Foglight Agent Manager 5.9.1 - Foglight Agent Manager Guide

Installing external Agent Managers

A Foglight™ agent is a component hosted by the Agent Manager that:

The Agent Manager is a middleware application that:

The Agent Manager supplies a centralized communications link between the Management Server and monitoring agents. It also provides a number of support services such as installation, upgrade, and the ability to configure agents.

Understanding how the Agent Manager communicates with the Management Server

By default, the Agent Manager initiates communication with the Management Server. However, this communication is not always uni-directional. In some cases, the Management Server can initiate a reverse connection to the Agent Manager.

If the Agent Manager is configured with an open concentrator port, and the Management Server can resolve and connect to the Agent Manager host address, then the Management Server attempts to open a reverse connection to the Agent Manager as an optimization. This enables the Management Server to send agent control messages (for example, for starting or stopping the agent, configuration changes, or callbacks) without waiting for the Agent Manager to initiate a connection.

Configuring an open concentrator port is an optional step. If there is no concentrator, or if the Agent Manager cannot be reached by the Management Server due to NAT or a firewall, the Management Server buffers the messages until the Agent Manager polls. Therefore, Agent Manager connections through NAT or a firewall are fully supported.

Embedded Agent Managers always open a private concentrator port that is restricted to connections from localhost only. This automatically enables reverse connections without requiring any configuration.

For more information, see Configuring an Agent Manager instance as a Concentrator.

By default, the Agent Manager installer uses the system-defined temporary directory (for example, /tmp or C:\TEMP) to unpack and execute the files required during installation. In some cases, such as when /tmp is mounted noexec, you may need to specify an alternate temporary location. To override the default temporary installation location, simply set the TMP, TEMP, or TMPDIR environment variable to point to a different location.

NOTE: These variables are checked in the order listed. If more than one is set, the first valid setting is used.

Syntax conventions

Deploying the Agent Manager cartridge

Several types of Agent Manager cartridges are available in the FoglightClient‑FglAM‑<version> folder in the Server directory on Disk1 of your Foglight™ installation media or for download from our Support Portal.

The type of Agent Manager cartridge you deploy depends on your needs and the monitored environment:

The following table outlines which cartridges contain the appropriate Agent Manager installers for your platforms. HP-UX PARISC discontinued in Nightcrawler.

NOTE: The cartridge FglAM-patch-<version>.car is not listed below. See the Foglight Upgrade Guide for more information about using this cartridge during the upgrade process.

IMPORTANT: If the Enable on Install check box is not selected, you must manually enable all cartridges that are contained within the FglAM‑[all|<platform>]‑<version>.car file you are deploying.

After you deploy the applicable cartridge for the Agent Manager, you can download the installer for your platform and install the Agent Manager. See Downloading the Agent Manager installer , and Installing the Agent Manager .