Configuring Client Systems for Remote Management

7 Configuring Client Systems for Remote Management

This chapter describes how to install packages and configure clients that enable you to manage these clients remotely.

Using the Oracle Linux Manager Web Interface

In the Oracle Linux Manager web interface, you can configure remote management either by using Kickstart features or by configuring channels.

Configuring Kickstart Features

Choose the Kickstart feature you want to configure for remote management of clients.

Enabling Remote Management in a Kickstart Profile

Use this procedure if you want Oracle Linux Manager to generate the Kickstart file that would install and configure the software for remote management.

Log in to Oracle Linux Manager server at https://olmsvr-FQDN.
Go to Systems, select Kickstart and then Profiles.
Select the appropriate profile, and then select Software.
On the Package Groups page, include rhncfg, rhncfg-actions, and rhncfg-client in the list of packages to install.
Select System Details.
On the Details page, select the Enable Oracle Linux Manager Configuration Management and Enable Oracle Linux Manager Remote Commands check boxes.
Click Update Kickstart Distribution to save your changes.

Enabling Remote Management in a Kickstart File

Use this procedure if you want to use an existing Kickstart file instead of a a file autogenerated by Oracle Linux Manager. In this case, you must manually configure the Kickstart file as follows:

Include rhncfg, rhncfg-actions, and rhncfg-client among the packages to be installed.
Add the following entry that directs rhn-actions-control to automatically run on the client system as part of the post-installation shell:
```
%post
rhn-actions-control --enable-all
%end
```

For more information, see the rhn-actions-control(8) man page.

Configuring Channels

This procedure applies to existing non-managed client systems. It uses software channels in Oracle Linux Manager server to automatically install the remote configuration packages

Log in to Oracle Linux Manager server at https://olmsvr-FQDN.
Ensure that the channel that contains the remote management packages includes the string rhn-tools on its label, for example ol8-spacewalk210-client-rhn-tools.
Enable the software channel that contains the rhncfg, rhncfg-actions, and rhncfg-client packages for the client. See Updating Client Systems.
Go to Configuration, Systems, and then Target Systems.
On the Target Systems page, select the client systems from the systems that are listed and click Enable Spacewalk Configuration Management.
Configure configuration management by running the following commands on each client system:
1. Check for any queued pending actions.
```
sudo rhn_check
```
2. Enable all remote actions.
```
sudo rhn-actions-control --enable-all
```
3. Optionally, display the list of remote actions that have been enabled.
```
sudo rhn-actions-control --report
```
  The following example shows output the command might generate:
```
sudo rhn-actions-control --report
```
```
deploy is enabled
diff is enabled
upload is enabled
mtime_upload is enabled
run is enabled
```

For more information, see the rhn-actions-control(8) man page.

Using the rhn-actions-control Command

This procedure applies if you want to install and enable the OSA daemon independently of Oracle Linux Manager. Perform the steps on the target client system

Manually install the rhncfg, rhncfg-actions, and rhncfg-client packages:
- On an Oracle Linux 7 host:
```
sudo yum install rhncfg rhncfg-actions rhncfg-client
```
- On an Oracle Linux 8 host:
```
sudo dnf install rhncfg rhncfg-actions rhncfg-client
```
Enable the remote actions that can be performed on the client.
```
sudo rhn-actions-control --enable-all
```
Optionally, display the list of remote actions that have been enabled.
```
sudo rhn-actions-control --report
```

For more information, see the rhn-action-control(8) man page.