Accessing MAS components / Role of an Operator (#masTechnical)

This article is part of my #masTechnical mini-series that gives an insight into the technical aspects of MAS and things to consider. The first article in this series can be seen here.

Accessing MAS components

A POD provides the software to run but directly referencing a POD isn't a long-term solution. The MAS solution configures OpenShift so that groups of PODs can be accessed via a single URL – this functionality is similar to the routing provided by the IBM HTTP Server plugin.

Some PODs will be allocated to handle particular tasks e.g. Mobile traffic. Having separate URLs is important to ensure that the HTTP(s) traffic is delivered to the PODs designed to handle the requests.

It is important to ensure that traffic is directed to the correct PODs.

This IBM page provides links to some of the most critical URLs:

https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/mas-cd/continuous-delivery?topic=tools-maximo-application-suite-application-urls

This is an area where IBM are still developing so I won’t publish a list here that is likely to get out of date.

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Operators

One of the most useful features that MAS / Openshift has delivered is the development of operators.

During the MAS beta testing for the initial version 8 releases it was apparent that there were a lot of commands that had to be executed on the command line. IBM developers had to execute a lot of lengthy commands and there was lots of scope for typos.

OpenShift introduces the concept of an operator. An operator is a tool provided by IBM / Red Hat to perform various actions without the administrator having to be involved in the command line activities.

The operator performs the steps and then provides feedback to the calling process. In the case of MAS the feedback is displayed in a GUI so administrators can monitor the progress of the operation. One of the major benefits is that the commands are executed using a standard script and the administrator can perform other work / doesn't need to know the commands to be executed.

The major benefit of the operator is that it delivers a consistent deployment, it will perform the relevant commands and allow the installer / administrator to focus on the “what they want to do” rather than the “detailed steps about how to do it”.

Support staff will need to become familiar with the operator logs in case the operator encounters a problem. Operators run within a container within a POD so viewing the logs will be a case of knowing which POD to look at – IBM’s installation process creates the PODs so they have standard names that makes moving to a new installation an easy task.

IBM are increasingly using operators to make functionality easy to use and remove privilege barriers. One of the best examples of this is the ability to stop/start PODs – In the Maximo Asset Management world the administrator needed access to a WebSphere console account to be able to stop/start JVMs safely. Some organisations have strict separation rules about WebSphere admin access because of the power that an administrator has ; they often created operator type accounts to allow people to just stop/start JVMs.

MAS takes a different approach, that functionality is available in the Openshift console but IBM have added functionality into the MAS administrator functionality so the administrator can control the number of PODs that are running. This functionality allows administrators to increase/decrease the number of replicas (POD instances) that are running at any time – this means that a MAS administrator can control the POD usage without having the ability to cause serious disruption in the OpenShift configuration.

In the longer term I expect to see organisations automating their use of operators to stop/start PODs on demand e.g. reducing the number of UI PODs when fewer users are on the system. MAS Manage still uses a lot of the original Maximo applications and user sessions need to be run on the same JVM within a POD to maintain a session. IBM are developing the new Role Based Applications and these use a new framework that relies more on the browser to store information and requests can be directed to different JVMs. I doubt that IBM will convert all the old applications to the new framework but over time I expect to see significant functionality being included in applications using the new framework.

Cohesive Advice

This blog mini-series gives an overview of the technology while our training course goes into more detail and explains the commands/procedures that need to be followed.

Our training provides more details about the PODs and the related processes/configuration including which tools to use. The course can be given in-person or remotely. If you would like to know more than reach out to me and I can arrange for a sales person to discuss the best option for your organisation.

If you like this article then please share or like it. A full list of my articles can be seen here

Whilst I support the wider Maximo community and encourage the spread of knowledge, when republishing content from this blog please include the originating author along with the article or parts of.

If people do find parts of this blog coming up in blogs/newsletters/communications then please contact me directly. I’m happy to connect on LinkedIn to discuss.

Disclaimer

The postings on this blog are my own and don't necessarily represent Cohesive's positions, strategies or opinions.

The materials on this site are provided "AS IS" and the author will not be liable for any direct, indirect or incidental damages arising out or relating to any use or distribution of them. Readers are advised to test any changes/recommendations thoroughly before use

Mithilesh Kumakula

Business Development Manager

1 年

CFBR

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