Mgmt is a next gen config management tool that takes a fresh look at existing automation problems. Three of the main design features of the tool include: * Parallel execution * Event driven mechanism * Distributed architecture The tool has two main parts: the engine, and the language. This presentation will demo both and include many examples showing how monitoring is built-in to each resource, and how events can cause the system to react and fix a problem before your pager even goes off. Finally we’ll talk about some of the future designs we’re planning and make it easy for new users to get involved and help shape the project. A number of blog posts on the subject are available. https://ttboj.wordpress.com/?s=mgmtconfig Attendees are encouraged to read some before the talk if they want a preview!

1. 1 JAMES SHUBIN
Next generation
configuration mgmt:
Reactive Systems
James Shubin, a.k.a. @purpleidea
Principal Software Engineer, Red Hat
OSMC, Nuremberg, Germany, 22/Nov/2017

2. 2 JAMES SHUBIN
Next generation
configuration mgmt:
What is possible today ?
James Shubin, a.k.a. @purpleidea
Principal Software Engineer, Red Hat
OSMC, Nuremberg, Germany, 22/Nov/2017

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What is possible today ?

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Want to see a video of what I
expected Germany to be
like?
Willst du ein Video von dem
sehen, was ich von
Deutschland erwartet habe?

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Who am I ?
● Hacker
● Config Mgmt. Architect @ Red Hat
● Technical Blogger: The Technical Blog of James
https://ttboj.wordpress.com/
● Physiologist (Cardiology Specialization)
● DevOps believer

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Background

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? Don’t Re-invent the Wheel ?

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Don’t Re-invent the Wheel

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Is there an existing toolIs there an existing tool
that isthat is goodgood enough ?enough ?

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Engine Language

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Design triad

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Design triad
Parallel execution
Event driven
Distributed topology

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Design triad
Parallel execution
Event driven
Distributed topology

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Parallel execution: status quo

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Parallel execution: mgmt

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Parallel execution: demo

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Event driven: demo
● File: inotify / fanotify
● Svc: systemd events (dbus)
● Exec: kernel events
● Pkg: packagekit events
● Virt: libvirtd events

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What is this?

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MONITORING

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Distributed topology: status quo

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Distributed topology: orchestrator

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Distributed topology: mgmt?

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Distributed topology: mgmt

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Distributed topology: mgmt

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Distributed topology: mgmt

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Distributed topology: demo
● N+ nodes: h1, h2, h3…
● Each creates a random string to export
● Each collects all available strings
● Note how fast this converges…

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An ideal language allows us to express easily
what is useful for the programming task, and
at the same time makes it difficult to write
what leads to incomprehensible or incorrect
programs.
– Nico Habermann

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Language
Safe
Powerful
Reasonalizable (Reason-able)

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Language
Safe
◦ Declarative (immutable), Typed, Functional
◦ Written in a memory-safe language (golang)
Powerful
◦ Reactive
◦ Resource Primitives (send->recv)
Reasonalizable (Reason-able)
◦ Domain specific (DSL)
◦ Expressive (distributed systems)

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Reactive: demo
$y1 = datetime() + $ayear
# note the order of the assignment (year can come later in the code)
$ayear = 60 * 60 * 24 * 365 # is a year in seconds (31536000)
$tmpl {str: variant} = {"year" => $y1, "load" => $load, "vu" => $vu, }
$load = load()
$vu = vumeter("======", 10, 0.9) # symbol, multiplier, peak
$f = "Now + 1 year is: {{ .year }} seconds, aka: {{ .year }}nn
load average: {{ .load }}nn
vu: {{ .vu }}n”
file "/tmp/mgmt/datetime" {
content => template($f, $tmpl),
}

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History: demo
$dt = datetime() # this outputs a stream of values
$ix0 = $dt{0} # this is the most current value...
$ix1 = $dt{1}
$ix2 = $dt{2}
$ix3 = $dt{3} # we can look up an older value here!
file "/tmp/mgmt/history" {
content => ...,
}

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Hysteresis

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Interesting Properties

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Interesting Properties
The lang/engine separation means
that runtime-errors are virtually as
safe as compile-time errors!
(We aim to eliminate these entirely.)

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Interesting Properties
Code is actually a graph, so ordering
is actually resolved cleverly.
(if you write out of order code, you’re
insane)

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Interesting Properties
Variables are immutable, which helps
create safer programs.
(The functional aspects will also help
out here.)

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Interesting Properties
Hysteresis will help us model real-life
decision making and complex,
distributed systems.
Both sequence-based and time-based
hysteresis is possible.

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Interesting Properties
Reactive variables can help us model
local, real time systems, but also to
handle events in the distributed
system.
(Error scenarios too!)

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Future work

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How can you help?

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How can you help?
● Use it
● Test it
● Patch it
● Share it
● Document it
● Star it
● Blog it
● Tweet it
● Discuss it
● Hack it

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hack it

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mgmt
needs a
home

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Let's recap...

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Learn more
● The Technical Blog of James:
https://ttboj.wordpress.com/
● Mgmt:
https://github.com/purpleidea/mgmt/
● Engine presentation (OSDC):
https://youtube.com/watch?v=LkEtBVLfygE
● Technical articles and screencasts about this:
https://ttboj.wordpress.com/?s=mgmtconfig
● Contact me if you have any other questions:
purpleidea @ { irc, twitter, github, gmail, redhat.com }

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Feedback:
If you really liked this talk,
please take 5 seconds and go
tell Bernd !

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IRC:
#mgmtconfig on Freenode
Twitter:
@mgmtconfig & #mgmtconfig
Mailing list:
mgmtconfig-list@redhat.com

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Q & A ?

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Thank you & Happy Hacking !