Remedy Email Engine SSL Error
SSL Errors
We had the email engine working fine for quite some time (ARS 7.1 on Solaris).
Then – one magical day after server patching – it quit. The error messages reported in the email error logs form said this:
Connect failed
javax.mail.MessagingException: Connect failed;
nested exception is:
javax.net.ssl.SSLHandshakeException: sun.security.validator.ValidatorException: PKIX path building failed: sun.security.provider.certpath.SunCertPathBuilderException: unable to find valid certification path to requested target
at com.sun.mail.pop3.POP3Store.protocolConnect(POP3Store.java:148)
at javax.mail.Service.connect(Service.java:275)
at javax.mail.Service.connect(Service.java:156)
at com.bmc.arsys.emaildaemon.ReceiverModule.initializeIncommingMailbox(ReceiverModule.java:1876)
at com.bmc.arsys.emaildaemon.ReceiverModule.doWork(ReceiverModule.java:216)
at com.bmc.arsys.emaildaemon.ThreadBase.run(ThreadBase.java:288)
at java.lang.Thread.run(Thread.java:595)
….and it looked like this…
Remedy Email Engine SSL Error
As it turned out – it was a pretty easy fix.
For some reason the patching (OS level patching by another group) had overwritten our CACERTS file. We didn’t notice immediately because the replacement file had approximately the right size and date.
So – if you run into the “PKIX path building failed: unable to find valid certification path to requested” error – re-import or otherwise replace your SSL certificates.
-William
Twas the night before Christmas…
I present this piece of weirdness:
‘Twas the night before Christmas,
And I – mop in hand –
Had just started in
Cleaning porcelain tile-land
The kitchen, the hall, the mud room too
Also the foyer, there was much to do.
I swept then I mopped, and did it up quick –
So it would dry long before St. Nick
When out in the entrance I heard yell and a thud
I dropped all my stuff and thought “aw….CRUD”
And there on the floor lying perfectly still
Was that jolly old elf, a total fresh kill
The tracks told the story and told it quite well
First the chimney, then the tile, then a long slip and he fell.
I stood a long moment, trying to be shrewd.
Was this illegal? Was there a treaty? Was I really screwed?
And then the answer came in a flash – and I ran
to the basement, to find the Halloween stash
With my pirate costume on, I bowed and I begged
“Please FSM – please save the day”
Out on the lawn I heard a loud BOOM
I sprang to the stoop and looked out from the room
“On cavatappi, on spaghetti, al Dente, of course!”
“We have a true pirate to save from the courts!”
His noodly appendage struck out, and raised that old elf
Who stood, looked at FSM, and shook off his own self.
The two had a moment there alone in the snow -
Two imaginary characters respectfully saying Hello
And ever since that day all I get is some coal.
New Cafe World guide for the Facebook App
Cafe World Secrets
I am on Facebook from time to time but I haven’t gotten into any of the really popular games. From a marketing/innovation standpoint though I do find them amazing – the number of people who are joining Cafe World (Mafia Wars, etc) is astronomical. Last I heard it was 500,000+ a DAY joining.
It’s already one of the most successful Facebook apps ever launched.
In any case – some guy is selling a Cafe World Secrets guide on Clickbank available here if that’s your thing (Disclaimer: Affiliate link, etc etc).
B.
Auditing in BMC Remedy forms
A BMC Remedy Form Auditing Overview
In previous versions of Remedy it was necessary to do custom workflow and forms in order to “audit” the data contents of a field. An audit is simply a historical recording of the values of a field in a record.
For example, a “Status” field in an Incident may change to these values over the course of the life of the Incident:
- New
- Assigned
- Work In Progress
- Resolved
An “audit” of this field would show the following:
- Date/Time of the entry and change
- User who made the change
- Updated value
Previous versions of Remedy required custom forms, custom workflow, and various other development efforts in order to accomplish this. As of Remedy AR Server version 7.x this can be accomplished by a Remedy Developer through configuration of the back end forms.
Setting up Auditing in Remedy 7.x
To implement Auditing in Remedy 7 the following steps need to be performed:
- Identify audit form naming
- Identify fields to audit
- Identify audit operation
- Set up auditing on the form
- Set up auditing on the individual fields
Identify Audit Form Naming
The system will automatically create an audit form. However, the name needs to be specified. Typically this is the name of the original form plus the word “Audit”. For example, the HPD:HelpDesk audit form could be named “HPD:HelpDesk Audit”.
Identify Fields to Audit
Identifying the fields to audit is a step that needs careful consideration. Auditing every field on a form can cause performance issues. Also, some fields can not be audited. This includes the core fields (field id 1-6; field 7 – Status – can be audited).
The system automatically adds some fields to the audit table in order to facilitate auditing. These include the user, Audit time/date, and other information.
Typically you will want to audit application fields that are used for reporting or quality analysis. An example of this includes:
- Assigned to Group/Person
- Status
-
Classification
Identify Audit Operation
There are three possible audit operations. For each field identified in the previous step we need to identify the audit operation to be performed. The possibilities for an audited field are:
- Audit – Whenever a value changes in this field the “Audit” operation will take place. This means a new record will be created in the audit table and include this value.
- Copy – Any time an audit is triggered this field will be copied. For example, if the status changes from “New” to “Assigned” but the “Assigned to User” does not change but was set to “Copy” the “Assigned to User” would still copy to the audit form. This is the preferred setting for data that may not change but is wanted in the audit log.
- Audit and Copy – A copy of the data is triggered every time this field changes or whenever another field triggers an audit operation. This is the preferred setting for data that is likely to change and is in the audit log.
Set up Auditing on the Form
Setting up auditing for a particular form requires Remedy Administrator access. To turn on auditing you must first log into Remedy Administrator and open the form.
Once the form is open select the “Form Properties” window. Then select the “Audit” tab:
Remedy Form Auditing
Check the “Enable” box to turn on Auditing.
For the “Audit style” select “Form”. This means a record-based audit style will be used.
The other option is “Log”. Log auditing records all information to a single field and this is non-reportable and has limited usefulness.
Enter the name of the “Audit Form” that you previously determined (e.g., “HPD:HelpDesk Audit”).
If necessary enter a qualification. For example, you may only want to audit records that have a classification of “Security Issue”. A sample qualification might be:
‘Categorization Tier 1′ = “Security Issue”
When done press “OK” and save the form. The audit form will automatically be created.
Set Up Auditing on the Individual Fields
After turning on auditing and saving the form you need to configure each individual field that is identified for auditing. This also must be done in the Remedy Administrator tool.
Open the form in the Remedy Administrator tool. Select the first field that needs to be audited. Then select the “Field Properties” button and go to the “Attributes” tab:
Auditing Options
Select the “Audit Option” identified earlier for this field (“Audit”, “Copy”, or “Audit and Copy”).
Repeat this step for each field that needs to be audited and save the form.
It is also possible to set up multiple fields at the same time. To do this follow these steps:
- Open the form (auditing for the form needs to be turned on)
- Go to the “Form/Multiple Field Properties” menu option
- Select each field that needs to be audited and change the “Audit Option” to the appropriate operation identified previously.
- Save the form when finished.
Audit multiple fields in BMC Remedy
Final Steps
After completing the steps above auditing is configured but may not be completely useful. For example it may be necessary to create a join form with the original form and the audit form to facilitate reporting.
To test the auditing you can create a record in the original form. Then change the value of a field set to be audited and re-save the record.
Check the audit form. Each action should cause a new audit entry.
How do I add a new Holiday Calendar to BMC Remedy SLM?
How to add a Calendar to SLM in Remedy 7.x
In BMC Remedy SLM you need to create a new holiday calendar every year (assuming your organization closes for holidays…).
I got this question a day or two ago. It’s a good question because there are two steps. The first one is easy – you create the calendar.
The second one is the easy one to forget – you have to associate the calendar with your SLM Business Schedule. If you skil that step – your calendar doesn’t work!
Fortunately this is pretty easy.
1.) Log into Remedy User
2.) Open the Home Page and go to Application Administration:
3.) Go to the “Custom Configuration” tab – expand the Service Level Management item and the Configure Business Time item. Double click on Shared Entity/Segments:
4.) Select the Business Time Segment tab – the following screen appears
5.) Select the “Create” button
6.) Create the new FY Calendar using this example – this is for the US Federal fiscal year 2010:
7. ) The following fields must be entered for the calendar to work correctly:
- Description
- Enable (check the box)
- Availability – set to “Unavailable” since the center is closed on Holidays
- Status – leave as “Draft”
- Action – set to “Create as Described”
- Duration type – set to Recurring
- Start Date – Fiscal Year start date (10/1/20??)
- Start Time – 12:00:00 AM
- End Date – Fiscal Year end date (9/30/20??)
- End Time – 11:59:59 PM
- Recurrence Type – Specific Dates
- Specific Dates – the upcoming Postal Holidays, separated by a semi-colon and then a space.
8.) Save the Calendar. Return to the previous screen.
9.) On the Business Schedules form choose the Business Time Entity tab:
10.) Choose the “Relate Activity” button
11.) Press the “Search” button on the screen that appears.
12.) Select the new Holiday calendar you created.
13.) Choose the “Relate Selected Record” button
14.) Confirm the new calendar is related to the schedule back on the previous screen.
That’s it – you are done. Just make sure you do steps 9-13. Otherwise it won’t work!