Extras

Creating Accounting Shares

An accounting share is a way to track what department or function of the business owns or is making payments for a piece of hardware. You will need to know the following information to create an Accounting Share:

• The business unit or business department having ownership of the device
• The number of shares that business unit owns

Instructions

1. Select a business unit from the “Business Unit” drop-down menu or create a new “Business Unit” record by clicking the star button (See Creating a Business Unit section for instructions)
1. Examples: Accounting, Production, Marketing, etc.
2. Enter in the desired amount of shares into the “Shares” field
3. Click “Add”

Creating Address Type

Defining an address type is used for each operating system, usually defined as IPv4 or IPv6. The address type is not considered the actual address.You will need to know the following information before creating an address type:

• Whether the address type is an IP-V4 or IP-V6

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Address Type” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Address Types” this will open a new tab titled “Address Types”
3. In the Address Types tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Address Type”
1. Enter the Address Type in the field titled “Name”
1. Examples: IP Address, IP Address (Location-based), etc.
2. Enter any additional information about the Address Type in the “Details” field
4. Click “Create”

Creating a Business Unit

A business unit or business department is a great way to track ownership or affected areas of the organization that touches a specific piece of hardware, software, or virtual machine. A business unit uses the parent-child relationship like a hardware product. This can be utilized for accounting and tracking purposes of the asset. You will need to gather the following information when creating a business unit:

• The name of the business unit or function you wish to create
• A parent business unit, if any

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Business Unit” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Business Unit” this will open a new tab titled “Business units”
3. Within the Business Unit tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Business Unit” or if you are in the “Create Hardware” window, Service tab in the Business Unit section click the star button.
1. Enter the Company name in the “Name” field
1. Examples: Target, Best Buy, etc.
2. Enter any additional information about the Name of the Company in the “Details” field
3. Click “Create”
4. In the Business Unit tab, click the “Create” button or if you are in the “Create Hardware” window, Service tab in the Business Unit section click the star button
1. Enter the Department in the “Name” field
1. Examples: Marketing, Accounting, etc.
2. Enter any additional information about the Department name in the “Details” field
3. Select the Company name in the “Parent Business Unit” drop-down menu
1. Examples: Target, Best Buy, etc.
4. Click "Create"

Creating a Company

Creating a company is a way to distinguish the physical history and payment history of an asset in the event of a merger and acquisition or any other event which would involve transfer of ownership. You will need to know the following information before creating a company:

• The name of the company you wish to create

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Company” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Companies” this will open a new tab titled “Companies”
3. Within the Companies tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Company”
1. Enter the Company name in the field titled “Name”
2. Enter any additional information about the company in the “Details” field
3. Click "Create"

Creating a Component

Components tracking is a great way to record what is contained within a specific piece of hardware you are creating. The component information can give you insight into how much of a resource you are utilizing and consuming in your data center. It tracks everything from power to memory to peripheral cards inserted into the back of your servers. You will need to gather the following information to create a component record for your hardware:

• Memory in GB for the hardware
• Number of logical disk volumes
• The number of network interfaces for the hardware
• The number of management interfaces for the hardware
• Number of CPU’s in the hardware
• Other components, utilizing the parent-child relationship, located within the hardware
• Physical disks
• SAN connections
• Number and type of power plugs

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Component” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Components” this will open a new tab titled “Components”
3. In the Components tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Component”. If you are in the “Create Hardware” window, Component tab in the Component section click the star button.
1. Enter the Peripheral name of the Components in the “Name” field
1. Examples: Network Card, PCIE Card, etc.
2. Enter any additional information about the Peripheral in the “Details” field
3. Click “Create”
4. In the Components tab, click the “Create” button or if you are in the “Create Hardware” window, Component tab in the Component section click the star button.
1. Enter the Ports in the “Name” field
1. Examples: Port numbers
2. Enter any additional information about the Ports in the “Details” field
3. Select the Peripheral in the “Parent Component” drop-down menu
1. Examples: Network Card, PCIE Card, etc.
4. Click "Create"

Creating a Contact

A contact is utilized when referring to an asset, specifically a piece of hardware. This is the organization and person you would contact if the asset has a disruption of service or experiences a failure or outage. You will need to gather the following information when creating a contact

• The type of contact; electrician, service provider, maintenance, etc.
• The name of the contact; first and last name, company the contact works for, and contact method (See Creating a Contact Method Type for instructions)

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Contact” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Contacts” this will open a new tab titled “Contacts”
3. Within the Contact tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Contact”
1. Enter the first name of the Contact in the “First Name” field
2. Enter the last name of the Contact in the “Last Name” field
3. Select which company that the Contact is associated with in the “Company” drop-down menu or create a new “Company” record by clicking the star button (See Creating a Company section for instructions)
4. Add a contact method by clicking the star button. In the “Create Contact Method” window enter the following:
1. Enter a “Type” from the drop down menu or by clicking on the star button to create a new “Type” record. (See Creating a Contact Method Type section for instructions)
2. Enter a phone number or email for the Contact Method in the “Value” field
3. Click “Add”
5. Enter any additional information for the Contact in the field titled “Details”
6. Clcik "Create"

Creating a Contact Method Type

A contact method type is the means of reaching the point of contact for an asset, typically for hardware. The contact method type refers to the email or phone number used to get in touch with the person. You will need to gather the following information when creating a contact method type:

• What mode of contact is preferred for reaching this person; email, SMS, mobile phone, etc.

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Contact Method Type” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Contact Method Types” this will open a new tab titled “Contact Method Types”
3. Within the Contact Method Type tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Contact Method Type”
1. Enter the name of the Contact Method Type in the “Name” field
2. Enter any additional information about the Contact Method Type in the field titled “Details”
3. Click "Create"

Creating a CPU Type

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create CPU Type” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “CPU Types” this will open a new tab titled “CPU Types”
3. Within the CPU Type tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create CPU Type”
1. Enter the name of the CPU Type in the “Name” field
1. Examples: Intel Xeon E5450
2. Enter any additional information about the CPU Type in the field titled “Details”
3. Enter the speed of the CPU Type in the field “Speed in GHz”
4. Enter how many physical cores the CPU Type has in the “Physical Cores” field
5. Enter how many virtual cores the CPU Type has in the “Virtual Cores” field
6. Click "Create"

Creating a Discount Program

A discount program is used when referring the service of an asset, typically hardware. Creating a discount program record is valuable for tracking what service company your dollars are going to and what deal you are receiving from a discount standpoint. You will need to gather the following information before creating a discount program record

• The name of the discount program, for tracking purposes
• The percentage of the discount program, to know what deal has been provided by the service company\

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Discount Program” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Discount Program” this will open a new tab titled “Discount Programs”
3. Within the Discount Program tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Discount Program”
1. Enter the name of the Discount Program in the “Name” field
2. Enter any additional information about the Discount Program in the field titled “Details”
3. Enter a discount percent in the field called “Percent”
4. Click “Create”

Creating a Domain

A domain record is referring to a collection of devices within your network, similar to contoso.com and helps delineate between internal devices and devices that reside in other domains. The LiveDC platform will track what domains are being utilized by which operating systems and provide ease of searching this information. You will need to gather the following information before creating a domain record

• The name of the domain record you wish to create

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Domain” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Domains” this will open a new tab titled “Domains”
3. Within the Domains tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Domain”
1. Enter the name of the Domain in the “Name” field
1. Example: company_xyz.local
2. Enter any additional information about the Domain in the field titled “Details”
3. Click “Create”

Creating an Influence

An influence is the way to represent what is happening to a specific data series in the data center on a map. The influence is shown by using a color scale, known as a legend, to provide knowledge around the objects real-time state. The influence’s color is affected by the data series it is connected to. As the data in the data series changes, so does the color of the influence, based upon the legend associated with the map. You will need to gather the following information before creating an influence:

• The specific data series that you would like to attach to the influence (See “Creating a Data Series” for instructions)
• The map that you would like to place the influence on (See “Creating a Map” for instructions)
• The layer of the map you will be placing the influence on (See “Creating a Layer” for instructions)
• The influence template that you will be using to give the influence boundaries, shape, and scale (See “Creating an Influence Template” for instructions)

Instructions

1. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Layers” this will open a new tab titled “Layers List”
2. Select the desired Layer to place Influences on from the Layers list and click “Manage Influences”, this will open a new tab titled “Manage Influences”
1. Within the Manage Influence tab a list titled “Influence List”, where all of the Influences for the desired Layer will reside, will be open. Click “Create” to make a new Influence
2. A new window will open up titled “Create Influence”
1. Select the Data Series you wish to correspond with the Influence in the “Data Series” drop-down menu or create a new “Data Series” record by clicking the star button (See “Creating a Data Series” section for instructions)
2. Select an Influence Template to define the parameters for the Influence in the “Template” drop-down menu or create a new “Influence Template” record by clicking the star button (See “Creating an Influence Template” section for instructions)
3. Define the location of the Influence horizontally in the “X Coordinate” field (this can be adjusted at a later time, default: 1)
4. Define the location of the Influence vertically in the “Y Coordinate” field (this can be adjusted at a later time, default: 1)
5. Select the type of link for the Influence in the “Link Type” drop-down menu
1. If Data Series, select the corresponding Data Series or create a new “Data Series” record by clicking the star button (See “Creating a Data Series” section for instructions)
2. If Hardware Visual, select the corresponding Hardware or create a new “Hardware” record by clicking the star button (See “Creating a Hardware” section for instructions)
6. Click “Create”
7. To edit the position of an Influence, either edit the specific Influence from the Influence List or from the Map (See “Editing a Map Influence” for more information)

Creating an Influence Template

An influence template provides the visual boundaries that are placed around an influence for a map. Basically, the template will tell the influence what shape to take, if the pixels are going to fade at the edges, and the algorithm to follow in reference to what you are trying to display (usually will be predefined “Power2”). You will need to gather the following information before you create an influence template:

• The name of the influence template you wish to create
• What shape you are intending your influence to have (See “Creating a Shape” for instructions)
• The fade on the influence, basically if you want it to have hard edges or softer edges

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Influence Template” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Influence Templates” this will open a new tab titled “Influence Templates”
3. Within the Influence Templates tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Influence Template”
1. Enter the name of the Influence Template in the “Name” field
1. Examples: Standard Humidity, Standard Temperature, Standard Power kW, etc.
2. Enter any additional information about the Influence Template in the field titled “Details”
3. Select what shape you want to make the Influence Template in the drop-down menu called “Shapes” or create a new “Shape” record by clicking the star button. (See “Creating a Shape” section for instructions)
4. Select the “Algorithm” to be applied to the shape from the drop down menu
1. Default for Temperature / Humidity: Power2
2. Default for Power: Constant
5. Enter a value for the “Fade Pixels” of the Shape if you want soft edges when two influences collide
1. The value is the number of pixels at the edge of the shape that will be softened
6. Click “Create”

Creating a Legend

A legend is how to define the value boundaries for an influence to represent colors. The legend is seen at the bottom of a map to visually display the value range in a color scale. It all works as follows: first a data series produces a numerical value and pushes that number to the associated influence, next the influence template will give that numerical value a shape boundary, within the influence template boundary the numerical value will correspond with the legend to produce a certain color value for representation of the influence on the map. You will need to gather the following information to create a legend:

• The name of the legend you wish to create
• The number format template that corresponds with the numerical value you wish to display
• Define a low value for the legend
• Define a high value for the legend
• Define the number of hints you wish the legend to have (hints are the number of values displayed on the legend)
• Choose a gradient file to correspond with your legend (can be found at this link: http://livedcnow.com/downloads)

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Legend” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Legends” this will open a new tab titled “Legends”
3. Within the Legend tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Legend”
1. Enter the name of the Legend in the “Name” field
1. Examples: Data Center Power, Cost Per Cabinet, Data Center Temps, etc.
2. Enter any additional information about the Legend in the “Details” field
3. Select the Number Format Template to be used with the Legend in the “Number Format Template” drop-down menu or create a new “Number Format Template” record by clicking the star button. (See “Creating a Number Format Template” section for instructions)
4. Enter value of lowest point in the “Low Value” field
5. Enter value of highest point in the “High Value” field
6. Enter a number of desired hints in the “# of Hints” field
1. If you wanted to represents 0-10, you would select 11 for number of hints
7. Select a gradient file to use for the Legend in the “New Gradient File” section
8. Click “Create”

Editing a Map Influence

Being able to edit an influence on a map gives you the ability to place the influence and correct that positioning if it seems to be off, even by just a hair. There are two ways to edit the positioning of an influence, first from the map itself and second from the “Manage Influence” page. Being able to edit the positioning gives you the flexibility of moving assets in the data center and your influence being able to follow.

Instructions

1. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Visuals” and click “Maps” this will open a new tab titled “Maps”
2. Highlight the desired Map that you wish to edit the Influence on
1. Click the button titled “Generate” in the highlighted Map information section, this will open the Map in a new tab
1. To edit the location of the Influence, click the “Edit” button in the upper left hand corner of the Map
1. Click near or on the Influence desired to move, this will open a window titled “Items Near (specific X,Y coordinate)”)
2. Select the desired Influence to Reposition, a new window will open titled “Move”
3. Either enter in the new coordinates, use the arrows, or click the desired location on the Map where you want the influence to move to
4. Once the desired location is achieved, click “Move”
5. It may take a second to update, but the influence should now be in its new location and the associated influence template will represent accordingly

Creating a Layer

A layer is an aspect of the map that serves a very important purpose. The first layer is the solid background, which is the foundational piece for creating any map. The second layer is the layer on which the influences sit, which is usually placed in between the solid background and the floor plan layer. The third layer is a transparent floor plan layout of the data center; the top-down view of what infrastructure (cabinets, PDU’s, UPS, etc.) is located within the room. This order of layering provides the capabilities to show a floor layout, 9-box model, risk assessment, etc. and the abilities to place Influences on top to paint a clear picture of real-time metrics in your data center. You will need to gather the following information to create a layer:

• The name of the layer you wish to create
• What type of layer that is to be created; solid, token, basic influence, image, or composite influence
• The legend you wish to correspond to the influences that will be placed on the map (See “Creating a Legend” for instructions)

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Layer” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and click “Layers” this will open a new tab titled “Layers”
3. Within the Layers tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Layer”
1. Enter the name of the Layer in the “Name” field
1. Examples: Floor Plan, Cost Per Cabinet, Humidity % 10 inch, Solid Background, etc.
2. Enter any additional information about the Layer in the “Details” field
3. Select the type of layer desired in the “Layer Type” drop-down menu
1. If “Basic Influence”, choose which legend to use in the “Legend” drop-down menu or create a new “Legend” record by clicking the star button (See “Creating a Legend” section for instructions)
2. If “Solid”, define the desired color and percentage of transparency in the “Color” and “Transparency Percentage” fields
4. Click “Create”
5. This is one layer for the map, you will need to create two more layers to provide the three layer scenario we described in the intro to this section

Creating a Number Format Template

A number format template is the ability to take a raw number value and change it into usable and contextual metrics. One would typically use this when formatting from Amps to kW or a whole number to a dollar amount or percentage, but it is not limited to that. You will need to gather the following information to create a number format template:

• The name of the number format template you wish to create
• The specified type of number format template; either simple, currency, or java decimal pattern

Instructions

1. If you are already in the “Create Number Format Template” window skip to step 3a. If you are not in that window continue to step 2.
2. On the navigation menu (left-hand side) click “Extras” and select the button called “Number Format Templates” this will open a new tab titled “Number Format Templates”
3. Within the Number Format Templates tab, in the upper left-hand corner click the “Create” button. A new window will open up called “Create Number Format Template”
1. Enter the name of the Number Format Template in the “Name” field
1. Examples: Fahrenheit (rounded), Percent, kWh, etc.
2. Enter any additional information about the Number Format Template in the “Details” field
3. Select the type of Number Format Template in the “Type” drop-down menu
1. If “Simple” Type, define Prefix and Suffix
1. Prefix: $, etc.
2. Suffix: kW, Amps, Tons, Months
2. If “Currency” Type, choose “Locale” from the drop-down menu
1. Default: en_US
3. If “Java Decimal Pattern” Type, enter the pattern in the “Pattern” field
1. To create a number with a single value after the decimal, you would enter: ##.#
4. Click “Create”

Creating a Payment

A payment record, referring to the payment for any asset, is a way to track a payment for a specific device and when/who the payment goes to through the LiveDC platform. You will need to gather the following information before you create a payment record:

• The date of the payment
• The amount to be paid
• How you will be paying the payment (See “Creating a Payment Type” for instructions)
• Who the payment is paid by (See “Creating a Business Unit” for instructions)
• Who the payment is paid to (See “Creating a Company” for instructions)

Instructions

1. Enter the date of when the Payment for the Hardware is to be paid in the “Date” field
2. Enter the amount of the Payment in the “Amount” field
3. Select the type of Payment in the “Type” drop-down menu or create a new “Payment Type” record by clicking the star button (See “Creating a Payment Type” section for instructions)
4. Select who will be making the Payment in the “Paid By” drop-down menu or create a new “Paid By” record by click the star button (See “Creating a Business Unit” section for instructions)
5. Select to whom the payment is going to in the “Paid To” drop-down menu or create a new “Paid To” record by clicking the star button (See “Creating a Company” section for instructions)
6. Add Tags to the Payment in the section titled “Tags” by selecting from the drop down menu and clicking the left-hand facing arrow or create a new “Tag” record by clicking the star button (See “Creating a Tag” section for instructions)
7. Enter any additional information about the Payment in the “Details” field
8. Click “Add”