Lifecycle Manager

Lifecycle Manager (LCM) manages the state of entities after workflow execution. It represents entities as resources that include:

• A resource model, which is a JSON Schema that defines the properties of the resource.
• Instances, which are discrete occurrences of the resource.
• Actions, which use workflows to manage instances according to the properties defined in the resource model.

How it works

You can use Lifecycle Manager to manage devices in your environment. For example, to manage switches:

1. Create a resource representing a switch
2. Define a resource model that specifies the switch properties you want to manage, such as hostname and port VLANs
3. Create instances to represent each switch in your environment
4. Design actions to manage the properties of these instances

When you use an action to alter an instance property, LCM maintains the state of that property after the action finishes executing. If you design an action that updates a switch hostname, LCM records the hostname in the associated instance. You can view the current hostname even after the action finishes executing.

Capabilities

Lifecycle Manager exists in Itential Platform alongside Studio, Configuration Manager, and Operations Manager. The following table compares the capabilities of Studio, Lifecycle Manager, and Operations Manager:

Prerequisites

Before using Lifecycle Manager effectively, ensure you understand these concepts:

• Foundational concepts - Understand how entities are represented as resources
• JSON Schema basics - Resource models use JSON Schemas, so familiarize yourself with basic JSON Schema concepts
• Workflow design - Actions interface with workflows, so understand how to design and implement workflows

Learn more

Explore these guides to deepen your understanding:

• Lifecycle Manager Resources
• LCM Instance Data History