The VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator configuration includes guidance on client configuration, database configuration, SSL certificates, and plug-ins.

VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator Client

With the VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator user interface in VMware Aria Automation, you can import packages, create, run, schedule workflows, manage tags, and manage user permissions.

VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator is available as a browser-based (HTML5) client from My services in VMware Aria Automation at https://aria_automation_cluster_fqdn/orchestration-uior from the VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator start page at https://aria_automation_cluster_fqdn/vco.

For information about the design decisions on the VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator trusted certificates, see VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator Certificates.

VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator Plug-ins

You use VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator plug-ins to access and control external services and applications. The external technologies that you can access by using plug-ins include visualization management tools, email systems, databases, directory services, and remote control interfaces. VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator provides a set of standard plug-ins for technologies, such as the vCenter Server API.

vCenter Server Plug-in for VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator

You can use the vCenter Server® Plug-in for VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator to manage multiple VI workload domain vCenter Server instances. You can create workflows that use the vCenter Server plug-in API to automate tasks in your VI workload domain environment. The vCenter Server plug-in maps the vCenter Server API to JavaScript code that you can use in workflows. The plug-in also provides actions that perform individual vCenter Server tasks that you can include in workflows.

The vCenter Server plug-in provides a library of standard workflows that automate vCenter Server operations. For example, you can run workflows that create, clone, migrate, or delete virtual machines. Before managing and running workflows on the objects in your vSphere inventory, you must configure the vCenter Server plug-in and connect VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator to the VI workload domain vCenter Server instances that you want to orchestrate.

Table 1. Design Decisions on vCenter Server Plug-In for VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator in VMware Aria Automation

Decision ID

Design Decision

Design Justification

Design Implication

PCA-VAA-VAAO-CFG-001

Register each VI workload domain vCenter Server instance with the embedded VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator instance. Do not use per session authentication.

Required for communication from the embedded VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator to the VI workload domain vCenter Server instances.

  • You cannot use per-session authentication for VMware Aria Automation Orchestratorr communication to vSphere, because vCenter Server does not accept the token from VMware Aria Automation and the registration.

  • When VI workload domains are added or removed, you must add or remove the vCenter Server instance in VMware Aria Automation Orchestrator.

  • When the service account password changes during its life cycle, you must run the Update a vCenter Server Instance workflow with updated credentials.