Configuration File Administration

Configuration File Administration Overview

The system supports multiple administrator utilities related to configuration file management. The following table describes the purpose of the different utilities.

The following table lists the Utilities for Configuration File Administration:

Utility	Recommended Usage
Archiving	Schedule periodic backups to a remote backup server. You should schedule archiving for both the system configuration binary file (system.cfg) and the user configuration binary file (user.cfg). If necessary, you can import an archived configuration using the configuration binary file import/export feature.
Local backup and restore	Create backups on the local system as a precaution when making significant configuration changes. With this utility, you can quickly restore to a previous configuration.
Binary configuration file import/export	Export binary configuration files to a local host (an alternative to the remote archiving server and archiving process that runs as a scheduled job). You might do this if you do not use or do not have access to an archiving server, or if you want to make use of a configuration that has not yet been archived. You can export the binary system configuration file (system.cfg) and the binary user configuration file (user.cfg). You can use the binary file import/export feature to clone a configuration that you want to deploy more broadly, such as deploying a backup device or to a group of devices. You can use "selective import" options to exclude unique network identifiers (such as IP address) that would cause problems if the configuration were to be wholly imported and activated.
Binary configuration file import/export
XML configuration file import/export	Import or export the configuration for only the features and settings you select. This enables you to take a more granular approach to mass configuration management than the binary file import/export feature. For example, you might want to populate an authentication server configuration across a large number of nodes. You can export just that configuration element, and when you import it in the other nodes, you do not overwrite the large number of configuration elements that you would if you had imported the user.cfg file. You might also find the XML file import/export feature useful when managing a single node. For example, you might want to add many new users to the local authentication server, which can be faster editing the XML than using the user interface. Or you might want to make global changes to the configuration object naming conventions or descriptions as part of a "housekeeping" initiative. This, too, might be accomplished faster editing the XML than clicking through the user interface.
XML configuration file import/export
Push configuration	Push a partial configuration from the running configuration on the source system to the running configuration on one or more target systems. This is the best option to instill common configuration elements if the devices are already deployed and currently online.

Configuring Archiving for System Logs, Configuration Files, and Snapshots

You can schedule periodic archiving for system logs, system configuration files, and system snapshots. Periodic archiving occurs only at the scheduled time. "Unscheduled" archiving does not occur automatically. For example, if a log file exceeds the maximum file size, the archiving process does not automatically back up the file prior to the scheduled time to prevent data loss.

If the archive process fails, it makes two more attempts at an interval of 30 seconds. If the archiving still fails, it retries at an interval of one hour till the archiving process is successful.

We recommend that you schedule an archive operation during hours when traffic is light to minimize its impact on users. The automatic archiving process compresses files and, if the system is busy, can degrade performance for users. Also, a cluster node might appear unresponsive if the system is busy with traffic and performing archiving simultaneously.

If you schedule an archive operation to occur during the hour that your system switches to daylight savings time (DST), the operation might not occur as scheduled. For example, if your system is set to change to DST at 1:00 AM, and you scheduled an archive job to occur at any time between 1:01 AM and 1:59 AM, then the operation does not take place because at 1:00 AM the system clock is moved forward to 2:00 AM, and the system never reaches the archive time for that date.

To configure log archiving:

1.Select Maintenance > Archiving > Archiving Servers to display the configuration page.

Archiving Configuration Page - Pulse Connect Secure shows the configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Complete the configuration as described in Archiving Configuration Page - Pulse Connect Secure.

3.Save the configuration.

Archiving Configuration Page - Pulse Connect Secure

The following table lists the Archiving Configuration Guidelines:

Settings	Guidelines
Archive Settings
Archive Server	Specify the fully qualified domain name or IP address of the server to which to send the archive files.
Destination Directory	Specify the destination directory. Follow these recommendations: For UNIX systems, you can specify an absolute or relative path. We recommend you specify a full path. For Windows systems, specify a path that is relative to the ftproot directory. We recommend you specify a full path. Do not include a drive specification for the destination directory, such as: pulsesecure/log.



Username	Specify a username that has privileges to log into the server and write to the destination directory.
Password	Specify the corresponding password.
Method	Select SCP, FTP, AWS S3 or Azure Storage. SCP is the default method. SCP is a file transfer utility similar to FTP. SCP encrypts all data during transfer. When the data reaches its destination, it is rendered in its original format. SCP is included in most SSH distributions and is available on all major operating system platforms. AWS S3: Push backup configurations and archived logs to Amazon AWS S3 bucket. For more details, refer to Pulse Connect Secure Virtual Appliance on Amazon AWS Cloud Deployment Guide. Azure Storage: Push backup configurations and archived logs to Microsoft Azure storage. For more details, refer to Pulse Connect Secure Virtual Appliance on Microsoft Azure Cloud Deployment Guide.



Archive Schedule
Archive events log	Schedule archiving for the Events log. The archive file has the following format: PulseSecureEventsLog-[clustername\|standalone]-[nodename\|hostname]-[date]-[time] For example, an archive file for a cluster named Gen has a filename similar to the following: PulseSecureEventsLog-Gen-node1-Root-20090109-1545.gz. The archiving schedule configuration includes the following options: Use this filter-Select a log format filter. Day of week-Select the days of the week on which to run the archiving job. Every hour or a Specified Time. The Every hour option runs a job every hour on the hour for the selected days. The specified time option runs a job once on the selected days. Clear log after archiving. Select this option to clear the local log file after the archiving job is successfully completed. If an archive job fails, the log files are not deleted. Password-(Optional) Specify a password to secure and encrypt system configuration or user account archives.








Archive user access log	Schedule archiving for the User Access log. The archive file has the following format: PulseSecureAccessLog-[clustername\|standalone]- [nodename\|hostname]-[date]-[time] The archiving schedule configuration includes the same options as those described for the Events log.


Archive admin access log	Schedule archiving for the Admin Access log. The archive file has the following format: PulseSecureAdminLog-[clustername\|standalone]- [nodename\|hostname]-[date]-[time] The archiving schedule configuration includes the same options as those described for the Events log.


Archive sensors log	Schedule archiving for the Sensors log. The archive file has the following format: PulseSecureSensorsLog-[clustername\|standalone]- [nodename\|hostname]-[date]-[time] The archiving schedule configuration includes the same options as those described for the Events log.


Archive client-side log uploads	Schedule archiving for client-side log uploads. This option is available only on Pulse Connect Secure. The archiving schedule configuration includes the same options as those described for the Events log, except for log filter format, which is not applicable to the client-side logs.
Archive client-side log uploads
Archive system configuration	Schedule archiving for the system configuration binary file (system.cfg). The archive file has the following format: PulseSecureConf-[clustername\|standalone]- [nodename\|hostname]-[date]-[time] The archiving schedule configuration includes the same day, time, and password-protection options as those described for the Events log.


Archive user accounts	Schedule archiving for user account configuration binary file (user.cfg). The archive file has the following format: PulseSecureUserAccounts-[clustername\|standalone]- [nodename\|hostname]-[date]-[time] The archiving schedule configuration includes the same day, time, and password-protection options as those described for the Events log.


Archive XML configuration	Schedule archiving for the XML configuration files. The archiving schedule configuration includes the same day and time options as those described for the Events log. Administrator can select the Exclude large-data packages in the archived configuration to exclude ESAP and Pulse Client packages from being archived.


Archive debug log	Enable archiving for collected debug logs. You cannot specify a day and time for archiving debug logs. If you select this option, debug logs are archived periodically and cleared if the Clear log after archiving option is selected.
Archive debug log
Archive periodic snapshots	Enable archiving for snapshots. You cannot specify a day and time for archiving periodic snapshots. If you select this option, snapshots are archived periodically.
Archive periodic snapshots

Archiving Pulse Collaboration Meetings

Connect Secure enables you to archive Pulse Collaboration instances. You can:

•Set up a recurring archival process.

•Perform a one-time archive.

•Archive the deleted meetings into an XML file for later download or deletion. One file is created for each archive run.

•Define the number of days a meeting instance remains on the system before archiving (instances older than x days are archived).

•Define which node in a cluster performs the archive.

The archival process removes completed standalone meetings, completed recurring meeting instances and completed MyMeeting instances. For recurring meeting with end dates already passed, the recurring meetings and their parent meeting are removed. The parent meeting, however, is not archived since the parent meeting information is already captured in the recurring instances. The archival process does not remove meetings in progress or scheduled (future) meetings.

By default, archiving Pulse Collaboration is turned off. Also, by default, MyMeetings instances older than 90 days are removed. If the Pulse Collaboration archive feature is turned off, the automatic deletion of MyMeetings is not saved into the archive file.

In a cluster configuration, only one node performs the archival task and only the files stored on that node are archived. You must log in to the archive node using the node IP instead of the virtual IP to download or delete the archived files.

Shown below is an example snippet of an XML file created by the Pulse Collaboration archival process:

<teleconference_info><![CDATA[]]></teleconference_info>

<date><![CDATA[4:11 PM May 15, 2007 (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time (US &

Canada); Tijuana]]></date>

<meeting_type>support</meeting_type>

...

</invitees>

<join_time>04:11 PM</join_time>

<duration>50 minutes </duration>

</attendee>

...

</attendees>

...

</meeting>

...

</meetings>

To archive meetings:

1.In the admin console, choose Maintenance > Archiving > Pulse Collaboration.

Pulse Collaboration Archiving Page shows the archiving page.

2.To schedule a recurring archival process, select the Perform automatic clean up every option and specify how often the archiving process should run.

3.In the Delete meetings older than field, enter how old (in days) meetings must be before being archived. Meetings older than this number are archived and removed from the system.

4.To archive meetings in a cluster configuration, select the Archive meeting records on node option and then select the node that performs the archive.

5.Click Clean Up Now to perform the archive process immediately. Meetings older than the specified age are archived and removed from the system.

6.Click Save Changes to save your edits.

Pulse Collaboration Archiving Page

Once the archive process completes, the archive files are listed in the Pulse Collaboration archive table.

To view or download an archive file, click its name.

To delete an archive file, select the check box next to its name and click Delete.

Using the Configuration Backup and Restore Feature

You can save up to five system configuration backups and five user account backups on the local server. If you exceed this limit, the system overwrites the oldest backup with the new backup. If you do not want to overwrite the oldest backup, select and delete another backup instead, before you save the most current one.

To manage configuration file backups:

1.Select Maintenance > Archiving > Local Backups to display the configuration page.

Local Backups Management Page - Pulse Connect Secure shows the archiving configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Use the controls to backup or restore the configuration as described in Table.

3.Save the configuration.

Local Backups Management Page - Pulse Connect Secure

The following table lists the Local Backups Management Guidelines:

Controls	Guidelines
System Configuration
Save Configuration	Create a backup of the running system configuration.
Delete	Select a row in the table and click Delete to delete the backup.
Restore	Select a row in the table and components in the "Include when restoring" column and click Restore to replace the running configuration with the archived configuration.
User Configuration
Save User Accounts	Create a backup of the running user configuration.
Delete	Select a row in the table and click Delete to delete the backup.
Restore	Select a row in the table and click Restore to replace the running configuration with the archived configuration.

Using the Import/Export Feature for Binary System Configuration Files

This topic describes the import/export feature for binary system configuration files.

Binary System Configuration File Overview

The Pulse Secure access management framework enables you to import and export the system and network settings using binary system configuration files. When importing a system configuration file, you can exclude the device certificate and the server's IP address or network settings from the imported information. For example, to set up multiple Pulse Connect Secure systems behind a load balancer, import everything except for the IP address. To set up the system as a backup server, import everything except for the digital certificate and the network settings.

The binary system configuration file includes the following settings:

•Network settings

•Certificates. The system imports only device certificates, not the chains that correspond to the device certificates or trusted client CAs.

•Cluster configuration

•Licenses. When you import a configuration file that contains licenses, the system gives precedence to any existing licenses. Licenses are imported only if no licenses are currently installed.

•SNMP settings

•Sensor configuration. Sensor configurations are included in the system configuration file while sensor event policies are included in the user configuration file. To import or export all sensor-related settings, import or export both the system and user configuration files. The user configuration file, not the system configuration file, includes resource profiles, resource policies, and the local user database. To perform a complete backup, export both the system and user configuration files.

•Client-side logs. To import or export client-side logs, import or export both the system and user configuration files.

•Web proxy servers. Connect Secure only. To export all web proxy related information, both the system and user configuration files are needed.

•Web caching options. Connect Secure only.

•Rewriter filters. Connect Secure only.

Exporting a Binary System Configuration File

To export a binary system configuration file:

1.Select Maintenance > Import/Export > Import/Export Configuration to display the configuration page.

Export Binary System Configuration File Configuration Page - Pulse Connect Secure shows the configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Complete the configuration and export operation as described in Table.

Export Binary System Configuration File Configuration Page - Pulse Connect Secure

The following table lists the Export Binary System Configuration File Configuration and Action Guidelines:

Settings	Guidelines
Password for configuration file	Specify a password to encrypt and secure the configuration file.
Confirm password	Specify the password.
Save Config As	Display a dialog box to save the file to your local host.

Importing a Binary System Configuration File

To import a binary system configuration file:

1.Select Maintenance > Import/Export > Import/Export Configuration to display the configuration page.

The following figure shows the configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Complete the configuration and import operation as described in the following table.

Import Binary System Configuration File Configuration Page

The following table lists the Import Binary System Configuration File Configuration and Action Guidelines:

Settings	Guidelines
Options
Import Device Certificate(s)?	Overwrite the existing device certificate(s) with the ones in the imported configuration file. When importing a device certificate in to a FIPS device, note that you must choose a certificate that uses a FIPS-compliant private key. To ensure FIPS-compliance, select a certificate and corresponding security world private keys were generated on a FIPS device.
Import Device Certificate(s)?
Other Import Options
Import everything (except Device Certificate(s))	Import all settings except the device certificate.
Import everything but the IP address	Do not overwrite the existing configuration for network interface IP addresses, netmask, default gateway, virtual interfaces, ARP tables, and route tables. Use this option only if the exported configuration file is from a standalone node. To set up multiple nodes in a cluster behind a load balancer, import everything except the IP address.
Import everything but the IP address
Import everything except network settings and licenses	Do not allow the imported configuration to change the existing configuration for settings found in the Network Settings and Licensing sections. With this option, network configurations, licenses, cluster configurations, certificates, defined SNMP settings and syslog configurations are not imported. Always use this option if configuration file was exported from a node that is part of a cluster. To set up a backup node, import everything except network settings and digital certificates.
Import everything except network settings and licenses
Import only Device Certificate(s)	Import the device certificate(s) only. You must also select the Import Device Certificate(s) check box.
Config file	Use the browse button to locate and select the file from your local host.
Password	Specify the password (if applicable).
Import Config	Import the configuration file.

Using the Import/Export Feature for Binary User Configuration Files

This topic describes the import/export feature for user configuration binary files.

Binary User Configuration File Overview

In general, if a menu item falls under the Authentication, Administration, or Users menu, the item is included in the user configuration file (user.cfg). The exception is Sensors event policies, which are under System, but which are exported in the user configuration file. In particular, the user configuration file includes the following settings:

•Sign-in settings (includes sign-in policies, sign-in pages, all authentication servers, authentication protocol sets, and Pulse settings)

•Authentication realms (including admin realms, user realms, and MAC authentication realms)

•Roles

•Resource profiles. Pulse Connect Secure only.

•Resource policies

•Sensor event policies

•User accounts

•Client-side logs. To export or import client-side logs, export or import both the system and user configuration files.

Exporting a Binary User Configuration File

To export a binary user configuration file:

1.Select Maintenance > Import/Export > Import/Export Users to display the configuration page.

Binary Export User Configuration File Configuration Page - Pulse Connect Secure shows the configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Complete the configuration and export operation as described in Table.

Binary Export User Configuration File Configuration Page - Pulse Connect Secure

The following table lists the Binary Export User Configuration File Configuration and Action Guidelines:

Settings	Guidelines
Password for configuration file	(Optional) Specify a password to encrypt and secure the configuration file.
Confirm password	Specify the password.
Save Config As	Display a dialog box to save the file to your local host.

Importing a Binary User Configuration File

To import a binary user configuration file:

1.Select Maintenance > Import/Export > Import/Export Users to display the configuration page.

The following figure shows the configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Complete the configuration and import operation as described in the following table.

Import User Configuration Binary File Configuration Page

The following table lists the Import Binary User Configuration File Configuration and Action Guidelines:

Settings	Guidelines
Browse	Locate and select the file from your local host.
Password	Specify the password (if applicable).
Import Config	Import the configuration file.

Using the Import/Export Feature for XML Configuration Files

This topic describes the import/export feature for XML configuration files.

XML Configuration File Overview

The system maintains its configuration in a structured XML file. This enables the system to support an alternative to the complete configurations that are exported and imported with the configuration binary files. You can use the export/import configuration XML pages to export and import selected configuration elements.

You might find the feature useful when performing the following tasks:

•Adding to the configurations of peer nodes, for example, adding a large number of users.

•Modifying multiple instances of a single setting, for example, an authentication server name.

•Deleting settings, for example, deleting authentication servers that are no longer used.

•Creating a configuration template to use for setting up new nodes.

•Tracking configuration changes by comparing differences on periodic exports.

Guidelines and Limitations

The following table summarizes the guidelines and limitations for using the XML import/export feature.

The following table lists the XML Import/Export Guidelines and Limitations:

Category	Guidelines and Limitations
General	The following guidelines and limitations apply: You can import and export configuration files only between systems running the same software version. If XML configuration to be imported contains one or more Pulse Client packages, we recommend to split the configuration to import only Pulse Client packages first considering one Pulse Client package per import and then import the remaining configurations. You might find it useful to use a text editor to modify configuration elements that ought to be distinguished, such as configuration object names and descriptions. Never modify the names of the NIC identifiers. The system relies on knowing that each appliance has two interface cards, known as NIC0 and NIC1. Immediately after importing an Active Directory authentication server configuration, you must edit the configuration to change the Computer Object name. Unexpected problems might arise if two systems join an Active Directory domain using the same Computer Object name.




Licenses	The following rules apply to exported and imported licenses: You cannot edit the license data that is exported. It is encrypted. An XML import of licenses is valid only if the system does not currently have a license installed. If a license is installed already, any imported licenses are dropped. If you still intend to import a license, you must perform a factory reset before you perform the import operation. If you import a license after deleting a temporary license, the imported license is dropped because you might still be able to reactivate the deleted license. The import operation preserves any licensing data.



Clusters	The following guidelines apply to importing a configuration file for nodes that belong to a cluster: When you perform an import operation on a cluster, all of the cluster nodes must be enabled and running. If you attempt to import a configuration into a cluster in which a node is not running, the import operation might hang or your import results might be unpredictable. The XML configuration that you import must contain the same set of nodes as the original cluster. The signature used to synchronize the cluster when the nodes are reenabled is derived from the IP addresses of the cluster nodes. Therefore, the remaining nodes cannot rejoin the cluster if the imported configuration yields a different signature. When import occurs, the imported configuration file overwrites the node-specific cluster configuration network settings of the remaining nodes. If you change the node-specific network settings, make sure you do not make the remaining nodes unreachable. After you have exported the file, do not modify settings that could render the primary node unreachable, such as changes to network settings. After you have exported the file, do not modify the XML to change the node name, IP address, or IP netmask. After you have exported the file, do not modify virtual port settings or add new virtual port settings.

Exporting an XML Configuration File

To export an XML configuration file:

1.Select Maintenance > Import/Export > Export XML to display the configuration page.

Export XML File Configuration Page - Pulse Connect Secure shows the configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Complete the configuration and export operation as described in Table.

Export XML File Configuration Page - Pulse Connect Secure

The following table lists the Exporting an XML Configuration File settings and guidelines:

Settings	Guidelines
Schema Files
Schema files	Download the XML schema definition (.xsd) files that describe the XML.
Select Settings and Export
Expand All	Expand the display of all settings groups.
Select All	Select all settings for all groups.
Export	Export the selected configuration data to an XML file.
Settings
System	Expand this group and select settings found under the System menu. Do not select the DMI Agent unless Pulse Secure Technical Support instructs you to do so.
System
Sign-in	Expand this group and select settings found under the Sign-in menu.
Endpoint Security	Expand this group and select settings found under the Endpoint Security menu. ESAP packages are encrypted when exported.
Endpoint Security
Authentication Realms	Expand this group and select authentication realm settings, including user realms and MAC address authentication realms.
Roles	Expand this group and select settings found under the Roles menu.
Resource Profiles	Connect Secure only. Expand this group and select settings found under the Resource Profiles menu.
Resource Profiles
Resource Policies	Expand this group and select settings resource policies settings.
Pulse Secure Client	Expand this group and select settings found under the Pulse Secure client menu.
Local User Accounts	Expand this group and select local authentication server settings.
Maintenance	Expand this group and select settings found under the Maintenance menu.
Export Settings?
Export	Export the selected configuration data to an XML file.

Importing an XML Configuration File

To import an XML configuration file:

1.Select Maintenance > Import/Export > Import XML to display the configuration page.

Figure underneath shows the configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Complete the configuration and import operation as described in Table.

Import XML File Configuration Page

The following table lists the Import XML File Configuration and Action Guidelines:

Settings	Guidelines
Schema Files
Schema files	Download the XML schema definition (.xsd) files that describe the XML.
Import
XML data file	Locate and select the XML file.
Import	Import the file. The Import XML Results page is displayed. This page contains information about the imported network settings, roles, resource policies, and other settings. If there are errors in the XML, the import operation stops and rolls back the configuration to the previous state. Error messages are displayed on the Import XML Results page.

Example: Using the Configuration XML File Import/Export Feature to Add Multiple Users

This example shows how to use the configuration XML file import/export feature. The example is illustrative. There are additional ways to use export files.

Assume you have just added a new device to the network, and you want to add your 2,000 users to the system. Instead of adding them one at a time in the admin console, you want to perform a mass import You can export the user accounts, extract the relevant XML that defines users, replicate each element as needed, and then import them. In this situation, your configuration should include the option to force the users to change their passwords the first time they log in to the system.

In this procedure, you only see examples for User 1, User 2, and User 2000. All other users are included in your import file. You set the passwords to numbered instances of the word password, such as password1, password2, and so on. All users in this example are assigned to the same auth server, although you can specify any combination of auth servers that are valid on your system.

To add multiple new users:

1.Select Maintenance > Import/Export > Export XML.

2.Follow the instructions to export local user accounts.

3.Save the exported file as users.xml.

4.Open the users.xml file.

5.Copy and paste the User container element repeatedly until you have added the necessary number of users. Although the example shows only three new users, you might add hundreds of new users to the file.

6.Update the appropriate data in each User container element as shown in "Example: Updating the User container”.

7.Save the users.xml file.

8.Select Maintenance > Import/Export > XML Import/Export > Import.

9.Click Browse to locate and select your users.xml file.

10.Click Import.

Example: Updating the User container

<configuration xmlns="http://xml.juniper.net/ive-sa/6.2R1"

xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">

<auth-servers>

<auth-server>

<local>

<users>

<user>

<password-cleartext>password1

</password-cleartext>

<one-time-use>false</one-time-use>

<change-password-at-signin>true

</change-password-at-signin>

</user>

<user>

<password-cleartext>password2

</password-cleartext>

<one-time-use>false</one-time-use>

<change-password-at-signin>true

</change-password-at-signin>

</user>

<name>System Local</name>

</auth-server>

</auth-servers>

</authentication>

</configuration>

Guidelines for Modifying Configuration XML Files

This topic provides guidelines for modifying an exported configuration file.

Preparing to Modify a Configuration XML File

The following practices might be useful when you export and import XML configuration elements:

•Define your goals for a particular task:

•What object or objects do you need to add, update, or delete?

•Do you need to complete all modifications in one operation, or can you modify the configuration in separate operations?

•Is your process a one-time operation, or do you need to perform the same operation multiple times?

•Are you updating an active system or are you using one configuration as a template for configuring systems that have not yet been brought online?

•Document the intended changes to the configuration objects:

•Make a list of objects to be added, updated, or deleted.

•For objects to add or update, list specific attribute data.

•List pages or tabs from the admin console that correspond to the objects and attributes you intend to change.

•Make a binary system snapshot or a binary configuration backup immediately before you perform the import.

•Make a plan to verify that the completed configuration meets your goals.

•View the Admin Access log to make sure the export and import operations succeeded.

•Perform a random check of the modified items. Make sure items were added, updated, or deleted as you expected.

•Make sure you are able to view configuration details in both the admin console and XML file while you work on the modifications, typically in the following sequence.

1.Use the admin console to correlate the configuration data with the data in the XML file.

2.Use the XML file to locate and modify the configuration data.

3.Use the admin console to verify the successful import.

•Use an XML editor. The exported XML files have a standard structure. Once you become familiar with the structure, you can navigate the files easily. The files can become large, so you might find it more efficient to use a commercial or open source XML editor. XML editors often separate the editable data from the structural display. This separation reduces or eliminates the risk of accidentally modifying an XML element rather than its data.

Understanding the XML Export File

When you export a configuration file, the system saves the configuration as an XML file. The data in the exported file is based on the selections you make when you configure the export operation. The file contains all of the required XML processing instructions and namespace declarations, which must be included exactly as defined.

The following table provides some basic information and guidelines to help you understand the structured XML used in the export file.

The following table lists the Structured XML Files: Basic Information and Guidelines:

Topic	Guideline
XML schema definition (.xsd) file	The export is based on an XML schema. The schema is a separate file that defines the metadata, and that serves as a model or a template for the exported file. Use the XML schema file to: Identify the structure and sequence of configuration objects. Identify optional and required elements, allowable values, default values, and other attributes of the configuration objects. You can download the XML schema definition (.xsd) file in either of the following ways: From the XML Import/Export pages by clicking a link. From the URL where the files are stored on the system (you do not need to sign in). To access the .xsd file, access the following URL: https://<IP-or-hostname>/dana-na/xml/config.xsd






Elements	An element is a discrete XML unit that defines an object or part of an object. The element typically consists of a pair of tags that may or may not surround string data. Tags are surrounded by angle brackets (< >).
Namespaces	Namespaces allow you to use the same words or labels in your code from different contexts or XML vocabularies. Prefixing elements with namespace qualifiers allow the XML file to include references to different objects that originate in different XML vocabularies and that share the same name. If you do not prefix elements with namespace qualifiers, the namespace is the default XML namespace, and you refer to element type names in that namespace without a prefix. A namespace declaration looks like the following example: <configuration xmlns="http://xml.juniper.net/ive-sa/6.2R1" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"> When you see namespace identifiers in your XML files, you do not need to be concerned about them, as long as you do not delete or modify the identifiers.



Element Sequence	You should avoid changing the sequence of elements in the XML file, whenever possible. Although the schema does not enforce sequence in all cases, you gain no benefit from changing the order of elements from the order in which they appear in the exported file, and, in some cases, you might invalidate the XML structure by changing element sequence.

Every XML tag fits into one of the following XML tag types:

•Start tag-Defines the beginning of an element. The start tag consists of an open angle bracket (<), a name, zero or more attributes, and a close angle bracket (>). Every start tag must be followed by an end tag at some point in the document.

•End tag-Defines the end of an element. The end tag consists of an open angle bracket and a forward slash (</), followed by the same name defined in its corresponding start tag, and ends with a close angle bracket (>).

•Empty tag-The empty tag is denoted in two forms. If a tag pair has no data between them, the tag pair is considered an empty tag. Officially, according to the XML specification, an empty tag looks something like this:

<<empty tag example/>>

In this form, the empty tag consists of an open angle bracket (<), followed by an element name, a slash and a close angle bracket (/>). When you see an empty tag in your configuration files, it signifies an element that the schema requires to be included in the XML file, but whose data is optional.

Start tags can contain attributes, and tag pairs (elements) can contain additional elements. The following example shows an XML file for the Users object. In this example, you see only the Administrator configuration settings.

<configuration xmlns="http://xml.juniper.net/ive-sa/6.2R1"

xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">

<auth-servers>

<auth-server>

<local>

<users>

<user>

<username>admin</username>

<fullname>Platform Administrator</fullname>

<password-encrypted>3u+U</password-encrypted>

<one-time-use>false</one-time-use>

<change-password-at-signin>false</change-password-at-signin>

</user>

</users>

</local>

<name>Administrators</name>

</auth-server>

You make changes to the string data that is displayed between start and end tags. For example, using the preceding example, you can add to or change the following elements:

•<username>admin</username>

•<fullname>Platform Administrator</fullname>

•<password-cleartext>password</password-cleartext>

•<change-password-at-signin>false</change-password-at-signin>

•<name>Administrators</name>

The preceding sample displays the password element's data as encrypted data. You can modify the password if you change the element to password-cleartext. If you modify the password, the password value is visible until it is imported back into the system. Once imported, the system encrypts the password.

If you enter passwords for new users in cleartext format, the passwords are visible in the file, therefore, you might consider setting the Change Password at Next Login option to true.

Because passwords are encrypted by default, they are fully portable from one system to another.
Use the password-cleartext element and enter a text password when changing passwords through the XML file.

If you change a user for a given authentication server or an authentication server for a given user, you are creating a different user, not updating an existing user or authentication server. User and authentication server together logically define a unique user.

Comparing Configuration Settings and Values Shown in the User Interface with the Ones in the XML File

The elements in the XML file are closely related to the objects and their options as you see them in the admin console. The element names in the XML instance file correlate closely with the displayed object and option names.

For example, select Users > User Roles > [Role] > General > Session Options. The admin console renders the possible values for a roaming session as an option button group, consisting of the values:

•Enabled

•Limit to subnet

•Disabled

The following snippet from the exported configuration file shows the session options for the Users role. On the bolded line, the roaming session option is disabled:

<session-options><SessionOptions>

<Roaming>disabled</Roaming>

<PersistentSession>false</PersistentSession>

</SessionOptions>

In the schema file, you can locate the allowable values for the roaming session option:

<xsd:element name="roaming" minOccurs="0">

...

<xsd:enumeration value="enabled">

...

<xsd:enumeration value="limit-to-subnet">

...

<xsd:enumeration value="disabled">

...

</xsd:element>

To change the value for the roaming session from Disabled to Limit to subnet, replace disabled with limit-to-subnet.

This example shows that the admin console often provides all of the allowable values, displayed either in an option button group, as check boxes, as list boxes, or as other types of user interface components. The XML file displays only the current state of your configuration. The schema file displays all of the actual values for the configuration options that are supported.

Understanding Referential Integrity Constraints

The system configuration objects are part of a data model that is enforced through the use of referential integrity constraints. You cannot change these constraints, but you should understand them before you attempt to delete objects that maintain dependencies to other objects.

If you violate the referential integrity constraints, your import operation fails.

In the following figure the boxes represent object types and the arrows represent dependent relationships between the object types. Arrows point from dependent objects to objects.

Object Referential Integrity Constraints

The system does not allow you to delete an object on which another object depends. Conversely, when you add an object, you must add any other objects on which that object depends.

Sign-in URLs depend upon realms and sign-in pages. Realms depend upon both authentication servers and roles. Policies depend upon roles. Users depend upon authentication servers.

Consider the following scenarios based on the preceding figure:

•If you add sign-in URLs, you must add realms, sign-in pages, roles, and authentication servers. You need to add an authentication server and at least one role to support the realm, and you must add the realm and the sign-in page to support the new sign-in URL.

•If you add a user, you must be able to assign it to an authentication server. If there is no authentication server on the target node yet, you must add one in the XML file.

•If you add a policy, you must be able to assign it to a role. If there is no role on the target system, you must add one in the XML file.

•If you delete an authentication server, you might strand realms and users, therefore, you need to make sure no realms or users depend on the authentication server before you attempt to delete it.

•If you delete a role, you might strand policies and realms. To delete a role, you must first delete any policy that depends upon the role, or reassign associated policies to another role. Also, to delete a role, you must first delete or reassign any realm that depends upon that role.

•If you delete a sign-in page, you might strand one or more sign-in URLs. To delete a sign-in page, you must first delete any associated sign-in URLs or reassign them to other sign-in pages.

Referential integrity checks are performed only during XML import.

Using Operation Attributes

Operation attributes define the positioning or action of XML data within the schema. If you do not specify an operation attribute, the modified data is merged by default.

XML data with an operation attribute has the following format:

….

…

…

</object3>

…

</object2>

…

</object1>

The operation attribute is applied to all children objects unless a different operation attribute is defined in children objects.

The following operation attributes are supported:

•Merge-The configuration data identified by the element that contains this attribute is merged with the configuration at the corresponding level in the configuration datastore identified by the target parameter. This is the default behavior.

•Replace-The configuration data identified by the element that contains this attribute replaces any related configuration in the configuration datastore identified by the target parameter. Only the configuration actually present in the configuration parameter is affected.

•Create-The configuration data identified by the element that contains this attribute is added to the configuration if and only if the configuration data does not already exist on the device.

•Delete-The configuration data identified by the element that contains this attribute is deleted in the configuration datastore identified by the target parameter.

•Insert before-Changes the position of a configuration element in an ordered set.

•Insert after-Changes the position of a configuration element in an ordered set.

•Rename-Changes the name of one or more of a configuration object's identifiers.

If you are merging a list of objects to an existing list of objects in the configuration store, the results of the merged list might be unexpected. During a merge operation the order of the objects in the new list is not maintained. If you are importing a list of objects and would like to preserve the order of the new list, you should use the replace operation attribute. You can also use insert before or insert after to ensure that you produce the hierarchy that you intended.

Operation attributes are applied to elements recursively unless new operators are also defined within lower-level elements. There are limitations on the legal operator that can be used in child elements without conflict with the parent operator.The following table displays the legal operator relationships between parent and child elements.

The following table lists the Legal Operator Attribute Relationships:

Child >
V-Parent	Create	Merge	Replace	Delete	Insert
before	Insert
after	Rename
None	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK
Create	OK	OK	Error	Error	OK	OK	Error
Merge	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK
Replace	Error	OK	OK	Error	OK	OK	Error
Delete	Error	OK	Error	OK	Error	Error	Error
Insert
before	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK
Insert
after	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK
Rename	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK	OK

The following examples demonstrate the import operation:

Example 1: Set the MTU to 1500 on an interface named "Ethernet0/0" in the running configuration.

<name>Ethernet0/0</name>

</interface>

Example 2: Add an interface named "Ethernet0/0" to the running configuration, replacing any previous interface with that name.

<name>Ethernet0/0</name>

<prefix-length>24</prefix-length>

</address>

</interface>

NOTE: The default import modes have the following equivalent attributes on the root object of the configuration tree:

•Standard Import is always a merge operation.

•Quick Import is a create operation.

•Full Import is a replace operation.

Using the Push Configuration Feature

This topic describes the push configuration feature.

Push Configuration Overview

The push configuration feature supports simple configuration management across an enterprise without requiring you to deploy the systems as a cluster. You push a partial configuration from the running configuration on the source system to the running configuration on one or more target systems.

It is not desirable to push some groups of settings to a running configuration, so the following groups of settings are not supported:

•Network configurations

•Licenses

•Cluster configurations

•Certificates

•SNMP settings

•Syslog server settings

•Push configuration targets

Guidelines and Limitations

The following table lists the Push Configuration Guidelines and Limitations:

Category	Guidelines and Limitations
General	The following guidelines and limitations apply: You can push a configuration to systems running the same software version (same build number) or higher software version. The source device pushes data over the management port (if configured) or the internal port. The target device can receive data over the internal or external port or management port. You can push to a single target or to multiple targets. For example, if you install several new systems, you can push a common configuration to set their initial configuration. When a configuration push job begins on a target, no warning is displayed, and the administrators are automatically logged out to avoid potential conflicts. For selected configuration push, if the configuration to be pushed contains one or more Pulse client packages, we recommend you push the Pulse client packages first considering one Pulse client package per push and then push the remaining configurations. When the job has completed on a target, the target device restarts its services. Brief interrupts might occur while the service restarts. You must push to targets when they are idle or when you can accommodate brief interruptions. Immediately after pushing an Active Directory authentication server configuration, you must edit the configuration to change the Computer Object name. Unexpected problems might arise if two systems join an Active Directory domain using the same Computer Object name. You must delete the failed push jobs before performing a new push. When performing an entire configuration push, with changes to settings such as security settings, the target web server might get restarted during configuration import. As a result, the source might experience a lost connection. You can resume the job from the source at a later point to see the result of the import.









Licenses	The push configuration job does not push licenses or licensing settings.
Clusters	You can push a configuration to multiple targets, as long as targets are not part of the same cluster. You must not perform the clustering operations such as adding a cluster, deleting a cluster, and so on when performing a push configuration. If such events occur, then unsuccessful jobs will be aborted, and the backup files will be deleted. You can push a configuration to multiple targets, as long as targets are not part of the same cluster. You must not use VIPs during push configuration. Instead you must use the internal IP or the management IP of one of the nodes to create the target. You must delete the backed up configuration on the target node(s) as soon as possible to free up the disk space.

Configuring Targets

To configure push configuration targets:

1.Select Maintenance > Push Config > Targets to display the target list and source options configuration page.

The Push Configuration Target List and Source Device Settings Page - Pulse Connect Secure figure shows the configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Complete the configuration for the source options as described in Table.

3.Click New Target to display the configuration page for targets.

Figure shows the configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

4.Complete the configuration as described in Table.

5.Save the configuration.

Push Configuration Target List and Source Device Settings Page - Pulse Connect Secure

The following table lists the Push Configuration Target Source Device Configuration Options:

Settings	Guidelines
Allow this system to be a target	Select this option to allow the system to accept configuration pushed from another system. This option must be selected on targets, but does not have to be selected on the source system.
Validate target server certificate	Select this option on the source system if you want the source system to validate the target system server certificate before pushing the configuration.
Save Changes	Click this button if you have changed the source device configuration options described above.
Delete	Select a row in the table and click Delete to remove the target from the list. You cannot delete a target if it has push configuration results associated with that target.

Push Configuration Targets Configuration Page:

The following table lists the Push Configuration Targets Configuration Guidelines:

Settings	Guidelines
Name	Specify a name to identify the target within the system. Target names cannot be edited after they have been saved.
Sign-in URL	Specify the URL for the administrator sign-in page. Sign-in URLs cannot be edited after they have been saved.
Admin Username	Specify an account on the target system that the push configuration job can use to sign-in and make changes to the configuration. The job can make wide-ranging configuration changes, so the user must have full administrative privileges. In other words, the user must belong to the .Administrators role.
Password	Specify the corresponding password.
Auth. Realm	Specify the administrator authentication realm on the target system. The access management framework must be configured so that the job process (run as the username specified above) can sign in without any human interaction. For example, you cannot have dynamic credentials or multiple roles that are not merged, as these both require manual interaction. We recommend that you create an administrator account on each target that can be used exclusively for push configuration. Configure the administrator realm so that the realm policy and role mapping rules do not result in prompts requiring human interaction. For example, the user must be able to log in with static password authentication or two-factor tokens that do not use challenge-response type authentication. For example, certificates, Soft ID, and Defender Authentication are not supported.
Auth. Realm

Configuring Push Settings

To configure the settings to be pushed:

1.Select Maintenance > Push Config > Push Configuration to display the configuration page.

The following Push Configuration Selected Settings Page figure shows the configuration page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Complete the configuration and push configuration operation as described in Table Push Configuration Selected Settings and Action Guidelines.

Push Configuration Selected Settings Page

The following table lists the Push Configuration Selected Settings and Action Guidelines:

Settings	Guidelines
Select Settings and Export
What to push	Select Selected configuration or Entire configuration. If you select Selected configuration, the page displays controls to select settings groups. If you select Entire configuration, all settings from the source system are pushed, except for the following: Network configurations Licenses Cluster configurations Certificates SNMP settings Syslog server settings Push configuration targets









Expand All	Click this button to expand the display of all settings for all groups.
Select All	Click this button to select all settings for all groups.
Settings
System	Expand this group and select settings found under the System menu. You cannot push host-specific network settings to a target. If you want to copy these settings to another system, use the configuration XML file import/export feature.
System
Sign-in	Expand this group and select settings found under the Sign-in menu.
Endpoint Security	Expand this group and select settings found under the Endpoint Security menu. ESAP packages are encrypted when exported.
Endpoint Security
Authentication Realms	Expand this group and select authentication realm settings, including user realms and MAC address authentication realms.
Roles	Expand this group and select settings found under the Roles menu.
Resource Profiles	Connect Secure only. Expand this group and select settings resource profiles settings.
Resource Profiles
Resource Policies	Expand this group and select settings resource policies settings.
Pulse Secure Client	Expand this group and select settings found under the Pulse Secure menu.
Local User Accounts	Expand this group and select local authentication server settings.
Maintenance	Expand this group and select settings found under the Maintenance menu.
Push Configuration
Available Targets / Selected Targets	Use the Add and Remove buttons to select the targets.
Overwrite duplicate settings	Select this option to overwrite settings on the target that have the same name as settings being pushed. If you do not select this option, the push configuration job copies only configuration objects that have names different from the configuration objects on the target.
Overwrite duplicate settings
Allow Rollback to previous configuration	Select this option to revert to a previous configuration state, effectively rolling back configuration changes. If you select this option, the local configurations on the target node will be backed up before importing the configurations. You can also undo the push configuration if you want to discard the changes and revert back to the previous state. We recommend you delete the backed-up configuration if the import is successful. If the target configuration is large the rollback of configurations can take several minutes to complete.


Description	Enter the description for the job. The job description is limited to 100 characters.
Schedule Import on Target	Select this option to allow a delayed import on the target node. If you select this option, the selection applies to all the targets in the job. The import schedule is measured in HH:MM (hours, minutes) format. The schedule is specified according to source's timezone.
Push Configuration	Click this button to push the selected configuration data to the specified targets. You can pause the push for a target during the push process. If errors occur during the push process, the job stops, and the configuration for the target is not imported. However, you can resume the failed push jobs. Error messages are displayed on the Results page. If you have specified multiple targets and a push configuration job to a target fails, the job continues to the next target until specified targets are updated (or fail). The results page displays the status and any problems encountered during the process.

Viewing Configuration Push Results

Purpose	The source system saves and displays the push configuration results in the Results tab.
Action	To view push configuration job results:

1.Select Maintenance > Push Config > Results to display the results page.

The Push Configuration Results Page figure shows the results page for Pulse Connect Secure. The push configuration results page auto refreshes for every 30 seconds.

2.Examine the results to verify success or learn the reasons the push job failed.

3.Click the job name to display additional information about the job.

4.Select a job and click Delete to remove it from the results page.

Push Configuration Results Page

The following table describes the information displayed on the Results page and the various management tasks you can perform.

The following table lists the Push Configuration Results:

GUI Element	Guidelines
Disk Usage Details	Displays the disk space available for push configuration and the disk space consumed by all the push jobs in the device. The disk space consumed by individual push jobs are also mentioned across each push job under the disk usage column. When total disk space consumed reaches the total disk space push jobs may fail and you can see the results column to see the failure message. You need to monitor the disk space consumed by push configuration to avoid push failures related to disk space limits.
Disk Usage Details
Description Column	Displays the type of the push configuration.
Disk Usage Column	Displays the disk space used by the job.
Results Column	Displays the status of the transfer and result of post push action. It also displays the status of the push such as login, export, transfer, backup, import and so on. The status result message shows the type of data that is getting transferred. For a paused or failed target, the information on the current state of the job when it is paused, or failure reasons if any is displayed. This column also shows the progress of data transfer using a bar chart. For selected push additional configuration data (additional configuration data refers to configuration that is transferred only if it is modified or not available on the target) includes ESAP package, Pulse client package, VDI configurations, Terminal services, Host Checker files, Custom sign in pages and notifications, and Applet files. For complete configuration push additional data includes ESAP and Pulse client packages.
Post Push Action	Displays the options that the user can perform after the push such as roll back and delete backup. It also displays the post push actions such as rollback done, backup deleted, rollback failed, performing rollback, deleting back up and so on.
Resume	Select this option to resume a paused or a failed push.
Undo	Select this option to rollback to previous configuration that was backed up. Note that you can perform this operation only when the push is successful and Allow Rollback to Previous Configuration is selected. This option is available only if the backup is not deleted or undo is not done yet.
Abort	Select this option to cancel an entire push job or push to particular target within a job. An aborted push cannot be resumed.
Pause	Select this option to temporarily pause the push operation to a specified target.
Delete Backup	Select this option to delete the backup configuration on the specified target. Note that this option is available only when the users selects the Allow Rollback to Previous Configuration option during the push job.

Viewing Configuration Push History

Purpose	The source/target system saves and displays up to 5 push history results per target/source in the History tab. When the history table reaches 5 entries, the system removes the oldest result data when the next push configuration job is started.
Action	To view push configuration push history:

1.Select Maintenance > Push Config > History to display the history page.

The following figure shows the history page for Pulse Connect Secure.

2.Examine the history to verify success or learn the reasons the push job failed. The history page displays rollback history however the failure reason is not displayed. You can check the failure reason in the details page for each job. It also displays the timestamp history information of successful, failed push jobs, or if a configuration is undone.

3.Select the source name/target name and click Delete History to remove it from the History page.

Push Configuration History Page