(a) Creating an ID group

To create an ID group, set the information shown below in the managing system:

• ID group name
  Specify an ID group name, which will be selected as a destination for distributing jobs.
  
• Password (optional)
  You can set a password to be used in order to add clients to the ID group. If you set a password here, a user must enter this password to register a client into the ID group.
  
• Relay managing the ID
  Specify the host (relay manager or relay system) to be used as the relay managing the ID. You cannot specify an offline machine or an offline folder. You can specify multiple relays the will manage the same ID group.
  

(b) Registering a client into an ID group

You register a client into an ID group at the client. Connect the client to the relay managing the ID, and then register the client into the ID group that the relay is managing. You can also perform registration into an ID group from the managing server or a relay system. Furthermore, you can automatically register into an ID group a new client that has been added to the JP1/Software Distribution system.

The relay managing the ID in which the client is registered into an ID group becomes the higher system specified on the Connection Destination page (in JP1/Software Distribution SubManager or JP1/Software Distribution Client (client)). In JP1/Software Distribution Manager, the relay managing the ID becomes the higher system set during setup of the relay manager. If the client operates in a multi-host environment, the relay managing the ID becomes the relay system that has the highest priority.

(c) Executing a job that specifies an ID group as the destination from the managing server

The following jobs can specify an ID group as the destination:

• Install package jobs
• Send package, allow client to choose jobs
• Get system information from client jobs
• Get software information from client jobs
• Get user inventory information jobs
• Transfer registry collection definition jobs
• Transfer user inventory schema to client jobs (only distribution of user inventory)
• Report message jobs
• Set the software monitoring policy jobs
• Get software monitoring information from the client jobs

Jobs that specify an ID group as the destination (ID group jobs) are transferred to the relay managing the specified ID group. The relay managing the ID saves the job and executes it to clients that are registered in the ID group. If a client is registered into an ID group after the ID group job has been executed, the saved ID group job is executed for that client when registration is completed. Therefore, when you specify an ID group in an Install package job or a Send package, allow client to choose job, you must consider the package expiration date/time at the relay system of the package being distributed. When the expiration date and time of a package has passed in the relay system, the package is deleted from the relay system and can no longer be distributed automatically to clients that register into the ID group.

(d) Execution results of an ID group job

If you specify an ID group as the destination in the jobs listed below, you can check the results of job execution at the clients from the managing server. For details about the method for checking the execution results of ID group jobs, see 8.4.4 Displaying the job execution status in the manual Administrator's Guide Volume 1.

• Install package jobs
• Send package, allow client to choose jobs

(e) Editing an ID group

You can perform the following editing operations on an ID group from the managing server that created the ID group and the relay managing the ID.

Managing server that created the ID group

• Adding or deleting a relay managing the ID
• Changing the password.
• Deleting the ID group
• Registering a client into the ID group (from a file)
• Registering the ID group into a relay managing the ID

Relay managing the ID

• Changing the password
• Deleting the ID group
• Registering a client into the ID group (from a file)
• Registering a client into the ID group (from the Destination window)
• Deleting a registered client from the ID group

Described below are operations that use an ID group in a system in which multiple managing servers are configured in a hierarchy.

(a) Creating an ID group from the central manager

When you create an ID group from the central manager, you can set the following hosts as the relay managing the ID:

• Relay manager or relay system under the central manager
• Relay system under a relay manager

The following shows an example of an ID group created in the central manager that has a relay manager as the relay managing the ID:

Figure 8-13 ID group created from the central manager using a relay manager as the relay managing the ID

(b) Managing an ID group in a relay manager

In a relay manager, the Destination window displays the ID groups that the relay manager has created, as well as the ID groups for which a higher manager specified this relay manager as the relay managing the ID.

The relay manager can perform the following operations on ID groups that were created by higher managers:

• Changing the password
• Deleting the ID group
• Deleting a registered client from the ID group

(c) Managing the same ID group in multiple managing servers

As shown in the following figure, the central manager and a relay manager can create the same ID group.

Figure 8-14 Managing the same ID group in multiple managing servers

Both the central manager and the relay manager can create the ID group Windows98 with Sub00 as the relay managing the ID.

However, the central manager cannot create the ID group Windows98 with Man01 as the relay managing the ID. Because the relay manager has already created an ID group named Windows98, the higher manager cannot create another ID group named Windows98 with the relay manager as the relay managing the ID.

If a system deletes an ID group or changes the relay managing the ID, the system that made the change reports the modified contents to the higher system, and the modified contents are automatically applied to the higher system.

The following figure shows an example of deleting an ID group that is managed by multiple managing servers.

Figure 8-15 Deleting an ID group managed by multiple managing servers

As with the managing server of JP1/Software Distribution Manager, the managing server of JP1/Software Distribution Client (relay system) can create an ID group and execute ID group jobs in subordinate clients. When the managing server of JP1/Software Distribution Client (relay system) uses an ID group, it is not necessary to set a relay managing the ID, because JP1/Software Distribution SubManager itself functions as the relay managing the ID.

Both JP1/Software Distribution Client (relay system) and the managing server of JP1/Software Distribution Manager can check the execution results of a job that specifies an ID group created by JP1/Software Distribution Client (relay system). To enable JP1/Software Distribution Manager to report the execution results of ID group jobs executed by JP1/Software Distribution Client (relay system), you must specify the following setting in the JP1/Software Distribution Client (relay system):

• On the Remote Installation Manager page, select the Report the ID group job status to the managing server check box.