How pasUnity works

To begin a system administrator installs and performs basic software configuration on a host or set of hosts. Installation is a simple process that can be completed in mere minutes.

Next the application administrator uses the pasUnity graphical user interface to configure agent settings, define jobs, design impellers, and start the agent services.

Upon startup the pasUnity Processor Agent begins polling the database at regular intervals for work. Work is any job that has been placed in the execution queue and the conditions that placed it there. Work is enqueued by one of many types of impellers such as schedules, file system changes, email message receipt, or incoming web service payloads. The agent then executes jobs based on the parallelization settings the user has configured. The agent executes the jobs by breaking them down into their constituent job steps for serial execution. The job concludes by removing the work from the queue, writing history records, and optionally recording job details to the Windows Event Viewer Application log and optionally sending success/failure notifications. After the agent has performed all work in the queue it pauses for a brief period before the process starts all over again.

The pasUnity Event Reader Agent can be enabled to monitor Windows event logs in real-time for specific event conditions. When an event occurs in a monitored log that meets the filter condition that has been configured work is enqueued that the pasUnity Processor Agent uses to launch jobs designed to respond to these events. Work remains in the queue until such time as the pasUnity Processor Agent has successfully processed the work or an end-user manually removes the work from the queue.

The pasUnity File Transfer Agent can be enabled to allow for the use of an FTP client when interacting with your matrices. This allows for easy loaded and saving of content to or from a matrix by manual or automated means with a wide variety of FTP clients that support traditional FTP or FTP over SSL (FTPS) capabilities.

Upon startup the pasUnity Payload Agent begins hosting WCF XML web services which allow applications to silently send data to pasUnity for storage in the pasUnity database where those request payloads may be used to enqueue jobs for execution by the pasUnity Processor Agent during its next processing cycle or simply remain in storage until processed using other, manual means. As long as the agent is running it is listening for new requests and is able to silently process those requests until such time as the service is stopped.

Upon startup the pasUnity Watcher Agent begins monitoring folders on the local machine for new files. When a file appears in a monitored folder that meets the filter condition that has been configured work is enqueued that the pasUnity Processor Agent uses to launch jobs designed to process those files. Work remains in the queue until such time as the pasUnity Processor Agent has successfully processed the work or an end-user manually removes the work from the queue.

Upon startup the pasUnity Collector Agent begins polling POP3 mail servers at regular intervals looking for new mail messages in monitored mailboxes. When messages are found they are copied to the pasUnity central database where they can be more efficiently processed. Message headers can be filtered on for criteria that can be used to enqueue work that the pasUnity Processor Agent uses to launch jobs designed to process those messages and their attachments. Work remains in the queue until such time as the pasUnity Processor Agent has successfully processed the work or an end-user manually removes the work from the queue or deletes the message from the system.

Each of the pasUnity agent service and user interface components listed above perform a single, specific task which when used together combine to create a full-featured job scheduling and processing system.

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