Automation Frequently Asked Questions
This section provides answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding Flexera One Automation. The FAQs are grouped by the following categories.
| • | General Questions |
| • | Credentials FAQs |
| • | Custom Policies FAQs |
| • | Catalog FAQs |
| • | Troubleshooting FAQs |
Click the appropriate link to learn more about Flexera One Automation.
| • | What's the difference between a Policy Template and an Applied Policy? |
| • | How do I get access to Flexera One Automation? |
| • | What additional roles do I need to apply (run) policies? |
| • | How often do policies run? |
| • | What are the different severity levels? |
| • | How do I submit my feedback on Flexera One Automation? |
What's the difference between a Policy Template and an Applied Policy?
A policy template is the policy-as-code (blueprint of the policy) that defines what a policy does (input, conditions, actions etc). An applied policy is the running instance of a specific policy template. A policy template can be applied as many times as needed with different input parameters.
How do I get access to Flexera One Automation?
To access the Automation user interface in Flexera One, you must be granted at least one of the Automation roles in at least one account. For complete descriptions of each Automation role available in Flexera One, see Flexera One Roles. If you need access to an Automation role, contact your account’s user with the Administer organization role.
What additional roles do I need to apply (run) policies?
Additional role requirements are captured in the List of Flexera Policies.
The policy will trigger right after you first apply it. After that, it will execute based on the frequency you selected at the time of applying it. For example, every 15 minutes, Hourly, Daily, Weekly, or Monthly.
What are the different severity levels?
There are four pre-defined severity levels: critical, high, medium, and low. Severity is a mandatory field so if you don't provide one, we default the severity to low. For details, see the Metadata section of the Policy Template Language. To change the severity level of a policy template, update the severity field in the template and re-upload it
How do I submit my feedback on Flexera One Automation?
You can submit feedback on Flexera One Automation by entering your feedback in Flexera Ideas. You will need to register with Flexera’s Community to provide feedback.
For reporting issues or bugs, contact Flexera support.
Read on to learn more about Credentials.
If I update a credential, will the policies using that credential be updated?
In short, yes. When a Credential object is changed, any applied policies that use that credential will use the updated value the next time the policy is evaluated. For details, see Managing Credentials for Policy Access to External Systems. To trigger an immediate policy evaluation, use the Run Now option on the Applied Policies page.
Click the appropriate link to learn more about Custom Automation.
| • | How do I customize built-in Flexera policies as per my specific requirements? |
| • | How do I write my own policy? |
| • | How do I leverage the Automation APIs? |
| • | What file extension is recommended for Policy Templates? |
How do I customize built-in Flexera policies as per my specific requirements?
All Flexera policy templates are open source and can be downloaded straight from our public git repo. You can then modify the code based on your requirements and upload it on the Templates before applying it.
Learn more about our Policy Template Language and find some Custom Policy examples in Create a Custom Policy.
How do I leverage the Automation APIs?
Flexera One Automation is an API driven platform. API docs can be found here.
What file extension is recommended for Policy Templates?
We recommend using .pt as the file extension for policy templates, but it's not a mandatory requirement.
Click the appropriate link to learn more about the Flexera One Automation Catalog.
| • | Can I apply a policy template across multiple accounts? |
| • | How do I delete Flexera Policy Templates from the Unpublished Catalog view? |
Can I apply a policy template across multiple accounts?
Yes, you can apply a Policy Template from the Catalog view and select the accounts you wish to apply it on.
How do I delete Flexera Policy Templates from the Unpublished Catalog view?
We do not allow users to delete built-in Flexera Policy Templates at this time.
Click the appropriate link to learn more about the troubleshooting for Flexera One Automation.
| • | Where can I find troubleshooting docs? |
| • | What happens when the policy errors out? |
| • | What are Terminated incidents? |
| • | Where are my Applied Policies that were terminated? |
| • | Why don't I see an "Export to CSV" option in the Incident details panel? |
Where can I find troubleshooting docs?
See the Debugging Tips and Tricks section in Create a Custom Policy.
What happens when the policy errors out?
Policies in error state are shown on the Automation Dashboard and Applied Policies page. Policy engine will keep retrying the policy when it errors out based on the policy frequency (Examples: Every 15 minutes, Hourly, etc.) to get past potential temporary issues.
What are Terminated incidents?
When a policy with incidents is terminated, the incident will be terminated and no more actions will take place. The incident will move to a Terminated state.
Where are my Applied Policies that were terminated?
We do not store information about policies that were terminated. If this is something you would like to see, please don't hesitate to submit a feedback in Flexera Ideas.
Why don't I see an "Export to CSV" option in the Incident details panel?
Incident details data is completely customizable and defined in the respective policy template. The data content is not always compatible in the CSV format. Hence, we only show the option to Export to CSV when the incident details contains a markdown table.