13 Using the Deployment Manager

The Deployment Manager is a tool for exporting and importing Oracle Identity Manager configurations. The Deployment Manager lets you export the objects that constitute the Oracle Identity Manager configuration. Usually, you use the Deployment Manager to migrate a configuration from one deployment to another, for example, from a test to a production deployment, or to create a backup of your system.

Important:

To use Deployment Manager, JRE 1.4.2 must be installed on any computer that is running the Administrative and User Console.

You can save some or all of the objects in your configuration. This lets you develop and test your configurations in a test environment, and then import the tested objects into your production environment. You can export and import an object and all of its dependent and related objects at the same time. Alternatively, you can export and import each object individually.

This chapter includes the following topics:

• Exporting Deployments

• Importing Deployments

• Best Practices Related to Using the Deployment Manager

13.1 Exporting Deployments

You can export objects from your Oracle Identity Manager system and save them in an XML file. The Deployment Manager has an Export Wizard that lets you create your export file. Add objects by type, one type at a time, for example, user groups, then forms, then processes, and so on. If you select an object that has child objects or dependencies, you have the option to add them or not. After adding objects of one type, you can go back and add other objects to your XML files. When you have all the objects you want, the Deployment Manager saves them all at once in a single XML file.

Note:

• If a user belongs to a group to which the Export menu item has been assigned, then that user can export all the objects that are available for export, regardless of the permissions assigned to the user.

  A system administrator can export any object.

• When user-defined fields are associated with a specific resource object, during the export process one of the following events can occur:

  - If the user-defined fields contain values (entered information), then the Deployment Manager will consider them to be dependencies.

  - If the user-defined fields contain no values (the fields are blank), then the Deployment Manager will not consider them to be dependencies.

To export a deployment:

1. In the left navigation pane of the Administrative and User Console, click Deployment Management, then click Export.

   The Deployment Manager opens and the Search Objects page of the Export Wizard is displayed.

2. On the Search Objects page, select an object type from the menu, and enter search criteria.

   If you leave the criteria field blank, an asterisk (*) is displayed automatically to find all the objects of the selected type.

3. Click Search to find objects of the selected type.

   To select an object, select the option of the object.

4. Click Select Children.

   The Select Children page is displayed with the selected objects and all of their child objects.

5. Select the child objects that you want to export.

   To select or remove an item, select the appropriate option.

   Click Back to go to the Search Objects page.

6. Click Select Dependencies.

   The Select Dependencies page is displayed with any objects required by the selected objects.

7. Select the dependent objects that you want to export.

   To select or remove an item, select the option of the item.

   Click Back to go to the Select Children page.

8. Click Confirmation.

   The Confirmation page is displayed.

9. Ensure that all the required items are selected, then click Add for Export.

   After you click Add for Export, you can still add more items to this export file.

   Click Back to go to the Search Objects page.

   The Add More page is displayed.

10. Use the wizard to add more items, or finish and exit the wizard. Select the appropriate option and click OK.

    If you select Add more, repeat Steps 2 through 7. Otherwise, the Export page is displayed.

    The Export page displays your current selections for export. Your selections have icons next to them that indicate what types of objects are selected. The Summary information pane shows the objects you are exporting. The Unselected Dependencies pane displays the list of dependent or child objects that you did not select for export.

11. Make any adjustments to your export file as follows:

    • Click Reset to clear the form.

    • Click Legend to see icon definitions.

    • Click Add Object to restart the wizard and add more items to your export file.

    To remove an object from the Current Selections list:

    • Right-click the object to remove and select Remove from the shortcut menu. If the object has child objects, then select Remove including children from the shortcut menu to remove the child objects all at the same time.

    • Click Remove to confirm. If the object is a child or dependency of a selected item, then it is added to the Unselected Children or Unselected Dependencies list.

    To add an object back to the Current Selections list from the Unselected Children or Unselected Dependencies list,

    1. Right-click the object, and select Add.

    2. Click Confirmation.

       The Confirmation page is displayed.

    3. Click Add for Export.

12. Click Export.

    The Add Description dialog box is displayed.

13. Enter a description for the file.

    This description is displayed when the file is imported.

14. Click Export.

    The Save As dialog box is displayed.

15. Enter a file name.

    You can browse to find a location.

16. Click Save.

    The Export Success dialog box is displayed.

17. Click Close.

13.2 Importing Deployments

Objects that were exported into an XML file by using the Deployment Manager can be imported into Oracle Identity Manager by using the Deployment Manager. You can import all or part of the XML file, and you can import multiple XML files at once. The Deployment Manager ensures that the dependencies for any objects you are importing are available, either in the import or in your system. During an import, you can substitute an object you are importing for one in your system. For example, you can substitute a group specified in the XML file for a group in your system.

Note:

If a user belongs to a group to which the Import menu item has been assigned, then that user must also have the necessary permissions for the objects that the user wants to import. Without these object-specific permissions, the Import operation fails.

A system administrator can import any object.

This section discusses the following topics:

• Deployment Manager Actions on Reimported Scheduled Tasks

• Importing an XML File

Note:

Before importing data that contains references to menu items, you must first create the menu items in the target system.

13.2.1 Deployment Manager Actions on Reimported Scheduled Tasks

A scheduled task is one of the objects that you can import by using the Deployment Manager. Typically, you import a scheduled task into your Oracle Identity Manager environment and later change the values of the scheduled attributes to meet your production requirements. However, if you import the same scheduled task a second time into the same Oracle Identity Manager server, the Deployment Manager does not overwrite the attribute values in the database. Instead, the Deployment Manager compares the attribute value of the reimported XML file to any corresponding attribute values in the database.

The following table summarizes the actions performed by the Deployment Manager during a scheduled task reimport:

Does the Scheduled Task have attribute values in the XML file being imported?	Are there any corresponding attribute values in the database?	Deployment Manager Action
Yes	No	Store attribute values in the database
No	Yes	Delete existing attribute values in the database
Yes	Yes (Newer attribute values indicated by time stamp)	No change in the database
Yes (New attribute values indicated by time stamp)	Yes	Update the database with the new attribute values

13.2.2 Importing an XML File

To import an XML file:

1. In the left navigation pane of the Administrative and User Console, click Deployment Management, then click Import.

2. Select a file.

   The Import dialog box is displayed.

3. Click Open.

   The File Preview page is displayed.

4. Click Add File.

   The Substitutions page is displayed

5. To substitute a name, click the New Name field adjacent to the item you want to replace, and enter the name.

   You can substitute only items that exist in the target system.

6. Click Next. If you are exporting an IT resource instance, then the Provide IT Resource Instance Data page is displayed. Otherwise, you are redirected to the Confirmation page.

7. Modify the values in the current resource instance and click Next, or click Skip to skip the current resource instance, or click New Instance to create a new resource instance.

   The Confirmation page is displayed.

8. Confirm that the information displayed on the Confirmation page is correct.

   To go back and make changes, click Back, or click View Selections.

   The Deployment Manager Import page displays your current selections.

   The Import page also displays icons next to your current selections. The icons indicate what types of objects are selected. The icons on the right indicate the status of your selections. The file names of any selected files, summary information about the objects you are importing, and substitution information are displayed on the left side of the page. On the right, the Objects Removed from Import list displays any objects in the XML file that will not be imported.

9. Make any of the following adjustments:

   • Click Reset to clear the form.

   • Click Legend to see icon definitions.

   • To remove an object from the Current Selections list, right-click the object, select Remove from the shortcut menu, and then click Remove to confirm that you want to remove the object.

     If the object has child objects, then select Remove including children from the shortcut menu to remove all the child objects at the same time. The item is added to the Objects Removed From Import list.

   • To add an item back to the Current Selections list, right-click the list, and click Add.

     If the object has child objects, then select Add including children from the shortcut menu to add all the child objects at the same time.

   • To make substitutions, click Add Substitutions.

   • To add objects from another XML file, click Add File and repeat Steps 2 through 7.

   • Click Show Information to see information about your imported information.

     The Information page is displayed.

     To see more information, select the Show Info Level Messages option, and then click Show Messages. Click Close to close the Information page.

10. To import the current selections, click Import.

    A confirmation dialog box is displayed.

11. Click Import.

    The Import Success dialog box is displayed.

12. Click OK.

    The objects are imported into Oracle Identity Manager.

13.3 Best Practices Related to Using the Deployment Manager

The following are some of the suggested practices and pitfalls to avoid while by using Deployment Manager:

• Do not export system objects.

• Group definition data and operation data separately.

• Use logical names for form versions.

• Enter meaningful descriptions when exporting.

• Check all warnings before performing any imports.

• Check the required dependencies in the target system before performing any exports.

• Understand how scheduled task attributes are affected by imports.

• Compile adapters and enable scheduled tasks.

  Note:

  This release onward, the Deployment Manager is able to compile adapters automatically while importing the XML file. For more information about automatic adapter compilation, see Chapter 9 of Oracle Identity Manager Tools Reference.

• Export entity adapters separately with only essential mappings, and then manually create the required mappings.

• Back up the database before importing it into the production environment.

• Ensure that the correct version of the form is active during a user-defined form import.

• Perform imports during periods of low activity in the system.

See Also:

Oracle Identity Manager Best Practices Guide for more information about best practices related to using the Deployment Manager