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Overview

The node_admin.pl tool is the primary command-line interface for managing NMIS nodes. It provides comprehensive functionality for creating, updating, deleting, and exporting node configurations. Location: /usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl

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Global Options

All commands support these global options:
  • debug=<level> - Set debugging verbosity (0-9, or info/warn/error/fatal/verbose)
  • quiet=true|false - Suppress unnecessary output
  • skip_ha_warnings=true|false - Suppress warnings when server role is not Standalone
  • dir=<path> - Specify custom configuration directory

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Node Operations

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List Nodes

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=list
Lists all nodes in the system. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=list node=router1,router2
Lists specific nodes by name. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=list group=core wantstatus=true
Lists nodes in a group with active/collect status. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=list wantuuid=true wantgroup=true wantpoller=true
Lists nodes with UUID, group, and poller information. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=list format=json file=nodes.json
Exports node list to JSON format.

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Show Node Configuration

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=show node=router1
Displays complete configuration for a node. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=show uuid=<node-uuid> quoted=true
Shows configuration with quoted values for easy copying. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=show node=router1 interfaces=true
Displays node configuration with interface information. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=show node=router1 inventory=true
Shows all inventory data for the node. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=show node=router1 catchall=true
Displays only the catchall inventory data.

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Create Node

1

Create template file

First, generate a template:
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=mktemplate > newnode.json
2

Edit the template

Edit newnode.json with your node details:
{
  "name": "router1",
  "host": "192.168.1.1",
  "group": "core",
  "community": "public",
  "version": "snmpv2c",
  "port": "161",
  "collect": true,
  "ping": true,
  "model": "automatic"
}
3

Create the node

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=create file=newnode.json

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Update Node

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Update Single Property

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=set node=router1 entry.configuration.community=private
Updates the SNMP community string. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=set node=router1 entry.configuration.collect=false
Disables collection for a node.

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Update Multiple Properties

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=set node=router1 \
  entry.configuration.host=192.168.1.10 \
  entry.configuration.group=distribution

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Update Multiple Nodes

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=set group=core \
  entry.configuration.snmpTimeout=5000
Updates SNMP timeout for all nodes in the core group.

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Update from File

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=update file=updated-router1.json
Updates a node from a JSON file containing complete configuration.

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Unset Node Properties

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=unset node=router1 \
  entry.configuration.notes
Removes the notes property from node configuration.
You cannot unset critical properties like name or cluster_id.

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Rename Node

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=rename old=router1 new=core-router1
Renames a node while preserving all configuration and data.

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Delete Node

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=delete node=router1 confirm=YES
Deletes a node and its RRD files. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=delete node=router1,router2,router3 confirm=YES
Deletes multiple nodes. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=delete group=retired \
  deletedata=false confirm=YES
Deletes nodes in a group but keeps RRD data.
Deletion requires confirm=YES (uppercase) to prevent accidental deletions. This operation is irreversible.

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Import and Export

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Export Nodes

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Export Single Node

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=export node=router1 file=router1.json
Exports a node in NMIS9 JSON format.

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Export Multiple Nodes

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=export group=core file=core-nodes.json
Exports all nodes in a group.

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Export to NMIS8 Format

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=export format=nodes file=nodes.nmis
Exports in legacy NMIS8 Perl hash format. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=export format=nodes file=nodes.json
Exports in legacy NMIS8 JSON format.

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Export with IDs

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=export node=router1 \
  keep_ids=true file=router1-with-ids.json
Exports node including UUID and cluster_id (useful for migrations).

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Import Nodes

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Import NMIS9 Format

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=import file=nodes.json
Imports nodes from NMIS9 JSON format file.

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Bulk Import NMIS8 Format

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=import-bulk nodes=/path/to/nodes.json
Imports nodes from NMIS8 format. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=import-bulk nodes=/path/to/nodes.json \
  nmis9_format=true
Imports bulk nodes in NMIS9 format.

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Import Node Overrides

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=import-bulk nodeconf=/path/to/nodeconf/
Imports node override configurations from a directory of JSON files.

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Backup and Restore

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Dump Node Data

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=dump node=router1 \
  file=/backup/router1-dump.json
Creates a complete backup including configuration and recent operational data. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=dump uuid=<node-uuid> \
  file=/backup/node-dump.json everything=true
Creates a complete backup including all historical data, events, and RRD files.

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Restore Node Data

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=restore file=/backup/router1-dump.json
Restores a node from a backup. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=restore \
  file=/backup/node-dump.json localise_ids=true
Restores a node and rewrites cluster_id to match local installation.

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Advanced Operations

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Clean Node Events

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=clean-node-events node=router1
Removes all events associated with a specific node.

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Validate Node Inventory

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=validate-node-inventory \
  concept=interface dryrun=true
Validates inventory records for a specific concept without making changes. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=validate-node-inventory \
  make_historic=true
Validates all inventory and marks obsolete items as historic.

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Move NMIS8 RRD Files

/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=move-nmis8-rrd-files node=router1
Migrates RRD files from NMIS8 structure to NMIS9 structure. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=move-nmis8-rrd-files ALL \
  remove_old=true
Migrates all RRD files and removes old copies after verification.

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Scheduling Node Operations

Many operations support scheduling for deferred execution: 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=set node=router1 \
  entry.configuration.community=newcommunity \
  schedule=true time="now + 1 hour" priority=0.9
Schedules a configuration change for future execution. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=delete node=router1 \
  confirm=YES schedule=true time="2024-01-15T22:00:00"
Schedules a node deletion at a specific time.

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Remote Poller Operations

For distributed NMIS installations with remote pollers: 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=create file=newnode.json \
  server=poller1
Creates a node on a remote poller. 
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=set node=router1 \
  entry.configuration.group=remote server=poller1
Updates a node on a remote poller.

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Best Practices

  1. Always backup before bulk operations: Use act=export or act=dump before large-scale changes
  2. Use simulate mode: Test operations with dryrun=true or simulate=true when available
  3. Verify with show: Use act=show to verify changes after modifications
  4. Use UUIDs for scripts: UUIDs are more reliable than node names in automation
  5. Schedule risky operations: Use scheduling for operations during maintenance windows

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Troubleshooting

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Node Creation Fails

Check that all required fields are present in the JSON file:
  • name - unique node name
  • host - IP address or hostname
  • group - valid group name

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Import Fails with UUID Conflicts

If importing nodes from another system: 
# Strip UUIDs from export
/usr/local/nmis9/admin/node_admin.pl act=export group=all \
  keep_ids=false file=nodes-no-ids.json

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Permission Issues

Ensure files have correct ownership: 
/usr/local/nmis9/bin/nmis-cli act=fixperms

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See Also

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