Requirements

• Configurations are displayed only for nodes with enabled configuration management. You can enable it in one of the following ways:

  • Enable configuration monitoring in SolarWinds Observability SaaS
  • Enable configuration monitoring on a Network Collector
  • Add nodes as NCM nodes in platform-connected SolarWinds Observability Self-Hosted

• All built-in roles can access the Configuration Management area overview. For custom roles, the user must have Configuration Management > Configs > View permission.

• Downloading and uploading configs and executing scripts require extra permissions. Only the built-in Owner and Admin roles can perform these actions. For custom roles, the user must have Configuration Management > Configs > Full Access permission.

  You can see only the actions you have permission to perform. If you cannot see a menu item, ensure that you have sufficient permissions.

View configurations

In SolarWinds Observability, click Network > Configuration Management. Review the tabs:

• Overview: At-a-glance view of configuration management details, such as the number of devices by vendor, backup history, baseline conflicts, and config changes.

Managed Devices: Lists devices with enabled configuration management. Use the search and filter options to find a device. This view provides the following details for monitored devices:

Compare configurations

1. Go to Managed Devices (Network > Configuration Management > Managed Devices).

2. Click a device name to open the device details view.

3. Open the Configuration Management tab.

4. Select two configurations and click Compare.

5. Review the changes and click Close to close the content comparison.

Review configuration changes and conflicts

1. Go to Managed Devices (Network > Configuration Management > Managed Devices).

2. Use available filters to show relevant devices.

   If there is a conflict between configurations, you can see Conflict in the Startup vs Running column or in the Running vs Baseline column.

3. Click the conflict to compare the configurations in an Inspector Panel.

Download configurations

1. Go to Managed Devices (Network > Configuration Management > Managed Devices).

2. Select one or more devices and click Download Running Config or Download Startup Config.

   The configuration download starts. Click the Events link in the message to follow the download progress.

Sign scripts or upload jobs

Some actions, such as uploading configurations or running scripts, require a digital signature before they can run. The signature is generated by using a pair of cryptographic keys: a private key and a public key. You must set up these keys before performing any signed action.

When prompted during an action, run a signing script and paste the output into the Signature field.

Set up signing

1. Ensure that OpenSSL is installed on your computer and available in your system PATH. See OpenSSL Downloads and Path (Windows commands) for details.

2. Create a private key. Use the following script to create a 4096-bit RSA private key encrypted with AES-256.

   openssl genpkey -algorithm RSA -out private_key.pem -aes256 -pkeyopt rsa_keygen_bits:4096

3. Create a public key. Use the following script to extract the public key from the private key.

   openssl rsa -in private_key.pem -pubout -out public_key.pem

4. Create the following folder on your Network Collector and paste the public key into it.

   C:\ProgramData\SolarWinds\UAMSClient\plugin-storage\nim-actions\signature-public-keys

Sign actions

When you perform an action that requires a signature, run the provided signing script, and then paste the output into the Signature field.

--EnableSignatureVerificationFeature=true

Upload configurations

Uploading a configuration does not guarantee that the device is fully restored to the selected configuration state. During the upload operation, the current running configuration on the device is merged with the uploaded configuration.

Review the upload script carefully and make any necessary changes to achieve the expected result.

1. Go to Managed Devices (Network > Configuration Management > Managed Devices).

2. Click the vertical ellipsis next to the device and select Upload Config.

3. On Upload operation details, review the configuration you want to upload, and then click Next.

   You can modify the configuration before uploading it to the device. Changes apply only to the uploaded configuration; the original downloaded configuration remains unchanged.

   Additional options:

   • To write the configuration to non-volatile memory, select the Write to NVRAM box.

   • To reboot the device after the upload completes, select Reboot.

4. On the Signing page, select your operating system, copy the provided script, and run it on the device.

5. Paste the output into the Signature field and click Upload.

   The configuration upload starts. To monitor progress, click the Events link in the status message.

Manage and run scripts

Click Network > Configuration Management.

On the Overview tab, open the Script Management tab in the lower part of the view. From there, you can view and manage available scripts by using the vertical ellipsis at the end of each row.

Execute scripts

1. In Script Management, click the vertical ellipsis for a script, and then select Execute to open the Execute Script wizard.

   You can also execute scripts for specific devices from the Managed Devices tab. Click the vertical ellipsis next to the device, and then select Execute Script. In this case, the Select Network Devices step is skipped.

2. On Script Details, review the script. You can change the script here.

   To reboot the device after running the script, select the Reboot box.

3. On Select Network Devices, select one or more devices on which to run the script.

4. On Signing, select the operating system, run the provided command-line script, and paste the output into the Signature field.

5. Click Execute.

Delete scripts

In Script Management, click Delete in the vertical ellipsis for a script, and then confirm deletion.

Edit scripts

In Script Management, click Edit in the vertical ellipsis for a script and make your changes.

Add scripts

You can add scripts to run on devices with monitored configurations. For supported operations, see the device vendor documentation.

1. In Script Management, click Add Script.

2. Enter a name for the script.

3. Type your script in the Content box.

4. Provide more details on why you created the script and what it does in the Comments box.

5. Save the script.

The script is added to Script Management. You can run or edit it there.

Schedule and manage configuration jobs

Schedule configuration jobs to automate the management of network devices and configuration files. Configuration jobs include regular downloads of device configurations.

You can define and run configuration jobs either in SolarWinds Observability SaaS, on the Network Collector/Platform-connected SolarWinds Observability Self-Hosted, or in both places.

SolarWinds Observability SaaS

• Supported job types: Download Configurations from Devices, Upload Change to Devices, Execute Command Script on Devices.
• There are no predefined jobs.

Network Collector /Platform-connected SolarWinds Observability Self-Hosted

• Supported job types: Download Configurations from Devices, Upload Change to Devices, Execute Command Script on Devices. See NCM job types for a comprehensive list.
• There are predefined daily jobs.

Before you create a new job in SolarWinds Observability SaaS, check whether a similar job already exists on the Network Collector/Platform Connect SolarWinds Observability Self-Hosted. If you find the job there, consider disabling the job to avoid duplication.