How do I create an event variable?

Introduction

To create a new variable

To access a variable from the Groovy script of an event rule or trigger

Introduction:

Variables allow administrators to make a single change that can be picked up by multiple rules. For example, variables are useful in the following cases:

• if you have actions that send an email: rather than typing the email address into each action, you can create a variable that contains the email address. If the email address changes, you can simply update the variable, and all the actions that use the variable will also be updated.
• to control when particular actions are enabled: using the example of an action that sends an email, you could add a test against a variable, so that an email would only be generated when the variable contains the value true.

To create a new variable:

1. Click the Main Menu and then Administration.
2. On the Administration page, click Event Administration.
3. On the Event Administration page, click the Variables tab, and then click Add.
   
   
   
   
4. This will open the New Variable window. Enter a Name and Description for the new variable in those fields.
   
   
   
   
5. Enter the value of the variable in the Value field. This value must be entered in a format suitable for Groovy syntax:
   • numbers are entered verbatim, e.g. 1.
   • strings are enclosed within quotes, e.g. "an.employee@entuity.com".
   Note, any Groovy expression used in an event rule/trigger can be used as a value for the variable.
6. At this point you can click OK to save the variable, otherwise click Cancel.
   
   The Choose button is optional, and enables you to specify between specifying a Function Call or Variable Reference, depending on what you want the variable to do. For example, it is used when specifying an incident that triggers an email when raised.
   1. Click Choose to open the Choose Variable or Function window.
   2. In the Value Kind dropdown field, select either Function Call or Variable Reference, depending on what you want the variable to do.
      • Function Call allows you to select from the following functions in the Function dropdown field:
        
        
        
        
        • lookupDevice - looks up inventory for a device by its name or IP address.
        • lookup Port - looks up inventory for a port by its name or IP address and ifIndex.
      • Once you have selected your function, select a parameter from the Parameters field and click Set.
      • Variable Reference allows you to select from a previously saved variable that you have created.
        
        
        
        
   3. Click OK to save, otherwise click Cancel.

To access a variable from the Groovy script of an event rule or trigger:

You can access the value of a variable from within the Groovy Script (in either a condition or action) of an event rule or trigger. The required Groovy syntax is as follows:

def varValue = var("myVariableName")