Configuring API Control Plane
API Control Plane is a centralized control and monitoring system that oversees and manages the entire API management landscape deployed across multiple regions, including cloud and on-premise environments. Connecting API Gateway to API Control Plane enables you to control and manage the performance of API Gateway effectively through API Control Plane.
To connect API Gateway to API Control Plane, it is essential to configure API Control Plane agent within API Gateway to establish a communication channel with API Control Plane. The agent is responsible for establishing and maintaining communication with API Control Plane.
You can configure API Control Plane agent through:
External configurations
API Gateway UI
External configurations
Configure
API Control Plane agent through external configurations in one of the following ways: Environment variables or JAVA properties or YAML config file. For more information about how to create external configurations and what configurations are required for agent, see
IBM webMethods API Gateway Administration
Connecting IBM webMethods API Gateway to API Control Plane.
API Gateway UI
This section details API Control Plane agent configuration using API Gateway UI.
Note:
If you have previously configured API Control Plane agent using external configurations and subsequently logged on to API Gateway, the API Control Plane communication screen displays as disabled and is not editable. In such case, if you want to re-configure API Control Plane agent using API Gateway UI, you must remove external configurations (Environment variables or Java properties or YAML config file ) used for the previous connection and restart API Gateway. Upon restart, API Gateway establishes a connection with API Control Plane using previously specified external configurations from the external Elasticsearch since the configurations that are once specified through external configurations are retained in the external Elasticsearch to populate your desired values in the UI. This allows you to configure the agent through the UI.
Pre-requisite:
You must have API Gateway's manage destination configurations functional privilege assigned to configure API Control Plane.
To configure
API Control Plane agent through
API Gateway UI
1. Expand the menu options icon , in the title bar, and select Administration. 2. Select Destinations.
3. Select API Control Plane > Configuration to configure API Control Plane agent.
4. Provide the following information in the API Gateway Basic information section:
Field | Description |
Runtime name* | Name of the runtime (API Gateway instance). This field defines how you want to identify your API Gateway instance in API Control Plane. In the context of API Control Plane, a runtime refers to any product deployment within the API Management suite such as API Gateway, Developer Portal, and Microgateway. |
Description | Optional. Specify a description for the runtime. |
Tags | Optional. Tag of the runtime. Tags are used to categorize the runtimes. Example: test, local, dev Note: A tag must not contain whitespaces. |
5. Provide the following information in the API Gateway deployment section:
Field | Description |
Deployment type | Optional. API Gateway deployment type. Permitted values are as follows: ON_PREMISE SAG_SAAS PRIVATE_CLOUD |
Region | Optional. Region name where API Gateway is deployed. |
Location | Optional. Country name where API Gateway is deployed. |
Host | Optional. Base URL of API Gateway in the format, http://host:port Example: http://localhost:9072 |
Capacity | Optional. The approximate estimate of the throughput that API Gateway can handle for the specified duration. You can configure the capacity value with any non-negative integer. |
Capacity units | Optional. Choose the unit of duration in which the capacity must be defined. Possible values are as follows: per second per minute per hour per day per week per month per year |
6. Provide the following information in the API Control Plane configuration section:
Field | Description |
Control Plane URL* | Base URL of API Control Plane. Example: https://localhost:8080 |
Username* | Username that is used to log on to API Control Plane. Note: Ensure that the user belongs to API platform provider user group. |
Password* | Password of the corresponding user, which is used to log onto API Control Plane through basic authentication. |
7. Provide the following information in the synchronization configuration section to synchronize the data from API Gateway to API Control Plane:
Field | Description |
Heartbeat interval (in seconds) | The duration in seconds in which API Gateway must send its health status to API Control Plane. Default value: 60 |
Metrics synchronization interval (in seconds) | The duration in seconds in which API Gateway must send its metrics data to API Control Plane. Default value: 120 |
Asset synchronization interval (in seconds) | The duration in seconds in which API Gateway has to synchronize the changes made to the assets to API Control Plane. Default value: 180 |
Retry max attempts | The maximum number of retry attempts allowed for API Gateway to establish a connection with API Control Plane if it is lost. Default value: 5 |
Retry time interval (in seconds) | The duration in seconds in which API Gateway has to re-establish the connection with API Control Plane if it is lost. Default value: 60 |
8. Click Test to test the connection between API Gateway and API Control Plane.
The connection with API Control Plane is tested and a success message appears.
9. Enable the Control Plane communication toggle button to establish communication between API Gateway and API Control Plane.
10. Click Save.
Agent configuration is saved in the external Elasticsearch and a communication is established between API Gateway and API Control Plane.
Note:
When you re-configure and save the following configurations:
Modifying runtime name field establishes a new communication channel, creating a new runtime in
API Control Plane. The old runtime's status turns red, indicating that the connection is lost.
Modifying any field except the runtime name stops the existing communication channel and re-establishes with the updated values. During this period, the runtime's status appears red, indicating that the connection is lost.
If the connection is lost, the Control Plane communication toggle button changes to a disabled state indicating that the connection is lost.
You can also manage API Control Plane agent configuration using REST APIs. For more details, see API Gateway Administration section in the Developer's Guide.