An API Group and Sibling Rule calculates KPIs based on data received from other indicators, rather than from original sample data. The received data can come from the KPIs of child CIs, or from other KPIs or HIs associated with the same CI.
Note If you are creating a sibling rule, make sure that the KPI is calculated after its sibling KPIs, as defined by the KPI's Calculation Order field. For details, see KPI Definitions.
Group and Sibling Rule Methods and Fields
The Group and Sibling rule implements the Rules API Interface GroupAndSiblingCalculator, using the following guidelines:
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In this interface, the only method is calculateKPI. The method signature is:
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The calculateKPI method includes the parameters ci and kpi, which represent the current CI, and the KPI whose value the API rule calculates.
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The ci parameter type is CI, and is used as an accessor to KPIs of child CIs or sibling KPIs, or HIs on the CI.
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The kpi parameter type is KPI, and is used to set calculation results.
public void calculateKPI(CI ci, KPI kpi)
In the following illustration, the Calculated KPI is calculated based on the sibling or child KPIs, and it is represented by the kpi parameter.
The CI to which the Calculated KPI is assigned, is represented by the ci parameter, and it is an accessor to the other KPIs or HIs.
The Rules API classes are documented in Javadoc format in the OMi Rules API Reference. These files are located in the following folder:
<OMi_HOME_GW>/AppServer/webapps/site.war/amdocs/eng/API_docs/Rules_API/index.html
For detailed examples of Group and Sibling rules, see Examples - API Group and Sibling Rule.
API rules can be defined within the CI Customizations page or Rule Repository, or using a text file template, as described in Create rules with the Rules API.
Defining a Group and Sibling Rule in the CI Customizations page or Rule Repository
To define a Group and Sibling rule by using the CI Customizations page or within the Rule Repository, enter the calculateKPI method implementation in the KPI Calculation Script area.
The parameters ci and kpi of the calculateKPI method are available for use in this script.
For detailed instructions, see Define an API rule in the CI Customizations page or Define an API rule in the rule repository.
Accessing a Specific Child KPI in the CI Customizations Page
When creating a Group rule for a specific KPI in the CI Customizations page, to access a specific child KPI, the API includes a mechanism to simplify the code. When defining your KPI Calculation Script, you can enter the format "<CI name>"."<KPI name>".
For an example of this, see Example - Specific Child CI Group Rule in Examples - API Group and Sibling Rule.
Defining a Group and Sibling Rule Using a Text File
To define a Group and Sibling rule using a text file, use the DashboardGroupAndSiblingTemplate.groovy template as described in Create a text file-based API rule.
Within the text file, enter the calculateKPI method body.