Programmatically determine the RackConnect v2.0 Automation status of your cloud servers

Applies to: RackConnect v2.0

Programmatically querying the RackConnect Automation status of your cloud servers can help you determine when a new cloud server build has completed the RackConnect Automation process and is fully deployed with RackConnect. You can programmatically determine RackConnect Automation status and enabled features by using the RackConnect API or the Cloud Servers API.

Using the RackConnect API

You can use the RackConnect API to query RackConnect Automation status from any of your cloud servers. You can also use it to query the RackConnect Gateway IP, automation status, automation status details, and automation features. If you want to use the RackConnect API, see RackConnect v2.0 API for more details.

Using the Cloud Servers API to query the metadata of your cloud servers

You can also use the Cloud Servers API to query the RackConnect Automation status of your cloud servers. The benefit of using this method is that you do not need to query the status from the same server from which you want the status.

To use this method, query the Cloud Servers API and look for the metadata key named "rackconnect_automation_status" on any of your cloud servers. The value of this metadata key is the current automation status of your cloud server in RackConnect (accurate within a few seconds after each change). The automation status is one of the following values: DEPLOYING, DEPLOYED, FAILED, or UNPROCESSABLE.

The "metadata"entries also show what RackConnect Automation features are currently enabled on your account and consist of the following keys:

• "rackconnect_automation_feature_configure_network_stack"
• "rackconnect_automation_feature_manage_software_firewall"
• "rackconnect_automation_feature_provison_public_ip"

Following is an example of the metadata keys/values now available for RackConnect:

"metadata": {
"rackconnect_automation_feature_configure_network_stack": "ENABLED",
"rackconnect_automation_feature_manage_software_firewall": "ENABLED",
"rackconnect_automation_feature_provison_public_ip": "ENABLED",
"rackconnect_automation_status": "DEPLOYED"
},

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The UNPROCESSABLE status normally occurs when you build a cloud server in a region that does not match your RackConnect configuration region.

Obtaining the metadata information via the Cloud Servers API (examples)

Authenticate and obtain an authentication token

You first need to authenticate and obtain an authentication token. The following cURL command is one way of accomplishing this. You need to enter the command with your Rackspace cloud account's password and username credentials for <cloudUsername> and <cloudPassword>:

curl \
-s https://identity.api.rackspacecloud.com/v2.0/tokens \
-X 'POST' -d '{"auth":{"passwordCredentials":{"username":"<cloudUsername>", "password":"<cloudPassword>"}}}' \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
| python -m json.tool

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The backslashes (\) at the end of each line are optional and are primarily there to improve readability (they mean that you are going to continue with this single command on the next line). You can place all the lines of a cURL command on a single line.

The results of running this query display a "token" section, and you need to copy the "id" value in that section. The authentication token looks as follows:

"id": "xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxx"

Show details for a standard or workload-optimized cloud server to view the "metadata" values

Using the authentication token, you can query a cloud server's details to view the RackConnect metadata keys related to RackConnect. The following cURL command is one way of accomplishing this. You need to enter the command with your cloud account's number, the server ID of the server you want to query, and the token you obtained in the
preceding step. Enter these values for <cloudAccountNumber>, <serverID>, and xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxx.

curl \
-s https://ord.servers.api.rackspacecloud.com/v2/<cloudAccountNumber>/servers/<serverID> \
-H "X-Auth-Token: xxxxxxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxxxxxxxxx" \
| python -m json.tool  

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Do not include the < > brackets when entering these values.

This is just a brief introduction to get you started on using the Cloud Servers API to query the RackConnect statuses of your servers. If you need more information about the Cloud Servers API, see the Cloud Servers API documentation.

Determining when the Managed Operations post-build automation process is complete

To improve your experience with RackConnect, we made an automation change that affects RackConnect customers with the Managed Operations service level. This change is transparent for the majority of customers—including those using the MyRackspace Portal or the Cloud Control Panel to provision servers—but might require changes for any customers who performed automated processes or configuration on their servers immediately after the RackConnect Automation completed.

What was changed?

For RackConnect customers with the Managed Operations service level, two distinct automation routines run after a cloud server builds. Previously, automation for Managed Operations ran first, followed by RackConnect Automation. We reversed the order of automation so that RackConnect runs first.

Why was this change made?

We determined that this change could reduce post-build automation failures and improve your RackConnect experience. By allowing RackConnect Automation to run first, we can more quickly and more reliably deliver a RackConnect cloud server to you.

Whom does this affect?

This change affects all RackConnect customers with the Managed Operations service level.

For the limited set of customers who leverage their own configuration management scripts, note that RackConnect Automation runs first, followed by Managed Operations automation. We recommend that you adjust your post-build configuration management to note when Managed Operations automation is complete. This becomes the new trigger to start any post-build configuration tasks that you want to run.

How can I tell when Managed Operations post-build automation is complete?

For Windows® cloud servers, the following file is created when post-build automation is complete:

C:\windows\temp\rs_managed_cloud_automation_complete.txt

For Linux® cloud servers, the following file is created when post-build automation is complete:

/tmp/rs_managed_cloud_automation_complete

Can I get the Managed Operations post-build automation status via the Cloud Servers API

For standard and workload-optimized cloud servers only, you can also obtain the Managed Operations post-build automation status via the Cloud Servers API.

To accomplish this, you follow the same process described in the "Obtaining the metadata information via the Cloud Servers API (examples)" section, but this time, you find the metadata key value "rax_service_level_automation". This metadata key has a value of Pending, In Progress, Complete, Build Error, or Authentication Error, depending on the current status of the Managed Operations post-build automation process.