IP Block Management

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Managing IP Blocks

IP Blocks are edited and managed in either IPAM Manage or the IPAM Gadget.

From either area, you can perform standard block-level actions such as assign, unassign, split, merge, edit attributes, track NAT associations, and more.

The primary difference between the two areas is that IPAM Manage shows all blocks (or all blocks under an aggregate), regardless of assignment or status, where the IPAM Gadget shows only the blocks assigned to the specific resource that you are currently viewing on the Resource Entry Page. However, the IPAM Gadget has more advanced assignment options and criteria available (Direct Assign, Smart Assign, Smart Browse).

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Working with IP Blocks

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Common tasks in IPAM include creating IP Aggregates, Auto Split / Clean up an aggregate, setting alerts, and managing individual blocks.

Adding/Deleting IP Aggregates

On the main IPAM Tab, expand the "Add Aggregate" module.

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Once clicked, you get a more detailed screen to add an aggregate block. Enter in the CIDR and RIR, at minimum, and Region, Tags, Resource, Domain, VLAN, and subassignment status if desired. 

Aggregate-Level Actions

Some aggregate-level actions are performed in IPAM Manage, such as setting IPAM alerts and using Aggregate Templates.

These actions are detailed on the IPAM Tab page under Working with IPAM Aggregates. This page will focus primarily on block-level actions and management. 

Working in IPAM Manage

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In IPAM Manage, you can manage aggregate level actions, such as Split , Clean Up, Alerts, and Export, as well as viewing and managing individual blocks. In IPAM Manage - Advanced, aggregate-level actions are not availableWhen done, click "Add Aggregate". The Aggregate will be listed under the Host Utilization and Aggregate Blocks list of the IPAM Tab.

Open IPAM Manage for

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a specific Aggregate

Open the IPAM Manage screen for a block or aggregate by:

• Searching for the block in the Global search, and clicking on the resulting CIDR

• View the parent aggregate for a Global search / IPAM search result by right clicking to open the action menu for the block, then select "View Parent Aggregate".

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• Clicking the "Open" link in the aggregate blocks list from the IPAM tab.
  
• Clicking on the CIDR header of the Aggregate Block Host Utilization module, or selecting "EditManage Aggregate" from the module's Gear Icon from the IPAM tab.
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Working in IPAM Manage

In IPAM Manage, you can manage aggregate level actions, such as Split , Clean Up, Alerts, and Export, as well as viewing and managing individual blocks. 

Aggregate Actions

Open up aggregate level actions in IPAM Manage by clicking on the "Actions" link in the Manage Aggregate header. Three options are available - Auto Split, Clean Up, and Manage Alerts.

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Auto Split Aggregate

Auto Split an available aggregate into blocks of a specific size, up to a specific quantity of blocks by selecting "Size" and "Limit" under "Auto Split". 

The block limit must be a power of two, or an error will appear. When done, click "Split".

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Clean Up Aggregate

Clean up an Aggregate into fewer blocks of a specific size, by selecting your desired block size and clicking "ignore assignments" (if blocks have assignments that would prevent merging).

When done, click the "Clean Up" button. All blocks will be merged to the set size and reset to available. 

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Set Aggregate Alerts

Enable or clear aggregate alert emails for the aggregate by setting an email address and utilization percentage level.

When the aggregate is utilized to the set percent, an email alert will be sent to the provided address.

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When done, click "Save Alert".  To clear an existing alert, hit "Clear Alert", and the alert information will be removed and status saved. 

Architecting IP Address Blocks

Splitting/Merging blocks manually

To split a block manually - While in the IPAM Mange screen, click on the Action Menu (Gear icon), or right-click anywhere in the row for the available block you wish to modify.

In the menu that appears, select the "Split" function. To aggregate blocks, select "Merge" from the same menu. 

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Splitting/Aggregating blocks with Templates

Templates for a block are available under the Action Menu (wrench icon or right-click) for that block.

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There are two templates available: Cleanup (Only available for parent blocks) which auto-aggregates the block, and Auto-split. 

Select the available template action, the mask, and the limit. When done, click the "Apply" button.

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You can also use the "Templates" option from the Action Menu on the IPAM Manage screen for the specific block. 

IP Block parameters and Editing Attributes

Select the "Edit" option from the Action Menu (or double click on the block row) for a given block to get the Edit Attributes menu. 

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To edit multiple blocks at a time, shift-click each block you wish to edit - they will highlight in blue. Once selected, right-click on any highlighted block to open the multi-edit attributes screen.

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Once selected, right-click on any highlighted block to open the multi-edit attributes screen.

From here you can set a variety of attributes for a given block. These values are also customizable from the Admin screen - see IPAM Administration and IPAM Parameters to customize, enable, or disable the available parameters. 

After editing the desired attributes for the block, simply hit "Save". 

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Edit Attributes Overview:

RIR: The RIR associated with the aggregate / block.

LIR: If LIRs are set up in IPAM Admin for the associated RIR, they will be selectable in this dropdown. See LIR Management and Use.

Domain: The VLAN Domain to associate with the block.  To set up domains in ProVision,  see VLAN Administration.

VLAN: VLAN information for the block, must have domain selected to view available VLANs.

Generic: This is a customizable text field that can be used to track information specific to your needs. It can be filtered in the IPAM Manage screen.

The header, display, and enable/disable settings for this field are set under IPAM Configuration in the IPAM Administration section. 

ASN: The ASN to associate with the block.

Region: Select the region from the drop down menu. Regions can be added and customized in the IPAM Admin section of ProVision - see IPAM Administration and IPAM Parameters. 

Tags: Tags can be set under Edit Tags in the IPAM Administration section. 

Notes: Freeform text field for additional information you wish to capture. 

Resource: The resource assigned to the block.

Metadata1 - Metadata 10:  User-defined text fields,  as set in IPAM Administration Edit Columns.

Allow Subassignments: When editing a block that has been assigned, toggling this setting to "On" allows for further subassignments, indicated by a blue arrow next to the assignment in the Manage screen. Note: Subassign status cannot be changed if a block has children. 

Propagate Attributes to Children: Toggle this setting to "On" when editing a parent block to carry through attribute changes to all children of that block. To view parent blocks, simply ensure that top level or all masks are selected in the Filter menu in the IPAM Manage screen.

Assigning IP Space

There are two areas where you can assign IP Space: in the IPAM Gadget for the particular Resource, or through IPAM Manage for manually assigning a block to a resource. The IPAM Gadget allows for more detailed assignment options including Direct Assign, Smart Browse, and Smart Assign with advanced options, and is the primary tool for space assignment. 

Assigning Space from the IPAMv2 Gadget

The IPAM Gadget is accessed from a Resource Entry page, once enabled for the Section (to add Gadgets, see Customizing Sections and Add Gadgets to your Section).

For additional details on the IPAMv2 Gadget, see Gadgets.

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You have three options for assigning IP space using the IPAM Gadget: Direct Assign, Smart Assign, and Smart Browse.

Direct Assign:

Smart Assign / Smart Browse:

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Expand the "Smart Assign" module in the IPAMv2 by clicking the expansion arrow in the right side of the Smart Assign header.

For a basic assignment, enter at least the IP type, RIR, and block size.

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IP Tag filters are optional. IP Tag filters exist in three modes:

Standard - checks to see if the selected tag is associated with the block

Strict: limits results to blocks with exactly the selected tag(s)

Exclude - blocks without the selected tag(s)

For Advanced Options, Click the "Advanced Options +" expansion link in the top right of the header. Additional filter criteria will be available to apply to both Smart Browse and Smart Assign.

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Then click "Smart Browse" or "Smart Assign".

For Smart Assign, you will receive a message indicating a successful assignment, or information regarding an error. If no blocks are available meeting the criteria, the message will say so. In this case, try removing one or more of your filter criteria and try again.

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• Clicking on the CIDR displayed in the IPAM Map - Aggregates view.
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Open IPAM Manage for all Aggregates/Blocks

Open IPAM Manage for all blocks under all aggregates by clicking the "Advanced" button at the top of the IPAM tab. 

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This will open IPAM Manage for all blocks in ProVision, with all the same filters, block edit functions, and search capabilities as in 'standard' IPAM Manage for an aggregate, but with no aggregate-level actions available. 

IPAM Manage Views

There are multiple view options in IPAM Manage to view and/or edit blocks: Block View, Parent View, and Netblock Tree. 

Block View (Default)

Block View is the default IPAM Manage Aggregate screen. Block View displays only the lowest level leaf nodes of aggregates / blocks that exist in ProVision. In this view, all blocks displayed are ProVision objects able to be edited or managed. 

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Parent View / Blocks Tree

Parent View shows both low level child blocks and the parent blocks that contain them. 

While in Manage aggregate, view parent blocks / IP block hierarchy, click on "Switch to Parent View" at the top of the block list. 

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You may also enter Parent View via the "Filter" menu, by checking the "Select All Masks" checkbox and clicking "Apply", to show all masks and parent blocks.

Parent Blocks are distinguished by having a CIDR address link, and displaying a blue bar denoting "Has Children" under the "Assigned to" column. 

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Both Parent and Child blocks may be edited in this view.

Clicking on the Parent Block blue CIDR link will display the Parent View Blocks Tree, providing a simplified hierarchy view.

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To search blocks by CIDR use the searchbox at upper right. This will highlight the specific block. For larger trees, you can limit the view to search results only by enabling the checkbox for "show results only".

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Netblock Tree

Netblock Tree View displays the hierarchy organization of Parent / Child blocks under a Top Level Aggregate, but eliminates intermediate "bookkeeping" / allocated blocks, and prioritizes masks with assigned blocks. This provides a more effective view at the specific hierarchy levels used for assignments and management.

The Netblock Tree view detects which subnet masks have changes in assignments applied, and then automatically builds branches or displays individual addresses at those levels. This view includes the display of theoretical blocks which do not currently exist as ProVision objects, providing a more holistic working overview of the netblock structure.

While in Netblock Tree View, click on the expansion caret to expand / close a hierarchy branch parent block. Only blocks which exist in ProVision will be able to be edited or expanded.

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Netblock Tree Logic:

• The top level at which an assignment exists denotes the top starting mask of the Netblock Tree View
•  Proceeding down the tree, if one of the following conditions are detected, a new branch is created showing all blocks with a prefix at that level - regardless of of whether they exist as editable ProVision block objects.
  • A change in assignment is detected (a block is assigned to a different resource than its parent )
  • A manual split has been performed at the assignment level of a sibling/cousin block
• If no more changes in assignment are detected down the block tree, the lowest branch will display as containing individual addresses (/32s or /128s). The addresses may be both theoretical and those existing in ProVision.
• Expandable branches display with blue arrows, and denote that the block with that prefix also exists in ProVision → Block View
• Blocks and addresses which exist in ProVision will be editable in Netblock Tree View, but theoretical blocks at any level are not editable unless created in ProVision. 

Example Walkthrough: 

Working in IPAM Manage Views

Sort Blocks

Sort the IPAM Manage blocks list by clicking on any column name the in list with the up-down arrows icon (↓↑).

The list will sort between ascending and descending order for that field. 

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Filter / Search Blocks

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Successful assignments will be added to the "IP Blocks" list in the IPAMv2 Gadget, and are able to be managed in the IPAM Gadget, IPAMv2 Gadget, or IPAM Manage Screen.

Manually Assigning Space from the IPAM Manager

You can also assign blocks manually using the "Assign" function from the IPAM Manager screen (accessible from the IPAM Tab). Open the Action Menu for a block, then select "Assign".

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Assignments may also be performed for multiple blocks at a time, by shift-clicking the desired blocks, and right-clicking on any highlighted row to open the multi-block menu (choose "Assign Selected Blocks") :

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Then, search for / select the Resource to assign the block. A filter tool is provided to narrow the list to a particular Section type. 

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When the correct resource has been selected, click the "Assign" button. If needed, a new resource can be created by clicking the "New Resource" button.

After assigning, you can further edit the block attributes or subassign space.  

Sub Assigning IP Space

To allow sub assignments, just toggle the "Allow sub assignments" button to "On" under Edit block.  

Once the allow sub assignments box is checked, the block may be further split and assigned to other resources.  Split blocks may also be re-claimed to the originally assigned resource and re-aggregated.  When allow sub assignments is checked, the block is counted as allocated, but not assigned - various statistics in IPAM, on the dashboard, and reporting will reflect this.

 Sub assignments can be useful for tracking IPs assigned to a customer with multiple subsidaries, or locations.

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Unassigning IP Space

When a block is assigned, you will have the option of unassigning the block from the resource and returning it to the Holding Tank.

To unassign the block, simply open on the Action Menu for the block and select "Unassign". You may also chose "Unassign, Skip Hold", which unassigns the block and immediately returns it to available, bypassing the holding tank. 

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After unassigning blocks / skipping holding, newly available blocks will be merged upon next page refresh.

To return IP space in the Holding Tank to the Available Pool, process the Holding Tank via the Admin screen under IPAM Admin (this will only process blocks that were present for the specified number of days).

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For more information on the Holding Tank, see Holding Tank Management.

Sort, Filter, and View Block Hierarchy in IPAM Manage

Sort the IPAM Manange blocks list by clicking on any header the in list - the items will toggle between ascending and descending order. 

Filter the block list in IPAM Manage by toggling the "Filter +" link in the top right corner of the aggregate header. 

A flyout will appear with filter criteria options. Type in Select or search for type the term option under your desired field, and hit "Apply". A red filter flag indicates the number of filters applied to the list. When done, click "clear". To hide the filter flyout, just click the "filter -" link again.

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To view parent blocks / IP block hierarchy, in the "Filter" menu, check the "Select All Masks" checkbox and click "Apply".

Once all masks are enabled to view, the block list changes to include the "Parent" blocks, showing all masks throughout the assignment tree. 

A parent block with children will show "Has Children" in the column where assignment status is shown, and the block CIDR will show as a clickable link.

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Clicking on the CIDR for a block that has children will open "Block Tree" view, showing the hierarchy of blocks and their assignments.

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Once a filter(s) has been applied, click on "Make Default" and the filtered block list will be saved as the default view for that aggregate. When a filtered view is saved as the default the filter flag will continue to display.

You may also search for a specific block entering a full or partial CIDR, assigned resource name, or other search term into the search box at the top of the list.

Important Blocks

"Important" IP blocks display with a yellow background highlight. By default, any block that has been manually assigned, unassigned, or had other high-level manual interactions performed will be automatically marked as "Important". 

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Blocks may be manually marked or unmarked as "Important" from either the "Edit Block" interface or from the API.

To edit the important flag, open Edit block, then select / deselect the toggle for "Mark this block as important", and save your changes.

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If multiple blocks are selected with mixed "important" statuses, then the toggle will display in the "Off" position.

To update all selected blocks to flag as important, switch the toggle to "On", and save changes. To switch all to the "Off" position, you may either toggle all blocks to "On", save changes, then switch all blocks back to "Off" and re-save, or adjust your selection to only include the blocks that need the Important Flag removed. (Tip: Use the list filter to show only "important" blocks!)

Working with IP Blocks - Common Tasks

Individual Blocks may be managed from either IPAM Manage, or the IPAM Gadget.  (if assigned to a resource, and the IPAM Gadget is enabled on the Resource's Entry Page). 

In general, standard actions from the Action Menu will be performed the same in either area, with "Assign" being the exception.

For details on some common tasks to perform with IP Blocks, see the next section: Working with IP Blocks - Common Tasks:Image Removed

Additional Information

For additional information on working with the IPAM system in ProVision, see the following areas:

• Gadgets (IPAM and IPAMv2 Gadgets) 
• Working with IP Rules
• IPAM Administration

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• Working with NAT Blocks