Administration Guide

Understanding the SP Perspectives interface

SP Perspectives consists of the following graphical elements:

• launch pad
• Perspectives Application Windows (also known as "Perspectives")
• Dialog boxes
• Notebooks
• Message boxes

The launch pad

The launch pad starts applications associated with managing an SP system. It also provides options for customizing the appearance of the launch pad.

System management applications provided by SP Perspectives appear as icons on the launch pad. Other system management tools, such as SMIT and the SP Resource Center are also accessible from the launch pad. In addition, you can add your own applications to the launch pad. For descriptions of the applications provided by default, select Options > Show Application Details.

Figure 30. The SP Perspectives launch pad

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For detailed information on the elements of the launch pad, see the Perspectives online help information.

Perspectives applications

All of the Perspectives applications are available on the launch pad, some with customized profiles.

SMIT menus

Common SMIT administration menus are selectable from the launch pad.

SP Resource Center

The SP Resource Center provides one simple interface for all softcopy SP documentation and information resources. It consists of HTML, Java, and Javascript files and works with a Web browser. The Resource Center provides access to a variety of information including publications, READMEs, Redbooks, White Papers, SP product information, as well as up-to-date service information.

To access the SP Resource Center, double click on the SP Resource Center icon and the SP Resource Center window will appear once the Web browser has launched. The left margin of this window contains navigational aids to help you find the information for which you are looking. For example, to find out information on PSSP documentation, you would select Publications. Similarly, to find out information on SP hardware or software, select Product Information.

Perspective application windows

The application window for each SP Perspectives application is called a "Perspective" because it provides a unique view of your SP system. The Hardware Perspective, for example, allows you to view the system as a set of hardware objects like nodes, frames, and switches. The Event Perspective allows you to view the system in terms of conditions of interest related to system resources.

These windows contain work areas known as panes. Panes contain icons representing system objects (a managed SP system resource such as a node, frame, or switch).

• To perform actions on the way objects are displayed in a pane:
  1. Click on the pane to give it focus.
  2. Select View from the menu bar.
  3. Select the desired action from the pull down menu. (Alternatively, some of the View options are available from the tool bar.)
• To perform actions on the objects themselves:
  1. Select one or more objects.
     • To select multiple objects that are next to each other in a pane, click on the icon of the first desired object, hold the left mouse button down, and move the cursor over the icons of other desired objects in the pane.
     • To select multiple objects that are not next to each other in a pane, hold the Ctrl key on your keyboard down while you click on each desired object in the pane.
  2. Select Actions from the menu bar.
  3. Select the desired action from the pull down menu. (Alternatively, some of the Actions are available from the tool bar.) Note that the choices available under the Actions menu may vary depending upon the type of objects selected.

Each Perspective consists of the same basic format as illustrated in Figure 31.

Figure 31. Elements of an SP Perspectives window

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Figure 32. The Hardware Perspective

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For detailed information on the elements of an application window, see the Perspectives online help information.

Dialog boxes

When you use an SP Perspectives application window to perform certain actions, a dialog appears. The dialog box solicits or displays additional information needed to complete the action. The specific information or actions contained in the dialog box depend on the application.

Figure 33. An SP Perspectives dialog box

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For detailed information on the elements of a dialog box, see the Perspectives online help information.

Notebooks

A notebook lets you view or alter object properties. Each page in the notebook contains property information (defining or operational characteristics) about system objects. Similar properties are grouped on the same page and identified by tabs. The specific property information contained on a notebook page depends on the object.

Notebooks typically contain the following elements:

• The title bar, which displays the action (view, modify), the object name or type, and optionally, the system partition name.
• Text entry boxes for entering text information for object attributes that can be modified.
• Static text entry fields for displaying object attribute information that cannot be modified (view only).
• Check buttons for selecting one or more choices from a list of options that are not mutually exclusive.
• Radio buttons for making a single choice from a list of mutually exclusive options.
• Option menus for entering information and selecting a single choice from a list of mutually exclusive options.
• Buttons for selecting an action:
  • OK - updates attribute information and closes the notebook.
  • Apply - updates attribute information and leaves the notebook open.
  • Cancel - cancels any changes made to the original values and closes the notebook.
  • Reset - resets any changes made to the original values and leaves the notebook open.
  • Help - displays general help about using notebooks.

Figure 34. An SP Perspectives notebook

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Message boxes

A message box is a type of dialog box used to convey a message to you. Following is a list of the message types:

• Informational
• Warning
• Error

Figure 35. An SP Perspectives message box

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For detailed information on the elements of a message box, see the Perspectives online help information.