(Authored by Abhijit Timble & Matt Just)
We are happy to announce the availability of VMware Aria Operations for Networks 6.11! This blog will provide an overview and technical deep dive into the new usability improvements and features included in this release, making VMware Aria Operations for Networks even more secure in managing the Applications and Networks with improved grouping capabilities in the Network Map and troubleshooting issues in your hybrid multi-cloud environments.
Network Map – Auto Layout and New Grouping Enhancements
As part of the Usability within Network Map, we have significantly improved Group operations, resetting the Network Map layout and other scale use cases.
The auto layout of Network Map is a new feature designed to fix the clutter of the map layout post-discovery or after adding new data sources by repositioning all the devices and regions on system-defined positions. Similarly, the auto layout within the group helps to reset the layout within the group.
We have also introduced five new options to add devices to the group based on Device Names, Groups, IP address, Network range, or Subnet and using a custom search Query as shown below.
Below, we see one criterion for adding devices to a group by providing a range of IP addresses, while the right section shows how we can add devices based on the device hostnames.
Below is another way of adding devices to a Group based on a custom search. You add devices based on the vendor type, as seen here for the Palo Alto devices. The exceptions tab allows to exclude devices from the list.
“Follow standard naming conventions for the devices. You can use regular expressions for hostnames with the search query as: “Devices where name like “w1c04-vrni-tmm-7050sx-” – Group all Arista 7050sx switches within datacenter w1c04 to add to a device group “DC01”. “Follow standard naming conventions for the devices. You can use regular expressions for hostnames with the search query as: “Devices where name like “w1c04-vrni-tmm-7050sx-*” – Group all Arista 7050sx switches within datacenter w1c04 to add to a device group “DC01”.
View the entities tab to list the results of custom search queries.
You can also define the CIDR subnet group or IP range to group devices. New devices with IPs within that same range will automatically appear in the map’s device group.
Example: We are setting up a new data center with a specific subnet range so the user can create an empty group providing a subnet range. As the devices get added as data sources, they will automatically appear on the map within this specific group.
Another feature is about creating out-of-the-box groups per vCenter cluster.
Earlier, the multiple host group entities resulted in a scattered network map. The new feature creates an auto group for the vCenter cluster, as seen above. So now, the total number of host groups is reduced to the total number of vCenter clusters in the environment. Also, the host groups belonging to the same vCenter cluster are positioned closer.
We also provide CLI support for creating, editing, or deleting multiple groups in one execution.
We must create a CSV file providing member, groupName, and group color and pass it to the network_map_group_tool CLI. This can be executed only by getting into the RDB mode from a platform node.
Support CSV upload as part of Flow-Based Application Discovery.
You can now upload a CSV file used by Flow-based Application Discovery (FBAD) to improve the discovery of applications. Use CSV export from an existing Content Management Database (CMDB) and upload that CSV file to add pre-existing application definitions and accelerate the application discovery process.
When you upload a CSV file to discover applications, the application names and tier names from the CSV file are used to name the applications and tiers.
Before saving the application, you can modify its members, tiers, and name. Applications created using the CSV upload are monitored for updates and are shown on the Application Dashboard for approval.
Bulk Upload 3rd party physical devices through CSV & Fortinet Device Discovery
You can now import physical devices from a CSV file to add them as a data source. Other Enhancements include:
- Device discovery support for Fortinet vendor devices
- Add physical devices configured with stronger cipher algorithms for SSH connections as managed data sources.
- Bulk update SNMP credentials
- Bulk add discovered devices by IP or FQDN.
- Export the discovered devices table as a CSV.
Custom Dashboards
New widgets were introduced to the widget library. These include Top Talkers, Flow Insights, and Application widgets.
You can also Edit the Names of the widget titles.
NSX-v Deprecation – Alert
NSX-v is End of Life, so we are introducing minor warnings within VMware Aria Operations for Networks 6.11. We are not immediately removing support in this release. We are only introducing warnings on the various pages associated with data sources so that the customer gets advanced notice of the upcoming deprecation.
Also, when you try to add new data sources, these warnings will appear against the NSX-v Manager, as shown in the screenshot below.
Additional Usability Improvements
Some other key new features that we want to call out as part of this release are as follows:
- The base OS for Aria Operations for networks is migrated from Ubuntu 18.04 to 20.04 LTS for all deployments.
- Enabled custom FIPS-supported configurations to now have both TLS 1.2 and 1.3
- “Enhanced SNMP trap notifications with additional fields””vmwAffectedObjectManage”” and””vmwAffectedObjectParent“”Enhanced SNMP trap notifications with additional fields “vmwAffectedObjectManager” and “vmwAffectedObjectParent“
- Support for Platform and Collector Hostname change from the console user CLI.
Additional Features to Call Out:
- HCX Troubleshooting Enhancements – Identify MON (Mobility Optimized Networking) enabled flows and Virtual Machines.
- You can now mix and match Aria Operations for Networks Universal CPU licenses with Aria Operations for Networks Universal per Core licenses.
Conclusion:
As you can see, this release is full of new features to enhance Application visibility and network troubleshooting of your multi-cloud infrastructure in the overlay and underlay. If you want to read more about some of the new features included, check out the VMware Aria Operations for Networks 6.11 release notes or contact your VMware account team and request a live demo!
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