User Guide

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Tasks

This chapter provides detailed instructions for using and managing the following Guardian features and components:

Basic Tasks

There are many ways to configure and use Guardian to diagnose the health of your domains. However, there are four essential tasks that can be considered the primary functions of Guardian. These are as follows:

There are numerous other Guardian tasks and activities, which are categorized according to the following topics:

The following sections provide detailed instructions for performing the tasks in each of these categories.

Guardian Agent

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

Manually Deploy Guardian Agent

For Guardian versions 1.0.7 and above, you must manually deploy the new Guardian Agent in WebLogic Server before you can use Guardian to evaluate your environment.

Note: If you have enabled Online Signature/Software Updates in your Guardian Preferences, Guardian periodically performs an automatic update for the latest Guardian version. Clicking the Update button in Guardian also initiates a software version update. If you were previously able to activate domains and run evaluations in Guardian, but are no longer able to do so, this may be due to an update to Guardian 1.0.7 or above. You must delete the earlier Guardian Agent and deploy the new Agent to continue using Guardian.

You can use the WebLogic Server Administration Console to uninstall the existing Guardian Agent and then install and deploy the new Agent. The WebLogic Server Administration Console provides a series of Web-based deployment assistants that guide you through the deployment process. For a summary of the steps involved in deploying the Guardian Agent, see Deploy Guardian Agent from WebLogic Server Adminstration Console on page 37 . For complete instructions on deploying applications, see the Administration Console Online Help, and WebLogic Server documentation.

If you want to deploy the Guardian Agent to multiple servers, you can use a WebLogic Scripting Tool to automate this task. For basic instructions, see Deploy Guardian Agent to Multiple Servers on page 38. For instructions on using a script to activate multiple domains in Guardian, see Activate Multiple Domains on page 49. For complete instructions on using the WebLogic Scripting tool to deploy applications, see the WebLogic Scripting Tool documentation.

Deploy Guardian Agent from WebLogic Server Adminstration Console

You can use the WebLogic Server Administration Console to manually deploy the Guardian Agent on that server. This section provides a summary of the basic steps involved for WebLogic Server versions 9.0 and above. For complete instructions for your specific version of WebLogic Server, please see your WebLogic Server documentation and Administration Console Online Help. Please also refer to the Guardian 1.1 Installation Guide and Guardian 1.1 Release Notes for additional important information.

To use the Administration Console to manually deploy the Guardian Agent, do the following:

  1. Start the WebLogic Administration Console, and select Lock & Edit in the left pane.
    2. Caution: Make sure that Lock & Edit is selected for each of the following procedures.
  2. Stop the existing Guardian Agent deployment in the WebLogic Server.

    3. By default, the Guardian Agent is named bea-guardian-agent.

    Note: For detailed instructions for this procedure, see “Start and stop a deployed Enterprise Application” in the WebLogic Administration Console Online Help.
  3. Delete the existing Guardian Agent deployment from the WebLogic Server, and activate your changes.
    4. Note: For detailed instructions for this procedure, see “Delete an Enterprise Application” in the WebLogic Administration Console Online Help.
  4. Install the new Guardian Agent in the WebLogic Server, and activate your changes.

    5. The Guardian Agent is a WAR file named bea-guardian-agent.war, and is located in the following directory:

    WARNING: Do not change the name of the Guardian Agent when deploying it. Be sure to use the default name, bea-guardian-agent.war.

    <root>\guardian\plugins\com.bea.guardian.agent.weblogic_<guard-version>\weblogic<wls-version>

    Where:

    <root> is the parent directory for the Guardian installation. For example:
    C:\\Program Files

    <guard-version> is the current (updated) Guardian version.

    <wls-version> is the version of WebLogic Server in which you are deploying this Agent.

    If you are installing the Agent on WebLogic 8.1.x, install the bea-guardian-agent.war file located in the ..\weblogic8 directory. For WebLogic Server 9.x and 10.x, install the bea-guardian-agent.war file located in the ..\weblogic9 directory.

    Note: For detailed instructions for this procedure, see the section entitled, “Install an Enterprise Application” in the Administration Console Online Help.
  5. Start the new Guardian Agent in the WebLogic Server.
    6. Note: For detailed instructions for this procedure, see “Start and stop a deployed Enterprise Application” in the WebLogic Administration Console Online Help.
  6. Start Guardian and activate the neccessary domains in Guardian.
    7. Note: For detailed instructions for this procedure, see “Activate Domain” in the BEA Guardian Online Help.

You can now use Guardian to evaluate the activated domains in your environment.

Deploy Guardian Agent to Multiple Servers

If you need to deploy the Guardian Agent to multiple servers in a cluster environment, you can use the weblogic.Deployer command in the WebLogic Server Command Line Interface to automate this task. You can also use the BEA WebLogic Diagnostics Framework (WLDF) to deploy the Agent. This section provides basic instructions for using the weblogic.Deployer command for this purpose. For instructions on using WLDF, please see the WebLogic Diagnostics Framework product documentation.

Note: Please also refer to the Guardian 1.1 Installation Guide and Guardian 1.1 Release Notes for additional important information.
WARNING: Do not change the name of the Guardian Agent when deploying it. Be sure to use the default name, bea-guardian-agent.war.

At the WebLogic Server CLI prompt, enter the following command line:

java weblogic.Deployer -debug -adminurl http://<admin_url>:<port> -username <username> -password <password> – targets adminserver,<cluster1>,<cluster2> -deploy -sourcerootforupload <dir_path>\bea-guardian-agent.war

Where:

Configure Maximum Agent Threads

If you have one or more managed servers in a domain, the Guardian Agent spawns the appropriate number of threads for communicating between the Guardian Agent on the WebLogic Administration Server, and the Guardian Agent running on the Managed Server(s). However, an excessive number of threads can affect the performance of the Administration Server. To control this, you can specify the maximum number of Agent threads to allocate to the WebLogic Server Administration Server for a specified domain. The Max. Agent Threads parameter setting determines this value. The default is 10.

There are two ways to set the value for this parameter:

To set the Max. Agent Threads value for an activated domain, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation pane, click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer.
  2. Right-click on the domain name and select Modify Domain from the context menu.

    3. This displays the Domain Properties dialog box.

  3. Select or enter a value in the Max. Agent Threads field.

    4. This can be an interger value from 1 to 20. The default is 10.

  4. Click OK.

    5. This resets Max. Agent Threads to the specified value for the selected domain.

Configure Agent Thread Timeout

In order to manage Agent resources on both the WebLogic Administration Server and Managed Servers, Guardian enables you to specify the maximum amount of time (in seconds) that can elapse before a thread is terminated. The Agent Thread Timeout parameter governs this timeout. The default is 60.

There are two ways to set the Agent Thread Timeout parameter:

To set the Agent Thread Timeout value for an activated domain, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation pane, click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer.
  2. Right-click on the domain name and select Modify Domain from the context menu.

    3. This displays the Domain Properties dialog box.

  3. Select or enter a value in the Agent Thread Timeout field.

    4. This can be an integer value from 10 to 600. The default is 60.

  4. Click OK.

    5. This resets Agent Thread Timeout to the specified value for the selected domain.

Workspaces

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

The Guardian Workspace is the directory in which all of your Guardian data is stored. It includes the following data for each domain you have defined in Guardian:

To prevent loss of work when Guardian is updated or uninstalled, your Workspace directory must be located outside of the Guardian installation directory. You can safely back up your Workspace data by exporting your Workspace to a file also located outside of your Guardian Installation directory. For instructions, see Export Workspace on page 42.

Select Workspace

To specify the location for your Guardian Workspace, you must restart Guardian and specify a new location in the Select Workspace dialog box during startup.

WARNING: To prevent loss of work when Guardian is updated or uninstalled, your Workspace directory must be located outside of the Guardian installation directory. You can safely back up your Workspace data by exporting your Workspace to a file also located outside of your Guardian Installation directory. For instructions, see Export Workspace on page 42.

To select a Guardian Workspace when starting Guardian, do the following:

  1. Start Guardian.

    2. Guardian first displays the initial splash screen while loading, and then displays the Select Workspace dialog box.

  2. Click Browse.

    3. This opens the Browse For Folder dialog.

  3. Select or create the folder (directory) to use as your Workspace folder.
    4. Caution: Make sure this directory is not located within the Guardian installation directory.

    To use an existing folder: Browse to the folder location and select the folder.

    To create a new folder:

    1. Click Make New Folder.
    2. Select the location for the folder.
    3. Enter the name of the folder
  4. Click OK.

    5. This creates or selects the file and returns to the Select Workspace dialog box.

  5. (Optional) Specify this as the default Workspace.

    6. If you do not want to select the Workspace each time you start Guardian, select the checkbox for Use this as the default workspace and do not ask again.

    To change this setting at a later time, do the following:

    1. Select Window > Preferences... to open the Preferences configuration page.
    2. In the Preferences tree on the left, select Guardian.
    3. Select the Prompt for workspace on startup checkbox.
    4. Click OK.

      5. The Select Workspace dialog box will be displayed the next time you start Guardian.

  6. Click Finish.

    7. Guardian loads the selected Workspace and completes the startup procedure.

Export Workspace

You can export your Guardian Workspace data to a file, which you can use for backup and recovery purposes, or to import to another Guardian instance.

WARNING: To prevent loss of work when Guardian is updated or uninstalled, make sure your Workspace and any Workspace export files are located outside of your Guardian Installation directory.

To export a Guardian Workspace, do the following:

  1. Select File > Export.

    2. This opens the Export Workspace Wizard.

  2. In the Export dialog box, open the Guardian folder and select Guardian Workspace.
    3. Note: To clear a typed entry, click the Clear icon (file page icon) to the right of the destination field. This clears the Select an export destination field and redisplays the default folder tree.
  3. Click Next.
  4. For Select File, specify the file name and location to which to save your Workspace data.

    5. Use one of the following methods to specify the file:

    • Type in the absolute path name and file name.
    • Click Browse to display a file browser from which you can select the file. Click Save to select the file and return to the Export Workspace Wizard.
  5. Click Finish.

    6. This saves your current Workspace as a .zip file containing all of your Workspace data, including the guardian.registry, .project and .refresh files.

Import Workspace

You can import a Guardian Workspace from another Guardian instance, or an exported Workspace data file.

To import a Guardian Workspace, do the following:

  1. Select File > Import.

    2. This opens the Import Workspace Wizard.

  2. In the Import Workspace Wizard, open the Guardian folder and select Guardian Workspace.
    3. Note: To clear a typed entry, click the Clear icon (file page icon) to the right of the destination field. This clears the Select an import source field and redisplays the default folder tree.
  3. Click Next.
  4. For Select File, specify the Workspace file you want to import.

    5. Use one of the following methods to specify the file:

    • Type in the absolute path name and file name.
    • Click Browse to display a file browser from which you can select the file. Click Save to select the file and return to the Import Workspace Wizard.
  5. Click Finish.

    6. This imports the selected Workspace data and returns to the main Guardian window.

Preferences

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

Configure Preferences

You can use the Preferences page to configure your Guardian Preferences and customize your Guardian environment.

To configure your Guardian Preferences, do the following:

  1. Open the Preferences configuration page.

    2. You can use either of the following methods to open the Preferences configuration page:

    • Press Ctrl+Shift+P.
    • Select Window > Preferences from the titlebar menu.
  2. Open a folder and click on a category name to display the preferences in that category.

    3. The left pane of the Preferences configuration page is a navigation tree containing an extensive series of hierarchical folders and subfolders. Each folder and subfolder in the hierarchy is a category of preference attributes that you can configure.

    The top level folders are as follows:

  3. (Optional) Click Apply to apply your preference settings for the current category, or click Restore Defaults to restore the default values for all Preference page parameters.
  4. When you have finished setting your preferences for each category, click OK.

    5. This applies and saves all of your new Preference page settings.

Export Preferences

You can export your Guardian Preferences to a file for backup and recovery purposes, or to import to another Guardian instance.

To export your Guardian Preferences to a file, do the following:

  1. Select File > Export.

    2. This opens the Export Preferences Wizard.

  2. In the Export Preferences Wizard, open the General folder and select Preferences.
    3. Note: To clear a typed entry, click the Clear icon (file page icon) to the right of the destination field. This will clear the Select an export destination field and redisplay the default folder tree.
  3. Click Next.
  4. Specify the preferences to export.

    5. Do one of the following:

    • Select Export all to export all of your Guardian Preferences information.
    • Select Choose specific preferences to export to display a selection list of preferences in the Preferences box. Then select the individual preferences you want to export, or click Select All.
  5. For To preference file, specify the file name and location to which to save your preferences information.

    6. Use one of the following methods to specify the file:

    • Type in the absolute path name and file name.
    • Click Browse to display a file browser from which you can select the file. Then click Save to select the file and return to the Export Preferences Wizard.
  6. Click Finish.

    7. This saves your current preferences information as a .epf file in the specified location.

Import Preferences

To import a Guardian Preferences from a file, do the following:

  1. Select File > Import.

    2. This opens the Import Preferences Wizard.

  2. In the Import Preferences Wizard, open the General folder and select Preferences.
    3. Note: To clear a typed entry, click the Clear icon (file page icon) to the right of the destination field. This clears the Select an import source field and redisplays the default folder tree.
  3. Click Next.
  4. For From preference file, specify the file name and location of the file you want to import.

    5. Use one of the following methods to specify the file:

    • Type in the absolute path name and file name.
    • Click Browse to display a file browser from which you can select the file. Then click Save to select the file and return to the Import Preferences Wizard.
  5. Specify the preferences to import.

    6. Do one of the following:

    • Select Import all to import all preference information.
    • Select Choose specific preferences to import to display a selection list of preferences in the Preferences box. Then select the individual preferences you want to import, or click Select All.
  6. Click Finish.

    7. This replaces your current Preference page settings with the settings from the imported file.

Domains

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

Activate Domain

A domain is considered active when it is capable of being evaluated. Activating a domain prepares it for evaluation and creates a new Domain Inventory.

Activating a domain also results in the following:

To activate a domain, do the following:

Note: If you are unable to activate any domains, you may need to manually deploy the Guardian Agent. For instructions, see Manually Deploy Guardian Agent on page 36.
  1. Open the Domain Activation Wizard.

    2. You can use any of the following methods to open the wizard:

    • Press Ctrl+Shift+A.
    • Click Activate in the Main Toolbar.
    • Select New > Domain from the File menu.
    • Click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer. Then, right-click anywhere in the Domain Explorer and select Activate Domain from the context menu.
  2. Click the General tab and configure the General Domain Properties.

    3. The General tab contains the following fields:

    • Protocol — Select one of the following from the drop-down menu:
      • http:// — Select this to use the HTTP protocol without encryption.
      • https:// — Select this to use HTTP protocol with Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption.
        • Note: Guardian does not use 128 bit SSL encryption for domain activation.
    • Host Name — This is the listen address for the WebLogic Administration Server in the target domain.
    • Port Number — This is the listen port for the WebLogic Administration Server for the target domain.
    • Username — This is the username of a WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account on the target domain.
    • Password — This is the password for the WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account on the target domain.
    • Remember Username/Password — This specifies that the domain credentials are to be stored so that you do not have to enter them for future domain operations. Usernames and passwords are encrypted when stored.
      • Note: If you preselected a deactivated domain when you invoked the Domain Activation Wizard, the Protocol, Hostname, and Port fields will be automatically filled with the appropriate values.
  3. Click the Advanced tab and enter the Advanced Domain Properties.

    4. The Advanced tab contains the following fields and options:

    • Enable Proxy Connection: Select this if a proxy server is to be used to access the target domain. Then, select a proxy server from the drop-down list. Click Add Proxy Servers to add proxy servers to this list (see Add Inbound Proxy Servers on page 54 for complete instructions).
    • Max. Agent Threads: Select the maximum number of Agent threads to allocate in the WebLogic Server Administration Server. This can be an integer value from 1 to 20. The default is 10.
    • Agent Thread Timeout (secs): Specify the maximum number of seconds that can elapse before an Agent thread is deactivated when collecting data from managed servers. This can be an integer value from 10 to 600. The default is 60.
    • Domain Notes: Enter a text description or other details pertaining to this domain. These notes are displayed in inventories and evaluations for this domain.
  4. Click Finish.

    5. You can now evaluate and inventory the domain.

Activate Multiple Domains

If you need to activate multiple domains in Guardian, you can use a script to automate this procedure.

WARNING: You must deploy the Guardian Agent to each domain that is to be activated prior to running the activation script. For instructions, see “ Deploy Guardian Agent to Multiple Servers ,” above.

The following is an example script for activating multiple domains:

-gactivateDomain -t http://slp7:7001 -u un -p pw -c true

-gactivateDomain -t http://slp8:7001 -u un -p pw -c true

-gactivateDomain -t http://sqa-lldev:4044 -u un -p pw -c true

The script is then run in Guardian Headless Mode, by using the following command line:

guardianHeadless.cmd -gscript -f activatingScript.txt

For more information about running scripts, see Run Scripts on page 75.

Deactivate Domain

When you deactivate a domain, it is no longer available for evaluation. Any shortcuts that use the domain are removed from the Shortcut Table and Shortcut Explorer. The Domain Inventory and Evaluation Summary data persists after deactivation, but is not available for viewing in Domain Explorer. You must reactivate the domain before you can view the data or evaluate the domain.

To deactivate a domain, do the following:

  1. Open the Domain Deactivation Wizard.

    2. Do one of the following:

    • Click on the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer. Then, right-click on a domain and select Deactivate from the context menu.
    • Select Window > Show View > Active Domains Table. Then, select a domain from the table and click Deactivate Domain.
  2. Click on a domain entry to select it.
  3. Click Finish.

    4. This deactivates the domain and returns to the Domain Explorer or Active Domain Table.

    Note: The Domain Deactivation Wizard does not remove the BEA Guardian Agents that were installed when you activated the domains. For instructions on removing Agents, see the WebLogic Server Administration Console Online Help. For instructions on purging inactive domains from Guardian, see Purge All Inactive Domains on page 51.

Modify Domain Properties

You can modify the Domain Properties for a domain to customize the way BEA Guardian communicates with that domain.

To modify the Domain Properties for a domain, do the following:

  1. Open the Domain Properties configuration page.

    2. Do one of the following:

    • Select Window > Show View > Active Domains Table to open the Active Domains Table. Then, select a domain and click Modify Domain.
    • Click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer. Then, right-click on a domain in the Domain Explorer tree, and select Modify Domain from the context menu.
  2. Configure the Domain Properties.

    3. The Domain Properties configuration page contains the following fields and options:

    • Name: This contains the name for this domain. You cannot modify this value.
    • Username — This is the username of an WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account on the target domain.
    • Password — This is the password for the WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account on the target domain.
    • Remember Username/Password — This specifies that the domain credentials are to be stored so that you do not have to enter them for future domain operations.
    • Enable Proxy Connection: Select this if a proxy server is to be used to access the target domain. Then, select a proxy server from the drop-down list. Click Add Proxy Servers to add proxy servers to this list (see Add Inbound Proxy Servers on page 54 for complete instructions).
    • Max. Agent Threads: Select the maximum number of Agent threads to allocate in the WebLogic Server Administration Server. This can be an integer value from 1 to 20. The default is 10.
    • Agent Thread Timeout (secs): Specify the maximum number of seconds that can elapse before an Agent thread is deactivated when collecting data from managed servers. This can be an integer value from 10 to 600. The default is 60.
    • Notes: Enter a text description or other details pertaining to this domain.
  3. Click OK.

    4. This applies your new Domain Properties settings to the selected domain.

Purge All Inactive Domains

To remove all deactivated domains from the Domain Explorer, select Tools > Purge Inactive Domains. There is no confirmation request; the domains are purged immediately.

WARNING: Purging the inactive domains also deletes the associated Domain Inventories and Evaluation Summaries from the Guardian Workspace, and removes the domains from the Guardian Registry.

Domain Groups

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

Add Domain Group

To create and populate a new Domain Group, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation Pane, click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer.
  2. Right-click on Target Domains and select Add Domain Group from the context menu.

    3. This opens the Add Domain Group dialog box.

  3. In the Name field, enter a name for the Domain Group.
  4. Click OK.

    5. This adds the new Domain Group to the Domain Explorer Domain Tree, and closes the Add Domain dialog box.

  5. Populate the Domain Group.

    6. In the Domain Explorer Domain tree, click on a domain name to select it, then drag and drop it into the new Domain Group folder. Repeat this step for each domain you want to include in the new Domain Group.

Rename Domain Group

To rename an existing Domain Group, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation Pane, click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer.
  2. Right-click on Target Domains and select Rename Domain Group from the context menu.

    3. This opens the Rename Domain Group dialog box.

  3. In the Name field, enter the new name for the Domain Group.
  4. Click OK.

    5. This renames the Domain Group in the Domain Explorer Domain Tree, and closes the Rename Domain dialog box.

Delete Domain Group

  1. Click on the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer.
  2. Remove any domains from the Domain Group.

    3. You cannot delete a Domain Group that contains a domain. If there are domains in the Domain Group, you can drag and drop the domains into the Target Domain folder, or into another Domain Group folder.

  3. Right-click on the Domain Group you want to delete, and select Delete Domain Group from the context menu.

    4. This displays a Domain Group Delete Confirmation dialog box prompting you to confirm the delete request.

  4. Click OK.

    5. This deletes the Domain Group from the Domain Explorer Domain Tree, and closes the Delete Confirmation dialog box.

Proxy Servers

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

Add Inbound Proxy Servers

If you want to use an inbound proxy server for communications between Guardian and the WebLogic Administration Server, you must first add the proxy server to Guardian.

To add an inbound proxy server, do the following:

  1. Click Activate to open the Domain Activation Wizard.
  2. Click the Advanced tab.
  3. Click Add Proxy Servers to open the Proxy Servers Preferences configuration page.
  4. Click Add to open the Proxy Properties dialog box.
  5. Enter the proxy server Hostname, Port, Username, and Password information.
  6. Click OK .

    7. This adds the proxy server to the Proxy Servers list in the Proxy Servers configuration page, and dismisses the Proxy Properties dialog box.

  7. (Optional) Repeat steps four through six to add additional proxy servers to the list.
  8. Click OK .

    9. This adds the new proxy server to the Proxy Server drop-down list in the Advanced tab of the Domain Activation Wizard and dismisses the dialog box.

Enable Inbound Proxy Connection

If you want to use an inbound proxy server for communications between Guardian and the WebLogic Administration Server, you must enable the proxy connection.

To enable an inbound proxy connection, do the following:

  1. Manually deploy the Guardian Agent onto the target domain.
  2. If you have not already done so, add the proxy server to the Domain Activation wizard Proxy Server list.

    3. For instructions, see Add Inbound Proxy Servers on page 54.

  3. Open the Domain Activation Wizard.

    4. You can use any of the following methods to open the wizard:

    • Press Ctrl+Shift+A.
    • Click Activate in the Main Toolbar.
    • Select New > Domain from the File menu.
    • Click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer. Then, right-click in the Domain Explorer panel and select Activate Domain from the context menu.
  4. Click the Advanced tab in the Activate Domain Wizard.
  5. Check the Enable Proxy Connection checkbox.
  6. Select the proxy server from the drop down list.
  7. Click Finish.

Enable and Test Outbound Proxy

If you are using an outbound proxy server for communications between Guardian and the outside world, you will need to test the outbound proxy connection.

To enable and test an outbound proxy server connection, do the following:

  1. Select Window > Preferences from the titlebar menu.

    2. This displays the Preferences configuration page.

  2. In the Preferences folder tree (left pane) open the Guardian folder and select BEA Support.

    3. This displays the BEA Support preferences, which include some settings for proxy testing.

  3. In the BEA Support preferences, select the Requires Proxy checkbox.
  4. Click Test Proxy.

    5. After the test completes, a status message is displayed at the top of the page as to whether it was successful or not.

Inventories and Evaluations

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

Inventory Domain

A Domain Inventory is an assessment of your current domain environment. The results are displayed in a Domain Inventory Overview in the Document Pane. The inventory is also added to the Inventory History folder in the Domain Explorer. Domain Inventories are also created automatically whenever you activate or evaluate domains.

To inventory a domain, do the following:

  1. Open the Inventory Wizard.

    2. You can use any of the following methods to open the wizard:

    • Press Ctrl+Shift+I.
    • Click Inventory on the Main Toolbar.
    • Select File > New > Inventory.
    • Click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer. Then, right-click on a domain name in the Domain Explorer tree and select Inventory from the context menu.
  2. If you did not preselect a domain when opening the wizard, select a domain from the Inventory Wizard domain table.
  3. Enter the Username and Password of the Weblogic Server Administrator or Monitor account for the target domain.
  4. Click Finish.

    5. This initiates the Domain Inventory and displays the results in a Domain Inventory Overview in the Document Pane.

View Domain Inventory

To view an existing Domain Inventory, do the following:

  1. Click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer.
  2. Open the Inventory History folder for the domain.
  3. Double-click on the inventory name to view the selected Domain Inventory Overview in the Document Pane.

Evaluate Domain

To identify potential problems before they occur, you can use the Evaluation Wizard to evaluate one or more domains.

To evaluate a domain, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation Pane, click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer.
  2. Select a domain and open the Evaluation Wizard.

    3. Use any of the following methods to select a domain and open the wizard:

    • In the Domain Explorer, select a domain and then click the Evaluation button. To select multiple domains, press the Ctrl or Shift key while selecting additional items.
    • Right-click on a domain and then select Evaluate from the context menu.
    • Double-click a domain name in the Domain Explorer.
    • Select File > New > Evaluation from the titlebar.
    • Select Window > Show View > Active Domains Table to display the Active Domains Table. Then, double-click a domain name to open the wizard for the selected domain.
  3. In the Bundle field, select the Signature Bundle to evaluate.

    4. Select a Signature Bundle from the Bundle field drop-down menu. The default is Default Signatures.

  4. Enter the credentials for the WebLogic Server for the selected domain.

    5. In the Domain Credentials section, enter the following:

    • Username: This is the username for the WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account on the target domain.
    • Password: This is the password for the WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account on the target domain.

      • If you selected multiple domains, you must supply the login credentials for each domain before you can launch the Evaluation.

  5. (Optional) Select the Remember username/password checkbox to save your login credentials for the selected domain(s).

    6. Select this option if you want your login information to persist so that you do not have to enter it each time you evaluate this domain. This is especially useful if you routinely evaluate multiple domains concurrently. Usernames and passwords are encrypted when stored.

  6. (Optional) Create a shortcut for this evaluation.

    7. This is useful if you routinely perform this particular type of evaluation. To create a shortcut, select the Create Shortcut checkbox, and enter a brief name for the shortcut in the text field. For detailed instructions on creating, evaluating, and managing shortcuts, see the section entitled, Shortcuts on page 70.

  7. Click Finish.

    8. This initiates the evaluation and displays an Evaluation Summary of the results in the Document Pane. In the Domain Explorer, the new Domain Inventory is added to the Inventory History folder, and the new Evaluation Summary is added to the Evaluation History folder.

Evaluate Snapshot

A Snapshot Evaluation is a complete assessment of all of the configuration details for a specific domain, at the particular moment the evaluation is executed. The process for performing a Snapshot Evaluation is the same as for any other type of evaluation. The primary difference is in the type of Signature Bundle you select for the evaluation, and the type of information the evaluation collects and evaluates.

Note: As with other evaluations, you can compare Snapshot Evaluations. Comparing two Snapshot Evaluations enables you to see very quickly the differences between configurations for those two domains. For instructions, see Compare Inventories or Evaluations on page 60.
Caution: Generating a Snapshot Evaluation of a large domain may consume a lot of memory, and take a long time to complete.

To evaluate a snapshot of a domain configuration, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation Pane, click the Domain Explorer tab to open the Domain Explorer.
  2. Select a domain and open the Evaluation Wizard.

    3. Do one of the following:

    • In the Domain Explorer, select a domain and then click the Evaluation button.
    • Right-click on a domain name and then select Evaluate from the context menu.
  3. In the Bundle field, select the type of snapshot to create and evaluate.

    4. Select one of the following from the Bundle field drop-down menu:

    • Snapshot - All
    • Snapshot - JDBC
    • Snapshot - JMS
    • Snapshot - Security
  4. Enter the credentials for the WebLogic Server for the selected domain.

    5. In the Domain Credentials section, enter the following:

    • Username: This is the username for the WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account on the target domain.
    • Password: This is the password for the WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account on the target domain.
  5. Click Finish.

    6. This initiates the Snapshot Evaluation and displays an Evaluation Summary of the results in the Document Pane. In the Domain Explorer, the new Domain Inventory is added to the Inventory History folder, and the new Evaluation Summary is added to the Evaluation History folder.

Compare Inventories or Evaluations

You can compare inventories or evaluations from the same or different domains. Both objects must be of the same type—that is, two inventories or two evaluations. You cannot compare an inventory against an evaluation.

You can compare any two Evaluation Summaries. Comparing two Snapshot Evaluations is particularly useful, as a Snapshot Evaluation collects and evaluates all of the configuration data for the evaluated domain. Such a comparison enables you to see very quickly the differences between the configurations and their issues for those two domains.

To compare two Domain Inventories or Evaluation Summaries, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation pane, open the Domain Explorer.

    2. Click the Domain Explorer tab, or select Window > Show View > Domain Explorer.

  2. Open the History folder containing the resources to be compared (Inventory History or Evaluation History).
  3. Select the two files to be compared.

    4. Click on the first item to select it, and then hold down the Ctrl key and click on the second item.

  4. Right-click in the Domain Explorer and select Compare from the context menu.
    5. Note: The Compare option remains deactivated until two like items have been selected.

    Selecting Compare opens the Text Compare display in the Document Pane. The differences between the two files are highlighted, and related segments are shown in boxed sections, with connectors indicating the relation.

The Text Compare navigation controls are as follows:

Export Inventory or Evaluation

You can export a Domain Inventory or Evaluation Summary report to a PDF or HTML file for external viewing or archiving.

To export a report, do the following:

  1. Click the Domain Explorer tab in the Navigation Pane to open the Domain Explorer.
  2. Open the History folder containing the report you want to save.

    3. The Domain Explorer contains two History folders:

    • Inventory History — This contains a linked list of the available Domain Inventory reports.
    • Evaluation History — This contains a linked list of the available Evaluation Summary reports.
  3. Open the report.

    4. Double-click on a report name to open the report and display it in the Document Pane.

  4. Select File > Save As.

    5. This opens a standard Save As file browser.

  5. Browse to the location to which to save the file.
  6. Select the type of file to which to save the report.

    7. For the Save as type: field, select one of the following from the drop-down menu:

    • PDF Files (*.pdf)
    • HTML Files (*.html)
  7. Enter a file name in the File name field.
  8. Click OK.

Signatures

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

View Signature Overview

To display the overview for a signature, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation Pane, click on the Signature Explorer or Bundle Explorer tab.

    2. This opens the Signature Explorer or Bundle Explorer, respectively. Signature Overviews are accessible only through these two Explorers.

  2. Double-click on a signature name in the Navigation Pane.

    3. This displays the overview for that signature in the Document Pane.

Filter Signatures

You can use Signature Filters to specify which signatures are to be displayed in the Signature Explorer, Bundle Explorer, and Evaluation Summaries.

To apply Signature Filters, do the following:

  1. Open the Filters dialog box.
    • From the Signature Explorer or Bundle Explorer:

      • Click the Menu icon (small white delta in the upper right corner), and select Filters... from the context menu.

    • From an Evaluation Summary:

      • Right-click on any signature in the Detected Signatures list, and select Filters... from the context menu.

  2. Specify your filter settings.

    3. Click a radio button to specify Show or Hide for each filter. The Signature Filters are as follows:

    Name — Filter according to name. Specify all or a portion of a signature name to use as the filter criteria. This can be a character string or standard regular expression. Enter .* to filter all signatures. The default is Show all (.*).

    Severity — Filter according to severity. Click a checkbox to select/deselect a severity level. These are: Critical, Warning, and Information. The default is Show all (all selected).

    Type — Filter annotated signatures according to Annotation Type. Click a checkbox to select/deselect a type. There are two Annotation Types: Flag and Ignore. The default is Hide signatures with an Annotation Type of Ignore. For more information on Annotation Types, see Signature Annotations on page 22 in About BEA Guardian.

    Annotation Name — Filter annotated signatures according to Annotation Name. Specify all or a portion of an Annotation Name to use as the filter criteria. This can be a character string or standard regular expression. Enter .* to filter all annotated signatures. The default is Show all (.*).

    Comment — Filter annotated signatures according to annotation comment. Specify all or a portion of a comment to use as the filter criteria. This can be a character string or standard regular expression. Enter .* to filter all signatures. The default is Show all (.*).

    Domain — Filter annotated signatures in this domain, as specified above.

    Evaluation — Filter annotated signatures in this Evaluation, as specified above.

  3. Click OK.

    4. This applies your filter specifications and returns to the Guardian main window.

Sort Signatures

You can sort the list of signatures displayed in the Signature Explorer, Bundle Explorer, and Evaluation Summaries.

  1. In the Navigation Pane, click the Signature Explorer or Bundle Explorer tab to open one of these Explorers.
  2. Click the Menu icon to open the Explorer menu.
  3. Select Sort Signatures > to open the Sort submenu.
  4. Select the category by which to sort.

    5. Select one of the following:

    • By Name
    • By Severity

The signature lists are automatically reordered according to the selected category.

Signature Annotations

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

You can use the Annotations Wizard to create, edit, delete, and view signature annotations.

You can access the Annotations Wizard from the Signatures List in any of the following contexts:

To open the wizard, right-click on a signature title and select Annotations > Manage Annotations from the context menu.

Annotate Signature

To create an annotation and add it to a signature, do the following:

  1. Navigate to the Signatures List containing the signature you want to annotate.

    2. The contents of a Signatures List may vary according to the context in which it occurs. Signatures Lists can be found in the following locations:

    • Evaluation Summary
    • Signature Explorer
    • Bundle Explorer
  2. Open the Annotations Wizard.

    3. Right-click on the signature title and select Annotations > Manage Annotations from the context menu.

  3. Click Add.

    4. This displays the Add dialog box.

  4. Select an Annotation Type.

    5. Select one of the following:

    • Ignore — Ignore this signature for the specified targets.
    • Flag — Flag this signature for the specified targets.
  5. (Optional) Enter a Name and Comment for the annotations.
  6. Select an Annotation Target.

    7. Click the down-arrow next to the Apply to field to display a drop-down menu of Annotation Targets. Select one of the following:

    • All Domains — Apply this annotation to this signature for all domains.
    • This Domain — Apply this annotation to this signature for this domain, only. This option is available only if you are annotating a signature in an Evaluation Summary.
    • This Evaluation — Apply this annotation to this signature in this evaluation, only. This option is available only if you are annotating a signature in an Evaluation Summary.
  7. Click Finish.

    8. This adds the new annotation to the Annotations list for the selected signature.

  8. Click OK.

    9. This returns to the Guardian main window. Note that a decoration has been added to the icon for the annotated signature.

Edit Annotation

To change an existing annotation, do the following:

  1. Navigate to the Signatures List containing the signature with the annotation you want to modify.
    2. Note: If the signature is not included in the Signatures List(s), you may need to temporarily set one or more filter attributes to Show. For instructions, see Filter Signatures on page 63.
  2. Open the Annotations Wizard.

    3. Right-click on the title of the annotated signature and select Annotations > Manage Annotations from the context menu.

  3. Select the annotation to be modified and click Edit.
    4. Note: The Edit button will be greyed out (deactivated) until you select an annotation.

    This displays the Edit dialog box for the selected annotation.

  4. Enter your changes.
  5. Click Finish.

    6. This updates the Annotations list with your changes.

  6. Click OK.

    7. This updates the appropriate Signatures Lists and returns to the Guardian main window.

    Note: If you modified any filter settings in step 1, you can reset the filters to their original settings now. For instructions, see Filter Signatures on page 63.

Delete Annotation

To delete an annotation, do the following:

  1. Navigate to the Signatures List containing the signature with the annotation you want to delete.
    2. Note: If the signature is not included in the Signatures List(s), you may need to temporarily set one or more filter attributes to Show. For instructions, see Filter Signatures on page 63.
  2. Open the Annotations Wizard.

    3. Right-click on the title of the annotated signature and select Annotations > Manage Annotations from the context menu.

  3. Select the annotation to be modified and click Delete.
    4. Note: The Delete button remains deactivated until you select an annotation.

    This removes the annotation from the Annotations list for that signature.

  4. Click OK.

    5. This updates the appropriate Signatures Lists and returns to the Guardian main window.

    Note: If you modified any filter settings in step 1, you can reset the filters to their original settings now. For instructions, see Filter Signatures on page 63.

View Annotations

You can view the annotations for a signature by selecting the signature and then opening the Annotations Wizard. The Annotations Wizard displays a table of all annotations for the selected signature.

You can access the Annotations Wizard from the Signatures List in any of the following contexts:

To open the wizard, right-click on a signature title and select Annotations > Manage Annotations from the context menu.

Filter Annotated Signatures

You can use Signature Filters to specify which signatures to display in the Signature Explorer, Bundle Explorer, and Evaluation Summaries. Some filters apply specifically to annotated signatures and their attributes.

This section provides instructions for applying filters to annotated signatures, only. For complete instructions on using Signature Filters, see Filter Signatures on page 63.

To apply Annotation Filters, do the following:

  1. Open the Evaluation Summary to which you want to apply the filter.
  2. Open the Filter Configuration wizard.

    3. In the Signatures List, right-click on a signature name and select Filters... from the context menu.

  3. Specify your filter settings.

    4. Click a radio button to specify Show or Hide for each filter. The Signature Filters that apply to annotations are as follows:

    Type — Filter annotated signatures according to Annotation Type. Click a checkbox to select/deselect a type. There are two Annotation Types: Flag and Ignore. The default is Hide signatures with an Annotation Type of Ignore.

    Annotation Name — Filter annotated signatures according to Annotation Name. Specify all or a portion of an Annotation Name to use as the filter criteria. This can be a character string or a standard regular expression. Enter .* to filter all annotated signatures. The default is Show all (.*).

    Comment — Filter annotated signatures according to annotation comment. Specify all or a portion of a comment to use as the filter criteria. This can be a character string or standard regular expression. Enter .* to filter all signatures. The default is Show all (.*).

  4. Click OK.

    5. This applies your filter specifications and returns to the Guardian main window.

Bundles

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

Explore Bundles

You can use the Bundle Explorer to view the available Signature Bundles and their contents. For a detailed description of the Bundle Explorer, see Bundle Explorer on page 101 in Reference.

View Bundle Overview

To display an overview of the contents of a Bundle, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation Pane, click the Bundle Explorer tab to open the Bundle Explorer.
  2. In the Bundle Explorer, double-click on a bundle name.

    3. This displays the selected Bundle Overivew in the Document Pane.

Shortcuts

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

A Shortcut enables you to streamline the evaluation procedure by predefining and storing the domain, Signature Bundle, and other parameters for evaluations that you perform frequently. You can then evaluate the Shortcut, saving you the effort of re-entering the values each time you want to run the evaluation.

Create Shortcut

A Shortcut enables you to predefine the evaluation parameters for evaluations you perform frequently, saving you the effort of re-entering the values each time you run the evaluation.

There are two ways to create a Shortcut:

The following sections describe each of these procedures.

Create Shortcut with Shortcut Wizard

Use the Shortcut Wizard if you want to quickly create a Shortcut without evaluating the selected domain. However, you will not be able to enter and save the login credentials for the WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account. Consequently, you will need to enter these each time you evaluate the Shortcut. For instructions on storing the login credentials when creating a Shortcut, see Create Shortcut with Evaluation Wizard on page 71.

To use the Shortcut Wizard to create a Shortcut, do the following:

  1. Open the Shortcut Wizard.

    2. You can use any of the following methods to open the wizard:

    • Press Ctrl+Shift+S.
    • Select File > New > Shortcut.
    • Select Window > Show View > Shortcuts Table to open the Shortcuts Table. Then, click Add Shortcut in the Shortcuts Table toolbar.
    • Right-click in the Domain Explorer or Shortcut Explorer and select Add Shortcut from the context menu.
  2. Select the domain to associate with the Shortcut.
  3. Select the Signature Bundle to associate with the Shortcut.

    4. Select a Signature Bundle from the Bundle field drop-down menu. This is the Bundle that will be evaluated against the specified domain when you evaluate the Shortcut. The default is Default Signatures.

  4. Select the Create Shortcut checkbox and enter a brief name for the Shortcut.
  5. Click Finish.

    6. This adds the new Shortcut to the Shortcuts Table and the Shortcut Explorer tree. For instructions on evaluating a Shortcut, see Evaluate Shortcut on page 72.

Create Shortcut with Evaluation Wizard

You can create a Shortcut by selecting the Save as Shortcut option when using the Evaluation Wizard to evaluate a domain. This method of creating a Shortcut enables you to enter and store the Administrator login credentials so that you need not enter them each time you evaluate the Shortcut.

To use the Evaluation Wizard to create a Shortcut, do the following:

  1. Open the Evaluation Wizard.

    2. You can use any of the following methods to open the wizard:

    • Press Ctrl+Shift+E.
    • Select File > New > Evaluation.
    • Right-click in the Domain Explorer and select Evaluate from the context menu.
  2. Select the domain to associate with the Shortcut.
  3. In the Bundle field, select the Signatures Bundle to associate with the Shortcut.

    4. Select a Signature Bundle from the Bundle field drop-down menu. This is the bundle that will be evaluated against the specified domain when you evaluate the Shortcut. The default is Default Signatures.

  4. Enter the Username and Password for the WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account on the target domain.
  5. (Optional) Select the Remember username/password checkbox to store your login credentials for the selected domain(s).

    6. Select this option if you want your login information to persist so that you do not have to enter it each time you evaluate this Shortcut. This is especially useful if you will be evaluating the Shortcut on a frequent basis. Usernames and passwords are encrypted when stored.

  6. Select the Create Shortcut checkbox and enter a brief name for the Shortcut.
  7. Click Finish.

    8. This adds the new Shortcut to the Shortcuts Table and the Shortcut Explorer tree. For instructions on evaluating a Shortcut, see Evaluate Shortcut on page 72.

Evaluate Shortcut

A Shortcut enables you to predefine the evaluation parameters for evaluations you perform frequently, saving you the effort of re-entering the values each time you run the evaluation. To evaluate a Shortcut, use the Shortcut Evaluation Wizard.

To evaluate a Shortcut, do the following:

  1. Open the Shortcut Evaluation Wizard.

    2. You can do this using any of the following methods:

    • Select Window > Show View > Shortcuts Table to open the Shortcuts Table. Then, double-click on a Shortcut name in the Shortcut Table.
    • Click the Shortcut Explorer tab to open the Shortcut Explorer. Then, double-click on a Shortcut name in the Shortcut list.
    • Click the Shortcut Explorer tab to open the Shortcut Explorer. Then, right-click on a Shortcut name in the Shortcut list and select Evaluate Shortcut from the context menu.

      • The Shortcut Evaluation Wizard opens with the predefined values for the selected Shortcut displayed in the domain table. You can change the Bundle selection.

  2. If necessary, enter the Username and Password for the WebLogic Server Administrator or Monitor account for the target domain.

    3. If you selected the Remember username/password option when you activated the domain or defined the Shortcut, the Username and Password fields are prefilled. Otherwise, you must enter this information before launching the evaluation.

  3. Click Finish.

    4. This launches the evaluation, and returns you to the Guardian main window when the evaluation completes. As with a standard evaluation, the Domain Explorer History folders are updated to include an entry for the resulting Domain Inventory and Evaluation Summary. The results of the evaluation are displayed in an Evaluation Summary Overview in the Document Pane.

Delete Shortcut

You can use either of the following methods to delete a Shortcut:

Command Line Interface

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

The Command Line Interface (CLI) is also referred to as Guardian Headless Mode. For a complete list of Guardian Command Line Interface commands and syntax, see Command Line Interface on page 134 of the Reference section of this manual. For instructions on starting the Command Line Interface, see the next section, Start Guardian Headless Mode on page 74.

Start Guardian Headless Mode

The Guardian Command Line Interface (CLI)—also referred to as Guardian Headless Mode—is a set of Guardian commands that can be issued directly from the operating system command prompt. There is a Guardian CLI command for almost every task available in the Guardian User Interface. For a complete description of these commands and their syntax, see Command Line Interface on page 134 in Reference.

To start the Guardian Command Line Interface, do the following:

Note: Guardian Command Line Interface commands are case sensitive.
  1. At the operating system command prompt, change directories to the Guardian installation directory.

    2. cd <root>\guardian\

    Where:

    <root> is the parent directory for the Guardian installation directory.

  2. Enter the Guardian Headless command.
    • On Windows:

      • guardianHeadless.cmd

    • On Linux:

      • guardianHeadless.sh

  3. (Optional) To see a list of CLI commands and their syntax, enter the CLI Help command at the operating system prompt.
    • On Windows:

      • guardianHeadless.cmd -ghelp

    • On Linux:

      • guardianHeadless.sh -ghelp

The Command Line Interface uses your specified Guardian Workspace as the location for all CLI operations, unless you specify otherwise in each command. Identifying the Guardian Workspace location is essential for accessing the correct set of active domains, Domain Inventories, and Evaluation Summaries. For instructions on selecting a Guardian Workspace, see Select Workspace on page 41.

IMPORTANT: Each command must include the prefix -g with no trailing space, as shown in the following examples:

The output of each command is sent to the following output file:

headless_output.txt

The output file is created in your current directory, and is overwritten each time you run a Guardian Headless Mode command.

For a complete list of Guardian Command Line Interface commands and syntax, see Command Line Interface on page 134 in Reference.

Run Scripts

You can create a Guardian Command Line script to perform several Guardian tasks with one command. You can schedule scripts to run at specified times and intervals by using utilities such as the Windows Task Scheduler or the Linux crontab command.

To run a script, enter the following command at the operating system prompt:

Where:

<script_name> is the path and name of your CLI script.

To view the results of evaluations and inventories conducted from the CLI, use the Domain Explorer in the Guardian User Interface.

Schedule Scripts

To schedule a script to run automatically at a specified time, you can use utilities such as the Windows Task Scheduler or the Linux crontab command. For instructions on scheduling scripts, see your operating system documentation.

Receive Notifications

To receive notification of detected signatures, create an evaluation script and use the Windows Task Scheduler or the Linux crontab command to schedule the script to run at regular intervals. Each time the script runs, the signature.log file in the Guardian installation directory is updated with an entry for each detected signature. You can the configure a third party management tool to scan the log for detected signatures, and notify you when one is found.

Each signature.log entry starts with four number signs (####) and includes a timestamp for the entry. Each entry with a detected signature contains the label <detected> and is followed by a brief description which is also surrounded by angle brackets. The description includes the domain name.

The following is a sample signature.log file:

####<Tue Aug 01 16:03:47 EDT 2006> <0> <g-dev_slp7_7001> <un> <0> <000022> <not detected> <Signature 000022 (Rotational Upgrade may cause java.io.StreamCorruptedException) not detected by username un evaluating bundle ID 0 in domain ID g-dev_slp7_7001.>
####<Tue Aug 01 16:03:47 EDT 2006> <0> <g-dev_slp7_7001> <un> <0> <000027> <detected> <Signature 000027 (Native IO should be enabled in production mode for better performance) detected by username un evaluating bundle ID 0 in domain ID g-dev_slp7_7001.>
####<Tue Aug 01 16:03:47 EDT 2006> <0> <g-dev_slp7_7001> <un> <0> <000055> <not detected> <Signature 000055 (JDK 1.5 is not certified for WebLogic 8.1) not detected by username un evaluating bundle ID 0 in domain ID g-dev_slp7_7001.>

Troubleshooting

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

View Logfiles

The BEA Guardian log files contain information that BEA Customer Support can use to diagnose and resolve issues with your system.

The Guardian log files are as follows:

Crash Recovery

Guardian crashes are extremely unlikely, since Guardian uses the Eclipse Rich Client Platform. If Guardian does crash, simply restart Guardian. No additional cleanup operations are required.

Resolve Exceptions

In the unlikely event of an exception, the recommended steps for resolving the issue are as follows:

  1. Read the text of the error message to determine what is wrong.
  2. Save the Exception Error window text with a screen capture, or cut and paste the text into a file.
  3. Try the operation again to see if the issue recurs.
  4. Copy the BEA Guardian log files to another location and save them for future reference
  5. Contact BEA Support for assistance
Tip: To save log files, copy them to another location so that the error is among the last entries in the log file, making it easier to identify. For the location of Guardian log files, see View Logfiles on page 77.

Support

This section provides instructions for the following task:

Submit Support Case

You can use the Support Case Wizard to create a support case based on a detected signature, and automatically submit the case to BEA Customer Support. The wizard automatically creates the case with all of the signature-specific information required for a BEA support engineer to begin working on your case right away. You can also add any additional attachments and notes before sending the support case to BEA.

If you choose not to submit a support case, you can instead save the case information as a Case Creation Archive. Case Creation Archives are stored as files with the file name extension .car.

Notes: Before you can create and submit a support case, you must first associate your eSupport ID with Guardian. For information, visit the BEA Customer Support site at https://support.bea.com.
Note: If you are using a proxy server for outbound Guardian communications, make sure that you have enabled and tested the outbound proxy connection. For instructions, see Enable and Test Outbound Proxy on page 55.

To create and submit a support case, do the following:

  1. Open the Evaluation Summary containing the signature you want to include in the support case.

    2. Double-click on an Evaluation Summary entry in the Domain Explorer.

  2. Select the signature you want to include in the support case.

    3. Click on a signature entry to highlight it. This displays the Description and Remedy for the signature in the bottom portion of the Evaluation Summary display in the Document Pane.

  3. Open the Support Case Wizard.

    4. Click the Get more help from BEA support link at the bottom of the signature Remedy section to open the wizard. This automatically includes the signature details in the new support case, and displays the first page of the Support Case Wizard, which is the Support Case Notes page.

  4. (Optional) Enter any additional support case notes.

    5. In the Additional Case Notes field, enter any additional text that may be helpful to BEA Customer Support in resolving your case.

  5. Click Next to proceed to the Select Case Attachments page.

    6. Select the background information files to include with the support case. You can select one or more of the following:

    • Case Attachments:
      • Domain Inventory
      • Detected Signature Results
    • Recommended Attachments:
      • Server Log
    • Other Attachments:
      • Click the + icon to open a file browser from which you can select files to include.
      • Click the X icon to remove a file from the list.
  6. Click Next to proceed to the Select Case Destination page.
  7. Select the destination for the case.

    8. Select one of the following:

    • Submit Case to BEA Support — Select this if you want to connect to the BEA Customer Support sita and upload the support case.
    • Save Case Creation Archive — Select this to save the support case as a Case Archive for uploading later. Enter the location to which to save the file, or click the elipsis (...) to open a file browser from which you can select the location.
  8. Click Next to proceed to the eSupport Login page.
  9. Enter your eSupport Username and Password.

    10. If you elected to submit the case, enter your eSupport Username and Password. If you elected to save the case as an archive for later submittal, these fields are disabled.

  10. Click Next to proceed to the Select eSupport Site ID page.
  11. Select the eSupport Site Identifier to use for this case.

    12. Select an ID from the Enter Site ID drop down menu. If you have only one eSupport Site Identifier, this field is disabled. Otherwise, select an identifier from the Select Site drop down list.

  12. Click Finish to submit the case.

    13. If you elected to save the case to an archive file, a Case Creation Complete dialog box displays the date, time, and location of the file.

    If you elected to submit your case, Guardian proceeds to connect to the eSupport site and submit the new support case to BEA Customer Support. When the submission completes, a Case Creation Complete dialog box displays the date, time, and location of the archive file.

  13. Click OK.

    14. This dismisses the dialog box and returns to the Guardian main window.

Updates and Upgrades

This section provides instructions for the following tasks:

Notes: Before you can update or upgrade Guardian, you must first associate your eSupport ID with Guardian. For information, visit the BEA Customer Support site at https://support.bea.com.
Note: If you are using a proxy server for outbound Guardian communications, make sure that you have enabled and tested the outbound proxy connection. For instructions, see Enable and Test Outbound Proxy on page 55.

Automatically Update Guardian

To update Guardian, use the Update Wizard to download new BEA Guardian software and signatures from the BEA Guardian update site, http://guardian.bea.com/update.

Notes: Before you can update or upgrade Guardian, you must first associate your eSupport ID with Guardian. For information, visit the BEA Customer Support site at https://support.bea.com.
Note: If you are using a proxy server for outbound Guardian communications, make sure that you have enabled and tested the outbound proxy connection. For instructions, see Enable and Test Outbound Proxy on page 55.

To update Guardian, do the following:

  1. Open the Update Wizard.

    2. Use one of the following methods to open the wizard:

    • Press Ctrl+Shift+U.
    • Click the Update button on the Main Toolbar.
    • Select Help > Software Updates > Guardian Updates.
  2. Enter your BEA eSupport Username and Password to access your eSupport site identifiers.
  3. (Optional) Select the Remember Username/Password checkbox to store your login credentials for future use.

    4. Select this option if you want your login information to persist so that you do not have to enter it each time you create a support case.

  4. Click Next to proceed to the Select eSupport Site Id page.
  5. Select your eSupport site identifier.

    6. This displays the Password Required dialog box for connecting to the Guardian Update Site.

  6. Click Next to proceed to the Password Required page.
  7. Enter your BEA eSupport Username and Password and click OK.

    8. This connects to the Guardian Update Site, initiates a search for new updates, and displays the results in the Search Results page of the wizard.

  8. Select the available features to install.

    9. Expand the folders in the Select the features to install tree to see the available selections.

    To select features, do the following:

    1. (Optional) To filter the results, you can select from the following filter options:
      • Show the latest version of a feature only to display only the current version of each feature in the results.
      • Select Filter patches included in other patches on the list to filter out duplicate patch entries.
    2. (Optional) Click More Info to see details about a selection.
    3. (Optional) Click Properties to display the properties for a selection.
    4. (Optional) Click Select Required to automatically select all required updates.
    5. Click the checkbox beside a feature name to select/deselect it.
  9. Click Next to proceed to the Feature License page.

    10. Accept the terms in the license agreement to proceed with the installation.

  10. Click Next to proceed to the Installation page.
  11. Select the installation location, or accept the default.

    12. Click Change Location to open a directory browser from which you can select the location. Click OK to enter your selection and close the browser. Click Next to proceed.

  12. Verify the list of features to install, and click Install or Install All.

    13. After the updates are installed, you are prompted as to whether to restart Guardian.

  13. Click Yes to restart Guardian and incorporate the new features.

Manually Update Guardian

To update Guardian on servers that do not have Internet access, you can perform a manual update. To do so, first automatically update Guardian on a server that has Internet access, and then copy the updated files to the server(s) without access.

WARNING: If you are upgrading from Guardian 1.0.x to Guardian 1.1.0 and want to preserve your Guardian Registry, you must first back up and then manually update the Guardian Registry. For instructions, see Manually Update Guardian Registry on page 86. Please also refer to the Guardian 1.1 Installation Guide and Guardian 1.1 Release Notes for additional important information.

To manually update Guardian, do the following;

  1. Automatically update Guardian on a server that has Internet access.

    2. For instructions, see Automatically Update Guardian on page 81.

  2. Shut down Guardian on the offline server(s).

    3. Select File > Exit from the titlebar menu.

  3. Update the Guardian Signatures Repository on the secure (offline) machine.

    4. Copy the following directory and all of its contents from the updated server to the offline server(s) you want to update, overwriting the old contents:

    <..>\guardian\repository\archives

    Where:

    <..> is the parent directory of the Guardian installation root directory. The Guardian installation root directory is named guardian.

    Note: If you only want to update the Guardian Signatures Repository but not the Guardian application itself, you can skip the remainder of these steps.
  4. (Optional) Remove the old Signature Features directories from the offline server(s).

    5. The Signature Features directories are kept in the following directory:

    <..>\guardian\features\

    Where:

    <..> is the parent directory of the Guardian installation root directory. The Guardian installation root directory is named guardian.

    The Signature Features directories are named according to the following convention:

    com.bea.guardian.feature.signature.weblogic_<old_version>

    Where:

    <old_version> is the old signature release version.

    For example:

    ..\guardian\features\com.bea.guardian.feature.signature.weblogic_1.0.42

  5. Copy the updated Signatures Features directory to the offline server(s).

    6. Copy the following directory and all of its contents from the updated machine to the offline server(s):

    ..\guardian\features\com.bea.guardian.feature.signature.weblogic_<CurVersion>

    Where:

    <..> is the parent directory of the Guardian installation root directory. The Guardian installation root directory is named guardian.

    <CurVersion> is the most current signature release version.

  6. (Optional) Remove the old Signature Plugins JAR files from the offline server(s).

    7. The Signature Plugins JAR files reside in the following directory:

    <..>\guardian\plugins\

    Where:

    <..> is the parent directory of the Guardian installation root directory. The Guardian installation root directory is named guardian.

    The files are named according to the following convention:

    com.bea.guardian.signature.weblogic_<old_version>

    Where:

    <old_version> is the old signature release version.

  7. Copy the updated Signatures Plugins file to the offline server(s).

    8. Copy the following file from the updated machine to the offline server(s):

    ..\guardian\plugins\com.bea.guardian.signature.weblogic_<CurVersion>

    Where:

    <..> is the parent directory of the Guardian installation root directory. The Guardian installation root directory is named guardian.

    <CurVersion> is the most current signature release version.

  8. Restart Guardian on the newly-updated offline servers.
  9. Check the new configuration.

    10. Do the following:

    1. Select Help > Manage Guardian to open the Product Configuration page.
    2. In the Product Configuration tree (left pane), expand the BEA Guardian folder and subfolders.
    3. Check the version numbers for each item.

Manually Update Guardian Registry

If you are upgrading from Guardian 1.0.x to Guardian 1.1, you must manually update the Guardian Registry. For instructions, please see the Guardian 1.1 Installation Guide and the Guardian 1.1 Release Notes.

Check Product Configuration

You can use the Product Configuration page to check the current configuration for a Guardian installation. This is especially useful if you have manually updated Guardian and want to check that the update was completed correctly.

To check the current Guardian configuration, do the following:

  1. Select Help > Manage Guardian to open the Product Configuration page.
  2. In the Product Configuration tree (left pane), expand the BEA Guardian folder and subfolders.
  3. Check the version numbers for each item.

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