Axeda® IDM Agents

The Axeda IDM Agents can register with the Axeda Platform, and the Platform can automatically create the models and assets in the Platform for the assets where the IDM Agents are running. Once the models and assets are created in the Platform, you can use the Axeda® Configuration application to view and modify information for them (as long as you have the appropriate privileges). For more information about the Configuration application, refer to About Axeda Configuration.

In addition, once the models and assets exist in the Platform, you can search for them using the search capabilities of the Axeda® Service application. Refer to Search for assets overview. for details For general information about the Service application, refer to About Axeda Service.

 

As of release 6.1.2, you can use the Axeda Software Management application to create packages that contain file upload and/or file download instructions for the Axeda IDM Agents. These packages can be deployed manually or automatically to the IDM Agents. With release 6.1.3, you can also create packages that perform the Software Director functions for the IDM Agents. The way you create these packages differs from file download packages; refer to the topic, Guidelines for Creating IDM Software Director Packages, for details.

You can also configure File Upload actions (for use as tasks from the Asset dashboards of assets running IDM Agents) or use the Axeda Web Services to upload files.

You can upload individual files with an Upload action or package instruction. You can also configure a package with multiple File Upload and/or File Download instructions to transfer multiple files (one file per instruction). To set up the IDM Agents to transfer files to and from the Platform, you need to configure the file watcher for these agents.

Note that no changes were made to the IDM Agents for this release, so the following features of file transfers in the Software Management application are NOT supported by these agents:

• Chunking of files during file transfers

• Uploading files larger than 2GB

• Compressed format for files - IDM Agents cannot extract compressed files nor can they compress a file before uploading it. For more information, refer to Compression and Axeda IDM Agents.

• Rollback instructions - Do not configure these instructions in packages for IDM agents; they will not work.

• Package dependencies that require action by the agents - Dependencies that are processed only by the Axeda® Platform can be used for packages intended for IDM Agents (only the Package type of dependency is processed only by the Platform). Dependencies such as Registry dependencies cannot be processed by the IDM Agents. Do not use them.

• Backup Agent - Axeda Gateway and Axeda Connector provide a Backup Agent feature that is recognized by the Axeda Platform. Do not select this option in the Package wizard; instead, select Primary Agent.

• Pause / Resume / Cancel - The IDM Agents do not support pausing, resuming, or cancelling file uploads, these features of the File Upload functionality in the Asset dashboards and Uploaded Files page for an asset in the Service application are not supported for assets running IDM Agents. That said, the Pause, Resume, and Cancel features in the Deployment Manager page for Software packages DO work with IDM Agents because it is the Axeda Platform that is performing these actions.

Note that the IDM Enterprise Server allows users to browse the file system of assets that are running IDM Agents. The Axeda Platform does not support this capability, so when requesting a file upload through the Software Management application or the Axeda® Service application, you must know the location of the file you want to upload. Similarly, you must know the destination directory for downloading a file to an asset running an IDM Agent. If you want to create a custom application that allows you to browse the file system, you can use the IDM Web Service Extensions.

For more information about packages, refer to the following topics: Creating or Editing a Package, Package Instructions: Download File from Enterprise, Package Instructions: Upload File to Enterprise Server, Package Manager, and Package Deployment Manager.

For information about Upload and Download actions, refer to Configure upload actions and Configure download actions.

 

You can use the package wizard of the Axeda Software Management application to create update packages (SoftwareDirector) for IDM Agents.  For details, refer to the topic, Guidelines for Creating Software  Director Packages.

 

After registering with the Axeda Platform, Axeda IDM Agents contact the Platform periodically through polling messages. Polling messages are similar to the ping messages sent to the Platform by the Axeda Gateway and Connector Agents. Once an agent contacts the Platform, the Axeda® Platform checks for any messages for the asset where the agent is running. If any messages are waiting to be sent to the asset, they are sent to the agent.

If one of the SOAP messages queued for an IDM Agent is an instruction for a file upload or download, the IDM Agent immediately sends another polling message upon receipt of the SOAP message. It does not wait for the configured polling interval. If multiple file upload or download (or combination of the two) instructions are configured in a package, the Platform separates the instructions so that only one is passed at a time to the IDM Agent.

 

When contacting the Axeda Platform, an IDM Agent can also send data items (property readings) and alarms (faults), which are displayed in the Asset dashboard for the asset where the IDM Agent is running. This functionality is the same as for the Axeda Gateway and Connector Agents. From the Asset dashboard, you can view current and historical data item values. You can also view current alarms and acknowledge them. Once alarms are acknowledged, they are moved to the historical alarms page.

For more information about viewing data in the Asset dashboard, refer to the following topics: Current Data Item Values and Historical Data Item Values. For more information about viewing alarms in the Asset dashboard, refer to the following topics: Alarms, Historical Alarms, and Assets with Alarms.

Upon registration, the IDM Agents can provide a latitude and longitude pair to the Axeda® Platform that can be used in Expression Rules.

The IDM Agents can send alarms (faults) to and also cause alarms to be generated in the Platform. As in the IDM system, alarms created directly by the assets create a "Fault Generated By Asset" alarm by default. These alarms may be converted to other alarm types by adding an expression rule (see View and manage expression rules and Create or Edit Expression Rule). You can also create state machines and rule timers to handle incoming data from IDM Agents.

The faults and alarms of IDM Agents have four components: code, abstract, description, and detail. In the Axeda Platform, alarms have only one field where the information from these components can be displayed, Description. This field does NOT appear in the Service application pages for current and historical alarms. To view it, click the name of the alarm to display the pop-up window containing all the alarm details (Update Alarm notes). When IDM Agents submit a fault, the four components are combined into the one Description field, as follows:

 ErrorCode=<fault error code>

 Abstract=<fault abstract>

 Description=<fault description>

 Detail=<fault detail>

To use the IDM Agent alarms in an expression rule, use the Alarm namespace and description symbol. For more information about the Alarm namespace, refer to Alarm Namespace.

 

The Axeda IDM Agents support FIPS-140-2-compliant SSL for communications with the Platform. Refer to the user's guide for these agents for details on configuring FIPS 140-2-compliant SSL for them.

 

As of release 6.1.3, the Axeda Platform supports the Occasionally Connected communications mode of the Axeda IDM Agents. When assets running in this mode are not online, the MissingDevicesTask detects that they are offline and shows their status as Missing. When the assets are online again, their status returns to Online.

If you want to display the Communication Mode for these assets in the Asset dashboard, you can create the property using a Groovy script as a custom object of type IDM WS Extension and then set the property using the AssetService of the Axeda Platform Web Services. Refer to the topic, Custom Object Example: Creating a Communication Mode Property for Axeda IDM Agents, for a copy of the script and instructions for creating the IDM Web Service Extension. Refer to the Axeda Platform Web Services Developer's Reference for details about the AssetService Web Service.

This release of the Axeda Platform provides support for establishing remote sessions with assets running Axeda IDM Agents through TotalAccess Servers. To configure TotalAccess connection types, use the pages for TotalAccess connection types in the Axeda® Configuration application (for creating new connection types, Enter the details for this new TotalAccess connection type. for editing existing connection types, Enter the details for this TotalAccess Connection Type page). To set up the connection type bindings for these assets, use the Model wizard in the Axeda Configuration application. The step, Model Wizard - TotalAccess Connection Bindings, allows you to associate connection types (that are configured in the Platform) with the Model.

To establish a remote session, you can use the TotalAccess Sessions module on the Asset dashboard for the asset. Refer to the topic, Creating a TotalAccess Session, for details.

The Axeda® Connected Product Management Applications provide administrative tools for monitoring TotalAccess Servers and TotalAccess sessions. Refer to the following topics for details:

§         View and manage TotalAccess connection types (Axeda Configuration application)

§         View and manage TotalAccess Servers (Axeda® Administration application)

§         View TotalAccess Sessions (Axeda Administration application)

 

From the Axeda Configuration application, you can configure an action that collects the current values of specified properties. When configuring the action, you select the models to which the action should be available in the Axeda Service application. Service technicians who are monitoring the assets of the models can then run this action from the Asset dashboard of each asset of that model. For information on configuring the action, refer to Configure Collect Data action.

 

From the Axeda Configuration application, you can configure an action that writes ("sets") values to specified data items. When configuring the action, you select the models to which the action should be available in the Axeda Service application. Service technicians who are monitoring the assets of the models can then run this action from the Asset dashboard of each asset of that model. For information on configuring the action, refer to Configure Data Entry action.

 

Also referred to as the "generic interceptor" for Axeda IDM Agents, the IDM Web Service Extensions provide a way for you to set up the Axeda Platform to intercept a data message from an IDM Agent and perform the following types of operations:

§         Inhibit any further processing of the message

§         Add data to the message before it is processed

§         Leave the data unchanged and intercept the service processing the data

§         Perform any available operation using the Axeda Platform SDK (for example, create an alarm)

In this context, data can be values for data items, alarms, locations, and files to upload. You can pass data to a custom object for processing. You can pass data back to the Agent or to the Axeda Platform. The purpose of the IDM Web Service Extensions is to add to the request and response communications with the IDM Agent or to the processing of a Web service. You can use an extension with any of the standard IDM Web services and operations or with any custom Web services or operations that you have developed for your IDM Agent. To access the interceptor, you use a Groovy script written in a Custom Object.

For more information, refer to the topic, Using IDM Web Service Extensions.