The allowed options for a seed entry are specified by using the keywords that are described in Keywords for seed file.

Table 1. Keywords for seed file

Keyword

Value

Definition

Global SNMP options

ACCESSMODE=

ICMPONLY, SNMPONLY, or ICMPSNMP

Default: ICMPSNMP

Protocols that are used to access the candidate system:

  • For ICMPSNMP, both ICMP and SNMP are used to discover and monitor the system.

  • For ICMPONLY, the system is not discovered or monitored. Instead, the system is added to the topology as a Host, which limits the IP Manager to only availability analysis by using ICMP.

  • For SNMPONLY, the system is discovered by using SNMP, but ICMP is not used to determine whether the system is reachable or to monitor the system’s availability.

ADDRESSFORMAT=

AUTOADDRESS or LOOPBACKADDRESS

Default: value in discovery.conf

Address that is used to access the candidate system for discovery and polling. If the value is omitted, the value that is specified in the AccessAddressFormat parameter (AUTOADDRESS by default) in the discovery.conf file is used.

SNMPPORT=

0 to 65535

Default: port in discovery.conf

SNMP port that is used to access the SNMP agent of the candidate system. If the value is omitted or 0, the port that is specified in the defaultSNMPPort parameter (161 by default) in the discovery.conf file is used.

SNMPVERSION=

V1, V2C, V3, or AUTODETECT

Default: AUTODETECT

SNMP protocol version that is supported by the SNMP agent of the candidate system:

  • For AUTODETECT, send v2c request; if no response, send v1 request.

  • For V1, send v1 request only.

  • For V2C, send v2c request only.

  • For V3, send v3 request only.

The SNMP protocol version is also the expected version of any trap message that is received from the candidate system after the system is discovered. For SNMPVersion=AUTODETECT, the expected trap message version is v2c or v1, which depends on the version of the first SNMP poll to successfully communicate with the SNMP agent of the candidate system.

NAMEFORMAT=

TM_USEAUTONAME,

TM_USELOOPBACK,

TM_USESYSNAME,

TM_USENONPRIVATEIP,

TM_USEPRIVATEIP,

TM_USEAGENTADDRESS, or

TM_USESEEDNAME

Default: null string (empty)

Naming source that is used to resolve the name of the candidate system.

“How discovery names a system” on page 61 provides information on the NAMEFORMAT and SEEDNAME keywords.

SEEDNAME=

String of unspecified length

Default: null string (empty)

User-specified name for the candidate system.

SNMPv1 and v2c options

COMMUNITY=

String of unspecified length

Default: read string or strings in Read Community Strings window 1

Read community string that is included in a request that is sent to the SNMPv1/v2c agent of the candidate system. This keyword is required if the first character of the string is #.

SNMPv3 options

USER=

String that consists of 1 to 32 characters

Default: null string (empty)

Name of the user that is included in a request that is sent to the SNMPv3 agent of the candidate system or received in an SNMPv3 trap message. Username is required.

ENGINEID=

An even-length string between 10 and 64 hex characters; e.g., 800002b804616263

Default: null string (empty)

Identifier, within an administrative domain, that uniquely identifies the SNMP engine of the SNMPv3 agent. Engine ID is required for communication to the SNMPv3 agent:

  • When specified, the IP Manager uses the specified value when attempting to communicate with the SNMP agent.

  • If empty, the IP Manager learns the engine ID through the engine ID discovery mechanism described in RFC 3414 and then uses the learned value when attempting to communicate with the SNMP agent.

Engine ID is also required to authenticate and decrypt an SNMPv3 trap message.

AUTHPROTOCOL=

MD5, for Message Digest 5, SHA, for Secure Hash Algorithm, or NONE

Default: NONE 2

For authentication:

  • Protocol that is used for authentication when sending a request to the SNMPv3 agent.

  • Authentication protocol is recommended but not required.

For authenticating:

  • Protocol that is used for authenticating an SNMPv3 trap message.

  • Authentication protocol is required to authenticate an SNMPv3 trap message.

AUTHPASS=

String that consists of 1 to 64 characters; using at least eight characters is recommended

Default: null string (empty)

Password that is used as the basis for the following: the creation of the localized authentication key that is used with the selected authentication protocol and the SNMPv3 agent. The password is required if the authentication protocol is MD5 or SHA. Otherwise, the password is ignored.

The password may be encrypted (recommended) or appear as plain text in the seed file. 3

PRIVPROTOCOL=

DES, for Data Encryption Standard, AES, for Advanced Encryption Standard, or NONE

Default: NONE 4

For encryption:

  • Protocol that is used for encryption when sending a request to the SNMPv3 agent.

  • Privacy protocol is recommended but not required.

For decrypting:

  • Protocol that is used for decrypting an SNMPv3 trap message.

  • Privacy protocol is required to decrypt an SNMPv3 trap message.

PRIVPASS=

String that consists of 1 to 64 characters; using at least eight characters is recommended

Default: null string (empty)

Password that is used as the basis for the following: the creation of the localized encryption key that is used with the selected privacy protocol and the SNMPv3 agent. The password is required if the privacy protocol is DES or AES. Otherwise, the password is ignored.

The password may be encrypted (recommended) or appear as plain text in the seed file. 3

CONTEXT=

String of no specific length

Default: null string (empty)

Name that together with the username determines the access permissions of a request that is sent to the SNMPv3 agent. Context name is optional.

The IP Manager must have permissions to access the standard and proprietary MIBs. that are identified in Appendix A of the VMware Smart Assurance IP Availability Manager User Guide.

1  Specified in the Topology tab of the Domain Manager Administration Console.

2  MD5 and SHA authentication are defined in RFC 3414.

3  Explained in “How to encrypt passwords in the seed file” on page 103.

4  DES privacy is defined in RFC 3414, and AES (AES-128) privacy is defined in RFC 3826.