Creating node configuration policies

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A configuration policy applied to a node or to an individual access key allows the AoC administrator to apply certain settings that were formerly configurable only through aspera.conf directly on the node.

For details on aspera.conf, see the IBM Aspera High-Speed Transfer Server Admin Guide.

If you configure only some of the available fields in a policy, the unconfigured fields in your policy are set to nill on the nodes to which you apply your policy. When you delete a policy, all fields on the node are returned to the nill setting. However, note that there are two exceptions to this rule: the "Activity event logging" field and the "Recursive count" field. If your policy does not configure these settings, they remain enabled on the node when you apply your policy; when you delete your policy, these same two fields remain enabled on nodes to which you had previously applied your now-deleted policy.

Procedures

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Note: This procedure allows you to create a configuration policy; you must then apply the policy to the intended node in a separate procedure.

To create a new configuration policy, do the following:

  1. Go to Nodes and Storage > Node policies > Configuration policies > Create new.
  2. Give the policy a name.
  3. Choose the encryption cipher to be applied to transfers to and from this node.
    This setting implies a negotiation between source and destination nodes and depends on settings at both; because of this, the parameter you choose here is not guaranteed. Note also that stronger encryption levels result in slower transfers.
  4. Configure the default target transfer rate for transfers to and from this node.
  5. Click Advanced to display additional settings (note that these settings apply only on nodes running IBM Aspera High-Speed Transfer Server software version 3.8.0 or higher):
    1. In the "Transfer aggressiveness policy" field, configure the aggressiveness of transfers that are authorized by this node in claiming available bandwidth. Valid values are integers from 1 to 100.

      On an Aspera High-Speed Transfer Server, this value is configured in access_key_config.json. In that file, the parameter name is aggressiveness, and valid values are 0.00 to 1.0. This parameter applies when the server is configured with a Vlink running concurrent transfers. The aggressiveness setting determines how much of the available bandwidth the transfer can use. For example, a setting of 0.5 means the transfer gets 50% of available bandwidth. If no parameter is set, all concurrent transfers get an even share of available bandwidth.

      A setting of 50% in the UI translates to 0.5 for the transfer server. The transfer server node must be running software version 3.8.0 or higher to support this parameter.

    2. Select Activity event logging to allow the Node API to query transfers that are associated with this node through the /events endpoint. The node configuration overrides the server configuration and must be enabled for event reporting to Aspera on Cloud.

      You must select this check box when an AoC workspace or shared folder is located on this node. If you deselect this check box, the node does not report events to AoC; sent packages become stuck in 'pending' status.

    3. Select Recursive count to enable recursive counts on this node.

      You must select this check box when an AoC workspace or shared folder is located on this node. If you deselect this check box, the node does not report events to AoC, and sent packages become stuck in 'pending' status.

    4. Select AEJ logging to enable AEJ (Aspera Event Journal) logging.

      You must select this check box when an AoC workspace or shared folder is located on this node. If you deselect this check box, the node does not report events to AoC, and sent packages become stuck in 'pending' status.

  6. To use the pagination setting on the transfer server when browsing content in storage, set the toggle labeled Paginated browsing to On.

    The pagination facility, when enabled, returns an internally controlled number of items from the folder being browsed, whether the folder is in cloud storage or on your own tethered node. The paginated response help avoid the time-out issue that is common for large folders in cloud storage.

    Note that any paginated return of folder contents does not support retrieval of sorted content. This means that lexicographical sorting of content occurs only within the returned batches.

    Note: The transfer server must be running IBM Aspera HSTS v4.0 or higher. See the IBM Aspera High-Speed Transfer Server Admin Guide for details.
  7. To delete skipped files from the source folder after a "move" transfer (as opposed to a "copy" transfer) completes, check the box labeled Remove skipped files.

    After a transfer completes, Aspera on Cloud deletes transferred files from the source folder. However, files in the source folder that already exist in the destination folder are not transferred: they are skipped. Select this option to include these skipped files in the automatic deletion. Otherwise, skipped files remain in the source folder.

  8. Click Save.

To apply an existing configuration policy to a node, do the following:

  1. Go to Nodes and Storage.
  2. Search or browse for the intended node; click the node row to open the node record.
  3. In the "Configuration policy" field, click the downward caret to display the configured policies, click to select the intended policy.
  4. Click Save.