Server Management Command Line Protocol Specification - DMTF

Server Management Command Line Protocol (SM CLP) Specification
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Introduction
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This section contains an overview of the Command Line Protocol (CLP). This includes the goals behind
creating the CLP and the specific problems that it attempts to resolve. In addition, this section lays the
groundwork for the sections that follow by detailing the background and assumptions of the CLP. This
includes the architecture assumed in the design of the CLP and the components within that architecture.
Problem Statement
The fundamental problem that is the impetus behind this specification is the growing need to rely on multivendor,
out-of-band hardware and software management solutions as core components of an
interoperable, heterogeneous, enterprise-wide management solution. By extending the DMTF
specifications to include a CIM-based command line protocol for managing systems and devices, the
DMTF comes closer to realizing its vision of enabling end-to-end, multi-vendor interoperability in
management systems.
Principal Goals
The principal goal of this specification is to define a light-weight, human-oriented command line protocol
that is also suitable for scripting environments. This includes a direct mapping to a subset of the CIM
Schema. The command line protocol specifies the syntax and semantics used to allow the manipulation
of the Managed Elements and Associations within servers, as collections or individually.
Solution
The solution proposed in this document is a command line protocol (CLP), which is transmitted and
received over a text message-based transport protocol. The CLP is defined as a character-based
message protocol and not as an interface, in a fashion similar to Simple Mail Transfer Protocol
(3RFC2821).
The CLP is a command/response protocol, which means that a text command message is transmitted
from the Client over the transport protocol to the Manageability Access Point (MAP). The MAP receives
the command and processes it. A text response message is then transmitted from the MAP back to the
Client.
The CLP is designed to work over existing character-oriented transports. The specification contains
mappings to Telnet and SSHv2, but any transport capable of carrying command/response message data
of the type specified herein may be suitable for use as a transport.
The CLP enables internationalization by providing a mechanism for the Client to indicate to the MAP the
language desired by the Client. Provided the MAP supports the requested language, output data will be
presented to the user with the appropriate translations. This version of the CLP does not support specific
internationalization of user account names and passwords because they can be in any specific language.
In addition, the CLP input (commands and syntax) is not translated because CLP syntax is itself its own
language.
The CLP allows for extensibility through four different mechanisms: verbs, options and option argument
terms, command target terms, and target property terms. The conventions contained herein allow for
implementers to extend the interface in a non-conflicting mechanism that allows for differentiation and
experimentation without encroaching on the standard CLP syntax and semantics.
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