Software support

Customers have asked questions about the relationship between product plug-ins and pluggable tools for IBM Support Assistant. The following sections provide information to answer the most common of these questions.

All tools installed in IBM Support Assistant (ISA) are associated with one or more installed product plug-ins. Before you can use a tool, you must install a product plug-in with which it is associated.

Some tools belong to a finite set of products and they are affiliated with only those products. These types of tools appear as sub-categories of product plug-ins on the Updater's New Plug-ins and Available Plug-ins Updates tabs. When you choose to install one of these tools the required product plug-in is also installed if it was not installed previously.

Common component tools are not tied to any particular product. Instead, they can be used with any product plug-in that meets requirements defined by the tool. For example, a common component tool that analyzes Java processes or artifacts can be used by any product plug-in that runs in a Java Virtual Machine (JVM). This loose association allows new product plug-ins to be added without changing the definitions of tools to affiliate them directly with each new product plug-in. However, before you can use a common component tool you must also install at least one of the product plug-ins whose characteristics meet the requirements of the common component tool.

NOTE: If the version of your IBM Support Assistant (ISA) client is earlier than V3.0.2 then the only plug-in available for upgrade or installation will be an upgrade to the ISA client. Ensure that you are using ISA V3.0.2 or later before following these instructions. Click the About link in the ISA menu bar to see version information. If you need help, see the IBM Support Assistant site for more information.

1. Ensure that IBM Support Assistant (ISA) V3 is installed. If you are not sure, then see the IBM Support Assistant site for more information.
2. Ensure that you are connected to the internet. See the Frequently Asked Questions for information about proxy settings.
3. Start the IBM Support Assistant V3 client.
4. Go to the Updater service. There are two ways to do this:
   • Click the Updater icon on the Welcome page.
   • Click the Updater link on the menu bar.
5. Click the New Plug-ins tab. Wait for ISA to build the catalog of plug-ins that are available for installation.
6. Open a product family folder by clicking the [+] icon. For example, click the [+] icon next to the WebSphere folder to see a list of available product plug-ins for the WebSphere brand.
7. Click the checkbox next to each product plug-in you want to install.
8. Click the Install button. ISA opens the license agreement window.
9. Click each product in the Plug-ins to Install list to read its license agreement.
10. Click the I agree button to accept the license agreements for all products in the Plug-ins to Install list. If you do not agree to accept the terms of the license agreements, then click the I disagree button to stop the installation.
11. Wait for ISA to download and install the products you selected.
12. ISA displays a popup that shows the status of your installation.
13. If the installation was successful then click the OK button to restart ISA. If you do not want to restart ISA then click the Cancel button. (Note that you MUST restart ISA before your product plug-ins will be available. Auto restart is available only on Windows.)

NOTE: If the version of your IBM Support Assistant (ISA) client is earlier than V3.0.2 then the only plug-in available for upgrade or installation will be an upgrade to the ISA client. Ensure that you are using ISA V3.0.2 or later before following these instructions. Click the About link in the ISA menu bar to see version information. If you need help, see the IBM Support Assistant site for more information.

1. Ensure that IBM Support Assistant (ISA) V3 is installed. If you are not sure, then see the IBM Support Assistant site for more information.
2. Ensure that you are connected to the internet. See the Frequently Asked Questions for information about proxy settings.
3. Start the IBM Support Assistant V3 client.
4. Go to the Updater service. There are two ways to do this:
   • Click the Updater icon on the Welcome page.
   • Click the Updater link on the menu bar.
5. Click the New Plug-ins tab. Wait for ISA to build the catalog of plug-ins that are available for installation.
6. Open the Common Component Tools folder by clicking the [+] icon.
7. Click the checkbox next to each tool you want to install.
8. Click the Install button. ISA opens a popup that displays important information about installing common component tools.
9. Read the text in the popup and then click the OK button. ISA opens the license agreement window.
10. Click each tool in the Plug-ins to Install list to read its license agreement.
11. Click the I agree button to accept the license agreements for all tools in the Plug-ins to Install list. If you do not agree to accept the terms of the license agreements, then click the I disagree button to stop the installation.
12. Wait for ISA to download and install the tools you selected.
13. ISA displays a popup that shows the status of your installation.
14. If the installation was successful then click the OK button to restart ISA. If you do not want to restart ISA then click the Cancel button. (Note that you MUST restart ISA before your tools will be available to use. Auto restart is available only on Windows.)

The IBM Support Assistant (ISA) associates each installed tool with one or more installed product plug-ins. Follow these instructions to launch a tool. These instructions assume that you have already installed IBM Support Assistant, at least one product plug-in, and at least one tool associated with an installed product plug-in.

1. Start the IBM Support Assistant v3 (ISA) client.
2. Go to the Tools catalog. There are two ways to do this:
   • Click the Tools icon on the Welcome page.
   • Click the Tools link on the menu bar.
3. Click the name of a product in the Products list. This action displays a list of installed tools that are associated with the product you selected.
4. Click the name of a tool in the Tools list to launch it. ISA launches the tool in a new window.