Configuration backup

StackState Self-hosted v5.1.x

Overview

StackState configuration can be exported and imported. The import/export functionality can be used to automate the installation process or for backup purposes. An export and import can be made in the settings page of StackState's user interface by using the buttons 'Export Model' and 'Import Model'.

Export configuration

An export of the StackState configuration can be obtained from the StackState UI, the StackState CLI or using curl commands.

StackState CLI

Note that the lock status of configuration items installed by a StackPack configuration won't be included in the export.

CLI: sts

To export configuration using the sts CLI, run the command:

# Output in terminal window
sts settings describe

# Export to file
sts settings describe --file <PATH_TO_FILE.stj>

From StackState v5.0, the old sts CLI has been renamed to stac and there is a new sts CLI. The command(s) provided here are for use with the new sts CLI.

➡️ Check which version of the sts CLI you are running

CLI: stac (deprecated)

To export configuration using the stac CLI (deprecated), run the command:

# Output in terminal window
stac graph export

# Export to file
stac graph export > export.stj

⚠️ From StackState v5.0, the old sts CLI is called stac. The old CLI is now deprecated.

The new sts CLI replaces the stac CLI. It's advised to install the new sts CLI and upgrade any installed instance of the old sts CLI to stac. For details see:

• Which version of the sts CLI am I running?

• Install the new sts CLI and upgrade the old sts CLI to stac

• Comparison between the CLIs

curl

Note that the lock status of configuration items installed by a StackPack configuration won't be included in the export.

To export configuration using curl, follow the steps below (with or without authentication):

curl with authentication

You can configure StackState server to authenticate users when they access the application. To do this, an export curl script must first obtain a token before making the export request. This isn't necessary when using the StackState CLI as authentication details are configured during installation.

Here is a sample sequence of curl commands to achieve this. The <api-token> used for authorization is available on the CLI page in the StackState UI main menu:

# Obtain session from cookie AkkaHttpPac4jSession
# Obtain CSRF token from cookie pac4jCsrfToken
curl --fail -v \
  -H "Authorization: ApiToken <api-token>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded" \
  "http://<HOST>:7070/loginCallback"

# Do actual request
export SESSION="<MY_SESSION>"; export CSRF_TOKEN="<MY_CSRF_TOKEN>"; \
  curl -v -X POST \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json;charset=UTF-8' \
  -d '{}' \
  -H Cookie:AkkaHttpPac4jSession=$SESSION \
  -H X-Sts-Token:$CSRF_TOKEN \
  "http://<HOST>:7070/api/export?timeoutSeconds=300" > export.stj

curl without authentication

curl -X POST -H 'Content-Type: application/json;charset=UTF-8' \
  -d '{}' \
  "http://<host>:7070/api/export?timeoutSeconds=300" > export.stj

StackState UI

Note that the lock status of configuration items installed by a StackPack configuration won't be included in the export.

To export configuration from the StackState UI:

1. Go to Settings > Import/Export > Export Settings

2. Click the button STS-EXPORT-ALL.

Export configuration from the StackState UI

Import configuration

StackState CLI

• Import is intended to be a one-off action - importing multiple times might result in duplicate configuration entries. This behavior applies to importing nodes without any identifier.

• Note that the lock status of configuration items installed by a StackPack won't be included in configuration export files - all configuration items will be unlocked after import.

CLI: sts

To import StackState configuration using the sts CLI, follow the steps below.

Before import, clear the StackState configuration by following the instructions at clear stored data.

sts settings apply --file <PATH_TO_FILE.stj>

From StackState v5.0, the old sts CLI has been renamed to stac and there is a new sts CLI. The command(s) provided here are for use with the new sts CLI.

➡️ Check which version of the sts CLI you are running

CLI: stac (deprecated)

To import StackState configuration using the stac CLI (deprecated), follow the steps below.

Before import, clear the StackState configuration by following the instructions at clear stored data.

stac graph import < <PATH_TO_FILE.stj>

⚠️ From StackState v5.0, the old sts CLI is called stac. The old CLI is now deprecated.

The new sts CLI replaces the stac CLI. It's advised to install the new sts CLI and upgrade any installed instance of the old sts CLI to stac. For details see:

• Which version of the sts CLI am I running?
• Install the new sts CLI and upgrade the old sts CLI to stac
• Comparison between the CLIs

curl

• Import is intended to be a one-off action - importing multiple times might result in duplicate configuration entries. This behavior applies to importing nodes without any identifier.

• Note that the lock status of configuration items installed by a StackPack won't be included in configuration export files - all configuration items will be unlocked after import.

curl with authentication

To import StackState configuration using curl with authentication, follow the steps below.

Before import, clear the StackState configuration by following the instructions at clear stored data.

The <api-token> can be found on the CLI page in the StackState UI main menu.

# Obtain session from cookie AkkaHttpPac4jSession
# Obtain CSRF token from cookie pac4jCsrfToken
curl --fail -v \
  -H "Authorization: ApiToken <api-token>" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/x-www-form-urlencoded" \
  "http://<host>:7070/loginCallback"

# Do actual request
export SESSION="<MY_SESSION>"; export CSRF_TOKEN="<MY_CSRF_TOKEN>"; \
  curl -X POST -d @export.stj \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json;charset=UTF-8' \
  -H Cookie:AkkaHttpPac4jSession=$SESSION \
  -H X-Sts-Token:$CSRF_TOKEN "http://<HOST>:7070/api/import?timeoutSeconds=15"

curl without authentication

To import StackState configuration using curl without authentication, follow the steps below.

Before import, clear the StackState configuration by following the instructions at clear stored data.

## Import without authentication
curl -X POST -d @./export.stj \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json;charset=UTF-8' \
  "http://<host>:7070/api/import?timeoutSeconds=15"
  

StackState UI

• Import is intended to be a one-off action - importing multiple times might result in duplicate configuration entries. This behavior applies to importing nodes without any identifier.

• Note that the lock status of configuration items installed by a StackPack won't be included in configuration export files - all configuration items will be unlocked after import.

Before import, clear the StackState configuration by following the instructions at clear stored data.

To import StackState configuration in the StackState UI:

1. Go to Settings > Import/Export > Import Settings.

2. Choose the *.stj file that you want to import configuration from.

3. Click the button START IMPORT.

Import configuration from the StackState UI

Advanced import/export

Individual configuration items

It's possible to export and import individual configuration items through the StackState user interface. For example, to export or export a component type:

1. Go to the Settings page and click Component Types.

2. To export an individual component type, click Export as config.

3. To import a configuration item, click Import Model.

Idempotent import/export

There is a way to use identifiers and namespaces that come with them to perform a configuration update of the specific sets of nodes idempotently. This approach doesn't lead to duplicates, but checks for the changes within a specified namespace and applies them to existing nodes, including removing nodes, as well as allow for creating the new ones.

Node identifiers are specified in a following pattern: urn:stackpack:{stackpack_name}:{type_name}:{object_name}. The namespace effectively used by this process is urn:stackpack:{stackpack_name}:. If every configuration node has an identifier and they're all in the same namespace, then you can perform an idempotent update using following STS CLI commands:

export

CLI: sts

sts settings describe --namespace urn:stackpack:{stackpack_name}:

From StackState v5.0, the old sts CLI has been renamed to stac and there is a new sts CLI. The command(s) provided here are for use with the new sts CLI.

➡️ Check which version of the sts CLI you are running

CLI: stac (deprecated)

stac graph export --namespace urn:stackpack:{stackpack_name}:

⚠️ From StackState v5.0, the old sts CLI is called stac. The old CLI is now deprecated.

The new sts CLI replaces the stac CLI. It's advised to install the new sts CLI and upgrade any installed instance of the old sts CLI to stac. For details see:

• Which version of the sts CLI am I running?
• Install the new sts CLI and upgrade the old sts CLI to stac
• Comparison between the CLIs

import

CLI: sts

curl -XPOST http://yourInstance/api/import?namespace=urn:stackpack:{stackpack_name} --data @./filename -H 'Content-Type: application/json'

Configuration Export Versioning

Why versioning?

As StackState evolves, versioning of the exported Node elements is necessary. The export conf contains metadata stating the Node version (_version), which is useful to allow an automatic upgrade to a more recent version of StackState and ensure compatibility.

{
  "_version": "1.0.0",
  "timestamp": "2018-12-06T12:30:44.148Z[Etc/UTC]",
  "nodes": [
    {
      "_type": "CheckFunction",
      "name": "Metric fixed run state",
      "returnTypes": [
        "RUN_STATE"
      ],
      "description": "This check will always return the run state that is provided when a metric has been received.",
      "id": -196,
      "script": "return metricFixedRunState;",
      "parameters": [
        {
          "_type": "Parameter",
          "name": "metrics",
          "system": false,
          "id": -194,
          "multiple": false,
          "type": "METRIC_STREAM",
          "required": true
        },
        {
          "_type": "Parameter",
          "name": "metricFixedRunState",
          "system": false,
          "id": -195,
          "multiple": false,
          "type": "RUN_STATE_VALUE",
          "required": true
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Supported versions

A configuration export is supported by versions of StackState that are equal or higher than the export's version and with the same major version (see semver). The first configuration export version is 1.0.0, and effectively any Node payload with a version below or missing the version field (_version) will be interpreted and auto-upgraded to version 1.0.0.

For example:

Configuration export version 1.0.0 was introduced in StackState version 1.14.0 Later configuration export version 1.1.0 was introduced in StackState version 1.14.1 Later configuration export version 2.0.0 was introduced in StackState version 1.15.0

This means that Nodes with Configuration version 1.0.0 will work on both StackState 1.14.0 and 1.14.1 but not in 1.15.0 as a major configuration export version (2.0.0) was introduced. It also means that configuration export version 1.1.0 can only be used from StackState version 1.14.1 but not before as in 1.14.0

Available versions

The table below displays configuration export versions and on which StackState versions they were introduced.

Configuration Export version	Introduced on StackState version
1.0.0	1.14.0