Provisioning Pre-Configured AOS-CX Switches

Unlike factory default switches, locally managed switches and the switches with custom configuration require one touch provisioning. On AOS-CX switches, HPE Aruba Networking Central is enabled, by default, as their management platform, and therefore the switches connect to HPE Aruba Networking Central automatically.

To onboard a locally-managed or a pre-configured AOS-CX switch to HPE Aruba Networking Central, follow one of the following options:

Connect the AOS-CX switch directly to HPE Aruba Networking Central. HPE Aruba Networking recommends that you use this option if you want to preserve the current configuration running on the switch. For more information on this procedure, see the workflows described in this topic.
Reset the switch configuration to factory default and use ZTP Zero Touch Provisioning. ZTP is a device provisioning mechanism that allows automatic and quick provisioning of devices with a minimal or at times no manual intervention. to provision the switch. For information on provisioning factory default switches, see Provisioning Factory Default AOS-CX Switches.
HPE Aruba Networking Central supports provisioning AOS-CX switches using one of the following methods:
Pre-provisioning—In this workflow, a switch is added to the device inventory and assigned a group in HPE Aruba Networking Central before it connects to HPE Aruba Networking Central.
See Workflow 1—Pre-Provisioning an AOS-CX Switch.
Onboarding connected switches—In this workflow, HPE Aruba Networking Central onboards the switch that attempts to connect and then assigns a group.
See Workflow 2—Provisioning an AOS-CX Switch On-Demand.

The following figure illustrates provisioning procedure for a pre-configured switch.

Figure 1 Provisioning Workflow for Pre-Configured AOS-CX Switches

Workflow 1—Pre-Provisioning an AOS-CX Switch

The pre-provisioning workflow includes the following steps:

Step 1: Onboard the AOS-CX Switch to HPE Aruba Networking Central

To onboard AOS-CX switches to the device inventory in HPE Aruba Networking Central, complete the following steps:

Log in to HPE Aruba Networking Central
Add switches to HPE Aruba Networking Central—You can add a switch using the Devices option in the HPE GreenLake platform.
For more information, see the Devices section in the HPE GreenLake Edge to Cloud Platform User Guide.
Assign subscriptions—You can a assign subscription to a device using the HPE GreenLake portal.
For more information, see the Devices section in the HPE GreenLake Edge to Cloud Platform User Guide.

Step 2: Assign the AOS-CX Switch to a Group

AOS-CX switches can be provisioned in both UI and template groups. To preserve the switch configuration, you can either move it to a new template group or to a UI group. For more information about retaining switch configuration when moving a switch to a UI group, see Moving AOS-CX Switches Between Groups.

For more information on creating a switch group, see Creating Groups for Switches.

To assign a device to a group from the WebUI:

In the WebUI, set the filter to Global.
The dashboard context for the group is displayed.
Under Maintain, click Organization > Groups.
The Groups page is displayed.
From the devices table on the right, select the device that you want to assign to a new group.
Drag and drop the device to the group to which you want to assign the device.

Step 3: Provision the AOS-CX Switch to a Group

When the AOS-CX switch connects to HPE Aruba Networking Central, HPE Aruba Networking Central assigns it to the pre-assigned group. If no group is pre-assigned, then HPE Aruba Networking Central moves it to the unprovisioned group.

Figure 2 Switch Provisioning Steps Per Group Type

If the switch is assigned to a new UI group, you can modify the configuration of switches in a group using the UI menu options under the WebUI > Manage > Devices > Switches. For more information, see Configuring AOS-CX Switches in UI Groups.

You can also move switches to a UI group. When moving switches from an unprovisioned, template, or UI group to another UI group, the existing switch configuration can be retained by selecting the Retain CX-Switch Configuration check box on the Move Devices page. For more information, see Moving AOS-CX Switches Between Groups.

You can import the existing switch configuration to a new configuration template and apply this template to other devices in the group. To create a configuration template using the existing configuration on the switch:

In the WebUI, set the filter to a template group.
The dashboard context for the group is displayed.
Under Manage, click Devices > Switches.
Click the Config icon.
The tabs to configure switches using templates is displayed.
Click the Templates tab. The Templates page is displayed.
Click + to add a new template. The Add Template window is displayed.
In the Basic Info tab, enter a name for the template in the Template Name field.
In the Device Type drop-down, select Aruba CX.
Select the switch model and software version. You can specify any of the following combinations:
- ALL for both Model and Version—To apply the template to all switch models and all supported switch software versions.
- ALL for Model and a software version for Version—To apply the template to all switch models running the selected software version.
- ALL for Version and a switch model for Model—To apply the template to a switch model and all software versions supported by the selected switch model.
- A switch model and a software version—To apply the template to a specific switch model and the software version. The template created for a switch model and a software version takes precedence over the template that is created for all platforms and versions.
Select the manufacturing part number of the switch in the Part Number drop-down.
- The Part Number drop-down is displayed only if you select a switch model in the Model drop-down.
- If you select a specific switch model and part number, you can apply the template to a standalone switch and not to a stack.
- If you select All in the Model drop-down, or if you select a switch model and All in the Part Number drop-down, you can apply a template to both a standalone switch and stack.
Click Next. The Template tab is displayed.
Build a new template by adding the output of the show running-config from the switch CLI in the Template text box. Ensure that the template text adheres to the guidelines listed in AOS-CX Configuration Using Templates.
- You must manually create the template for the AOS-CX switch in a group, along with the password in plaintext format. You can use the output of the show running-config command to create the template. You can also add variables to use the same template for onboarding multiple AOS-CX switches. For more information on variables, see Variable Files.
- All switch templates must include a password command to set a password for the device. The template cannot be saved without adding a password command. If the configuration that is pushed from HPE Aruba Networking Central to the device does not contain a password command, the configuration push is aborted for the device and a log is added to the audit trail. For example, if you add the password command in a condition block and the condition evaluates to false, the configuration that is pushed will not contain the password command. For more information, see Managing Password in Configuration Templates.
- For AOS-CX switches, you must configure the password only in plaintext. Also, the format of password must be user admin group administrators password plaintext <string>.
- For AOS-CX switches, the password configured in the template must match the password configured on the switch. HPE Aruba Networking Central cannot override the password that is configured on the switch.
- In the AOS-CX template configuration, the pound sign (#) is used for adding comments. When using the banner motd code in the template configuration, use a delimiter such as at (@) symbol or any other special character, than using the pound sign (#). Using the pound sign (#) with the banner motd code will cause the code to be dropped when processing the template.
Click Save. After you apply the configuration template, switches reboot and reconnect to HPE Aruba Networking Central with the new configuration.

Step 4: Verify the Configuration Status

To verify the configuration status:

In the WebUI, set the filter to a template group.
The dashboard context for the group is displayed.
Under Manage, click Devices > Switches.
Click the Config icon.
The tabs to configure switches using templates is displayed.
- To verify the configuration status for the template group, click Configuration Audit. The Configuration Audit dashboard displays the number of devices with template and configuration synchronization errors.
- To view configuration errors for a specific device, select a switch from the filter bar. The Configuration Audit dashboard displays the number of template and configuration synchronization errors for the device.
To view template errors, click View Template Errors.
To view configuration synchronization errors, click View Details under Configuration Status.
To compare running configuration and pending changes, click View under Config Comparsion Tool.

Workflow 2—Provisioning an AOS-CX Switch On-Demand

To dynamically provision switches on-demand, complete the following steps:

Step 1: Add the AOS-CX Switch to HPE Aruba Networking Central

Add the switch to the HPE Aruba Networking Central device inventory.

For more information, see the Devices section in the HPE GreenLake Edge to Cloud Platform User Guide.

Step 2 Assign a Subscription to the AOS-CX Switch

To allow HPE Aruba Networking Central to manage the switch, ensure that a valid subscription is assigned to the switch.

For more information, see the Devices section in the HPE GreenLake Edge to Cloud Platform User Guide.

Step 3: Provision the AOS-CX Switch to a Group

If the switch has a valid subscription assigned, HPE Aruba Networking Central marks the switch as unprovisioned. To preserve the switch configuration, you can either move it to a new template group or to a UI group. For more information about retaining switch configuration when moving a switch to a UI group, see Moving AOS-CX Switches Between Groups.

To move the device to a UI group

In the WebUI, set the filter to Global.
The dashboard context for the group is displayed.
Under Maintain, click Organization > Groups.
The Groups page is displayed.
Select the device.
Click Import Configuration to New Group. The Import configuration window is displayed.
Enter a name for the group.
Configure a password for the group.
Click Import configuration. HPE Aruba Networking Central imports the switch configuration to the new group.

You can also modify the configuration of switches in a group using the UI menu options under the WebUI > Manage > Devices > Switches. For more information, see Configuring AOS-CX Switches in UI Groups.

To move the device to a template group

Create a template group.
In the WebUI, set the filter to Global.
The dashboard context for the group is displayed.
Under Maintain, click Organization > Groups.
The Groups page is displayed.
Select the AOS-CX switch.
Drag and drop the switch to the new template group that you just created. HPE Aruba Networking Central adds the switch to the new template group.
To build a new configuration template:
1. In the WebUI, set the filter to a template group.
  The dashboard context for the group is displayed.
2. Under Manage, click Devices > Switches.
3. Click the Config icon.
  The tabs to configure switches using templates is displayed.
4. Click the Templates tab. The Templates page is displayed.
5. Click + to add a new template. The Add Template window is displayed.
6. In the Basic Info tab, enter a name for the template in the Template Name field.
7. In the Device Type drop-down, select Aruba CX.
8. Select the switch model and the software version to which you want to apply the new template. You can specify any of the following combinations:
  - ALL for both Model and Version—To apply the template to all switch models and all supported switch software versions.
  - ALL for Model and a software version for Version—To apply the template to all switch models running the selected software version.
  - ALL for Version and a switch model for Model—To apply the template to a switch model and all software versions supported by the selected switch model.
  - A switch model and a software version—To apply the template to a specific switch model and the software version. The template created for a switch model and a software version takes precedence over the template that is created for all platforms and versions.
  - A switch model and a software version—To apply the template to a specific switch model and the software version. The template created for a switch model and a software version takes precedence over the template that is created for all platforms and versions.
9. Select the manufacturing part number of the switch in the Part Number drop-down.
  - The Part Number drop-down is displayed only if you select a switch model in the Model drop-down.
  - If you select a specific switch model and part number, you can apply the template to a standalone switch and not to a stack.
  - If you select All in the Model drop-down, or if you select a switch model and All in the Part Number drop-down, you can apply a template to both a standalone switch and stack.
10. Click Next. The Template tab is displayed.
11. Build a new template by adding the output of the show running-config from the switch CLI in the Template text box. Ensure that the template text adheres to the guidelines listed in the AOS-CX Configuration Using Templates.
  - You must manually create the template for the AOS-CX switch in a group, along with the password in plaintext format. You can use the output of the show running-config command to create the template. You can also add variables to use the same template for onboarding multiple AOS-CX switches. For more information on variables, see Variable Files.
  - All switch templates must include a password command to set a password for the device. The template cannot be saved without adding a password command. If the configuration that is pushed from HPE Aruba Networking Central to the device does not contain a password command, the configuration push is aborted for the device and a log is added to the audit trail. For example, if you add the password command in a condition block and the condition evaluates to false, the configuration that is pushed will not contain the password command. For more information, see Managing Password in Configuration Templates.
  - For AOS-CX switches, you must configure the password only in plaintext. Also, the format of password must be user admin group administrators password plaintext <string>.
  - For AOS-CX switches, the password configured in the template must match the password configured on the switch. HPE Aruba Networking Central cannot override the password that is configured on the switch.
  - In the AOS-CX template configuration, the pound sign (#) is used for adding comments. When using the banner motd code in the template configuration, use a delimiter such as at (@) symbol or any other special character, than using the pound sign (#). Using the pound sign (#) with the banner motd code will cause the code to be dropped when processing the template.
12. Click Save. After you apply the configuration template, switches reboot and reconnect to HPE Aruba Networking Central with the new configuration.

Step 4: Verify the Configuration Status

To verify the configuration status:

In the WebUI, set the filter to a template group.
The dashboard context for the group is displayed.
Under Manage, click Devices > Switches.
Click the Config icon.
The tabs to configure switches using templates is displayed.
- To verify the configuration status for the template group, click Configuration Audit. The Configuration Audit dashboard displays the number of devices with template and configuration synchronization errors.
- To view configuration errors for a specific device, select a switch from the filter bar. The Configuration Audit dashboard displays the number of template and configuration synchronization errors for the device.
To view template errors, click View Template Errors.
To view configuration synchronization errors, click View Details under Configuration Status.
To compare running configuration and pending changes, click View under Config Comparsion Tool.