Normal DDR Processing

Normal discovery data record (DDR) Processing describes the actions that take place when a new DDR file is generated by a discovery process. The action described in this flowchart takes place on a site server after a discovery process has generated a new DDR file and written that DDR file to a logon point or CAP.

Tracing Information

You can trace the activity described in this flowchart by studying the status messages for the server components listed in the table below. Or, you can enable the log files for these components. You can then study the log files and status messages associated with these components to trace the activity that is actually occurring on your SMS system and compare it to the activity described in the flowchart. For more information about viewing status messages and enabling logging, see “Status Messages Versus Logging” in Chapter 16, “Introducing the SMS 2.0 Flowcharts.”

Table 17.5 Status Message Components and Log Files for Discovery Data Manager: Normal DDR Processing

Troubleshooting Tips

If a site server is not discovering clients:

• Verify that the client belongs within the site boundaries by comparing the client’s IP subnet or IPX network number to the site boundaries. To view the site boundaries in the SMS Administrator console, navigate to <site code - site name> in the console tree.

  Systems Management Server   Site Database (site code - site name)      Site Hierarchy         site code - site name

  Right-click <site code - site name> and click Properties. Click the Boundaries tab to view or modify the site boundaries.

If discovery information is not being generated (no DDRs):

• Verify that you have initiated discovery in the SMS Administrator console.
• Verify that your discovery methods have been active long enough for discovery data to be generated. Some forms of discovery cannot occur more frequently than once per hour and might be set for daily, weekly, or even monthly updates. Other forms of discovery require clients to log on.
• Check the status messages for the discovery type you have initiated. For example, if you are running Network Discovery, check the Network Discovery Status Messages. Then, check the status messages for Discovery Data Manager.
• Verify that your SMS Service Account has the permissions required to copy and move the files.

If the Ddm.box on the site server is not receiving and processing DDRs:

• Check the logon point’s NTlgdscm.log file to see if DDRs are being copied correctly. Also check the status messages for Inbox Manager and Inbox Manager Assistant to see if the files are being copied correctly.
• Verify that Discovery Data Manager has access to the SQL Server computer:
  • Examine the Discovery Data Manager status messages or the Ddm.log file. This log file records any connectivity problems with the SQL Server computer. Also, determine from the log whether the DDR file was processed and whether information reported in the DDR file was compared to the site boundaries information in the SMS site database.
  • Verify that the SMS site database server services are running.
  • Verify that SMS can access the SMS site database.
  • Verify that the SMS site database, transaction log, and tempdb are not full.
  • Verify that there are at least 50 SQL Server user connections, plus five for each SMS Administrator console.
  • If the problem persists, check the SMS site database server error logs.

If DDM.box is receiving DDR files, but they are accumulating:

• Examine the status messages or Ddm.log to see if Discovery Data Manager is in the middle of processing changes to site boundaries or changes to the parent site or if it is sending inventory to a new parent site. These changes take priority over normal DDR processing; until these changes are processed, normal DDR processing is suspended. For more information about the effect of these flows on normal DDR processing, see the “Discovery Data Manager: Site Boundary Change” and “Discovery Data Manager: Parent Site Change” flowcharts.

If DDRs are not being replicated to parent or grandparent sites:

• Make sure that Replication Manager is receiving the DDRs.
• Verify that you have a properly configured sender and a properly configured address.

If Discovery Data Manager indicates that it has added information to the SMS site database, but you cannot view the discovery data in the SMS Administrator console:

• Verify that your logon account has the appropriate permissions in Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI; formerly called WBEM) and the appropriate class/instance rights for the SMS Provider. For more information about security rights, see Chapter 4, “Creating Your SMS Security Strategy,” in the SMS 2.0 Administrator’s Guide.
• If a DDR came from a secondary site, the primary site’s Discovery Data Manager will forward the DDR back to the secondary site, using Replication Manager. The file will be processed by the secondary site’s Discovery Data Manager, which writes the file to SMS\Inboxes\Ddm.box\Data.col\*.pdr. This process is logged in Ddm.log and Replmgr.log on the primary site server and in Ddm.log on the secondary site server. Study the status messages for Discovery Data Manager and Replication Manager to find possible errors. Or, examine the log files to verify that the DDR has been returned from the primary site to the secondary site.
• Verify that Discovery Data Manager has access to the SQL Server computer:
  • Verify that the SMS site database server services are running.
  • Verify that SMS can access the SMS site database.
  • Verify that the SMS site database, transaction log, and tempdb are not full.
  • Verify that there are at least 50 SQL Server user connections, plus five for each SMS Administrator console.
  • Enable SQL tracing in the registry to add verbose SQL information to the component log files.
  • If the problem persists, check the SMS site database server error logs.