How to Create Custom Docker Images - Part 8

To check other parts of this series, refer these links
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7 

In previous posts, i have used Images from docker hub repository. In this Part, i will cover how you can create your custom docker images.  Check Part 3 to know more about Docker Image

Workflow of Creating Docker Image

Workflow of Creating New Docker File

Dockerfile Teardown
Sample Dockerfile

Create Dockerfile, You can create it through Notepad too but in this case remove extension from this file.
Note: Dockerfile name should and only "D" Capital

Check the sample file to understand these parameters

What is the role of these parameters in Dockerfile?

More details about docker images parameters. Refer Docker Documentation

Building Docker Image

docker build -t imagename .

as it is clear in the command that i need to add --force for this command mentioned in the Dockerfile. I have updated my file as you can refer previous screenshots. Again i have executed the same command and now it ran successfully.

Running New Container from New Docker Image

docker container run --rm -p <portmapping details> imagename

It created container successfully

Tagging the Docker Image

docker tag <imagename> <tagname>

Uploading the Image in Docker Repository

docker push <imagename>

Verify is it uploaded successfully or not?

Removing Image from Local Machine

docker image rm <imagename>

VMware vROPS 7.5 - Global Setting Default Values and Descriptions

Setting	Default Value	Description
Action History	30 days	Number of days to retain the recent task data for actions. The data is purged from the system after the specified number of days.
Deleted Objects	168 hours	Number of hours to retain objects that are deleted from an adapter data source or server before deleting them from vRealize Operations Manager. An object deleted from an adapter data source is identified by vRealize Operations Manager as not existing and vRealize Operations Manager can no longer collect data about the object. Whether vRealize Operations Manager identifies deleted objects as not existing depends on the adapter. This feature is not implemented in some adapters. For example, if the retention time is 360 hours and a virtual machine is deleted from a vCenter Server instance, the virtual machine remains as an object in vRealize Operations Manager for 15 days before it is deleted. This setting applies to objects deleted from the data source or server, not to any objects you delete from vRealize Operations Manager on the Inventory page. A value of -1 deletes objects immediately. You can define the number of hours per object type to retain objects that no longer exist and check for object type overrides. To add individual object types and set up their values, click the Object Deletion Scheduling icon. You can also edit or delete these object types.
Deletion Schedule Interval	24 hours	Determines the frequency to schedule deletion of resources. This setting works with the Deleted Objects setting to remove objects that no longer exist in the environment. vRealize Operations Manager transparently marks objects for removal that have not existed for the length of time specified under Deleted Objects. vRealize Operations Manager then removes the marked objects at the frequency specified under Deletion Scheduling Interval.
Object History	90 days	Number of days to retain the history of the object configuration, relationship, and property data. The configuration data is the collected data from the monitored objects on which the metrics are based. The collected data includes changes to the configuration of the object. The data is purged from the system after the specified number of days.
Session Timeout	30 minutes	If your connection to vRealize Operations Manager is idle for the specified amount of time, you are logged out of the application. You must provide credentials to log back in.
Symptoms/Alerts	45 days	Number of days to retain canceled alerts and symptoms. The alerts and symptoms are either canceled by the system or by a user.
Time Series Data Retention	6 months	Number of months that you want to retain the collected and calculated metric data for the monitored objects. This setting is set to 6 months by default for 5 minutes interval data retention.
Additional Time Series Data Retention	36 months	The number of months that the roll-up data extends beyond the regular period. The roll-up data is available starting from the end of the regular period and until the end of the roll-up data retention period. If you specify 0 as the value, then this will effectively disable the Additional Time Series Data Retention time and only data specified in Time Series Retention is stored. This setting ensures that after 6 months of normal retention for 5 minutes, the seventh month data is rolled up into a one Hour roll up. You can set up this option up to 120 months for data roll ups.
Deleted Users	100 days	You can specify the number of days to keep custom content created by a user who has been removed from vRealize Operations Manager or by the automatic synchronization of LDAP. For example, the custom dashboards created by a user.
External Event Based Active Symptoms	disabled	The number of days to retain the external event-based active symptoms.
Maintain Relationship History		You can maintain a history of all the relationships of all the monitored objects in vRealize Operations Manager.
Dynamic Threshold Calculation	enabled	Determines whether to calculate normal levels of threshold violation for all objects. If the setting is disabled, the following area of vRealize Operations Manager does not work or are not displayed: Alert symptom definitions based on dynamic thresholds will not work Metric charts that display normal behavior are not present Disable this setting only if you have no alternative options for managing resource constraints for your vRealize Operations Manager system.
Cost Calculation		The host time at which cost calculations are run.
Customer Experience Improvement Program	enabled	Determines whether to participate in the Customer Experience Improvement Program by having vRealize Operations Manager send anonymous usage data to https://vmware.com.
Allow vCenter users to log in to individual vCenters using the vRealize Operations Manager UI		Determine how users of vCenter Server login to vRealize Operations Manager. In the vRealize Operations Manager user interface, vCenter Server users can log in to individual vCenter Server instances. Disabled by default. vCenter Server users can log in from vCenter Server clients. Enabled by default. In the vRealize Operations Manager user interface, vCenter Server users can log in to all vCenter Server instances. Enabled by default.
Allow vCenter users to log in from vCenter clients	enabled	Allows vCenter users to log in from the vCenter clients.
Allow vCenter users to log in to all vCenters using the vRealize Operations Manager UI	enabled	Allows vCenter users to log in to all vCenters using the vRealize Operations Manager UI.
Automated Actions	enabled or disabled	Determines whether to allow vRealize Operations Manager to automate actions. When an alert triggered, the alert provides recommendations for remediation. You can automate an action to remediate an alert when the recommendation is the first priority for that alert. You enable actionable alerts in your policies.
Enable Standard Certification Validation		This option enables certificate verification to Test Connection in the Create or Modify AI screen, using a standard verification flow. The option checks CA authority. Certificate Subject DN Subject alternative name Certificate validity period Revocation list This option also presents dialogs to user if one of those checks fail. It is up to the adapter implementation on how the adapter checks source certificate validity during a normal collection cycle. On a usual scenario, adapters just perform a thumb-print verification. However, in case this flag is enabled, Test connection validates certificates in full scale and accepts certificates that are matching all criteria without any user dialogs.
Concurrent UI login sessions	enabled	Allows concurrent UI login sessions per user. Once changed, this setting affects the subsequent login sessions.
Allow non-imported vIDM user access	enabled	Allows non-imported VMware Identity Manager users to be created automatically as read-only users upon first access. If disabled, only VMware Identity Manager imported users or users belonging to imported VMware Identity Manager groups will be granted access.
Currency		You can specify the currency unit that is used for all the cost calculations. You can select the type of currency from the list of currency types by clicking Choose Currency. From the Set Currency, select the required currency and confirm your action by clicking the check box, and set the currency.

Info Source

vROPS 7.5 Upgrade Path - How to Check?

If you want to know, what is upgrade path to upgade to vROPS 7.5 from Previous vROPS Versions, then click on this link and follow the steps as mentioned in the screenshot:-
https://www.vmware.com/resources/compatibility/sim/interop_matrix.php#upgrade&solution=116

VMware vROPS 7.5 - What's New - Metric Correlation Feature

Starting from vROPS 7.5 now you can use metric correlation feature. What is it, what it can do.....right this is what you want to know?

Basically this feature checks same trend in other metrics of either:-

1. All Self Metrics = In this it checks same trend in other metrics of same object. If it is there it will report those metrics too. By default it shows 10 results only but you can scroll down and click on Show More to get more results if any result is there. 
2. Selected Metric of all Peers = Peers means same type of object under same parent. It will check is there any other object of same type under same parent has same trend for the same metric which we have selected? If yes, it will report those objects too.

All Self Metrics
1. Select Particular Object > All Metrics > Add Particular Metric to display Metric Chart  > Click on Icon in Right Corner of the Chart > Correlation > All Self Metrics

2. It will other correlated Metrics of the same object. These are Non-Instanced Metrics. You can pin these metrics to add them in to Metric Chart Area.

Selected Metric of all Peers
If you will select under correlation > Selected Metric of all Peers > It will show same trend in other objects for the same metric.

This feature can help you a lot while Troubleshooting.

VMware vROPS 7.5 - What's New in Dashboards

Following are the new features in vROPS 7.5:-

• Enhanced object relationship topology for complete line-of-sight from applications to infrastructure in the All Metrics tab and in dashboards.
• Ability to copy one or more existing widgets, along with the configuration, while creating new or editing existing dashboards.
• New out-of-the-box dashboards to monitor and troubleshoot:
  
  • Applications
  • vSphere compute stack
  • vSphere storage stack
  • vSphere network stack
  • Stretched vSAN clusters
   

Copy and Paste Widgets
From vROPS 7.5, you can copy the widget/widgets and paste them within same dashboard or across dashboard.
1. Select Widget > Actions Menu > Copy Widget

2. Click anywhere in blank area of design canvas > Actions Menu > Paste Widget

Enhanced Object Relationship Widget
1. Drag and Drop this new widget in to the design canvas

2. Configure this new widget > Save

3. Expand the Hierarchy to display the child objects

Object Relationship Widget in All Metrics Tab of the Object is updated too

You can change the View to Horizontal/Vertical

Object Relationship Widget in vROPS 7.0

VMware vROPS 7.5 - What's New in Super Metrics

Super Metric is basically an option to create Custom Metrics. It contains combination of metrics from one or more objects
What's New in vROPS 7.5 Super Metrics

• Ability to preview super metrics using the new super metrics preview functionality in the All Metrics tab.
• New wizard-based super metrics editor to create, preview, and enable super metrics in a simplified workflow. Includes auto-complete hints to easily create complex super metrics.

New Wizard-Based Super Metric
1. Administration Page > Super Metric Under Configuration > Click on +

2. Configure Name and Description

3. Select Functions and Operators as per your need and then search for object types and metrics as these are searchable object now

4. Review the complete formula and Click on Next

5. Assign it to the object types

6. Enable it in the Policies from the wizard itself

Preview Super Metrics

Old VCP Certifications - No Longer Dead (Expired)

If you were VCP 4, VCP5 or VCP 6 Certified in any of the  VMware Certification Track and if these certifications were expired too? Then now this is right time to open your VMware Certification Portal again .....Your VCP Certifications are Live again after Death (Expiry).

VMware vROPS 7.5 - New Solutions Repository page

vROPS 7.5 has brand new Solutions Repository page to enable/disable Solutions and Configuring the Solutions Adapter Instances.

Native Management Packs Options

• Activate = Installs the Management Pack
• Deactivate = Uninstalls the Management Pack
• Activated = Management Pack has been installed

Check the below given screenshot, you will find all three options

Installation of Management Pack in vROPS 7.5
There are two sections in vROPS 7.5 Solutions:-

• Repository = To Install/Uninstall the Solutions
• Configuration = To Configure the Solution Adapter Instances

1. Administration Page > Repository> Add a Management Pack
 

2. Browse the .pak file of your Solution > Configure the remaining options as desired > Click on Upload (It will take few minutes to upload) > Once Upload is completed click on Next

3. Accept EULA > Next

4.  Once Solution is installed > Click on Finish

5.  As you can see it is listed under other management packs

6. Notice the data collection state of the solution from Solutions Page

Configuring Native Management Packs in vROPS 7.5
1. Administration Page > Configuration under solutions > select solution > click on Gear Icon

Click  on Plus > Provide required details for adapter instance > Test Connection > Save Settings > Close

VMware vROPS 7.5 - What's New in Reports

In vROPS Reports are used to share the operational status information with stakeholders.

What's New in vROPS 7.5 Reports

1. Colorization = If View is also configured with the colorization (See this Post) then it can also be added in the PDF Generated reports too.
Toggle this Colorization Switch as shown in the screenshot

Now generate the report and you can see the same colorization which you have configured in View is in the report too, as the screenshot of generated report is shared here too.

2. Enhanced Report Scheduling 

• Ability to schedule report delivery with custom time options.
• Ability to schedule report delivery daily.
• Ability to add Copy (CC) and Blind Copy (BCC) for report delivery via emails.

In vROPS 7.0 As you can see options are very less for scheduling the reports

 

In vROPS 7.5 we can schedule based on quarter hour basis and as well as daily report you can schedule too rather than selecting each and every day manually

 

 

3. CC and BCC = Ability to add Copy (CC) and Blind Copy (BCC) for report delivery via emails. 

 

 

VMware vROPS 7.5 - What's New in View

What is View in vROPS
How the Collected data is presented by vROPS that can be controlled through views.

View Presentation Types

1. List
2. Summary
3. Text
4. Image
5. Distribution
6. Trend

What's New in View in vROPS 7.5 

• Grouping Option = Ability to group List views based on parent or descendant objects. Summaries at sub-groups levels are also available in views and reports.
• Timestamp = Views are enhanced to track changes in metrics and properties over time, with relative and absolute timestamps.
  

Timestamp Option in vROPS 7.5
There was no timestamp option till vROPS 7.0. Due to this it was difficult for someone to track when this metric value was reported last. From vROPS 7.5 onwards you can add relative and absolute timestamps.

Relative Timestamp = Relative timestamp is the value which shows how many minutes ago it was updated as you can see in below given screenshot.

Absolute Timestamp = In this it shows absolute timestamp as you can notice in the screenshot when it was updated last.

Grouping Objects in vROPS 7.5
Ability to group List views based on parent or descendant objects. Summaries at sub-groups levels are also available in views and reports. Like in this example i have done VM grouping based on ESXi Hosts.

Metric Coloring (Not New in vROPS 7.5) but earlier this colorization was limited to vROPS Product UI means it was visible in the product UI but now from vROPS 7.5 onwards it is available in Reports too when reports are generated, if it is configured at view level.