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Modeling software deployment
Modeling software deployment in HCL Launch includes configuring components and component processes and adding those components to applications. Then, you use processes to deploy the components to environments.
Processes
Processes are automated tasks that run on agents.
Process steps: Reference
Application processes, component processes, and generic processes are created with the process editor.

Modeling software deployment
Modeling software deployment in HCL Launch includes configuring components and component processes and adding those components to applications. Then, you use processes to deploy the components to environments.
- Components
  Components represent deployable items along with user-defined processes that operate on them, usually by deploying them.
- Resources
  A resource is a logical deployment target that typically resolves to an agent and a user-defined construct that is based on the architectural model of HCL Launch.
- Applications
  Applications are responsible for bringing together all the components that must be deployed together.
- Application environments
  An environment is a user-defined collection of resources that hosts an application.
- Application templates
  With an application template, you can save and reuse a collection of resources, environments, processes, and tagged components or component templates to create a standardized application.
- Application processes
  Application processes, like component processes, are created with the process editor. You use application processes to deploy or to roll back components.
- Application blueprints
  An application blueprint maps application components to a resource template. When you create an environment or provision one from the cloud, you can use the blueprint as a model.
- Snapshots
  A snapshot is a collection of specific versions of components and processes. Typically, a snapshot represents a set of component versions that are known to work together. In most cases, snapshots include all of the components in an application.
- Creating manual application tasks
  A manual application task interrupts an application process until manual intervention is done. To create a manual task, add a manual step to an application process and select a notification template.
- Approval process
  You can add approval requirements to deployments. Deployments with approvals cannot be completed until all approvers respond. Approvers can respond to requests on the Work Items tab, or by email.
- Inventories
  You use different inventories to track installed components and properties in HCL Launch elements.
- Processes
  Processes are automated tasks that run on agents.
  - Process step types and logic
    When you design processes, you use different kinds of process steps and joining techniques. You can assign properties to process steps and use them to control step execution.
  - Component processes
    A component process is a series of user-defined steps that operate on a component's artifacts. Each component has at least one process that is defined for it and can have several.
  - Application processes
    You can use application processes to deploy or to roll back components.
  - Generic processes
    Generic processes are not specific to a particular component and can be used in any number of applications. They are like general purpose processes. You can use generic processes to download and install packages on the system or perform other configuration management related tasks such as configuring SSH or completing FTP tasks. With a generic process, for example, you can update Linux agents that were recently installed by using SSH to run as a service on a Linux computer. Linux agents cannot be updated in this way during a remote installation.
  - Editing processes
    In the process editor you organize the steps in a process, specify their properties, and connect them to each other.
  - Working on processes in safe edit mode
    Safe editing enables you to test component processes before making them available in normal environments. Make updates to your component process, test those updates safely, and then promote to a new version when you are ready.
  - Running processes
    The way you run a process is different for each type of process.
  - Adding process properties
    A process property provides a way to add user-supplied information to a process. A running process can prompt users for information and then incorporate it into the process. For example, if the process entails authenticating with another server, you can require that a user enter an ID and a password for the process to continue. Properties are defined in the Edit Property dialog box.
  - Copying process steps
    You can copy and paste process steps in all process types: component, application, approval, and generic.
  - Manage process step authentication
    Use token restrictions to manage process step authentication.
  - User impersonation for process steps
    HCL Launch can use user impersonation when an agent must run a command for which it might not otherwise have permission, or when a specific user must be employed for a process.
  - Process steps: Reference
    Application processes, component processes, and generic processes are created with the process editor.
    - Acquire lock
      This step acquires a lock on a specified string value. You can use locks to prevent concurrent modification of resources.
    - Add Inventory Status
      With this process step, the component resource that the process is running against will have an inventory entry created for it with the specified status.
    - Apply Configuration
      This step runs a component process of the type Operational (No Version Needed) or Configuration Deployment.
    - Apply to Live Configuration
      This step is a wrapper step for applying configuration updates to an application server.
    - Compare with Live Configuration
      This step is a wrapper step for comparing the configuration of an HCL Launch resource to a live application server.
    - Finish
      Ends processing. A process can have more than one Finish step. All processes must reach a Finish step to complete successfully.
    - For Each Agent
      This step creates a loop that iterates over the agents in the environment.
    - For Each Tag
      This step iterates over resource tags in application processes.
    - Install Component
      This step installs the selected component with one of the processes that are defined for the component.
    - Install Multiple Components
      Install multiple components that are based on component tags or resource tags.
    - Inventory Update
      This step updates the inventory and compliance for the environment.
    - Join
      The Join step merges a process so that only one step runs at a time. If any of the steps that connect to a Join step fail or do not run, the Join step causes the process to fail.
    - Manual Application Task (Utility)
      A manual task interrupts an application process until manual intervention is done. A task-interrupted process remains suspended until the targeted user or users respond. Typically, manual tasks are removed after the process is tested or automated.
    - Note
      The Note step adds a note to a process diagram.
    - Operational component processes
      Runs the specified operational (no version needed) component process.
    - Release lock
      This step releases a lock on a specified string value.
    - Remove Inventory Status
      With this process step, the component resource that the process is running against will have an inventory entry removed from it.
    - Rollback Component
      Use this process step to roll back a component version to the version in a snapshot or to the version that was deployed when the process began.
    - Rollback Multiple Components
      Use this step to roll back multiple component versions to versions in a snapshot or to versions that were deployed when the process began. The multiple components are based on component tags or resource tags.
    - Run Component Process
      You can run a component process as a part of a step.
    - Run Generic Process
      This step runs a generic process as a step in an application process.
    - Run Generic Process for Each Affected Resource
      Runs the specified generic process on each resource that is affected by the application process.
    - Run Operational Process for Multiple Components
      Runs the operational (no version needed) process for multiple components.
    - Run Process for Each Version
      Use this step to run the specified process once for each version of the specified component.
    - Set Status
      This step sets the ending status of the process. The step can specify that the process is completed or failed.
    - Switch
      Use this step to create branches in the process that are based on the value of a property.
    - Uninstall Component
      Use this step to uninstall the selected component.
    - Uninstall Multiple Components
      Use this step to uninstall multiple components that are based on component tags or resource tags.
    - Update from Live Configuration
      This step is a wrapper step for updating a resource with the configuration information from an application server.
- Statuses
  Create and apply statuses to track component inventory states or to track component versions in environments and resources.
- Properties
  Properties are variables that store information about many different elements, including components, environments, processes, and applications. You can also set global properties for the system.
- Tags
  A tag is a user-defined, shared, short label that you use to classify, view, and conduct operations on objects such as applications, components, agents, and resources.
- Webhooks
  Using the webhooks, you can send text-based responses to users in messaging platform such as MS Teams and Slack when a specific event occurs during deployment process.
- Secret Stores
  Allows HCL Launch to retrieve credentials of individual servers from the Vault and authenticates a plug-in step in the deployment process.

Process steps: Reference

Application processes, component processes, and generic processes are created with the process editor.

HCL Launch provides several common process steps. Otherwise, application processes are assembled from processes that are defined for their associated components. Application processes, like component processes, are created with the process editor.

The following process steps are provided by the server. For information about steps that are provided by plug-ins, see the documentation for the individual plug-in in the HCL site: https://hcl-software.com/plugins/