Red Hat Summit Red Hat SummitSupportConsoleDevelopersStart a trialContact

Client Configuration Guide

Red Hat Satellite 5.8

Configuring, registering, and updating your Red Hat Enterprise Linux clients with Red Hat Satellite

Red Hat Satellite Documentation Team

Abstract

This guide covers how to properly configure Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems to register with and download updates from Red Hat Satellite. It covers how to register systems, how to deploy the latest packages, and other topics related to server and client synchronization. For further information, see the Red Hat Satellite Getting Started Guide and the Red Hat Satellite Installation Guide.

Chapter 1. Introduction
Copy link

This guide is designed to help users of Red Hat Satellite and Red Hat Satellite Proxy to configure their client systems.
By default, all Red Hat Network client applications are configured to communicate with central Red Hat Network servers. When clients connect to a Red Hat Satellite or Red Hat Satellite Proxy instead, the default settings change. This document is intended to assist by offering mass reconfiguration steps which will help large enterprise environments, containing hundreds or thousands of systems, address the default setting changes.
Due to the complexity of this undertaking, customers can use a pre-populated script that automates many of the tasks necessary to access their Satellite or Satellite Proxy server; see the Getting Started Guide for details. Red Hat believes that understanding the implications of these changes is helpful and therefore describes the manual steps for reconfiguration in the opening chapters. Use your best judgement in determining the ideal solution for your organization.
Although many of the commands provided within this guide can be applied as they appear, it is impossible to predict all potential network configurations adopted by customers. Therefore, Red Hat encourages you to use these commands as references that must take into account your organization's individual settings.

Chapter 2. Configuring Client Applications
Copy link

In order to use most enterprise-class features of Red Hat Network, such as registering with Red Hat Satellite, configuration of the latest client applications is required. Obtaining these applications before the client has registered with Red Hat Network can be difficult. This paradox is especially problematic for customers migrating large numbers of older systems to Red Hat Network. This chapter identifies techniques to resolve this dilemma.

Important

Red Hat strongly recommends that clients connected to a Red Hat Proxy Server or Red Hat Satellite Server be running the latest update of Red Hat Enterprise Linux to ensure proper connectivity.
Additionally, if client firewalls are configured, ports 80 and 443 should be open for proper functionality with Red Hat Network.
Not every customer must connect securely to a Red Hat Satellite or Red Hat Proxy within their organization, nor build and deploy a GPG key for custom packages, but every customer who uses these products must reconfigure the following:
  • Red Hat Update Agent - This is the update mechanism for Red Hat channels. Use of the Update Agent differs for certain operating systems:
    • On Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5, 6, and 7 - As a yum plugin (yum-rhn-plugin)
    • On Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 and 4 - As a standalone application (up2date)
  • Red Hat Network Registration Client (rhn_register) - This is the mechanism to register clients. By default, rhn_register registers to the main Red Hat Network servers. You need to reconfigure client systems to register to Red Hat Satellite or Red Hat Proxy.

Important

By default, the yum command on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5, 6, and 7 uses SSL for communication with remote repositories. Consequently, you should ensure that firewalls allow connections over port 443.
To bypass SSL, change the value of serverURL from https to http in the /etc/sysconfig/rhn/up2date file. Similarly, to use Red Hat Network's Monitoring feature and probes requiring the Red Hat Network Monitoring Daemon, client systems must allow connections on port 4545 (or port 22, if it is using sshd instead).
The latest versions of Red Hat Update Agent can be configured to accommodate several Red Hat Satellite servers, which provides failover protection in case the primary server is inaccessible. See Section 2.4, “Implementing Server Failover” for instructions on enabling this feature.
The following sections describe different methods of configuring the client systems to access your Red Hat Satellite or Proxy. See the Red Hat Satellite Getting Started Guide for information about scripting configuration commands.
The following procedure describes how to use the rhn_register command to register a system with Red Hat Satellite. Ensure you replace the example host names and domain names with those that apply to your configuration.

Procedure 2.1. To Use rhn_register to Register a System with Red Hat Satellite:

  1. Change into the /usr/share/rhn/ directory and download the SSL certificate to the client: 
    # cd /usr/share/rhn/
# wget http://satellite.example.com/pub/RHN-ORG-TRUSTED-SSL-CERT
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
  2. Edit the /etc/sysconfig/rhn/up2date file and ensure that it contains the following entries: 
    serverURL=https://satellite.example.com/XMLRPC
noSSLServerURL=http://satellite.example.com/XMLRPC
sslCACert=/usr/share/rhn/RHN-ORG-TRUSTED-SSL-CERT
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
  3. Use the rhn_register command to register the machine: 
    # rhn_register
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
Red Hat recommends using activation keys for registering and configuring client systems that access Red Hat Proxy or Red Hat Satellite. You can use activation keys to register, entitle, and subscribe multiple systems in a single operation. See the relevant section in the Red Hat Satellite Getting Started Guide for more information about activation keys.

Procedure 2.2. To Use Activation Keys to Register a System with Red Hat Satellite:

  1. Generate an activation key. See "Using Activation Keys" in the Red Hat Satellite Getting Started Guide.)
  2. Import custom GPG keys.
  3. Download and install the SSL Certificate RPM from the /pub/ directory of the Red Hat Proxy or Red Hat Satellite. For example (update the URL to suit your environment): 
    # rpm -Uvh http://satellite.example.com/pub/rhn-org-trusted-ssl-cert-1.0-1.noarch.rpm
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
  4. Register the system with the Red Hat Proxy or Red Hat Satellite: 
    # rhnreg_ks --activationkey mykey --serverUrl https://satellite.example.com/XMLRPC --sslCACert=/usr/share/rhn/RHN-ORG-TRUSTED-SSL-CERT
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
Alternatively, use the bootstrap script (bootstrap.sh) that Satellite generates. The bootstrap script, available for both Red Hat Satellite Server and Red Hat Proxy Server, is such a script. Script generation is discussed more in detail in 4.1.1. Using Red Hat Network Bootstrap to Register a System of the Getting Started Guide.
To obtain the bootstrap script, run the following command: 
wget http://satellite.example.com/pub/bootstrap/bootstrap.sh
Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap

Important

The bootstrap script requires some manual editing after its generation on the Satellite server. An initial running of an unedited bootstrap script displays a message regarding manual edits required. Follow these instructions and edit the bootstrap script on the Satellite server prior to downloading the script on the client.

2.3. Updating the Configuration Files Manually
Copy link

As an alternative to the GUI interface described in the previous section, users may also reconfigure the Red Hat Update Agent by editing the application's configuration file.
To configure the Update Agent on client systems that connect to Red Hat Proxy or Satellite, edit the values of the serverURL and noSSLServerURL settings in the /etc/sysconfig/rhn/up2date configuration file (as root). Replace the default Red Hat Network URL with the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of the Proxy or Satellite. For example: 
serverURL[comment]=Remote server URL
serverURL=https://your_primary.your_domain.com/XMLRPC

noSSLServerURL[comment]=Remote server URL without SSL
noSSLServerURL=http://your_primary.your_domain.com/XMLRPC
Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap

Warning

The httpProxy setting in /etc/sysconfig/rhn/up2date does not refer to the Red Hat Proxy. It is used to configure an optional HTTP proxy for the client. With a Red Hat Proxy in place, the httpProxy setting must be blank (not set to any value).

2.4. Implementing Server Failover
Copy link

Procedure 2.3. To Implement Server Failover:

  1. Ensure that you are running Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5, 6, or 7. For Red Hat Enterprise Linux 3 or 4, use the latest version of up2date.
  2. Manually add the secondary servers to the serverURL and noSSLServerURL settings in the /etc/sysconfig/rhn/up2date configuration file (as root).
  3. Add the fully qualified domain names (FQDN) of Red Hat Proxy or Red Hat Satellite immediately after the primary server, separated by a semicolon (;). Your client will attempt to connect to these servers in the order provided here. Include as many servers as necessary. For example: 
    serverURL[comment]=Remote server URL
serverURL=https://satellite.example.com/XMLRPC;
https://your_secondary.your_domain.com/XMLRPC;

noSSLServerURL[comment]=Remote server URL without SSL
noSSLServerURL=http://satellite.example.com/XMLRPC;
http://your_secondary.your_domain.com/XMLRPC;
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap

2.5. Enabling Staging Content
Copy link

Staging content is a feature that stages package or errata deployment on the client system before a scheduled installation. Within the 24 hours before scheduled deployment, the client pre-downloads the RPM content onto the local disk of the system. Then when executing the scheduled action, the specific packages and errata are already cached on client. This results in:
  • A faster installation than without staging content.
  • The ability to spread out client requests to the Satellite server.
  • Less time needed for the installation and upgrade of client packages.
Prerequisite

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.6 or later, or Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.1 or later, is required on the client.

This feature is disabled by default on the Satellite. The client default configuration file is enabled. To use staging content you have to enable it on both client systems and within the Satellite server for each Organization using it.
To enable staging content on the Satellite server, navigate to Admin → Organization → Your Organization → Configuration and select the Enable Staging Contents option.
To enable staging content on a client, open the file /etc/sysconfig/rhn/up2date in your text editor. Make the file includes the following lines: 
stagingContent[comment]=Retrieve content of future actions in advance
stagingContent=1

...

stagingContentWindow[comment]=How much forward we should look for future actions. In hours
stagingContentWindow=24
Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
Without these entries, staging content within on the client defaults to disabled and window of time would be 24 hours in advance: 
stagingContent=0
stagingContentWindow=24
Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap

Chapter 3. SSL Infrastructure
Copy link

For Red Hat Satellite customers, security concerns are of the utmost importance. One of the strengths of Red Hat Satellite is its ability to process every single request using the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol. To maintain this level of security, customers installing Red Hat Satellite within their infrastructures must generate custom SSL keys and certificates.
Manual creation and deployment of SSL keys and certificates can be quite involved. Both the Red Hat Proxy Server and the Red Hat Satellite Server allow users to build their own SSL keys and certificates based on their own private Certificate Authority (CA) during installation. In addition, a separate command line utility, the Red Hat Satellite SSL Maintenance Tool, exists for this purpose. Even so, these keys and certificates must then be deployed to all systems within the managed infrastructure. In many cases, deployment of these SSL keys and certificates is automated. This chapter describes efficient methods for conducting all of these tasks.

Note

This chapter does not explain SSL in depth. The Red Hat Satellite SSL Maintenance Tool was designed to hide much of the complexity involved in setting up and maintaining the public-key infrastructure (PKI). For more information, see the relevant sections of the Red Hat Enterprise Linux Deployment Guide.

3.1. A Brief Introduction to SSL
Copy link

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) is a protocol that enables client-server applications to pass information securely. SSL uses a system of public and private key pairs to encrypt communication passed between clients and servers. Public certificates can be left accessible, while private keys must be secured. It is the mathematical relationship (a digital signature) between a private key and its paired public certificate that makes this system work. Through this relationship, a connection of trust is established.

Note

SSL private keys and public certificates are discussed throughout this document. Both can be referred to as keys, one public and one private. However, when discussing SSL, it is the convention to refer to the public half of an SSL key pair (or key set) as the SSL public certificate.
An organization's SSL infrastructure is generally made up of the following SSL keys and certificates:
  • Certificate Authority (CA) SSL private key and public certificate: only one set per organization generally generated. The public certificate is digitally signed by its private key. The public certificate is distributed to every system.
  • Web server SSL private key and public certificate: one set per application server. The public certificate is digitally signed by both its private key and the CA SSL private key. It is often referred to as a Web server's key set; this is because there is an intermediary SSL certificate request that is generated. The details of what this is used for are not important to this discussion. All three are deployed to a Red Hat Satellite Server.
The following is a scenario to help visualize the concept: An organization with one Red Hat Satellite Server and five Red Hat Proxy Servers will need to generate one CA SSL key pair and six Web server SSL key sets. A CA SSL public certificate is distributed to all systems and used by all clients to establish a connection to their respective upstream servers. Each server has its own SSL key set that is specifically tied to that server's host name and generated using its own SSL private key and the CA SSL private key in combination. This establishes a digitally verifiable association between the Web server's SSL public certificate and the CA SSL key pair and server's private key. The Web server's key set cannot be shared with other web servers.

Important

The most critical portion of this system is the CA SSL key pair. From that private key and public certificate an administrator can regenerate any Web server's SSL key set. This CA SSL key pair must be secured. It is highly recommended that once the entire Red Hat Satellite infrastructure of servers is set up and running, archive the SSL build directory generated by this tool and/or the installers onto separate media, write down the CA password, and secure the media and password in a safe place.

3.2. The Red Hat Satellite SSL Maintenance Tool
Copy link

Red Hat Satellite provides a command line tool to ease the management of the organization's secure infrastructure: the Red Hat Satellite SSL Tool, commonly known by its command rhn-ssl-tool. This tool is available as part of the spacewalk-certs-tools package. This package can be found within the software channels for the latest Red Hat Proxy Server and Red Hat Satellite Server (as well as the Red Hat Satellite Server ISO). The Red Hat Satellite SSL Tool enables organizations to generate their own Certificate Authority SSL key pair, as well as Web server SSL key sets (sometimes called key pairs).
This tool is only a build tool. It generates all of the SSL keys and certificates that are required. It also packages the files in RPM format for quick distribution and installation on all client machines. It does not deploy them. That is left to the administrator, or in many cases, automated by the Red Hat Satellite Server.

Note

The spacewalk-certs-tools, which contains rhn-ssl-tool, can be installed and run on any current Red Hat Enterprise Linux system with minimal requirements. This is offered as a convenience for administrators who want to manage their SSL infrastructure from their workstation or another system other than their Satellite or Proxy servers.
The Red Hat Satellite SSL Tool is required in the following situations:
  • When updating the Certificate Authority (CA) public certificate.
  • When installing a Red Hat Proxy Server 3.6 or later that connects to the central Red Hat Satellite Servers as its top-level service. The hosted service, for security reasons, cannot be a repository for the CA SSL key and certificate, which is private to the organization.
  • When reconfiguring the Satellite or Proxy infrastructure to use SSL where it previously did not.
  • When adding multiple Red Hat Satellite Servers to the Red Hat Satellite infrastructure. Consult with a Red Hat representative for instructions regarding this.
The Red Hat Satellite SSL Tool is not required in the following situations:
  • During installation of a Red Hat Satellite Server. All SSL settings are configured during the installation process. The SSL keys and certificate are built and deployed automatically.
  • During installation of a Red Hat Proxy Server 3.6 or later if connected to a Red Hat Satellite Server 3.6 or later as its top-level service. The Red Hat Satellite Server contains all of the SSL information needed to configure, build and deploy the Red Hat Proxy Server's SSL keys and certificates.
The installation procedures for both the Red Hat Satellite Server and the Red Hat Proxy Server ensure the CA SSL public certificate is deployed to the /pub directory of each server. This public certificate is used by the client systems to connect to the Red Hat Satellite Server. See Section 3.3, “Deploying the CA SSL Public Certificate to Clients” for more information.
In summary, if the organization's Satellite or Proxy infrastructure deploys the latest version of Red Hat Satellite Server as its top-level service, there should be little need to use the Red Hat Satellite SSL Tool.

3.2.1. Generating SSL Certificates
Copy link

The primary benefits of using the Red Hat Satellite SSL Maintenance Tool are security, flexibility, and portability. Security is achieved through the creation of distinct Web server SSL keys and certificates for each Red Hat Satellite server, all signed by a single Certificate Authority SSL key pair created by the organization. Flexibility is supplied by the tool's ability to work on any machine that has the spacewalk-certs-tools package installed. Portability exists in a build structure that can be stored anywhere for safe keeping and then installed whenever the need arises.
If the organization infrastructure's top-level Server is the most current Red Hat Satellite Server, the most that may be required is to restore the ssl-build tree from an archive to the /root directory and utilize the configuration tools provided within the Red Hat Satellite Server's website.
To make the best use of the Red Hat Satellite SSL Maintenance Tool, complete the following high-level tasks in the following order. See the remaining sections for the required details:
  1. Install the spacewalk-certs-tools package on a system within the organization, perhaps but not necessarily the Red Hat Satellite Server or Red Hat Proxy Server.
  2. Create a single Certificate Authority SSL key pair for the organization and install the resulting RPM or public certificate on all client systems. See Section 3.2.3, “Generating the Certificate Authority SSL Key Pair” for more information.
  3. Create a Web server SSL key set for each of the Proxy and Satellite servers to be deployed and install the resulting RPM files on the Red Hat Satellite servers.
  4. Restart the httpd service: 
    # service httpd restart
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
  5. Back up the SSL build tree - consisting of the primary build directory and all subdirectories and files - to removable media, such as a CD or DVD. (Disk space requirements are insignificant.)
  6. Verify and then store that archive in a safe location, such as the one described for backups in the Additional Requirements sections of either the Proxy or Satellite installation guide.
  7. Record and secure the CA password for future use.
  8. Delete the build tree from the build system for security purposes, but only after the entire Satellite infrastructure is in place and configured.

    Note

    When additional Web server SSL key sets are needed, restore the build tree on a system running the Red Hat Satellite SSL Maintenance Tool and repeat steps 3 through 7.
The Red Hat Satellite SSL Maintenance Tool offers numerous command line options for generating Certificate Authority SSL key pair and managing your server SSL certificates and keys. The following command-line help options are available:
  • rhn-ssl-tool --help: for general help.
  • rhn-ssl-tool --gen-ca --help: for Certificate Authority help.
  • rhn-ssl-tool --gen-server --help: for Web server help.
See the manual page (man rhn-ssl-tool) for more information.
Before creating the SSL key set required by the Web server, generate a Certificate Authority (CA) SSL key pair. A CA SSL public certificate is distributed to client systems of the Satellite or Proxy. The Red Hat Satellite SSL Maintenance Tool allows you to generate a CA SSL key pair if needed and reuse it for all subsequent Red Hat Satellite server deployments.
The build process automatically creates the key pair and public RPM for distribution to clients. All CA components are created in the build directory specified at the command line, typically /root/ssl-build (or /etc/sysconfig/rhn/ssl for older Satellite and Proxy servers). To generate a CA SSL key pair, run the following command.

Important

Replace the example values with those appropriate for your organization. 
# rhn-ssl-tool --gen-ca \
  --password=MY_CA_PASSWORD \
  --dir="/root/ssl-build" \
  --set-state="North Carolina" \
  --set-city="Raleigh" \
  --set-org="Example Inc." \
  --set-org-unit="SSL CA Unit"
Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
This command generates the following relevant files in the specified build directory:
  • RHN-ORG-PRIVATE-SSL-KEY: the CA SSL private key.
  • RHN-ORG-TRUSTED-SSL-CERT: the CA SSL public certificate.
  • rhn-org-trusted-ssl-cert-VER-REL.noarch.rpm: the RPM prepared for distribution to client systems.
    This file contains the CA SSL public certificate (above) and installs it as /usr/share/rhn/RHN-ORG-TRUSTED-SSL-CERT
  • rhn-ca-openssl.cnf: the SSL CA configuration file.
  • latest.txt: lists the latest versions of the relevant files.
When this process is complete, distribute the RPM file to the client systems. See Section 3.3, “Deploying the CA SSL Public Certificate to Clients” for more information.

3.2.4. Generating Web Server SSL Key Sets
Copy link

At this point, a CA SSL key pair should already be generated. However there is a likelihood of generating web server SSL key sets more frequently, especially if more than one Proxy or Satellite is deployed. A distinct set of SSL keys and certificates must be generated and installed for every distinct Satellite or Proxy server host name. The value for --set-hostname is therefore different for each server.
The server certificate build process works in a similar fashion to CA SSL key pair generation, with one exception: All server components are saved in subdirectories of the build directory. These subdirectories reflect the build system's machine name, such as /root/ssl-build/MACHINE_NAME. To generate a server certificate, run the following command.

Important

Replace the example values with those appropriate for your organization.
The following is a single command. Ensure you enter it all on one line. 
# rhn-ssl-tool --gen-server \
  --password=MY_CA_PASSWORD \
  --dir="/root/ssl-build" \
  --set-state="MY_STATE" \
  --set-city="MY_CITY"
  --set-org="Example Inc." \
  --set-org-unit="MY_ORG_UNIT" \
  --set-email="admin@example.com" \
  --set-hostname="machinename.example.com"
Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
This command generates the following relevant files in a machine-specific subdirectory of the build directory:
  • server.key: the Web server's SSL private server key.
  • server.csr: the Web server's SSL certificate request.
  • server.crt: the web server's SSL public certificate.
  • rhn-org-httpd-ssl-key-pair-MACHINE_NAME-VER-REL.noarch.rpm: the RPM prepared for distribution to Satellite and Proxy Servers. Its associated src.rpm file is also generated.
    This RPM file contains the server.key, server.csr, and server.crt files. These files are installed in the following directories:
    • /etc/httpd/conf/ssl.key/server.key
    • /etc/httpd/conf/ssl.csr/server.csr
    • /etc/httpd/conf/ssl.crt/server.crt
  • rhn-server-openssl.cnf: the Web server's SSL configuration file.
  • latest.txt: lists the latest versions of the relevant files.
When this process is complete, distribute and install the RPM file on its respective Satellite or Proxy Server, and then restart the httpd service. 
# service httpd restart
Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
The Red Hat Satellite Proxy Server and Red Hat Satellite Server installation processes generate a CA SSL public certificate and package it in an RPM file. These installation processes make the certificate and RPM file publicly available by placing a copy of one or both into the /var/www/html/pub/ directory of the Satellite or Proxy Server.
You can use your web browser to inspect the contents of this directory: http://proxy-or-sat.example.com/pub/. You can use the wget or curl commands to download the CA SSL public certificate to a client system.

Important

Confirm the name of the certificate or RPM file before running any of these commands. 
# curl -O http://proxy-or-sat.example.com/pub/RHN-ORG-TRUSTED-SSL-CERT
# wget http://proxy-or-sat.example.com/pub/RHN-ORG-TRUSTED-SSL-CERT
Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
Alternatively, if the CA SSL public certificate RPM file exists in the /pub directory, you can use the rpm command to install the package. For example: 
# rpm -Uvh http://proxy-or-sat.example.com/pub/rhn-org-trusted-ssl-cert-VER-REL.noarch.rpm
Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
After you have deployed the RPM file or the certificate to a client system, you need to edit the configuration files of the Red Hat Update Agent and the Red Hat Satellite Registration Client (if necessary) to use the new CA SSL public certificate file. You also need to update the configuration so that it connects to the appropriate Red Hat Proxy Server or Red Hat Satellite Server. The generally accepted location for that CA SSL public certificate is in the /usr/share/rhn directory.
The Red Hat Proxy Server and Red Hat Satellite Server both have Red Hat Satellite Bootstrap installed by default, which can greatly reduce these repetitive steps and simplify the process of registering and configuring client systems. See the Red Hat Satellite Getting Started Guide for details.

Chapter 4. Reporting Software Failures
Copy link

You can take advantage of Red Hat Satellite's software failure reporting capabilities and the Automatic Bug Reporting Tool (ABRT) to extend the overall reporting functionality of your systems. This extended functionality allows your clients to automatically report software failures captured by ABRT to the Satellite server, and also to process the captured failures in a centralized fashion. You can use either the webUI or the API to process these failure reports.

4.1. Installing Software Failure Reporting Tools
Copy link

The following procedure describes how to install Red Hat Satellite tools for ABRT on clients.

Procedure 4.1. To Use the Software Failure Reporting Functionality:

  1. Log into your client system as the root user.
  2. Install the spacewalk-abrt package on your client systems. This package installs the abrt package as a dependency. 
    # yum install spacewalk-abrt
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap

    Note

    Neither the abrt nor spacewalk-abrt packages are available for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.

4.2. Using Software Failure Reporting Tools
Copy link

The spacewalk-abrt package has two important components:
  • The configuration file for ABRT: /etc/libreport/events.d/spacewalk.conf
  • The spacewalk-abrt utility: /usr/bin/spacewalk-abrt
The configuration file instructs the abrt daemon to use the /usr/bin/spacewalk-abrt utility to automatically report every software failure that occurs on the system to your Satellite server. This is a fully automated process and ordinarily does not require any human intervention.
Use the Red Hat Satellite Web UI to view software failure reports from clients. For more information, see the Red Hat Satellite User Guide.

4.3. Manually Reporting Software Failures
Copy link

Use the spacewalk-abrt utility to manually report software failures to your Satellite server. The following procedure shows how to perform a manually send a software failure report.

Procedure 4.2. To manually report software failures

  1. Use the abrt-cli list parameter to display a list of existing failure reports. 
    # abrt-cli list

@0
Directory: /var/tmp/abrt/ccpp-2013-02-28-15:48:50-8820
count: 2
executable: /usr/bin/python2.7
package: python-2.7.3-13.fc16
time: Thu 28 Feb 2013 03:48:50 PM CET
uid: 0


@1
Directory: /var/tmp/abrt/oops-2013-02-27-14:16:03-8107-1
count: 3
package: kernel
time: Wed 27 Feb 2013 02:16:03 PM CET
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
  2. After you have identified the failure that you want to report, use the --report option to send the report to the Satellite server. 
    # spacewalk-abrt --report /var/tmp/abrt/ccpp-2013-02-28-15:48:50-8820
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap
  3. To manually report all of the software failures that have occurred on your system, use the --sync option: 
    # spacewalk-abrt --sync
    Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap

4.4. Creating Software Failures for Testing
Copy link

You can force a software failure in order to verify that your reporting configuration is working properly. The following example demonstrates using the kill command to send a signal 11 argument (segmentation fault) to an example process: 
# abrt-cli list
# sleep 600 &
[1] 17564
# kill -11 17564
#
[1]+  Segmentation fault      (core dumped) sleep 600
#
# abrt-cli list
@0
Directory:      /var/spool/abrt/ccpp-2013-05-14-04:56:17-17564
count:          1
executable:     /bin/sleep
package:        coreutils-8.4-19.el6
time:           Tue 14 May 2013 04:56:17 EDT
uid:            0
#
Copy to Clipboard Toggle word wrap

Appendix A. Revision History
Copy link

Revision History
Revision 1.1-0Wed Feb 1 2017Satellite Documentation Team
Initial revision for the Red Hat Satellite 5.8 release.

Legal Notice
Copy link

Copyright © 2017 Red Hat.
This document is licensed by Red Hat under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. If you distribute this document, or a modified version of it, you must provide attribution to Red Hat, Inc. and provide a link to the original. If the document is modified, all Red Hat trademarks must be removed.
Red Hat, as the licensor of this document, waives the right to enforce, and agrees not to assert, Section 4d of CC-BY-SA to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law.
Red Hat, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, the Shadowman logo, JBoss, OpenShift, Fedora, the Infinity logo, and RHCE are trademarks of Red Hat, Inc., registered in the United States and other countries.
Linux® is the registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in the United States and other countries.
Java® is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.
XFS® is a trademark of Silicon Graphics International Corp. or its subsidiaries in the United States and/or other countries.
MySQL® is a registered trademark of MySQL AB in the United States, the European Union and other countries.
Node.js® is an official trademark of Joyent. Red Hat Software Collections is not formally related to or endorsed by the official Joyent Node.js open source or commercial project.
The OpenStack® Word Mark and OpenStack logo are either registered trademarks/service marks or trademarks/service marks of the OpenStack Foundation, in the United States and other countries and are used with the OpenStack Foundation's permission. We are not affiliated with, endorsed or sponsored by the OpenStack Foundation, or the OpenStack community.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
Back to top
Red Hat logoGithubredditYoutubeTwitter

Learn

Try, buy, & sell

Communities

About Red Hat Documentation

We help Red Hat users innovate and achieve their goals with our products and services with content they can trust. Explore our recent updates.

Making open source more inclusive

Red Hat is committed to replacing problematic language in our code, documentation, and web properties. For more details, see the Red Hat Blog.

About Red Hat

We deliver hardened solutions that make it easier for enterprises to work across platforms and environments, from the core datacenter to the network edge.

Theme

© 2025 Red Hat