User interface changes in Abiquo 4.0

This page describes some of the changes to the user interface in Abiquo v4.0. Further changes are described in the release notes.

Branding changes

There have been several changes to branding in Abiquo 4.0 to simplify configuration and improve upgrades.

The most important changes affect the CSS files. Each Abiquo theme now has only one CSS file called theme.css that contains all CSS elements. And you can brand the WMKS vCloud Director remote access web console with the theme_wmks.css file, in addition to noVNC with the theme_novnc.css file.

The basic steps to upgrade branding are as follows:

Create a main theme.css file and copy inside it the content of theme_unsecured.css and theme_secured.css in that order
Set the new theme.css as the default theme. The default theme configuration will now persist after Abiquo upgrades
Create enterprise branding folders with theme.css files for individual tenants by renaming the theme_secured.css files to theme.css

Abiquo 4.0 also supports a persistent name for the client window, using the new client.window.title property in the custom client configuration file.

Login screen

Abiquo 4.0 has a default white login screen. As usual, you can create your own style for this screen.

Control tab

As part of the autoscaling feature, the control tab has been improved. The Task schedules tab has been replaced with the Triggers tab, which is at the virtual appliance level.

Virtual appliances tab

Abiquo 4.0.2 introduces a cards view to the Virtual appliances tab. The cards contain an icon to make the VApp easy to identify and information about the VApp. You can easily see the VM lifecycle state and click the deploy button on the VApp card. As well as the number of virtual machines and their status.

Switch from cards view to list view using the tabs in the top right hand corner of the Virtual appliances tab.

In list view, to view the VApp icon, mouse over the VApp name.

To perform VApp deploy operations, click on the VApp state. A button to change the VApp state will appear in the top right hand corner of the Virtual appliances tab.

To add an icon to your virtual appliance, edit the virtual appliance and enter the URL of the icon.

Virtual machine canvas

In Abiquo 4.0, there are changes to the main virtual machine icon, which is now larger to accommodate the scaling group functionality. Abiquo has added new symbols to the virtual machine icon for scaling groups, and for backups enabled on the virtual machine. In the image, Abiquo displays the symbols for Virtual machine error, Chef virtual machine and VM with backup. If the virtual machine were persistent, the persistent symbol would be shown in the second slot.

noVNC upgrade

The version of noVNC incorporated into Abiquo has been upgraded for Abiquo v4.0. As in previous versions, you can brand the noVNC interface.

Cache refresh

After every Abiquo upgrade, users must refresh their browser cache to work with the latest version of the Abiquo user interface. Abiquo v4.0 checks the version of key user interface files and enforces the clearing of the cache if necessary.

Purchase public IPs from Edit VM dialog

Abiquo 4.0 introduces a shortcut in datacenters, so that users can purchase IPs in public VLANs when they are editing their virtual machine, saving time!
The user can select an available network from the dropdown selection list and an IP from the list.

Display of layers in creation of VApp from specs

When the user creates a VApp from a spec, Abiquo will now display the layers within the virtual appliance in the spec preview screens.

Infrastructure links to Virtual datacenter and Virtual appliance

In Abiquo 4.0.2, to go directly to an Abiquo virtual datacenter or virtual appliance, you can click on its name in Infrastructure view, and if necessary, Abiquo will automatically switch enterprises for you. The links are distinguished with orange text.