Configuring Regional Distribution Unit
This section describes how to configure the Regional Distribution Unit (RDU) component. You must perform these configuration tasks before configuring the other components and technologies.
The following table identifies the workflow to follow when configuring the RDU.
Task |
See... |
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Step 1 |
Configure the system syslog service for use with Prime Cable Provisioning. |
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Step 2 |
Access the Prime Cable Provisioning Admin UI. |
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Step 3 |
Change the login password. |
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Step 4 |
Add the license file. |
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Step 5 |
Configure the RDU SNMP agent. |
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Step 6 |
Configure the default severity log level, which is the Notification level. |
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Step 7 |
Enable provisioning-group capabilities for IPv4 or IPv6. |
Configuring RDU Extensions
Creating a custom extension point is a programming activity that can, when used with the Prime Cable Provisioning Admin UI, allow you to augment Prime Cable Provisioning behavior or add support for new device technologies.
Before familiarizing yourself with managing extensions, you should know the RDU extension points that Prime Cable Provisioning requires. At least one disruption extension must be attached to the associated technology’s disruption extension point when disrupting devices on behalf of a batch.
The following table lists the RDU extension points that Prime Cable Provisioning requires to execute extensions.
Extension Point |
Description |
Use |
Specific to Technology? |
---|---|---|---|
Common Configuration Generation |
Executed to generate a configuration for a device. Extensions attached to this extension point are executed after the technology-specific service-level selection extension and before the technology-specific configuration generation extensions. The default extensions built into this release do not use this extension point. |
Optional |
No |
Configuration Generation |
Executed to generate a configuration for a device. |
Required |
Yes |
Device Detection |
Executed to determine a device technology based on information in the DHCP Discover request packet of the device. |
Required |
No |
Disruption |
Executed to disrupt a device. |
Required |
Yes |
Publishing |
Executed to publish provisioning data to an external datastore. The default extensions built into Prime Cable Provisioning do not include any publishing plug-ins. |
Optional |
No |
Service-Level Selection |
Executed to select the service level to grant to a device. Extensions attached to this extension point are executed before any common configuration generation extensions and the technology-specific configuration generation extensions. |
Optional |
Yes |
Authentication |
Executed to authenticate the user via remote authentication servers. Extensions will be attached to the extension points based on the authentication mode listed in RDU Defaults Page. Radius extensions are default built in authentication extensions in Prime Cable Provisioning. |
Required |
Yes |
Managing extensions includes:
Note |
You can specify multiple extension points by specifying the extension points in a comma-separated list. |
Writing a New Class
This procedure is included to better illustrate the entire custom extension creation process. You can create many different types of extensions; for the purposes of this procedure, a new Publishing Extension Point is used.
To write a new class:
Procedure
Step 1 |
Create a Java source file for the custom publishing extension, and compile it. |
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Step 2 |
Create a manifest file for the JAR file that will contain the extension class.
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Step 3 |
Create a JAR file for the custom extension point.
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Device Detection process
There are three phases in the device detection process:
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The initial setup phase initializes various "house keeping" fields, fields that hold basic information about the device and items such as logging controls etc.
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The second phase consists of gathering detection information. The device detection related information is extracted from the DHCPv4 and DHCPv6 configuration. DHCPv4 information such as class identifier, relay agent circuit id and remote id, vendor specific information and DHCPv6 information such as vendor class, vendor opts etc. are gathered .
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The last phase looks at all the information gathered and attempts to determine the device type and whether there is another device in front of this device. If it can be determined, it will be set in the device detection context.
Installing RDU Custom Extension Points
After a JAR file is created, use the Admin UI to install it:
Procedure
Step 1 |
To add the new JAR file, see Adding Files.
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Step 2 |
Click Submit. |
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Step 3 |
Return to the RDU Defaults page and note if the newly added JAR file appears in the Extension Point JAR File Search Order field. |
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Step 4 |
Enter the extension class name in the Publishing Extension Point field.
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Step 5 |
Click Submit to commit the changes to the RDU database. |
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Step 6 |
View the RDU extensions to ensure that the correct extensions are loaded. |
Viewing RDU Extensions
You can view the attributes of all RDU extensions directly from the View Regional Distribution Unit Details page. This page displays details on the installed extension JAR files and the loaded extension class files. See Monitoring RDU.
RDU Extension Dependencies on IPDeviceKeys Properties
The behavior of the RDU built-in extensions varies based on IPDeviceKeys properties that are defined in the Prime Cable Provisioning properties hierarchy. For example, PacketCable BASIC vs. SECURE mode provisioning is based on the DHCPv4 option-60 capability for supported provisioning flow modes.
Property |
Scope |
RDU Built-in Extension |
---|---|---|
EXTENDED_FILENAME_SCRIPT |
DHCP |
ConfigGeneration |
DROP_IF_MAX_IA_ADDRESSES_EXCEEDED_ENABLE MAX_IA_ADDRESSES |
DHCP |
ConfigGeneration |
MUST_BE_BEHIND_DEVICE MUST_BE_IN_PROV_GROUP MUST_BE_BEHIND_DEVICE_AUTO_ENABLE |
DHCP |
ServiceLevelSelection |
USE_BOOT_FILE_OPTION_FOR_CONFIG_FILE USE_FILE_OPTION_FOR_CONFIG_FILE |
DHCP
|
ConfigGeneration |
USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_CABLELABS_SOFTWARE_VERSION_DHCPV4 USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_CABLELABS_SOFTWARE_VERSION_DHCPV6 USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_CLIENT_ID USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_CLIENT_ID_CREATED_FROM_MAC_ADDRESS USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_DHCP_CLASS_IDENTIFIER USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_DHCP_PARAMETER_REQUEST_LIST USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_VENDOR_CLASS USE_VALIDATE_PREFIX_FOR_DHCP_CLASS_IDENTIFIER USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_DHCP_CL_OPTION_IP_PREF_DHCPV6 USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_DHCP_CL_OPTION_IP_PREF_DHCPV4 USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_DHCP_CL_OPTION_ORO_DHCPV6 USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_DHCP_CL_OPTION_ORO_DHCPV4 USE_VALIDATE_CONTINUE_FOR_RELAY_AGENT_CIRCUIT_ID |
DHCP |
ConfigGeneration |
VALIDATE_CABLELABS_SOFTWARE_VERSION_DHCPV4 VALIDATE_CABLELABS_SOFTWARE_VERSION_DHCPV6 VALIDATE_CLIENT_ID VALIDATE_CLIENT_ID_CREATED_FROM_MAC_ADDRESS VALIDATE_DHCP_CLASS_IDENTIFIER VALIDATE_DHCP_PARAMTER_REQUEST_LIST VALIDATE_VENDOR_CLASS VALIDATE_DHCP_CL_OPTION_IP_PREF_DHCPV6 VALIDATE_DHCP_CL_OPTION_IP_PREF_DHCPV4 VALIDATE_DHCP_CL_OPTION_ORO_DHCPV6 VALIDATE_DHCP_CL_OPTION_ORO_DHCPV4 VALIDATE_RELAY_AGENT_CIRCUIT_ID |
DHCP |
ConfigGeneration |
Configuring Remote SNMP Reset
The default device SNMP reset (Activation) is done by RDU by using disruption extensions. The device disruption implementation sends a SNMP set message from RDU to the device.
Prime Cable Provisioning 6.1 supports remote SNMP reset, in which the device SNMP reset request can be sent from DPE rather than RDU. During reset operation, RDU sends a reset request to DPE and in turn, DPE sends SNMP set to device.
You can enable or disable device SNMP reset through DPE feature from either the Admin UI or using the API. The PG capability to enable/disable this feature is:
- Capability name: /provgroup/capability/dpe/remote/snmp/reset
- The API constant is: ProvGroupCapabilitiesKeys.REMOTE_SNMP_RESET
Excluding DPEs from Reset Operation
When the SNMP Remote Reset feature is enabled for a PG, RDU will send the reset request to one of the available DPEs (based on MAC/DUID based affinity) in the PG during a device reset operation. However, user can set an exclusion list of DPEs, so that the RDU will not send the reset requests to those DPE(s).
The property to exclude specific DPEs at the PG level while sending remote reset is:
- Capability name: /provgroup/capability/dpe/remote/snmp/reset/exclude/dpes/csv
- The API constant is: ProvGroupCapabilitiesKeys.REMOTE_RESET_EXCLUDE_DPES_CSV
The property value is a comma-separated value (CSV) consisting of the hostnames of DPEs that needs to be excluded for remote SNMP reset.
Default SNMP Version for Cable Modem Reset
The Cable Modem reset is done using SNMP version, by default 1, whereas users can configure to use the SNMP v2c for Cable Modem reset.
Note |
To configure the default SNMP version for DOCSIS modem reset:
This property can be set in rdu.properties, and it contains the SNMP version, which can be used while sending the SNMP device reset messages for DOCSIS devices. The default value for this property is 0 (SNMP v1) and the applicable values are (0 = SNMP v1; 1 = SNMP v2c). |