Dynamic plugin management for system health

Abstract

The disclosure provides an approach for providing an extendable system health management framework in a network. Embodiments include receiving, by a manager, a system health plugin. Embodiments include determining, by the manager, an association between the system health plugin and a host in the network based on the host satisfying one or more conditions. Embodiments include providing, by the manager, the system health plugin to the host for installation in a system health agent on the host. Embodiments include receiving, by the manager, from the host, status information for the system health plugin.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A method of providing an extendable application framework in a network, comprising:
 receiving, by a manager, a plugin;   determining, by the manager, a first association between the plugin and a first computing device in the network based on the first computing device satisfying a first one or more conditions;   determining, by the manager, a second association between the plugin and a second computing device in the network based on the second computing device satisfying a second one or more conditions;   providing, by the manager, the plugin to the first computing device for installation on the first computing device, wherein the plugin is configured on the first computing device based on one or more configuration values associated with the first one or more conditions;   providing, by the manager, the plugin to the second computing device for installation on the second computing device, wherein the plugin is configured on the second computing device based on one or more alternative configuration values associated with the second one or more conditions; and   receiving, by the manager, from the first computing device and the second computing device, status information for the plugin.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the plugin comprises an archive file that includes one or more of:
 an installation specification file;   a profile file; or   a script.   
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein determining, by the manager, the first association between the plugin and the first computing device in the network comprises determining that an association has been defined between the plugin and a computing device group, wherein membership in the computing device group is based on the first one or more conditions. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the first one or more conditions are defined using a logical expression indicating one or more of:
 a computing device type;   a tag;   a logical entity; or   another computing device group.   
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein receiving, by the manager, from the first computing device and the second computing device, the status information for the plugin comprises one or more of:
 receiving an indication of whether the plugin was properly installed on the first computing device or the second computing device; or   receiving an indication of which profile was used to configure the plugin on the first computing device or the second computing device.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 receiving, by the manager, a first profile associated with the first computing device, wherein the first profile is a customized profile for the plugin that is specific to the first computing device, and wherein the first profile indicates the one or more configuration values; and   providing, by the manager, the first profile to the first computing device.   
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein receiving, by the manager, from the first computing device and the second computing device, the status information for the plugin comprises receiving an indication that the first profile was used to configure the plugin on the first computing device. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising validating, by the manager, the plugin using one or more keys, wherein the manager provides the plugin to the first computing device and the second computing device via one or more secure channels. 
     
     
         9 . A system for providing an extendable application framework in a network, the system comprising:
 at least one memory; and   at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory, the at least one processor and the at least one memory configured to cause the system to:
 receive, by a manager, a plugin; 
 determine, by the manager, a first association between the plugin and a first computing device in the network based on the first computing device satisfying a first one or more conditions; 
 determine, by the manager, a second association between the plugin and a second computing device in the network based on the second computing device satisfying a second one or more conditions; 
 provide, by the manager, the plugin to the first computing device for installation on the first computing device, wherein the plugin is configured on the first computing device based on one or more configuration values associated with the first one or more conditions; 
 provide, by the manager, the plugin to the second computing device for installation on the second computing device, wherein the plugin is configured on the second computing device based on one or more alternative configuration values associated with the second one or more conditions; and 
 receive, by the manager, from the first computing device and the second computing device, status information for the plugin. 
   
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the plugin comprises an archive file that includes one or more of:
 an installation specification file;   a profile file; or   a script.   
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein determining, by the manager, the first association between the plugin and the first computing device in the network comprises determining that an association has been defined between the plugin and a computing device group, wherein membership in the computing device group is based on the first one or more conditions. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11 , wherein the first one or more conditions are defined using a logical expression indicating one or more of:
 a computing device type;   a tag;   a logical entity; or   another computing device group.   
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein receiving, by the manager, from the first computing device and the second computing device, the status information for the plugin comprises one or more of:
 receiving an indication of whether the plugin was properly installed on the first computing device or the second computing device; or   receiving an indication of which profile was used to configure the plugin on the first computing device or the second computing device.   
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the at least one processor and the at least one memory are further configured to cause the system to:
 receive, by the manager, a first profile associated with the first computing device, wherein the first profile is a customized profile for the plugin that is specific to the first computing device, and wherein the first profile indicates the one or more configuration values; and   provide, by the manager, the first profile to the first computing device.   
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 14 , wherein receiving, by the manager, from the first computing device and the second computing device, the status information for the plugin comprises receiving an indication that the first profile was used to configure the plugin on the first computing device. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the at least one processor and the at least one memory are further configured to cause the system to validate, by the manager, the plugin using one or more keys, wherein the manager provides the plugin to the first computing device and the second computing device via one or more secure channels. 
     
     
         17 . A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:
 receive, by a manager, a plugin;   determine, by the manager, a first association between the plugin and a first computing device in a network based on the first computing device satisfying a first one or more conditions;   determine, by the manager, a second association between the plugin and a second computing device in the network based on the second computing device satisfying a second one or more conditions;   provide, by the manager, the plugin to the first computing device for installation on the first computing device, wherein the plugin is configured on the first computing device based on one or more configuration values associated with the first one or more conditions;   provide, by the manager, the plugin to the second computing device for installation on the second computing device, wherein the plugin is configured on the second computing device based on one or more alternative configuration values associated with the second one or more conditions; and   receive, by the manager, from the first computing device and the second computing device, status information for the plugin.   
     
     
         18 . The non-transitory computer readable medium of  claim 17 , wherein the plugin comprises an archive file that includes one or more of:
 an installation specification file;   a profile file; or   a script.   
     
     
         19 . The non-transitory computer readable medium of  claim 17 , wherein determining, by the manager, the first association between the plugin and the first computing device in the network comprises determining that an association has been defined between the plugin and a computing device group, wherein membership in the computing device group is based on the first one or more conditions. 
     
     
         20 . The non-transitory computer readable medium of  claim 19 , wherein the first one or more conditions are defined using a logical expression indicating one or more of:
 a computing device type;   a tag;   a logical entity; or   another computing device group.