either one
month or three months) in the Reset the calculation period
every field.
-
In the following date field, after month(s)
from, insert the start date of the current reporting
period.
As you have just turned on high frequency processing, this is normally
your current reporting period.
-
In the Ignore any value prior to date field,
insert the date when you are switching over to fully operational use of
FlexNet Manager Suite for sub-capacity calculations.
This is the day after you archived your last report from ILMT. As
already observed, there is a ramp-up time as the processes in FlexNet
Manager Suite come up to full production readiness (further details are
below). Therefore, this reporting switch-over date might be three-four
days after you "flick the switch" (earlier in this process). For
example, if today (when you flick the switch) is Friday, with a quiet
weekend to follow, you might allow Monday for checking, archive your
last ILMT report on Tuesday, and set this
Ignore any value
prior to date for Wednesday. There is
no
requirement to align this date with the boundary of a reporting period,
as you can submit reports from both products to jointly cover this
switch-over period.
Tip: If there are unexpected delays in
your business processes, you can adjust this date after the event,
but before archiving any reports from FlexNet Manager Suite for
possible submission to IBM.
-
In the Keep historical data for field, enter the
number of days for which to keep historical data ready for reporting to
IBM.
Best practice is to make this at least double the length of your
reporting period, as this ensures that you can update reports for the
previous period at any time in the current period. It also
caps the database space needed for storing historical data. Historical
information for reassessing peak points consumption is automatically
deleted as soon as it is older than the value you set here. Notice that
this is a rolling time window, always the specified number of
days back from today's date.
-
Click Save (in the bottom right of the
page).
-
Wait.
(It is assumed here that there has already been at least one daily full
inventory import and full license reconciliation completed, as described in
Set Up and Collect Inventory, and Reconcile.) All the following additional
processes must now have time to complete:
- The creation of the new policy for inventory beacons. This is
created within minutes, and lists all affected inventory devices.
- The collection of the new policy by all inventory beacons. By
default, each inventory beacon checks for changed policy every 15
minutes, although this may have been modified in the Beacon
settings section of the Inventory Settings page (). To check whether inventory beacons have the
latest policy, navigate to , and check the Policy status
column, where Up to date means that an
inventory beacon has reported having the same version of
policy currently available on the central application server.
- All installed FlexNet Inventory Agents on the target list of inventory
devices must individually request an update of their device policy. The
policy update request happens at a randomized time once per day.
Whichever inventory beacon a device contacts to request any policy
updates immediately generates and downloads the updated device policy.
Where applicable (that is, where the inventory device is listed in the
target of devices running software licensed under IBM PVU or IBM VPC
licenses), the updated policy includes the high-frequency schedule for
hardware inventory checks.
- Each installed FlexNet Inventory Agent must commence executing the
high-frequency hardware inventory checks. On the first occasion, and on
any later occasion where there is a change to relevant hardware
properties, hardware inventory is also uploaded through the hierarchy of
inventory beacons. Typically the first hardware inventory collection and
upload from a given device may take around ten minutes. (Keep in mind
that, due to the random timing of device policy updates, some devices
may not start high-frequency hardware checks until the following day.)
For IBM PVU licenses only, to track devices that are not [yet] reporting
as expected, navigate to , and run the IBM PVU Out-Of-Date
Inventory report for the appropriate period. The report
includes all devices linked to IBM PVU licenses, filtered by the
period you choose. Two important values for the Out-of-date
reason are:
- The device is not running frequent inventory
scans, and has not reported recently — these
devices have been linked to an IBM PVU license through inventory
gathering (from any inventory source) and after a previous full
license reconciliation, but are not yet included in the internal
target for high-frequency hardware scans (and it is therefore
natural that they have not yet reported high-frequency hardware
inventory). This may occur in the time window between turning on
the high-frequency scanning schedule and the next full license
reconciliation. These devices should be included in the internal
target after the next full license reconciliation.
- The device has frequent inventory scans enabled,
but has not reported recently — these devices
are included in the internal target for
high-frequency scanning, so that their missing uploads may be a
matter of timing: they have been targeted, but have yet to start
the high-frequency scans.
- The appropriate inventory beacons must start checking virtual
hosts for changes in VM details, as described in Set Up Virtual Inventory Tracking. To check operations, navigate to ,
select , and filter the page for
Description contains Discovery
completed on Beacon for rule: Virtual cluster server scan for IBM
PVU. (This also includes scanning for IBM
VPC-licensed software.) After a full reconciliation, these devices are
visible in the All Discovered Devices page, as well as in inventory listings as appropriate.
- Each full license reconciliation process includes the recalculation of
peak values, based on:
- Historical data through the entire data retention period —
although any details for dates before the switch-over date
recorded in the Ignore any value prior to
setting ( tab) are correctly ignored
- The current settings for things like inventory corrections,
license allocations, device exemptions, and the like
- The latest imported inventory
- The current best fit of inventory devices to IBM PVU or IBM VPC
licenses.
This process starts from the next full reconciliation (which you
should leave scheduled for overnight execution) after you save the
Enable frequent hardware scanning for IBM sub-capacity
license calculations check box and associated settings on this
Inventory Settings page. However, results should not be
considered valid until all installed FlexNet Inventory Agents are
reporting hardware inventory.
Note: Even though you have now commenced high-frequency operations, data from
ILMT about consumption of IBM PVU licenses (only) is still imported into
staging tables to allow comparison of current PVU sub-capacity results from
both ILMT and FlexNet Manager Suite. However, results calculated by ILMT are
not displayed in the web interface, and you may wish to reduce system
maintenance overheads by removing the ILMT agent, as described next.
FlexNet Manager Suite (On-Premises)
2024 R1