Groups for Device Configuration and Management

A group in HPE Aruba Networking Central is the primary configuration element that functions as a container for device management, monitoring, and maintenance. Groups enable administrators to manage devices efficiently by using either a UI-based configuration workflow or a CLI-based configuration template.

Groups provide the following functions and benefits:

• Ability to provision different types of devices in a group. For example, a group can consist of Instant APs, Gateways, and Switches.
• Ability to create a configuration base and add devices as necessary. When you assign a new device to a group, it inherits the configuration that is currently applied to the group.
• Ability to create a clone of an existing group. If you want to build a new group based on an existing group, you can create a clone of the group and customize it as per your network requirements.

The following figure illustrates a generic group deployment scenario in HPE Aruba Networking Central:

Figure 1  Group Deployment

Group Operations

The following list shows the most common tasks performed at a group level:

• Configuration— Add, modify, or delete configuration parameters for devices in a group
• User Management—Control user access to device groups and group operations based on the type of user role
• Device Status and Health Monitoring—View device health and performance for devices in a specific group.
• Report Generation—Run reports per group.
• Alerts and Notifications—View and configure notification settings per group.
• Firmware Upgrades—Enforce firmware compliance across all devices in a group.

Group Configuration Modes

HPE Aruba Networking Central allows network administrators to manage device configuration using either UI workflows or configuration templates:

• UI-based configuration method—HPE Aruba Networking Central provides a set of UI menu options for device groups that use UI-based workflows. You can use these UI menu options to configure devices in a group.
• Template-based configuration method—HPE Aruba Networking Central allows you to manage devices using configuration templates for device groups that use a template-based workflow. A device configuration template includes a set of CLI commands and variable definitions that can be applied to all other devices deployed in a group.

When you add Instant APs, Gateways, and switches to a group, HPE Aruba Networking Central groups these devices based on the configuration method you chose for the device type and displays relevant workflows when you try to access the respective configuration menu.

For information, see Group Persona.

Default Groups and Unprovisioned Devices

The default group is a system-defined group to which HPE Aruba Networking Central assigns all new devices with the factory default configuration. When a new device with the factory default configuration connects to HPE Aruba Networking Central, it automatically gets added to the default group.

If a device has a customized configuration and connects to HPE Aruba Networking Central, HPE Aruba Networking Central marks the device as Unprovisioned. If you want to preserve the device configuration, you can create a new group and assign this device to the newly created group. If you want to overwrite the configuration, you can move the unprovisioned device to an existing group.

Best Practices and Recommendations

Use the following best practices and recommendations for deploying devices in groups:

• Determine the configuration method (UI or template-based) to be used based on your deployment, configuration, and device management requirements.
• If there are multiple sites with similar characteristics—for example, with the same device management and configuration requirements—assign the devices deployed in these sites to a single group.
• Apply device-level or cluster-level configuration changes if necessary.
• Use groups cloning feature if you need to create a group with an existing group configuration settings.
• If the user access to a particular site must be restricted, create separate groups for each site.