Lab Exercise 1 – Configuration of Runbook Parameters

This lab exercise provides a detailed procedure for resolving an issue with the extraction of input parameters in BigFix Runbook AI. It guides users through the configuration changes required in the Manage Parameter Master, Configure Parameter Type, Manage Parameter Configuration, and Update Runbook sections. By following these steps, users can ensure more accurate extraction of input parameters from ticket fields for execution in the runbook.

Scenario

An organization has already installed and configured BigFix Runbook AI and it is running in production. Based on the issues reported by the Operational users, they have observed that for some of the runbooks the input parameter, IP address, is not being extracted in an accurate manner. They have requested for resolving the issue.

In this lab, we will showcase the detailed procedure for solving this issue by changing the configuration of runbook parameters.

Prerequisites

Availability of regex expression for parsing an IP address - [0-9]{1,2}\.[0-9]{1,2}\.[0-9]{1,2}\.[0-9]{1,2}

User should have the requisite role, privileges and access credentials.

Solution

To resolves such issues, configurational changes are required to be done in following sections:

Manage Parameter Master – Defines regular expression for parameter to be parsed. It should be unique to parameter type

Configure Parameter Type – Defines type of parameter i.e. for IP address, parameter type is IP

Manage Parameter Configuration – Configure actual parameter which is being used in runbook and should be parsed from ticket description

Update Runbook – Make changes to runbook configuration to whom parameter is associated

  1. Open BigFix Runbook AI Web URL and login with Super Admin credentials.
  1. To make the changes in Manage Parameter Master, perform the steps below:
  1. Go to Advance ConfigurationParameter and click Manage Parameter Master.
Figure 1. Figure 313 - Manage Parameter Master
  1. Select Select Code from the drop-down list.
  2. Click Create New Parameter.
Figure 2. Figure 314 - Create New Parameter

The Manage Parameter page appears.

Figure 3. Figure 315 - Create New Parameter (cont.)
  1. Enter the below mentioned attributes:

Parameter Text - This is used to identify a new parameter i.e. GenericIPAddress

Parameter Value - This describes the regular expression for a parameter under the selected code i.e. [0-9]{1,2}\.[0-9]{1,2}\.[0-9]{1,2}\.[0-9]{1,2}.

  1. Click Save.
  2. To make the changes in Configure Parameter Type, perform the steps below:
  1. Go to Advance ConfigurationParameter and click Configure Parameter Type.
Figure 4. Figure 316 - Configure Parameter Type
  1. Click Add New. The Configure Parameter Type page appears.
Figure 5. Figure 317 - Configure Parameter Type (cont.)
  1. Enter the following information:

Define Parameter Type as ‘IP Address’.

Select Parse by field value as “Only Regex” i.e. tickets will be parsed only using regular expression.

Figure 6. Figure 318 - Configure Parameter Type (cont.)

Select value for Regular Expression field as “GenericIPAddress” which was added in section Manage Parameter Master.

Figure 7. Figure 319 - Configure Parameter Type (cont.)

Value for Proximity Words field is optional as parse by type is “Only Regex”

Figure 8. Figure 320 – Proximity Words

Select the Parse Order to prioritize the parsing methods i.e. In our case, Regex should come before than proximity.

Figure 9. Figure 321 – Parse Order

Select value for Default Field Name as “Description” as this will be used for parsing IP address from ticket description.

Click Submit to save the new parameter.

  1. To make the changes for configuration of an IP address for organization in Manage Parameter Configuration, perform the following steps:
  1. Login with Organization Admin credential and go to Advance ConfigurationParameter and click Manage Parameter Configuration.
Figure 10. Figure 322 - Manage Parameter Configuration
  1. Select Organization from Organization field.
  2. Select the Data Source from where the data will be fetched for parsing.
  3. Select the Parameter Type as GenericIPAddress, to be used for data parsing.
  1. This populates the existing configuration for the selected organization in a grid.
    Figure 11. Figure 323 - Existing configuration
    1. Click Add New Configuration. This adds a new row below the existing parameter configurations.
Figure 12. Figure 324 - Add New Configuration (cont.)
  1. Select a value for column Field. It defines what ticket information need to be processed. It may be a description or a short description.
  2. Select a value for Parse By column value as Only Regex.
  3. Select a value for Parse Order Grid Details columns as Regex.
  4. Select Index Level value as 1.
  5. Click Save to update the configured parameter.

User can rearrange the order of parameter configuration using Change Order in the left column of the parameter grid.

  1. A confirmation dialog box appears. Click OK.
Figure 13. Figure 325 – Confirmation Message
  1. To update the runbook corresponding to the newly configured parameter i.e. IP Address, perform the following steps:
  1. Go to ActionsRunbooks and click Manage Runbooks.
Figure 14. Figure 326 - Manage Runbooks
  1. Select value for Runbook Tool.
  2. Click next to the runbook which need to be updated.
Figure 15. Figure 327 - Manage Runbooks (cont.)
  1. Add required parameter i.e. IP Address as shown in below figure.
Figure 16. Figure 328 – Add Parameter
  1. Click Update to save the changes. A confirmation dialog box appears.
Figure 17. Figure 329 – Confirmation Message

Conclusion

Post the completion of this exercise, you should have a good understanding of re-configuring the runbook parameters for more accurate extraction of input parameters from the relevant ticket fields, for passing it to the runbook for execution.

Related Documentation

BigFix Runbook AI Configuration Guide

BigFix Runbook AI Troubleshooting Guide