How do I manually add a VM platform to my network?

Entuity supports management of the following types of VM platform:

• Amazon Web Services
• Microsoft Azure
• Oracle VM Manager (support removed from Entuity 22.0 and v21.0 P05 upwards - please see this note for further information)
• Microsoft Hyper-V
• VMware vCenter or ESXi

The management of VM platforms is through their VM platform API, which necessitates a different set of connection attributes to other device types. Note, the connection URL for VMware vCenter or ESXi hypervisors will require the format:

• https://{hostname or IP of vCenter or ESXi}/sdk/

Cloud-based VM platforms cannot be added by Auto Discovery, and can only be added manually. Locally-hosted VM platforms can be discovered using Auto Discovery but are initially identified as Ping-Only (Basic) devices - after discovery, you will need to modify their Asset Category to 'VM platform'.

There are product-specific requirements:

• AWS is not discoverable by Auto Discovery, because it is not available to either ICMP Ping or SNMP polling. AWS connection attributes include an access key and secret access key.
• Entuity manages Microsoft Hyper-V servers by remote Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI). Therefore, only Entuity servers installed to Windows can manage Microsoft Hyper-V servers.
• for Oracle VMs, you have to specify security credentials (support removed from Entuity 22.0 and v21.0 P05 upwards).

After adding VM platforms, Entuity can discover their hypervisors and virtual machines. To allow this discovery, you must ensure Entuity can communicate with the platform. For example, with Microsoft Hyper-V you should configure its firewall to allow remote Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) from the Entuity server.

You can manually add a VM platform asset to your network without using a discovery profile. On the Managed Assets page, click the Add Assets button at the top of the page or via the Overflow Menu.

This will open the Add Asset form on the right of the window. Depending on your choices, this form can consist of the following sections:

• Management Level
• Asset Details
• Credential
• User Defined Monitoring
• Associated Assets

Management Level

1. In the Asset Category dropdown field, select VM Platform.
2. The Management Level will be set to Full by default.
3. In the Asset Type dropdown field, specify the type of VM platform that you are adding. Select from:
   • Amazon Web Services.
   • Microsoft Azure.
   • Oracle VM Manager (support removed from Entuity 22.0 and v21.0 P05 upwards).
   • Hyper-V.
   • VMware vCenter or ESXi.

Asset Details

Note, the fields available in this section will depend on the type of VM platform that you are adding.

1. Specify the zone to which the device will be added in the Zone dropdown field.
2. Enter the device name (which must be resolvable on the Entuity server) or IP address Entuity uses to poll the device in the Polled Name/IP address field.
3. Specify the device name displayed within the product in the Display Name Using dropdown field, choosing from the following:
   • Polled Name/IP address - displays the identifier it uses to poll the device as specified in the Polled Name/IP address field. This is the default.
   • IP Address - management IP address of the device.
   • Resolved Name - resolved name of the device.
   • Resolved Name (fully qualified) - fully qualified resolved name of the device.
   • System Name - administrator-assigned name of the device.
   • Custom - manually enter a device display name.
4. Specify the IP version that will be used to communicate with the device from the IP Protocol dropdown field, either IPv4 or IPv6.

Credential

1. Click the Credential field to go through to the Credential form, from where you can either search from a list of shared credential sets, or create a local credential. Please see this section for further help and information on credentials.
2. Specify the Connection URL if applicable. If you are adding a VMware vCenter or ESXi hypervisor, this must take the format: https://{hostname or IP of vCenter or ESXi}/sdk/.

User Defined Monitoring

Here you can specify the credentials that will be applied to any user defined REST poller that you might create and add to the device currently being added to management.

1. Click the Credential field to go through to the Credential form, from where you can either search from a list of shared credential sets, or create a local credential. Please see this section for further help and information on credentials.

For further help and information on user defined REST polling, please see this section.

Associated Assets

1. Specify whether to automatically Manage Associated Assets of the SD controller.  The associated assets of a VM platform or SD controller include virtual machines, Meraki devices, Viptela devices and wireless APs, which are now first discovered as candidate associated assets.  These must then be put under management in order to fully manage them.
   
   Note, for an associated Meraki device (that is associated to a Meraki Cloud Controller) to move from 'Pending' to 'Managed' status, the associated Meraki device must have a populated Name value.  Although the device Name does not necessarily need to be assigned on the Controller for that device to exist, in Entuity it is insufficient that just the Mac and Serial are populated, the Name must also be assigned.

Once you have specified the parameters of the server, click Done in the top right of the form, otherwise click Cancel.

Note, due to a limitation with VMware, there is no method to retrieve and display individual in and out traffic rates when monitoring a VM via a vCenter. These metrics are available when monitoring an ESXi host directly, however.