Establishing Support Structure › How to Set Up the Attachments Library

How to Set Up the Attachments Library

You can add different types of attachments to the various CA SDM entities. For example, a customer can attach a snapshot of an error to the incident. As an administrator, you set up the attachments library from where users can upload or download attachments.

Attachments can be classified, as follows:

• Stored: The web server uses the HTTP protocol to upload and store the stored attachments in a repository. When an analyst reviews a stored attachment, the file is retrieved from the repository and the file is displayed locally. Utilizing a web server for file storage allows storage and retrieval from the user interface.
• Linked: Stores only a link to the file in the database.

The following diagram shows how to set up an attachments library:

Follow these steps:

1. Open the CA SDM Web UI
2. Create a File Type.
3. Choose the Repository.
   • Set Up a Repository on a Remote Computer.
   • Create a Repository.
   • Use a Predefined Repository.
4. Create a Folder.

Open CA SDM Web UI

Log in to the web UI from the following servers, depending on your CA SDM configuration:

• Conventional: Primary or secondary servers
• Advanced availability: Application or background servers

Create a File Type

CA SDM provides predefined file types that can support the attachments. For example, the predefined file type, Adobe Acrobat supports the pdf file formats as attachments. You can also create file types. For example, create JPEG file type for users to upload snapshot for an incident.

Follow these steps:

1. Log in to web UI from the following CA SDM servers, depending on your CA SDM configuration:
   • Conventional: Primary or secondary servers
   • Advanced availability: Application or background servers
2. Select Attachments Library, File Types on the Administration tab.

   The File Type List page opens.

3. Click Create New.

   The Create New File Type page opens.

4. Complete the following fields:

   Type

   Specifies the file type or identifies the associated software application, for example Word document, Image, Executable.

   Extension

   Specifies the characters appended to the base filename that identify the file type. For example, the extension doc identifies a Microsoft Word document.

   Icon Name

   Specifies the name of the graphic file that contains the icon to be used to identify this file type.

   Status

   Indicates whether the record is active in the database and available for use.

5. Click Save.

   The file type is created.

Choose the Repository

The attachments are stored in repositories and you required to set up the repositories before users can work with attachments. You can add as many repositories to best suit your organization needs. For example, you might add separate repositories to store the file attachments and images. You can also add folders to your repositories to further organize your files, then upload files to the appropriate locations.

All client interfaces can access existing repositories for the upload and download of file attachments except as follows:

• Shared file repositories can be accessed only if the repository daemon is running on a computer that can access the shared file. The server name on the repository record (detail form) must be a Windows computer that has access to the share. A CA SDM repository daemon must also be running on the computer.
• Download of zip files is based on when they were uploaded. Attachments from earlier releases are downloaded without unzipping them. Unzip the file on the client computer; otherwise, attachments that are uploaded from a client interface, are also downloaded without unzipping them. That is, the server unzips the file before returning it, during a client download request.

The distributed architecture lets a site configure their repositories according to their needs. The servlet for a repository does not have to reside on the same server as the attached files. Sites can have a central servlet to access all their distributed repositories or have a dedicated servlet for each of their repository servers.

Consider the following setups when configuring repositories:

• Repository server on a protected CA SDM server — Sites that designate a repository server on a protected CA SDM server behind the firewall do not need to expose the servlet on that computer. Rather, specify a servlet running on another CA SDM server or an unrestricted CA SDM server and still upload and download successfully to that repository. Depending on the network between the repository server and servlet server, some performance impact on the upload and download can occur. A good way to set up a remote repository is to install and configure another server with the repository on the remote server, and set the upload path to a local path. For more information, see the Setup a Repository on a Remote Computer topic.
• Servlet on the same server as the repository server— Sites that want the optimal performance for the attachment upload and download, and if the network performance is an issue and if very large files are being attached, should consider this setup. This approach requires exposing the Tomcat port (typically 8080) on the server and should be noted if the computer is behind a firewall.

CA SDM provides predefined repositories and also lets you create your own repositories to best suit your organization needs. Choose from the following options:

• Create a repository.
• Use a predefined repository.

Setup a Repository on a Remote Computer

By default, the repositories are located on the following server, depending on your CA SDM configuration:

• Conventional: Primary server
• Advanced availability: Background server

The default repositories use both the servlet and the repository daemon (rep_daemon) from these servers. To create a repository on a remote computer you must install and configure the following servers, depending on your CA SDM configuration:

• Conventional: Secondary server. The servlet runs on the primary server and the rep_daemon runs on the secondary server.
• Advanced availability: Background server. The servlet runs on the application server and the rep_daemon runs on the background server.

In the advanced availability configuration, the rep_daemon runs on all the servers, by default.

In the conventional configuration, the rep_daemon runs on the primary server, by default and you are required to verify that the rep_daemon runs on the secondary server for this setup.

(Conventional configuration only) Follow these steps:

1. Select System, Configurations on the Administration tab.

   The Configuration List page opens.

2. Select the configuration for the secondary server.

   The Configuration Detail page opens.

3. Click Additional Processes.

   The Additional Process List is displayed.

4. Click Add Process.
5. Select Repository Deamon as the Process.
6. Click Save.

   The repository is set up on the secondary server.

Create a Repository

Depending upon your organization needs, you can have one large repository or several small ones. Moving or combining repositories is simple because all the attributes about a repository are defined in the repository record.

Follow these steps:

1. Select Attachments Library, Repositories on the Administration tab.

   The Repositories page opens.

2. Click Create New.

   The Create New Repository page opens.

   Note: If you are the service provider, select the appropriate tenant from the Create New Repository page. The public (shared) option makes the repository available for all tenants.

3. Complete the Repository Fields as appropriate.
4. Click Save.

   The repository is created.

Use a Predefined Repository

You can use a predefined repository (Service Desk or Knowledge or Images). You can edit a repository to best suit your organization needs.

Follow these steps:

1. Select Attachments Library, Repositories on the Administration tab.

   The Repositories List page opens.

2. Right-click the repository that you want to edit and select Edit.

   The Update Repository page opens.

3. Edit the fields as appropriate. For more information, see the Repository Fields topic.
4. Click Save.

   The repository definition is saved.

Repository Fields

The following fields are used to edit or create a repository.

Name

Specifies the name to uniquely identify the repository. For example, Incident Images repository can store all the images that are related to an incident.

Repository Type

Indicates the type of content that is stored in the repository. For example, to store image attachments, select Images.

Default

Indicates whether this is the default repository for the specified repository type. For example, when the user is creating the incident and user wants to attach an attachment to the incident, the default repository is displayed for the selection. You can only set one repository to default.

File Limit Size (KB)

Specifies the maximum size of file, in kilobytes, that a user can upload to the repository.

Upload Path

Specifies the full root directory path or the UNC path where files uploaded to the repository reside.

UNC Credentials

Specifies the credentials to access the UNC path specified in the Upload Path field. Click UNC Credentials to open the Credentials Search page.

• If you have already created the credentials to access the specified UNC path, search using the fields and select the credentials.
• If you want to create the credentials, click Create New. For more information about creating credentials, see the Create UNC Credentials topic.

Background Services

Specifies the background server services for the servlet path and rep_daemon.

None

Indicates that the background server is not used for the servlet path or for the rep_daemon. If you select this option, enter the values for Servlet Server and the Repository Server fields.

Servlet Only

Indicates that servlet is hosted on the background server. If you select this option, the Servlet Server field is auto-populated with Background Server value. Enter the value for the Repository Server field. If the background server shuts down and if the standby server is promoted as the new background server, the Servlet Server field is populated with the new background server value.

Daemon Only

Indicates that the rep_daemon is running on the background server. If you select this option, the Repository Server field is auto-populated with Background Server value. Enter the value for the Servlet Server field. If the background server shuts down and if the standby server is promoted as the new background server, the Repository Server field is populated with the new background server value.

Servlet and Daemon

Indicates that background server is used for the servlet path and the rep_daemon. If you select this option, Servlet Server and Repository Server fields are auto-populated with the Background Server value. If the background server shuts down and if the standby server is promoted as the new background server, these fields are populated with the new background server value.

Servlet Server

Specifies the server where the servlet is running.

Repository Server

Specifies the server where the rep_daemon is up and running.

Archive Type

The archive and purge action to be taken on the contents of the repository.

None

No archive and purge process is performed.

Archive and Purge

The historic records are written to the file specified in the archive field and purged from the database.

Purge Only

The historic records are purged from the database, but are not written to the archive file.

Archive Path

Specifies the directory path or the UNC path to which files in the repository are moved during the archive process.

UNC Credentials

Specifies the credentials to access the UNC path. Click UNC Credentials to open the Credentials Search page.

• If you have already created the credentials to access the specified UNC path, search using the fields and select the credentials.
• If you want to create the credentials, click Create New. For more information about creating credentials, see the Create UNC Credentials topic.

Prohibited File Types

The file extensions that users may not upload to the repository.

Note: If the value in this field begins with an exclamation point (!), these file types are allowed in the current repository. For example, a value of jpg,gif in the list denotes that files with .jpg and .gif extensions are prohibited in the repository. However, a value of !jpg,gif denotes that only files with .jpg and .gif extensions are allowed in the repository.

Create UNC Credentials

You create the UNC credentials to allow users to access shared resources from the CA SDM servers using UNC path.

Important! The UNC component does not work when the CA SDM server is in the domain and the shared location is in the WORKGROUP. It also does not work when the administrator password for the CA SDM server and the shared location are different.

Follow these steps:

1. Click the UNC Credentials in the General Setting page or select Security and Role Management, UNC Credentials on the Administration tab.

   The Credentials List page opens.

2. Click Create New.

   The Create New Credentials page opens.

3. Complete the following fields as appropriate:

   Symbol

   Specifies the unique identifier to identify the credentials during a search easily.

   Userid

   Specifies the username to access the UNC path. The user can be a local or domain Windows user having access to the Service Desk server.

   Password

   Specifies the password to access the UNC path.

   Active

   Specifies if the UNC credentials are active or inactive. The inactive credentials cannot be used.

4. Click Save.

   The UNC credentials are created.

Create a Folder

Folders are used to organize the documents in repositories. For example, you can create a folder Error Images under the Images repository. This folder can contain all the snapshots of errors messages that the user has encountered.You cannot create a folder for the Service Desk Attachments repository type.

Follow these steps:

1. Select Attachments Library, Repositories on the Administration tab.

   The Repositories List page opens.

2. Right-click the repository where you want to create the folder and select Add Folder.

   The Create New Folder page opens.

3. Enter the name of the folder and a description of its contents.
4. Select the Permissions tab and specify the appropriate access rights.
5. Click Save.

   The folder is created.

Access Rights

You can add the following access rights to the folder in the repository:

Inherit from Parent

Indicates that this folder has the same permission settings as its parent folder. This option is only displayed for sub-folders.

Control by Group

Indicated the read or write access on this folder for specified groups. This option appears for all folders and sub-folders.

Grant Write Permission to Everyone

Indicates that all users have write access to the folder.

Grant Read Permission to Everyone

Indicates that all users have read access to the folder. Read permission indicates that you can view the folder, but you cannot edit, delete, or store files in it. Users with administrative rights can edit a folder even if their associated permission group cannot. If a user belongs to multiple permission groups with varying levels of access to the document, the user gets the highest available access level (for example, if one group has read-only access and the other write access, the user gets write access).

Note: The Grant Read Permission to Everyone check box is automatically selected if you select the Grant Write Permission to Everyone check box.

Available Groups

Displays all the groups. You can choose the groups from this list. For example, select a group and click > for Groups with Write Permission to provide read and write access to this folder for all the users in that group. Use Show Filter to specify criteria and filter the groups.