Configure the Hybrid Runbook Worker Solution

Azure Automation enables you to automate the Azure administration duties and to organize activities over external systems from directly within Azure. It is mounted on PowerShell Workflow. The Hybrid Runbook Worker Group is a collection of one or more VMs configured to work as a Hybrid Runbook Worker. Servers configured with this function queries the Azure Automation cloud service using a port to verify if there is any job available. When a job becomes available the Hybrid Worker will run the runbook.

In this hands-on virtual lab, learners will effectively use Azure automation account, log analytics, OMS portal, Microsoft Monitoring agent to configure the Hybrid Runbook Worker solution. The other guided challenges in this series are "Configure Monitoring of an Azure VM using OMS" and "Execute a Runbook on a Hybrid Runbook Worker."

Understand the Scenario

In this virtual lab, you are a system administrator for a company that is migrating automation and orchestration solutions to Azure and the Operations Management Suite (OMS). Your job responsibility is to configure an Automation Account and an OMS workspace, and then register a computer for monitoring and runbook automation as a Hybrid Runbook Worker. This solution will allow runbooks to be run on any system, regardless of where the system is hosted. To accomplish this task, learners will use an Azure resource group that contains a preconfigured virtual machine named DevSystem1. The configuration of the virtual machine may not be complete when you begin this challenge. You will receive a notification when the automated configuration is complete. Familiarize yourself with what you have in the environment.

Create an Automation Account and a Log Analytics workspace

Azure Automation gives a cloud-based automation and configuration setting that presents compatible control over the Azure and non-Azure settings. It provides complete control during deployment, services, and decommissioning of resources. In this first section of the lab, you will learn how to create an automation account and log analytics workspace. For this, learners will first sign in to the Azure portal and create an automation account named HybridAuto in the East US 2 region using the existing HybridOMSRGlod11858620 resource group. After this, they will learn how to create a Log Analytics workspace named workspace-11858620 in the East US region using the HybridOMSRGlod11858620 resource group. Finally, they will open the workspace-11858620 Log Analytics workspace and then select OMS Portal and confirm that the workspace-11858620 workspace is open in the OMS Portal. Operations Management Suite (OMS) is a set of cloud-based settings, guided solutions for cloud environments, and on-premises.

Install solutions in OMS

After creating an automation account and log analytics workspace, in this section of the virtual lab, you will learn how to install solutions in OMS. For this, you will go to the solutions gallery and select Automation & Control and then learn how to configure the workspace to use the existing HybridAuto Automation Account. Next, learners will add the Automation & Control solution with the default solutions included and add the Automation Hybrid Worker solution. After this, you will verify that the four solutions are displayed and also confirm that the HybridAuto Automation Account is displayed.

Install the Microsoft Monitoring Agent

Microsoft Monitoring Agent monitors infrastructure well-being. It gathers demonstrative data, such as administration metrics, event logs, and tracks. It can be applied as a standalone instrument or concurrently with Operations Manager. In this section of the virtual lab, you will learn how to install Microsoft Monitoring agent. First, learners will learn how to use RDP to connect to DevSystem1 as a student. Next, you may need to change the IE Enhanced Security options to Off in Server Manager to navigate to the required pages in this task. After this, you will download and install the 64-bit Windows Agent. During the installation, you will use the Workspace ID and Primary Key from the OMS Workspace, and when the installation is complete, you will see 1 Windows Computer Connected in the Connected Services node. It may take five minutes for the virtual machine to connect to the OMS workspace. Finally, you will confirm that 1 Windows computer is connected.

Register the virtual machine to the Hybrid Runbook Worker

You can utilize the Hybrid Runbook Worker feature of Azure Automation to manage runbooks instantly on the computer that's hosting the function and corresponding devices in the context to maintain those confined resources. In this section of the lab, learners will learn how to register the virtual machine to the hybrid runbook worker. For this, first, they will record the URL from the Automation Account and import the HybridRegistration.psd1 Windows PowerShell module. Next, they will learn how to change the version placeholder to match the version they have installed. To execute this, you will run the Add-HybridRunbookWorker cmdlet to register the system to the Automation Account as a Hybrid Runbook. Finally, you will check your work and confirm that the DevSystem1 virtual machine appears in the Hybrid Worker Groups in the Automation Account named HybridAuto.

Lab Summary Conclusion

After completing the "Configure the Hybrid Runbook Worker Solution" virtual lab, you will have accomplished the following:

• Created the Automation Account and Log Analytics resources
• Installed Solutions in the OMS Portal
• Installed the Microsoft Monitoring Agent
• Registered a virtual machine to the Hybrid Runbook Worker