As an admin, you can define a new standard desired state based on your current environment using configuration templates.

A configuration template refers to a standardized set of configurations representing the desired state of a software system or application. Configuration template enables administrators to define and enforce a specific configuration for vCenter instances. The desired state can be defined as a configuration template or JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) based file that contains settings for vCenter instances, such as network configuration, storage, security, advanced settings, and performance among others.

The Configuration Templates table provides an overview of all configuration templates, including object type assigned to each template, description, number of policies assigned to each template, template author, and when the template was created.

As an appliance management administrator, if you need to create a template specifically for appliance settings and focus solely on monitoring drifts for those configurations or controls, you can achieve this by creating an appliance configuration template.

To create an appliance configuration template:

Prerequisites

  • Ensure that you have the Administrator role.
  • Verify that you have Configuration Drifts privileges to access configuration templates. For more information, see the Managing Users and Access Control in VMware Aria Operations topic in the Configuring VMware Aria Operations guide.
    • Manage Privilege: for creating templates, assigning them to policy, and running drift check.
    • View Privilege: for viewing template content and viewing existing drift.
  • Verify that you have vCenter version 8.0.3 or later.
  • Ensure that the user account used to add vCenter to VMware Aria Operations has administrator privileges. To integrate vCenter Server cloud account in VMware Aria Operations, see the Configure a vCenter Server Cloud Account in VMware Aria Operations topic in the Configuring VMware Aria Operations guide.
  • Verify that you have registered your vCenter account with the cloud proxy.
    Note:

    Select the Cloud Proxy deployed on the given vCenter and ensure it has access to the Internet. If the outbound internet access for the cloud proxy must be restricted, ensure that the minimum Cloud Proxy prerequisites are met.

    For more information, see the Configuring Cloud Proxies in VMware Aria Operations topic in the Configuring VMware Aria Operations guide.

Procedure

  1. From the left menu, click Operations > Configuration Drift and then click Config Templates.
  2. Click Create Config Template.
  3. Enter a name and description for the configuration template.
    1. Config Template Name: Enter the name for the config template as you want it to appear in config templates page.
    2. Object Type: vCenter Server (default)
    3. Description: Enter any additional information that helps you manage your templates.
  4. Click Next.
  5. Select a source vCenter from which you want to extract the configuration settings. Click Next.
  6. Choose the configuration settings that you want to include in your template and click Next. Here, you have selected appliance access settings.
  7. (Optional) Select policies of the vCenter to assign to your configuration template.

    A policy is a set of rules that you define for VMware Aria Operations to analyze and display information about the objects in your environment. You can create, modify, and administer policies to determine how VMware Aria Operations displays data in dashboards, views, and reports.

    For details, see the Configuring Policies topic in the Configuring VMware Aria Operations guide.

    Note: You must assign at least one policy to the configuration template. If you have not assigned any policies during template creation:
    • From the left navigation menu, click Configurations > Policy Definition.
    • Select the policy you want to assign.
    • Select Configuration Templates.
    • Click Activate to assign the required configuration template for the policy.
  8. A preview of your configuration template is displayed in the right pane. Click Next to review and create the template.
  9. Review your selections and click Create.

Results

You can view the template listed on the configuration templates page.

Deleting a Configuration Template

Delete configuration templates that you no longer require.

To delete a configuration template:

Procedure

  1. On the configuration templates page, select the configuration template you want to delete.
  2. Click… and select Delete.

Searching for a Configuration Template

As a network admin, you can use the filters to locate existing configuration templates and identify potential configuration drift across your vCenter instances.

Utilize the built-in search capabilities within your Configuration Templates page and look for templates either by template name or template author filters.

Once you have located relevant configuration templates, it's time to identify any discrepancies between the desired state and the actual state of your virtual machines.

Procedure

  1. On the Configuration Templates page, enter the filters.
    1. Name: Search for specific templates you might already know exist.
    2. Created By: Use this to identify templates created by yourself or a specific team member responsible for configuration management.
  2. Click Apply.

Searching for a Configuration Setting

You may search within a vCenter instance configuration for a setting name or value.

Procedure

  1. Click Config Templates and select a vCenter instance for which you want to view the settings.
  2. Enter a keyword as part of a setting name or value. The configuration settings are filtered as you type and the matching text is highlighted.

Downloading Configuration Settings

You can download or copy the vCenter instance configuration settings.

Use these configuration settings to compare configurations, review, apply updates, and manually resolve configuration drifts.

To download or copy a configuration setting:

Procedure

  1. Click Config Template and select the vCenter instance.
  2. Select the desired configuration template in the left pane and click Download Settings or Copy JSON.