Skip to main content

Aruba API Data Source

The Aruba API connector enables you to ingest network management data from Aruba Central, including audit logs, Wi-Fi connectivity metrics, AI insights, and radio information. This connector is particularly useful for applications that need to extract network analytics, monitor network performance, or analyze network management data. Follow the instructions below to create a new data flow that ingests data from an Aruba API source in Nexla.
aruba_api.png

Aruba API

Create a New Data Flow​

  1. To create a new data flow, navigate to the Integrate section, and click the New Data Flow button. Then, select the desired flow type from the list, and click the Create button.

  2. Select the Aruba API connector tile from the list of available connectors. Then, select the credential that will be used to connect to the Aruba Central instance, and click Next; or, create a new Aruba API credential for use in this flow.

  3. In Nexla, Aruba API data sources can be created using pre-built endpoint templates, which expedite source setup for common Aruba Central endpoints. Each template is designed specifically for the corresponding Aruba Central endpoint, making source configuration easy and efficient.
    • To configure this source using a template, follow the instructions in Configure Using a Template.

    Aruba API sources can also be configured manually, allowing you to ingest data from Aruba Central endpoints not included in the pre-built templates or apply further customizations to exactly suit your needs.
    • To configure this source manually, follow the instructions in Configure Manually.

Configure Using a Template​

Nexla provides pre-built templates that can be used to rapidly configure data sources to ingest data from common Aruba Central endpoints. Each template is designed specifically for the corresponding Aruba Central endpoint, making data source setup easy and efficient.

Endpoint Settings​

  • Select the endpoint from which this source will fetch data from the Endpoint pulldown menu. Available endpoint templates are listed in the expandable boxes below. Click on an endpoint to see more information about it and how to configure your data source for this endpoint.

    Get All Audit Logs

    This endpoint fetches audit logs in reverse chronological order from Aruba Central. Use this endpoint when you need to extract audit trail data, monitor system activity, or analyze network management events.

    • Optionally, enter a limit value in the Limit field to specify the maximum number of log entries to return per request. Leave empty to use the default limit.
    • Optionally, enter an offset value in the Offset field to specify the starting point for pagination. Leave empty to start from the beginning.
    • Optionally, enter a start time in the Start Time field to filter logs by start time. This should be in a format supported by the Aruba Central API.
    • Optionally, enter an end time in the End Time field to filter logs by end time. This should be in a format supported by the Aruba Central API.
    • Optionally, enter a username in the Username field to filter logs by specific user. Leave empty to retrieve logs for all users.
    • Enter a schedule in the Schedule field to specify when this data source should run. The schedule uses cron expression format.

    Audit logs provide a comprehensive record of system activity and changes in Aruba Central. The endpoint returns logs in reverse chronological order, with the most recent entries first. For complete information about retrieving audit logs, see the Aruba Central Get Audit Logs API Documentation.

    Get Wi-Fi Connectivity (Global Stage)

    This endpoint retrieves Wi-Fi connectivity success percent and baseline metrics for a given stage and time period from Aruba Central. Use this endpoint when you need to analyze Wi-Fi performance, monitor connectivity metrics, or extract network analytics data.

    • Enter the connectivity stage in the Stage field. This should be a valid connectivity stage identifier (e.g., association, authentication, dhcp).
    • Enter the start time in the From field. This should be in a format supported by the Aruba Central API (typically ISO 8601 format or Unix timestamp).
    • Enter the end time in the To field. This should be in a format supported by the Aruba Central API.
    • Enter a schedule in the Schedule field to specify when this data source should run. The schedule uses cron expression format.
    • The endpoint returns overall success percent and connection metrics for the specified connectivity stage and time range.

    Wi-Fi connectivity metrics provide insights into network performance at different stages of the connection process. The endpoint returns aggregated metrics for the global network across the specified time period. For complete information about Wi-Fi connectivity metrics, see the Aruba Central AIOps Wi-Fi Connectivity Global Documentation.

    Get AI Insights (Global)

    This endpoint retrieves a list of AI-driven insights for a network within a given time duration. Use this endpoint when you need to extract AI-generated network insights, analyze network anomalies, or monitor AI-detected issues.

    • Enter the start time in the From field. This should be in a format supported by the Aruba Central API (typically ISO 8601 format or Unix timestamp).
    • Enter the end time in the To field. This should be in a format supported by the Aruba Central API.
    • Enter a schedule in the Schedule field to specify when this data source should run. The schedule uses cron expression format.
    • The endpoint returns a list of AI insights generated by Aruba Central for the specified global network time window.

    AI insights provide automated analysis and recommendations for network issues and optimizations. The endpoint returns insights generated by Aruba Central's AIOps capabilities for the specified time period. For complete information about AI insights, see the Aruba Central AI Insights Documentation.

    Get Reporting Radio by MAC

    This endpoint fetches reporting radio information for a specific radio MAC address from Aruba Central. Use this endpoint when you need to retrieve detailed radio information, analyze radio performance, or extract device-specific network data.

    • Enter the Radio MAC address in the Radio MAC field. This should be the MAC address of the radio device you want to retrieve information for.
    • Enter a schedule in the Schedule field to specify when this data source should run. The schedule uses cron expression format.
    • The endpoint returns detailed radio information including performance metrics, configuration, and status information.

    Radio MAC addresses are unique identifiers for radio devices in Aruba Central. The endpoint returns comprehensive information about the specified radio device. For complete information about retrieving radio information, see the Aruba Central API Documentation.

Endpoint Testing​

Once the selected endpoint template has been configured, Nexla can retrieve a sample of the data that will be fetched according to the current settings. This allows users to verify that the source is configured correctly before saving.

  • To test the current endpoint configuration, click the Test button to the right of the endpoint selection menu. Sample data will be fetched & displayed in the Endpoint Test Result panel on the right.

  • If the sample data is not as expected, review the selected endpoint and associated settings, and make any necessary adjustments. Then, click the Test button again, and check the sample data to ensure that the correct information is displayed.

Configure Manually​

Aruba API data sources can be manually configured to ingest data from any valid Aruba Central API endpoint. Manual configuration provides maximum flexibility for accessing endpoints not covered by pre-built templates or when you need custom API configurations.

With manual configuration, you can also create more complex Aruba API sources, such as sources that use chained API calls to fetch data from multiple endpoints or sources that require custom authentication headers or request parameters.

API Method​

  1. To manually configure this source, select the Advanced tab at the top of the configuration screen.

  2. Select the API method that will be used for calls to the Aruba Central API from the Method pulldown menu. The most common methods are:

    • GET: For retrieving data from the API (most common for Aruba Central data sources)

API Endpoint URL​

  1. Enter the URL of the Aruba Central API endpoint from which this source will fetch data in the Set API URL field. This should be the complete URL including the protocol (https://) and any required path parameters.

Aruba Central API URLs typically follow the format: https://apigw-prod2.central.arubanetworks.com/platform/auditlogs/v1/logs for audit logs, or https://apigw-prod2.central.arubanetworks.com/aiops/v1/connectivity/global/stage/{stage}/export for connectivity metrics. Replace the base URL with your actual Aruba Central API gateway URL if different. Ensure the API endpoint URL is correct and accessible with your current credentials. You can test the endpoint using the Test button after configuring the URL. For complete information about Aruba Central API endpoints, see the Aruba Central API Documentation.

Request Headers​

  1. If Nexla should include any additional request headers in API calls to this source, enter the headers & corresponding values as comma-separated pairs in the Request Headers field (e.g., header1:value1,header2:value2).

You do not need to include authentication headers (OAuth 2.0 access tokens) as these are automatically included from your credentials. However, you may need to include additional headers for specific Aruba Central API features. The Accept header should be set to application/json for most Aruba Central API requests.

Response Data Path​

  1. Enter the JSON path expression that identifies the location of the data array in the API response in the Response Data Path field. This path tells Nexla where to find the array of records in the JSON response.

For Aruba Central API responses, the data path varies by endpoint. For audit log responses, use $.data[*] to extract individual log entries from the data array. For AI insights responses, use $.data[*] to extract individual insight objects. For single object responses, use $ to extract the entire object. JSON path expressions use dot notation and array indexing to navigate the response structure. For complete information about Aruba Central API response formats, see the Aruba Central API Documentation.

Schedule​

  1. Enter a schedule in the Schedule field to specify when this data source should run. The schedule uses cron expression format to define the frequency and timing of data ingestion.

Common cron expressions include: 0 6 * * * for daily at 6 AM, 0 */6 * * * for every 6 hours, and 0 0 * * 0 for weekly on Sunday at midnight. For more information about cron expressions, see the Nexla documentation on scheduling.