How to Integrate Operations Manager with VMM 2008 R2

Applies To: Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2, Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2 SP1

This topic provides procedures for integrating System Center Operations Manager with System Center Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) 2008 R2 to enable the following features of VMM:

  • Health, availability, and performance monitoring of Hyper-V hosts, Virtual Server hosts, and the virtual machines deployed on the hosts

  • Health, availability, and performance monitoring of VMware ESX Server virtual machines and the VMware Virtual Center server

  • Diagram views of your virtual infrastructure, including virtual machines on hosts and host clusters

Operations Manager integration is a prerequisite for enabling Performance and Resource Optimization (PRO) in VMM and configuring reporting for VMM. For procedures that explain how to enable these features, see Enabling PRO in VMM (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=128536) and Configuring Reporting for VMM (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=163061).

Important

If you are migrating from VMM 2008 to VMM 2008 R2 and you have already integrated Operations Manager with VMM, use the procedures in How to Update Your Operations Manager Integration After Upgrading to VMM 2008 R2.

To integrate Operations Manager with VMM, complete the following tasks.

1. Ensure that your Operations Manager deployment meets VMM requirements

2. Prepare the VMM server for Operations Manager integration

3. Set up your Operations Manager root management server for VMM integration

4. Configure your other management servers for VMM integration

5. Complete the VMM configuration

6. Install Operations Manager agents on hosts and virtual machines

7. Verify a successful Operations Manager integration

1. Ensure that your Operations Manager deployment meets VMM requirements

To be integrated successfully with VMM, your Operations Manager deployment must meet the following requirements:

  • Microsoft System Center Operations Manager 2007 with Service Pack 1 (SP1) or System Center Operations Manager 2007 R2 must be installed. For information about Operations Manager 2007 SP1, see the Operations Manager 2007 Service Pack 1 Upgrade Package (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=196293). For information about Operations Manager 2007 R2, see the Operations Manager 2007 R2 TechCenter (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=178707).

    Important

    VMM 2008 R2 supports the use of a highly available Operations Manager root management server (RMS). Performance and Resource Optimization (PRO) in VMM 2008 R2 is fully supported by this configuration. The use of a highly available Operations Manager RMS is not a supported scenario in VMM 2008. When you use a highly available Operations Manager RMS with VMM, you perform the integration procedure for the RMS on the active cluster member, and you must install a VMM Administrator Console on all cluster nodes.

  • A VMM server, and the hosts and virtual machines that the VMM server manages, must be managed by a single Operations Manager management group. However, a single Operations Manager management group can manage multiple instances of VMM. To be managed by the same management group, all VMM servers must be running the same version of VMM (either VMM 2008 or VMM 2008 R2).

  • You must deploy Operations Manager in an Active Directory domain that has a two-way trust relationship with the domain that contains the VMM server. The integration requires Kerberos authentication between VMM and the Operations Manager management servers. Because of differences in the way that the two products handle Kerberos authentication, authentication issues can prevent successful enabling of PRO when the Operations Manager server is not in a trusted domain.

  • Each time the OpsMgr SDK Service (known as the System Center Data Access service in Operations Manager 2007 R2) starts on your Operations Manager root management server, the service must be able to register Service Principle Names (SPNs) for itself in Active Directory Domain Services (AD DS). If the SDK service runs as Local System, the account has the necessary permissions to read and write the SPNs, and you don’t need to update any configurations. However, if you are using an Active Directory domain account as the service account, either you must manually register the SPNs for the root management server or you must grant the SDK service account the permissions it requires to read and write the SPNs when the service starts.

    The following procedures explain both methods for doing this.

To register SPNs for the root management server manually

  1. At a command prompt on a computer that is in an Active Directory domain, running under an account that has Write SPN permission, run the following commands to create an SPN for the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) and the NetBIOS name of the root management server. If the root management server is in a cluster, use the cluster name.

    SetSPN.exe –A MSOMSdkSvc/<RootManagementServerFQDN>  <domain>\<SDKServiceAccount>
    SetSPN.exe –A MSOMSdkSvc/<RootManagementServerNetBIOS>  <domain>\<SDKServiceAccount>
    
  2. To verify that SPNs were registered correctly, run the following command, where <computername> identifies the root management server:

    SetSPN.exe –L <computername>
    

Note

The SetSPN tool is installed automatically with Windows Server 2008. For Windows Server 2003–based computers, you can install the tool with the Windows Server 2003 Support Tools from the product CD or from the Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2 32-bit Support Tools download page (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=100114). SetSPN can be used with all releases of Windows Server 2003 and with Windows Server 2008 and later versions.

To grant the SDK service account permission to read and write the SPNs

  1. On the domain controller, open ADSIEdit.msc.

  2. Navigate to the service account for the SDK service. For Operations Manager 2007 SP1, the service name is SDK Service; for Operations Manager 2007 R2, the service name is System Center Data Access. Right-click the service account, and click Properties.

    • On an Operations Manager 2007 SP1 server, update the service account for the OpsMgr SDK service.

    • On an Operations Manager 2007 R2 server, update the service account for the System Center Data Access service.

  3. On the Security tab, click Advanced, click Add, type SELF, and then click OK.

  4. On the Properties tab, in the Apply Onto list, select This object only.

  5. In the properties list, scroll to Read servicePrincipleName and Write servicePrincipleName, and select Allow for each of them.

  6. After saving the new permissions, restart the Operations Manager SDK service on the root management server. In Operations Manager 2007 SP1, the service name is OpsMgr SDK Service; in Operations Manager 2007 R2, the service name is System Center Data Access Service.

Important

To help enhance security, grant the most restrictive access permissions that you can. Although a domain administrator account can perform these actions by default, it is recommended that you do not use a domain administrator account for the Operations Manager SDK service account.

2. Prepare the VMM server for Operations Manager integration

Before you begin configuring Operations Manager for integration with VMM, you must install the VMM server and then perform the following procedure.

To prepare the VMM server for Operations Manager integration

  1. Install the Virtual Machine Manager server if you have not already done so. For instructions, see Installing the VMM Server (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=162988).

  2. Unless the VMM server also is serving as your Operations Manager root management server, install a VMM Administrator Console on the VMM server. For instructions, see Installing the VMM Administrator Console (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=121007).

    If you are using the VMM server as your root management server, this step is not necessary because the Configure Operations Manager option of Setup.exe, which you will run in the following procedure, will install a VMM Administrator Console on that server.

  3. Install an Operations console for the Operations Manager version that is running on your management servers that are on the VMM server.

3. Set up your Operations Manager root management server for VMM integration

Important

Perform the following procedure on the root management server only. If you are using a highly available root management server, perform this procedure on the active cluster member.

To set up your Operations Manager root management server for VMM integration

  1. Log on to your Operations Manager root management server under a domain account that is a member of the Operations Manager Administrator user role. You cannot perform this procedure as a local user. If you are using a highly available RMS, log on to the active cluster member.

    Note

    If you have not been added to this role, see How to Add Members to the Administrator Role in Operations Manager 2007.

  2. Open the Operations console, and then display a list of the current management packs:

    1. On the Start menu, click All Programs, click System Center Operations Manager 2007, and then click Operations Console.

    2. Display Administration view by clicking the Administration button beneath the navigation pane.

    3. In the navigation pane, click the Management Packs node.

  3. Determine whether the following management packs, which are prerequisites for the VMM 2008 R2 Management Pack, have been imported.

    Microsoft SQL Server Management Pack:

    • Microsoft.SQLServer.Library version 6.0.5000.0 or later (Required)

    • Microsoft.SQLServer.2005.Monitoring (Recommended)

    • Microsoft.SQLServer.2005.Discovery (Recommended)

    • Microsoft.SQLServer.2008.Monitoring (Recommended)

    • Microsoft.SQLServer.2008.Discovery (Recommended)

    Microsoft Windows Server Internet Information Services (IIS) 2000/2003/2008 Management Pack:

    • Microsoft.Windows.InternetInformationServices.CommonLibrary version 6.0.5000.0 or later

    • Microsoft.Windows.InternetInformationServices.2003 - 6.0.5000.0 or later

    • Microsoft.Windows.InternetInformationServices.2008 version 6.0.6539.0 or later

  4. If needed, download the prerequisite management packs from the following Web sites:

  5. To import the management packs, on the Actions menu of the Operations console, click Actions, click Import Management Packs, select the management packs to be imported, and then click Install.

  6. If a VMM Administrator Console is installed on the root management server, use Add or Remove Programs to remove the console. If a VMM Administrator Console is already installed when you run the VMM Setup Wizard in the following step, the wizard will not complete successfully.

  7. If the management server is running Windows Server 2003, verify that Windows PowerShell version 1.0 is installed. For download instructions, see How to Download Windows PowerShell 1.0 (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=77521). You cannot install a VMM Administrator Console in the following step unless Windows PowerShell is installed.

    You do not have to perform this step if the management server is running Windows Server 2008 R2 or Windows Server 2008. In Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows PowerShell is installed automatically. In Windows Server 2008, Windows PowerShell is available as an optional component on the installation disk or via Server Manager; the VMM Setup Wizard will install the component if it has not already been installed.

    Important

    Do not perform the following step immediately after you install the VMM server. The Setup Wizard will attempt to add the VMM service account to the local Administrators group on the root management server. That operation will fail unless you have allowed time for the service connection point (SCP) to replicate to your AD DS domain controllers. AD DS replication time varies depending on factors such as the network configuration, locations of your domain controllers, and the size and complexity of the AD DS environment.

    If your management group contains more than one management server, perform the following step on the root management server only.

  8. Configure Operations Manager on the root management server by using one of the following methods:

    • If your Operations Manager server is in a different Active Directory domain than the VMM server, configure Operations Manager integration manually by following the instructions in How to Manually Configure Operations Manager for VMM 2008 R2. The root management server must be in an Active Directory domain that has a two-way trust relationship with the domain of the VMM server.

    • If your root management server is in the same Active Directory domain as the VMM server, run Setup.exe from your VMM 2008 R2 installation media, and select the Configure Operations Manager option. To install the console, you must be logged on to the local computer as a local administrator. For installation instructions, see Installing the VMM Administrator Console (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=121007).

      On the Port Assignment page, enter the following options:

      In the VMM server box, specify the VMM server to connect to. If you are not using the default port for client connections to the VMM server (port 8100), type the computer name followed by a colon and the connection port that you assigned when you installed the VMM server.

      Important

      If the VMM server is in a disjointed namespace, you must identify it by its fully qualified domain name (FQDN).

      In the VMM server port box, type the port to use for the VMM Administrator Console to communicate with the VMM server.

      Important

      The port setting that you assign for the VMM Administrator Console must match the port setting that you assigned for the VMM Administrator Console during the installation of the VMM server. For more information about assigning ports, see VMM Ports and Protocols (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=128912).

      The Operations Manager configuration involves the following tasks:

      • Import the VMM 2008 R2 Management Pack into Operations Manager.

      • Add the VMM service account to the Administrator role in Operations Manager.

        Important

        If you use the Setup Wizard to configure Operations Manager, you might need to manually add the VMM service account to the Administrator role in Operations Manager. The Setup Wizard adds the VMM service account to the BUILTIN\Administrators group on the root management server, which by default populates the Administrator role in Operations Manager. If your organization uses a different group to populate the Administrator role, you must manually add the VMM service account to that group. For more information, see How to Add Members to the Administrator Role in Operations Manager 2007.

      • Restart the Operations Manager SDK service on the root management server. (The service name in Operations Manager 2007 SP1 is OpsMgr SDK service; in Operations Manager 2007 R2, the service name is System Center Data Access service.)

      • Install a VMM Administrator Console and Windows PowerShell – Virtual Machine Manager command shell on the root management server.

  9. To enable the running of PRO scripts, ensure that the local Windows PowerShell – Virtual Machine Manager command shell allows execution of unsigned scripts or remotely signed scripts. For more information about setting the script execution policy, in the Windows PowerShell Cmdlet Help Topics on TechNet, see Set-ExecutionPolicy (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=151620).

    1. To open Windows PowerShell – VMM, on the Start menu, click All Programs, click Microsoft System Center, click Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2, and then click Windows PowerShell – Virtual Machine Manager.

    2. At the prompt, type A to select [A]lways to always trust remote signed scripts from this snap-in. If you don’t see a prompt, the policy already allows PRO to run scripts.

4. Configure your other management servers for VMM integration

To complete the Operations Manager configuration, perform the following steps on all other management servers in the management group that will monitor hosts and virtual machines managed by the VMM server.

Important

If you are using a clustered RMS for VMM, after you configure the active cluster member, perform this procedure on the remaining cluster members.

To configure an Operations Manager management server for VMM

  1. Log on to the Operations Manager management server under an account that has local Administrator rights.

  2. If the management server is running Windows Server 2003, verify that Windows PowerShell version 1.0 is installed. For download instructions, see How to Download Windows PowerShell 1.0 (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=77521). You cannot install a VMM Administrator Console in the following step unless Windows PowerShell is installed.

    This step is not necessary if the management server is running Windows Server 2008 R2 or Windows Server 2008. In Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows PowerShell is installed automatically. In Windows Server 2008, Windows PowerShell is available as an optional component on the installation disk or via Server Manager; the VMM Setup Wizard will install the component if it has not already been installed.

  3. Use your VMM 2008 R2 installation media to install a VMM Administrator Console on the management server. For installation instructions, see Installing the VMM Administrator Console (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=121007).

  4. To enable the running of PRO scripts, ensure that the local Windows PowerShell – Virtual Machine Manager command shell allows execution of unsigned scripts or remotely signed scripts:

    1. Open the Windows PowerShell – Virtual Machine Manager command shell.

    2. At the prompt, type A to select [A]lways to always trust remote signed scripts from this snap-in. If you don’t see a prompt, the policy already allows PRO to run scripts.

5. Complete the VMM configuration

To complete the VMM configuration, perform the following tasks on the VMM server.

To finish configuring VMM

  1. Log on to the VMM server under an account that is a member of the Administrator user role in VMM and an Administrator on the local computer.

  2. Add the default action accounts for all the Operations Manager management servers and for the Operations Manager agent on the VMM server to the Administrator role in VMM:

    1. In Administration view of the VMM Administrator Console, in the navigation pane, click User Roles.

    2. In the results pane, right-click Administrator, and then click Properties.

    3. On the Members tab of the User Role Properties for Administrator dialog box, add the default action account for the following, and then click OK:

      • Root management server for VMM

      • All other management servers in the VMM management group

      • Operations Manager agent on the VMM server

      Important

      If Local System is used as the default action account for a management server, add the computer account for that machine.

    Tip

    To view a list of the action accounts that are in use on your management servers: In the Administration pane of the Operations console, expand Run As Configuration, and then click Accounts. The details pane will list the action accounts that are in use in that management group.

  3. Specify the Operations Manager server in VMM:

    1. Still in Administration view, click System Center.

    2. In the results pane, right-click Operations Manager Server, and then click Properties.In the Server name field, enter the computer name, NetBIOS, or fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of the root management server for Operations Manager. In a disjointed namespace, you must enter the FQDN. If you are using a highly available root management server, enter the cluster name.

      Note

      To specify the Operations Manager server in the Windows PowerShell – Virtual Machine Manager command shell, use the following cmdlet: Set-VMMServer –OpsMgrServer <OpsMgrServerName>.

  4. To enable the running of PRO scripts, ensure that the local Windows PowerShell – Virtual Machine Manager command shell allows execution of unsigned scripts or remotely signed scripts:

    1. Open the Windows PowerShell – Virtual Machine Manager command shell.

    2. At the prompt, type A to select [A]lways to always trust remote signed scripts from this snap-in. If you don’t see a prompt, the policy already allows PRO to run scripts.

6. Install Operations Manager agents on hosts and virtual machines

To enable Operations Manager to discover the hosts and virtual machines and begin to collect health and performance data, you must install an Operations Manager agent on all of your Windows Server–based hosts running Hyper-V or Virtual Server and on all virtual machines that are running Windows operating systems.

To deploy Operations Manager agents on VMM–managed hosts and virtual machines

  1. To get a list of hosts and virtual machines that do not have Operations Manager agents installed on them, run the Virtual Machine Manager Configuration Analyzer 2008 Update 1.0.

    The VMM 2008 R2 Configuration Analyzer is a diagnostic tool that you can use to evaluate important configuration settings for computers that either are serving or might serve in VMM roles or other VMM functions. You can use the configuration analyzer before and after installing VMM. To download the configuration analyzer, go to System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008 and 2008 R2 Configuration Analyzer (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=100597).

  2. Install an Operations Manager agent on all of your Windows Server–based hosts running Hyper-V or Virtual Server.

    Note

    If VMM is managing a VMware Infrastructure 3 environment, you do not have to install an Operations Manager agent on managed VMware ESX Server hosts or on the VMware VirtualCenter server. For those computers, the Operations Manager agent on the VMM server provides health and performance data to Operations Manager and to PRO. However, to get monitoring within the guest operating systems of VMware virtual machines, you do need to install an Operations Manager agent on each virtual machine on your ESX Server hosts.

  3. Install an Operations Manager agent on all Windows–based virtual machines that VMM is managing.

You can use a Windows PowerShell script to install agents on your existing hosts and virtual machines.

To install an agent on new hosts and virtual machines, it is recommended that you install the agent on your host images and your virtual machine templates and then use Active Directory Domain Services to assign the computers to the VMM management group.

For more information about deploying Operations Manager agents, see the following topics:

7. Verify a successful Operations Manager integration

To verify a successful Operations Manager integration, check the Diagram views in the Operations console to ensure that a view has been added for the VMM server.

To verify a successful Operations Manager integration

  1. In Monitoring view of the Operations console, expand Virtual Machine Manager 2008 R2 Views.

    The list should contain a diagram view for the VMM server.

  2. Display the VMM server diagram view to view the objects that Operations Manager is monitoring in the VMM management group.

    After you configure the Operations Manager server in VMM, the diagram view should begin populating immediately.

    Note

    Operations Manager does not begin monitoring a host group until at least one host has been added to the host group and is being monitored. The displayed status of empty host groups is Not Monitored.

    If a diagram view is not added for the VMM server, check the VM Manager event log on the VMM server for a Discovery Failed error.

Next Steps

After you complete Operations Manager integration with VMM, you can enable the following features of VMM:

  • Enable PRO in VMM —Performance and Resource Optimization (PRO) in VMM allows customers to tie specific Operations Manager alerts to remediation actions that can be implemented automatically or manually in VMM to return the virtualized environment to a healthy state. The VMM 2008 R2 Management Pack provides PRO remedial actions to resolve issues with CPU and memory usage on hosts and virtual machines. VMM partners are developing additional PRO-enabled management packs to extend PRO’s capabilities. After you integrate Operations Manager with VMM, you can enable PRO for individual host groups and host clusters, and you can configure VMM PRO settings to enable PRO for issues that affect computers throughout the virtualized environment. For example, a PRO tip might detect an overheated blade chassis, an issue with a storage array, or an issue with a distributed application that is deployed on multiple physical computers, such as Microsoft Exchange.

  • Configure reporting for VMM —VMM reports are generated by Operations Manager, and are available in Reporting view of the VMM Administrator Console. However, you must integrate Operations Manager with VMM and then configure reporting in VMM before Reporting view is displayed and the reports are available in VMM.

See Also

Tasks

How to Update Your Operations Manager Integration After Upgrading to VMM 2008 R2
Troubleshooting Operations Manager, PRO, and Reporting Issues in VMM

Other Resources

How to Integrate Operations Manager with VMM 2008
Configuring Security for Operations Manager Integration and PRO in VMM