Configuring the VCF Automation Frontend Plugin#

This guide covers the configuration options available for the VCF Automation frontend plugin.

Configuration#

Add the following to your app-config.yaml:

Single Instance:

vcfAutomation:
  name: my-vcf-01
  baseUrl: http://your-vcf-automation-service
  majorVersion: 9 # 8 or 9 supported
  orgName: my-org # Required for VCF 9
  organizationType: 'all-apps' # Options: 'vm-apps' (default) or 'all-apps' for VCF 9
  # Enable permission checks
  enablePermissions: true
  # Auth details
  authentication:
    username: 'your-username'
    password: 'your-password'
    domain: 'your-domain' # Required for Aria Automation 8.x

Multi Instance:

vcfAutomation:
  enablePermissions: true
  instances:
  - name: my-vcf-01
    baseUrl: 'https://your-vcf-automation-instance'
    majorVersion: 8
    authentication:
      username: 'your-username'
      password: 'your-password'
      domain: 'your-domain'
  - name: my-vcf-02
    baseUrl: 'https://your-vcf-02-automation-instance'
    majorVersion: 9
    orgName: my-org # Required for VCF 9
    organizationType: 'all-apps' # Options: 'vm-apps' (default) or 'all-apps' for VCF 9
    authentication:
      username: 'your-username'
      password: 'your-password'

Links#

Configuration File#

The plugin is configured through your app-config.yaml. Here's a comprehensive example:

vcfAutomation:
  enablePermissions: true
  instances:
  - name: my-vcf-01
    baseUrl: 'https://your-vcf-automation-instance'
    majorVersion: 8
    authentication:
      username: 'your-username'
      password: 'your-password'
      domain: 'your-domain'
  - name: my-vcf-02
    baseUrl: 'https://your-vcf-02-automation-instance'
    majorVersion: 9
    orgName: my-org # Required for VCF 9
    organizationType: 'all-apps' # Options: 'vm-apps' (default) or 'all-apps' for VCF 9
    authentication:
      username: 'your-username'
      password: 'your-password'

Best Practices#

Component Configuration
- Set appropriate refresh intervals
- Handle errors gracefully
- Use consistent styling
- Implement proper validation
Permission Management
- Define clear role boundaries
- Implement least privilege
- Document access levels
- Regular permission audits
Performance Optimization
- Cache API responses
- Minimize refresh frequency
- Implement error boundaries
- Monitor resource usage
Security
- Use secure tokens
- Implement HTTPS
- Validate input data
- Regular security audits

CCI Supervisor Resource YAML Editing#

The VCF Automation plugin provides powerful YAML editing capabilities for CCI Supervisor resources in VCF Automation 9.x with all-apps organization types. This feature allows users to directly modify Kubernetes resource manifests through an integrated Monaco Editor.

Prerequisites#

VCF Automation 9.x environment with all-apps organization type
CCI Supervisor resources (both standalone and deployment-managed resources are supported)
User must have the vcf-automation.supervisor-resource.edit permission

Permission Configuration#

To enable YAML editing functionality, ensure the vcf-automation.supervisor-resource.edit permission is properly configured in your permission system:

// In your permission policy
import { supervisorResourceEditPermission } from '@terasky/backstage-plugin-vcf-automation-common';

// Allow specific users/roles to edit CCI resources
const policy: PermissionPolicy = {
  handle: async (request, user) => {
    if (isPermission(request.permission, supervisorResourceEditPermission)) {
      // Add your authorization logic here
      return { result: AuthorizeResult.ALLOW };
    }
    // ... other permissions
  },
};

Features#

Location: CCI Supervisor Resource Overview page
Trigger: "Edit Resource Manifest" button (appears when user has permissions)
Interface: Full-screen modal with Monaco Editor
Features:
YAML syntax highlighting
Real-time validation with error feedback
Save confirmation dialog
Automatic page refresh after successful save

2. Resource Details Tab Editor#

Location: CCI Supervisor Resource Details page
Trigger: "Edit Manifest" tab (automatically loads manifest when selected)
Interface: Embedded tab with full-height Monaco Editor
Features:
Integrated directly into the details page
Auto-loading of resource manifest
Inline save/cancel actions
Real-time YAML validation

Supported Resource Types#

The YAML editor supports any Kubernetes resource type available in CCI Supervisor namespaces, including:

VirtualMachine: VMware vSphere virtual machines
TanzuKubernetesCluster: Tanzu Kubernetes clusters
ConfigMap: Configuration data
Secret: Sensitive data
Pod: Individual container instances
Service: Network services
Deployment: Application deployments
And any other valid Kubernetes resources

Usage Workflow#

Access: Navigate to a CCI Supervisor Resource entity page
Permission Check: Verify you have the required edit permission
Edit:
Modal: Click "Edit Resource Manifest" button in overview
Tab: Click "Edit Manifest" tab in details view
Modify: Edit the YAML using the Monaco Editor with syntax highlighting
Validate: Real-time validation ensures YAML syntax correctness
Save: Click "Save Changes" and confirm in the dialog
Apply: Changes are applied directly to the Kubernetes resource

Technical Details#

Editor: Monaco Editor (VS Code editor) with YAML language support
Validation: Real-time YAML parsing using js-yaml library
API: Uses VCF Automation's Kubernetes proxy endpoints
Security: Permission-based access control
Error Handling: Comprehensive error messages and user feedback

Limitations#

Requires VCF Automation 9.x with all-apps organization type
User must have appropriate VCF Automation permissions in addition to Backstage permissions
Resource must have valid apiVersion, kind, namespace, and name metadata
Resource context must contain valid namespace URN ID information

Troubleshooting#

Editor not appearing: Verify user has vcf-automation.supervisor-resource.edit permission

Save fails: Verify YAML syntax is valid and user has write permissions in VCF Automation

For installation instructions, refer to the Installation Guide.