DSA provides a command-line interface (CLI) that allows you to carry out the same actions as in the BAR Setup and BAR Operations portlets, plus additional commands that are not available in the portlets. The CLI includes setup commands for configuring, updating, and deleting targets, sources, and the DSC repository. The CLI also includes operations commands for creating, running, and monitoring jobs.
You can run commands on an ad hoc basis, as an alternative to the portlets, and you can switch between the CLI and portlets. For example, you can create jobs in the portlet and then view them using list_jobs. Or you can export the XML file associated with a job created in the portlet, and update the job definition using the command line. You can also develop scripts to automate DSA commands and to use with UNIX cron or other job-scheduling applications. For example, you might want to have a backup job run automatically every night at 1 a.m.
Each command has parameters that can be specified directly in the command line. In addition, many commands require that additional information is specified in an XML file. Sample XML files for system and component configuration and for job definition are located at $BARCMDLINE_ROOT/samples. The sample files include helpful comments and show the available settings for the corresponding command.