Performing an entity smart search across all domains

Use the entity smart search feature to search for an entity across all Network Manager domains.

Before you begin

An entity is a topology database concept. All devices and device components discovered by Network Manager are entities. You perform an entity smart search across all Network Manager domains by specifying a URL that contains the name of the entity. You specify this URL in the Dashboard Application Services Hub.
Note: You can use only the name of the entity when performing an entity smart search across all Network Manager domains.

About this task

To perform an entity smart search across all Network Manager domains specify the following URL to the Dashboard Application Services Hub:

http(s)://DASH_HOST:DASH_PORT/ibm/console/ncp_structureview/Search.do?
selectEntityName=entityName

where

  • DASH_HOST -- Specifies the name of the host computer on which the Dashboard Application Services Hub server was installed.
  • DASH_PORT -- Specifies the port number associated with the host computer on which the Dashboard Application Services Hub server was installed.
  • entityName -- Specifies the name of the entity to search across all Network Manager domains. The entityName is case sensitive as it must match an existing value in the NCIM database.

    You can also specify spaces in the entityName by using the + (plus sign) or %20 (percent sign followed by the number 20). For example, the space in the entity name ;SM 0001 can be specified as ;SM+0001 or ;SM%200001.

    Note: The URL path is case sensitive (that is, all items in the path are lower case except for the upper case S in Search). The parameter name selectEntityName in the URL specification is also case sensitive.

Procedure

  1. Log into the Dashboard Application Services Hub.
  2. In the browser Location bar, specify the previously described URL.
    After the URL has been successfully submitted to the Dashboard Application Services Hub server there are four possible scenarios:
    • Single match -- The specified entityName is unique in the NCIM database. The Structure Browser is launched and the selected entityName is displayed in the context of the containing structure.
    • Multiple matches -- The specified entityName exists in more than one Network Manager domain and/or parent entity node. A new context page displays the results using the following format:
      $DOMAIN_NAME/$CONTAINMENT_PATH_BY_ENTITYNAME

      where

      • DOMAIN_NAME -- Specifies the Network Manager domain in which the specified entityName resides.
      • CONTAINMENT_PATH_BY_ENTITYNAME -- Specifies the list of entities that exist from the root entity to the entity specified in the entity smart search. Consider the following example where an entity smart search is performed on an entity called SM00189990:
        DOMAIN1 NAP02513002/SM02513016/SM00189990

        In the example, the containment path for the domain called DOMAIN1 specifies the following entities:

      • Root entity -- The root entity is the first entity in the list. In this example, the root entity is NAP02513002.
      • Repeater entity -- Zero or more repeater entities can follow the root entity. In the example, there is one repeater entity, SM02513016.
      • Search entity -- This is the entity specified in the entity smart search. In the example, the search entity is SM00189990.
      Note: For some search results there will only be a root entity and the entity specified in the entity smart search. For other search results there will be a root entity, one or more repeater entities, and the entity specified in the entity smart search.
    • Zero matches -- A results page indicates there were no matches in the NCIM database for the specified entityName.
    • Error -- A results page indicates an error has occurred and that the search should be attempted again.

    Searches only the domains that the user can access. For more information, see Restricting access to domains in the GUI.

Example

The following example shows the URL for an entity smart search across all Network Manager domains: 
https://dash01.ibm.com:16311/ibm/console/ncp_structureview/Search.do?
selectEntityName=SM00071103

where

  • dash01.ibm.com -- Specifies the host name of the computer on which the Dashboard Application Services Hub server was installed.
  • 16311 -- Specifies the port number associated with the host computer on which the Dashboard Application Services Hub server was installed.
  • SM00071103 -- Specifies the name of the entity to search across all Network Manager domains.

What to do next

Use the Structure Browser to navigate the internal structure of a device or to investigate the health of device components and isolate a fault within a network device. Specifically, the Structure Browser highlights the entity specified in the entity smart search.