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2 Using Scans

This section describes how to use scans in Oracle Communications Network Integrity.

Managing Scans

A scan is a set of configurations that typically includes a scan action and scan action parameters, network addresses (scope), and schedules. A scan is used to perform a Network Integrity operation. After performing a scan, you can view scan results, scan result details, and discrepancies.

Network Integrity supports the following scan types:

  • A discovery scan discovers your network: network elements, physical resources, and logical resources

  • An assimilation scan produces additional scan results from existing scan results.

  • An import scan imports the same data as a discovery scan, but from an inventory system.

If the scan has discrepancy detection enabled, a scan run reports discrepancies by comparing newly discovered network entities with previously imported inventory entities.

When the scan has been created and configured, it is available in the Manage Scans table in the Network Integrity UI.

Related Topics

Creating a Scan

Searching for a Scan

About the Search Results Table

Editing a Scan

Enabling or Disabling a Scan

Deleting a Scan

Creating a Scan

To create a scan:

  1. From the Tasks panel, click Manage Scans.

    The Manage Scans page appears.

  2. Do one of the following:

    • Click the Create icon on the Search Results table.

      The Create icon

    • From the Actions menu, click Create.

    The Create Scan page is displayed.

  3. On the General tab, define scan properties. See "Defining Scan Properties":

  4. On the Scope tab, define the scope of the scan. See "About the Scope of a Scan":

  5. On the Schedule tab, define the scan schedule. See "Defining a Scan Schedule":

  6. Click Save and Close.

Defining Scan Properties

Scan properties are defined on the General tab of the Create Scan page.

To define the properties of a scan:

  1. In the Name field, enter the scan name.

  2. (Optional) Select the Enabled check box to run the scan using the Start Scan operation or according to a schedule. Deselect the Enabled check box to disable the scan.

  3. (Optional) Select the Detect Discrepancies check box to automatically initiate discrepancy detection at the end of the scan.

    See "About Discrepancy Detection" for more information.

  4. In the Scan Action field, select the scan action to be associated with this scan.

    The Scan Type field will display the associated scan action:

    • Discovery

    • Import

    • Assimilation

  5. (Optional) In the Source field, enter the data source assigned to the scan. This value is copied into all discrepancies detected by this scan.

  6. (Optional) In the Description field, enter a description of the scan.

  7. In the Tags area, associate this scan with one or more tags. See "Tagging a Scan" for more information.

  8. In the Scan Action Parameters area, set protocol and vendor properties for the scan. The parameters vary according to the selected scan action.

    See "Example: Setting Scan Action Parameters for a Discovery Scan Using SNMP" for an example of setting the scan action parameters for an SNMP scan action type.

  9. (Optional) Select the Auto Resolve Discrepancies check box to initiate automatic discrepancy resolution at the end of the scan. Automatic discrepancy resolution works only if the Detect Discrepancies option is also selected.

    See "About Automatic Discrepancy Resolution" for more information.

Example: Setting Scan Action Parameters for a Discovery Scan Using SNMP

To set protocol and vendor properties for a discovery scan using SNMP:

  1. Go to the Scan Action Parameters area of the Create Scan page.

  2. From the Select Parameter Group list, select the required parameter group.

  3. Complete the following fields:

    • Version: Select the supported version of the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) protocol:

      • Version 1

      • Version 2c

      • Version 3

    • Port: Enter the port through which SNMP communication is carried out. The range of valid port numbers is from 0 to 65535. The default is 161.

    • Community string: Enter the string used to carry out authentication of clients. The default is public. This field applies only to SNMP Version 1 and 2c.

    • Timeout (seconds): Enter the time between scans. The default is 5.

    • Number of retries: Enter the number of times that the scan is carried out. The default is zero, that is, the scan is carried out once.

    • V3 User name: Enter the user name used for authentication. This field applies only to SNMP Version 3.

    • V3 Context Name: Enter the name of the context used in the SNMP communication. This field applies only to SNMP Version 3.

    • V3 Authentication protocol: Select the protocol used for authentication. This field is used when the Authentication protocol is set to a value other than None. This field applies only to SNMP Version 3.

    • V3 Authentication password: Enter the password used for authentication. This field is used when the Authentication protocol is set to a value other than None. This field applies only to SNMP Version 3.

    • V3 Privacy protocol: Select the privacy protocol used by the parties to the SNMP communication. This field applies only to SNMP Version 3.

    • V3 Privacy password: Enter the privacy password used by the parties to the SNMP communication. This field is used only when the V3 Privacy protocol is set to a value other than None. This field applies only to SNMP Version 3.

About the Scope of a Scan

The Scope tab allows you to view and define the range of data to be discovered, imported, or assimilated, depending on the scan type:

  • For a discovery scan, the scope consists of network addresses of devices to be discovered.

  • For an import scan, the scope consists of the network address and credentials of your inventory system. You cannot modify the settings for your inventory system on the Scope tab. See "Using Import Systems with Network Integrity" for more information.

  • For an assimilation scan, the scope consists of results from discovery, import or assimilation scans.

Related Topics

Defining the Scope of a Scan for a Discovery Scan Action Type

Viewing the Scope of a Scan for an Import Scan Action Type

Using Import Systems with Network Integrity

Defining the Scope of a Scan for an Assimilation Scan Action Type

Defining the Scope of a Scan for a Discovery Scan Action Type

The scope for a discovery scan consists of the network addresses for the devices to be discovered. A discovery scan must have at least one defined network address in its scope.

To define the scope of a discovery scan:

  1. Click on the Scope tab for a new or saved discovery scan.

  2. Enter the scope of the scan using one of the following methods:

    • In the Scope field, enter individual values, followed by the Add icon.

      Address Handler cartridges can be extended to allow ranges of values to be entered in the Scope field.

    • Click the Import icon and select a file containing the list of network addresses.

    The scope of a discovery scan can consist of the following types of network addresses:

    • IP Addresses

    • CORBA URLs, in the case of a TMF discovery scan.

    • FTP address, in the case of a File Transfer or File Parsing discovery scan.

  3. Click Save and Close to confirm the scope definition.

Viewing the Scope of a Scan for an Import Scan Action Type

The scope of an import scan cannot be modified on the Scope tab, it can only be viewed. The import system details are displayed by name, address, and user name.

Related Topics:

Defining the Scope of a Scan for an Assimilation Scan Action Type

The scope for an assimilation scan consists of discovery scan results. An assimilation scan must have at least one defined input discovery scan.

To define an input discovery scan for an assimilation scan action type:

  1. Click on the Scope tab for a new or saved assimilation scan.

  2. Click the Assign icon.

    The Assign Scans dialog box appears, showing all available input scans.

  3. Select the scans you want to add to the scope of the assimilation scan.

    If any input scans fail, the assimilation is not run.

  4. In the Assimilate Input Scan Results field, select how input scans are assimilated:

    • To process input discovery scans simultaneously for all scan address and result groups for all scan runs, select All Scans, All Scan Addresses.

    • To process input discovery scans in parallel for all scan addresses and result groups by scan run, select Single Scan, All Scan Addresses.

    • To process input discovery scans in parallel for each scan address by scan run, select Single Scan, Single Scan Address.

  5. In the Automatically Run Input Scans field, select whether input scans are automatically re-run with the assimilation scan:

    • To not re-run input discovery scans before the assimilation scan, no matter how old the scan results are, select Never.

    • To re-run all input discovery scans before the assimilation scan, no matter how recent the scan results are, select Always.

    • To re-run input discovery scans before the assimilation scan only if the scan results are older than a specified value, select If Older than X.

    • If Older than a Custom Age: input scans are run before the assimilation scan only if the scan results are older than the specified value. Enter the value in Hours, Days, or Weeks. The value cannot exceed one year.

    • To re-run input discovery scans before the assimilation scan only if the scan results are older than a custom value, select If Older than a Custom Age and enter a value in Hours, Days, or Weeks.

  6. Click Save and Close.

Defining a Scan Schedule

The scan schedule determines when a scan is run.

To define a scan schedule:

  1. On the Create Scan page, click the Schedule tab.

  2. Click the Create icon on the top-level menu of the Scan Schedules pane to display the Create Schedule dialog.

  3. (Optional) In the Description field, enter the name of the schedule.

  4. In the Effective Date field, enter the date on which the schedule starts.

  5. In the Start Time field, enter the time at which the schedule starts.

  6. In the Frequency field, select how often the scan repeats:

    • To define a daily schedule, select Daily.

    • To define a weekly schedule, select Weekly. You can select multiple days of the week for the schedule to recur.

    • To define a monthly schedule, select Monthly. Specify the monthly frequency:

      Click On Day … from beginning of month to specify the day of the month using a number in the range 1 to 28. For example, select 6 to repeat the scan on the 6th day of each month.

      Click On Day … from end of month to specify a scan schedule with respect to the end of the month. Enter a value in the range 1 to 7. For example, select 7 to repeat the scan on the day that falls seven days before the end of each month.

      Click On the to specify the day of the month using an ordinal and the day of the week; for example: the Last Saturday in the month. Supported ordinals are First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, and Last.

    • To define a yearly schedule, select Yearly. Specify the yearly frequency:

      Click On Date to specify the month and the day; for example, January 24.

      Click On the to specify the day of the year using an ordinal, the day of the week, and the month; for example, the First Monday of September. Supported ordinals are First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, and Last.

    • To define a single occurrence, select Once Only. Specify the date and time for the occurrence.

  7. Click OK.

Assigning a Blackout Window

A blackout window defines a period of time when a specified scan should not run or be paused if it is already running. The scheduling options available for blackout windows are identical to those available for scheduling scans. See "Defining a Scan Schedule" for more information.

To assign a blackout window:

  1. On the Create Scan page, select the Schedule tab.

  2. Click the + icon on the top-level menu of the Blackout Windows pane.

  3. From the Assign Blackout Windows table, select the blackout windows you want to assign. It is possible to assign a number of blackout windows to a particular scan, and to have blackout windows overlap. If there are no blackout windows configured, you may need to create one. See "Creating a Blackout Window" for more information.

    Blackout windows are created, updated, displayed, and executed in server time. The local time zone of the client browser is not used for assigning blackout windows. The Network Integrity server time zone details are provided on the dialog box.

  4. Click Save.

    The blackout window is added to a table of blackout windows in the Blackout Windows pane.

  5. Repeat the steps above to assign multiple blackout windows to the scan as required.

    See "Using Blackout Windows" for more information.

Searching for a Scan

You can search for scans using the Search pane on the Manage Scans page. The default search mode, Basic, offers the most commonly-used search criteria.

The Advanced option widens the search by providing other options, as well as allowing extra search fields to be added for complex searches that require multiple values for a particular field.

To search for a scan:

  1. Expand the Search pane.

  2. (Optional). Click Advanced to display additional search criteria. See "Carrying Out an Advanced Search for a Scan".

  3. Select a saved search from the Saved Search list. See "Defining a Saved Search".

  4. In the Match section, select whether to generate a response that matches all of the search criteria, or a response that matches any of the search criteria by clicking All or Any.

  5. For each of the search criteria listed, select an operator and enter or select a value. The following operators are available:

    • Equals

    • Not Equal

    • Starts With (for Tag only)

    You can use wildcards for text fields. The supported wildcard characters are “*'", “%", and “_". “*" and “%" both represent a match of zero or more characters. “_"represents a match of any single character. Wildcard characters can be escaped with a backslash “\". To insert a backslash in the query, insert two backslashes “\\".

    In the Tag section, click a single tag identifier, or multiple tag identifiers, as required. A scan matches when it has been tagged with one or more of the selected tags. When a parent tag is selected, the children of that tag are automatically selected. Click All to search all tags.

  6. Click Search to carry out the search. The result of the search is displayed in the Search Results table.

  7. Click Reset to restore the saved criteria, operators, and mode of a saved search.

    If the search query selected is Search or Untagged, all of the search fields are cleared and operators are set to their default values.

  8. Click Save And Close to save the scan search details.

Carrying Out an Advanced Search for a Scan

You can enhance the criteria used to search for a scan by using the Advanced search option, or by adding custom fields. See "Adding Search Fields" for more information.

To carry out an advanced search for a scan:

  1. Expand the Search pane on the Manage Scans page.

  2. Click Advanced.

  3. Use the search options. See "Searching for a Scan" for more information.

  4. In the Enabled section, select whether the scan is enabled.

  5. In the Description section, enter the description of the scan.

  6. In the Source section, specify the data source assigned to the scan.

  7. In the Detect Discrepancies section, select whether discrepancy detection is enabled.

  8. In the Network Address section, specify the network address, or addresses. Separate addresses using “,"; for example: FD39:26B1:DA1C:1::1, 2001:0db8:000:000:000:000:1334:54ab, 2001:0db8:000:000:000:1248:57ab.

    Specify a range of IP addresses by entering 10.10.10.* or 10.10.10.10-30, for example, or by entering IP addresses separately; for example: 10.15.68.68, 10.15.68.20, 10.15.68.61.

    A scan matches when one or more of the selected addresses are associated with it.

  9. (Optional) Add custom fields to enhance the search functionality. See "Adding Search Fields" for more information.

  10. Click Reset to restore the saved criteria, operators, and mode of a saved search.

    If the search query selected is Search or All Latest or Untagged, all of the search fields are cleared and operators are set to their default values.

  11. Click Search to carry out the search. The result of the search is displayed in the Search Results table.

  12. Click Save And Close to save the scan search details.

Adding Search Fields

You can add extra fields when searching for a scan.

To add search fields:

  1. Expand the Search pane on the Manage Scans page.

  2. Click Advanced to display the advanced search options.

  3. Click the arrow on the Add Fields button to view the list of available fields.

  4. Add any required fields. Save the choices made.

  5. Carry out a new search.

Defining a Saved Search

You can refine the search by selecting or defining a particular set of scans.

To define a saved search for a scan:

  1. Expand the Search pane on the Manage Scans page.

  2. From the Saved Search list, select one of the following:

    • Search. Use this to search all scans. This is the default.

    • Untagged. Use this to search all untagged scans.

    • Personalize. Use this to define a set of scans to search. See "Personalizing a Saved Search" for more information.

    • A custom option.

Personalizing a Saved Search

To define a custom set of scans to search:

  1. From the Saved Search list, click Personalize.

    The Personalize Saved Searches dialog box appears.

  2. Edit or delete the saved searches.

  3. Select the Run Automatically check box.

    The selected search starts immediately.

  4. Select the Show in Search List check box.

    The selected search is displayed in the Saved Search list.

  5. Click Apply.

About the Search Results Table

The Search Results table lists the Network Integrity scans. Each scan is defined by:

  • Name: the name of the scan

  • Scan Action: the scan action associated with the scan

  • Scan Type: the scan type based on the selected scan action:

    • Discovery

    • Import

    • Assimilation

  • Source: the data source assigned to the scan

  • Status: the current status of the scan

    • In progress

    • Completed (even if completed with errors)

    • No Scan Status - the scan was never run

  • Scan Error: the total number of errors encountered during the scan

  • Discrepancy type and total number:

    • Critical (denoted by C)

    • Major (denoted by M)

    • Minor (denoted by m)

    • Warning (denoted by w)

  • Scan Start Time: the time at which the scan started; in the form 4 hours ago or 10 days ago.

  • Scan Duration: the time taken for the scan to complete; in the form 1 minute.

  • Discrepancy Start Time: (optional) the time at which discrepancy detection was initiated at the end of the discovery scan; in the form 4 hours ago or 10 days ago

  • Discrepancy Duration: (optional) the time for discrepancy detection to complete; in the form 0 seconds.

Select a scan from the Search Results table to carry out these actions:

Editing a Scan

To edit a scan:

  1. Click the scan in the Search Results table on the Manage Scans page.

  2. Carry out one of the following to display the Edit Scan dialog:

    • From the Actions menu, select Edit

    • Right-click on the scan and select Edit

    • Click the pencil icon

  3. Edit the scan. See "Creating a Scan" for more information.

  4. Click Save And Close.

Related Topics

Editing a Running Scan

Multiple Users Editing a Scan

Editing a Running Scan

You cannot edit a scan while it is running, but you can stop the scan, edit it, and re-run it. The changes will take effect on any subsequent runs of the scan.

To edit a running scan:

  1. Click the scan in the Search Results table on the Manage Scans page.

  2. To stop the scan, carry out one of the following:

    • From the Actions menu, select Stop Scan

    • Right-click on the scan and select Stop Scan

  3. Edit the scan. See "Creating a Scan" for more information.

  4. Click Save And Close.

  5. Run the scan again. See "Starting a Scan" for more information.

Multiple Users Editing a Scan

If multiple users edit a scan, changes to the scan are committed to the database in the order in which they are made. If a scan is being edited, it may be opened by another user, but the last user to save the scan will receive an error message.

Enabling or Disabling a Scan

You need to enable a scan before you can run it, either manually, or on a schedule. A disabled scan may not be run.

To enable or disable a scan:

  1. Select the scan in the Manage Scans table.

  2. To enable it, from the Actions menu, select Enable.

  3. To disable it, from the Actions menu, select Disable.

The result of the search is displayed in the Search Results table.

Deleting a Scan

To delete a scan:

  1. Carry out one of the following:

    • Select a tag in the Scans table, and from the Actions menu, select Delete

      Or

    • Right-click an existing scan in the Scans table and select Delete.

  2. Confirm the deletion.