Add Tabs to the EAM Sample Solution

When you create a solution, you can add tabs to your solution to allow users to configure the solution and to access the functions of the solution in the vSphere Client.

You define the content of tabs as dynamic Web pages. For example, you can define tabs that allow you to perform the following kinds of actions.

■	Configure the solution.
■	Show events triggered by the solution events or vCenter Server.
■	Deploy predefined virtual machines or vApps of different types.
■	Monitor the solution application or the virtual machines that it deploys.
■	Uninstall the solution.

You create tabs by implementing the ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo data object in the program that manages the solution. You set properties in ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo to provide a label for the tabs and a URL to the dynamic Web pages that provide the content of the tabs. You create one ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo instance for each tab that you add to your solution. You pass that instance to ExtSolutionManagerInfo in an array.

How you define the content of the tabs depends on the function of the application that the solution adds to vCenter Server.

The EAM Sample Solution adds a Configuration portlet to the Summary page of the solution. With the EAM Sample Solution Configuration page, you can deploy ESX agents on the hosts that vCenter Server manages and to uninstall the solution. You find the implementation of the EAM Sample Solution Configuration page in eam_sample_solution_working_folder\src\com\vmware\eam\sample\solution\ui.

Elements of the EAM Sample Solution Configuration Page
File	Description
ConfigModel.java	Defines the actions of the EAM Sample Solution Configuration page by calling methods that Manager.java and AgentHandler.java define.
ConfigController.java	Constructs the Web page that appears for the EAM Sample Solution from the `eam_sample_solution_working_folder`\war\WEB-INF\jsp\config.jsp file.

The EAM Sample Solution implements ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo in the Manager.java class.

Prerequisites

■	Download the vSphere ESX Agent Manager SDK.
■	Verify that you have set up and started the EAM Sample Solution in an application server.
■	Verify that you have opened `eam_work_folder`\src\com\vmware\eam\sample\solution\Manager.java in an editor.
■	Examine the code of the ConfigController.java and ConfigModel.java classes and the config.jsp file to see how they expose the functions of the EAM Sample Solution Configuration page.

Procedure

private Extension createExtensionObject() { 
  Extension extension = new Extension();
  [...]
  ExtSolutionManagerInfo extSolutionManagerInfo = 
    new ExtSolutionManagerInfo();
  [...]
}
ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo extSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo = 
    new ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo();
extSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo.setLabel("Configuration");
extSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo.setUrl("/config.html");
extSolutionManagerInfo.getTab().add(extSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo);

You added solution-specific tabs that appear on the Summary page of the EAM Sample Solution.

What to do next

Set up health monitoring for the solution and the objects that it manages.

Previous topic: Set the Icon for a Type of Virtual Machine or vApp That an Extension Manages

Next topic: Set Up Health Monitoring for a Solution

1	Create an instance of ExtSolutionManagerInfo in the program that manages the solution. The following lines in the Manager.java class show how the EAM Sample Solution creates an instance of ExtSolutionManagerInfo. private Extension createExtensionObject() { Extension extension = new Extension(); [...] ExtSolutionManagerInfo extSolutionManagerInfo = new ExtSolutionManagerInfo(); [...] }
2	Create an instance of ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo to contain the name of the page and a link to the Web page that defines its contents. ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo extSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo = new ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo();
3	Call the ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo.setLabel() method to provide a name for the page. Manager.java names the EAM Sample Solution Configuration page. extSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo.setLabel("Configuration");
4	Call the ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo.setUrl() method to provide a URL to the Web page that defines the contents of the EAM Sample Solution Configuration page. Manager.java uses the config.html Web page to define the contents of the configuration page. extSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo.setUrl("/config.html");
5	Add the tab to the array of ExtSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo instances that define the tabs for the solution in the ExtSolutionManagerInfo object. extSolutionManagerInfo.getTab().add(extSolutionManagerInfoTabInfo);