Server Name Property Replaced

Breaking Change (Platform 6)

The serverName property used to identify a server in properties.json is deprecated and replaced with a unique serverId identifier that is a customer-specified field. If the serverId is not provided, then Itential Platform will default to hashing the MAC address of the server. Moreover, the serverId for each Platform instance cannot be duplicated. A log message will display at startup alerting users the serverName property is deprecated.

What Should I Do?

Discontinue use of the serverName property and replace it with serverId.

The serverId property allows admins to define a uniquely identifying name for each Itential Platform server in their environment. The serverId value is set in the properties.json file, and it provides a consistent way to set a server name. By using serverId values, admins no longer have to rely on generated IP addresses. Moreover, serverId values can be utilized in a Blue-Green deployment.

Example: Single Server Configuration

This example shows a unique name to easily identify the server.

"serverId": "iap-1"

Example: Multi-Server Configuration

This advanced configuration shows three (3) unique server names in a primary data center and three (3) in a secondary data center.

PRIMARY DATACENTER
"serverId": "IAP1.primary"
"serverId": "IAP2.primary"
"serverId": "IAP3.primary"

SECONDARY DATACENTER
"serverId": "IAP1.secondary"
"serverId": "IAP2.secondary"
"serverId": "IAP3.secondary"

Implementing serverId

When changing (or adding) the serverId value while restarting Itential Platform, any tasks in the “running” state that are NOT in the task types list below will be orphaned.
 
Task Types
- childJob
- manual
- forEach
- eventListener
 

This will only be an issue when the serverId value is first set or changed. Each subsequent restart will not have orphaned jobs as long as the serverId has not been changed. Itential recommends that admins pause the task worker and have no running jobs when setting the serverId.

If an Itential Platform stack has a Disaster Recovery (DR) implementation, it is important to ensure the DR Itential Platform cluster does not contain duplicate serverId values from the primary cluster. At the moment, Itential Platform only checks for duplicate serverIds at the cluster level, not the global level. If duplicate serverIds exist, it is possible for tasks to be orphaned when the load balancer switches from the DR to the primary cluster.

If you need assistance with setting the serverId in properties.json, please contact Itential's Product Support Team.