Description

CTools is a toolbox to easily check, manage, run bulk operations, automate tasks across multiple CTERA Edge Filers and Portal via GUI or CLI.

Getting Started

You do not need to build or compile the tool yourself. Simply download the ready-to-use EXE file directly from the Releases tab.

The EXE is digitally signed and ready to run immediately.

Alternative (Python version)

If you prefer, you can run the tool from the Python source instead. This option requires Python and manual setup.

• Development Requirements

  • CTERA Environment
  • CTERA SDK for Python
  • Python
  • git
  • PySide6

Requirements

1. Use a Portal Global Administrator account to login.

2. Ensure necessary Remote Administration settings are enabled on the portal: (Applies to portal versions older than 7.2)

   Access the Global Administration view > Navigate to Settings > Control Panel > User Roles > Read/Write Administrator -> Ensure "Allow Single Sign On to Devices" is checked

   • documentation

Please review this document to learn more about each tool

💻 Using CTools (GUI Mode)

When you launch CTools in GUI, two windows will open:

1. Main Window (GUI)

• Provides an interactive graphical interface for selecting and executing tasks.

2. Console Window

• This black window displays detailed logs, progress, and relevant runtime messages.
• Important: Keep this window open to view real-time operation status and debug information.

Running Commands:

To see an explanation for what each tool does and how to use it, hover over the "i" button.

• Run CMD
  This tab allows you to run a command remotely across one or multiple CTERA Edge Filers. This is useful in sitatuations when you have many filers and need to make a change across all of them without manually logging into each. Below are explanations of each available field and checkbox:

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal or filer.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Command	The command you want to execute on the filer(s). For example, to change the admin password for all the edge filers, please type set /config/auth/users/admin/password "P@ssw0rd"
  Tenant Name	Specify the portal tenant name, if the command doesn't need to be run on all devices and only on device in a specific tenant.
  Device Name (Overrides "All Tenants")	Specify an individual filer name to target; overrides running on all devices if provided.
  Run on all Tenants (No device name needed)	Checkbox: Select to execute the command on all tenants connected to the specified portal.
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates execution of the specified command.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

• Show Status
  This tab helps in pulling detailed information from all Edge Filers connected to the portal, including memory, CPU, disk usage, log settings, Active Directory (AD) status, CloudSync queue status, and more. The output is saved in a .csv file format, which can be opened in Excel or any other compatible application.

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal or filer.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  File Name	Specify the file name with a .csv extension to save the output.
  Run on all Tenants	Checkbox: Select to pull status information from all tenants connected to the specified portal.
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates execution of the Show Status command.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

• Suspend Sync / Unsuspend Sync
  These tabs help you remotely suspend or unsuspend sync operations on Edge Filers. This is particularly useful when the device UI is not reachable.

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal or filer.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Device Name	Specify the target filer device name.
  Tenant Name	Specify the portal tenant name, where device exists
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates execution of the specified command (Suspend/Unsuspend).
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

• Enable SSH / Disable SSH
  The Enable SSH tab allows you to remotely enable SSH access on Edge Filers.
  The Disable SSH tab disables SSH access.

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal or filer.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Device Name	Specify the target filer device name.
  Tenant Name	Specify the portal tenant name, where device exist.
  SSH Public Key	Paste the SSH public key generated using PuTTYgen (or a similar key-generation tool) after creating a public/private key pair (see example below).
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates execution of the specified command (Enable SSH / Disable SSH).
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

  Example SSH Public Key format:

  exec /config/device startSSHD publicKey "ssh-rsa AAAAB3NzaC1yc2EAAAABJQAAAQEA0MUxI0nZ4jJPSoGnbFb/Qd4EbEipjjogIpOGVoOGeJx2DMJjZBF7MF/d/3Rt/SP5QDcnRvgIMA0e7o6wH6Zib7QvB9tXbeCnK68NQjx1KYabtKhrPlNC7VCOjeW8s9pC244nDnCsk8XLRNAUIOSAnQC/Iu+iqn0RV2D6qZzUJ4hkkcTh0G7wroDMkVmqQ3R+/2ibiRjux9C3HaHX7W+lVVJGF3MCK/+FRjb3MWQ+U2LYmwsvzq+xTJyikUwBS3Kng0WV4omzyaxjJ6vkkZh4wvlhdwfR6QEabW6Xk7wpEEXej6NaT9l+3CjXEWbrI8hD3mtICL+bdstPO2DeS7UcXw== rsa-key-20200821"
  

• Enable Telnet
  This tab enables Telnet access on Edge Filers. The required activation code must be obtained from CTERA Support by providing them the Edge Filer's MAC address (available from the Edge Filer UI) and the installed version.

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal or filer.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Device Name	Specify the target filer device name.
  Tenant Name	Specify the tenant name, if applicable, when enabling Telnet for specific tenants.
  Required Code for Telnet	Enter the activation code provided by CTERA Support after submitting the Edge Filer's MAC address and version information.
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates execution of the Enable Telnet command.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

• Reset Password
  This tab helps reset the admin or local user password for an Edge Filer when the current password has been lost or forgotten, but the device remains connected to the portal.

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal or filer.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Device Name	Specify the target filer device name if it needs to be reset on only 1 filer
  Tenant Name	Specify the tenant name, where device exists.
  Username for local user	Username of the local user whose password you want to reset (usually 'admin').
  New filer password	Enter the new password to set for the specified user.
  Run on all Devices (No device or tenant name needed)	Checkbox: Select to reset the password on all devices connected to the specified portal.
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates execution of the Reset Password command.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

• CloudFS
  This tab allows you to create multiple cloud folders on the portal using a CSV file. This is particularly useful when you have many cloud folders to create and prefer not to do so individually via the UI.

  Field/Option	Description
  Portal Address, hostname, or FQDN	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal.
  Username for portal admin	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  CSV File	Browse and select a CSV file with the list of cloud folders to be created.
  Verbose	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates execution to create cloud folders as per the provided CSV file.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

  CSV Template:

  You can download the CSV template here.

• Delete Shares
  This tab allows you to delete shares containing a specific keyword from all filers connected to the portal. For example, you can delete all shares containing the word "migration." After filling in the required fields and clicking Start, you'll be prompted to enter the keyword.

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal or filer.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Start	Initiates execution and prompts for the keyword to identify shares to delete.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

• Copy Shares
  This tab allows you to replicate share configurations from one Edge Filer (source) to another (destination). It creates all the share present on the source filer on the destination filer. Note that this operation does not copy the actual data—only the shares themselves are created.

  Field/Option	Description
  Source Device IP/FQDN	IP address or fully qualified domain name of the source Edge Filer.
  Source Admin Username	Admin username used to log in to the source Edge Filer.
  Source Admin Password	Password associated with the provided source admin username.
  Destination Device IP/FQDN	IP address or fully qualified domain name of the destination Edge Filer.
  Destination Admin Username	Admin username used to log in to the destination Edge Filer.
  Destination Admin Password	Password associated with the provided destination admin username.
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates execution to replicate share structures from the source to the destination filer.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

• Add/Remove Members to Admin Group
  This tab allows you to add or remove domain users or domain groups from the Administrators group on one or multiple Edge Filers. It’s particularly useful for efficiently managing administrative access across multiple devices.

  Field/Option	Description
  Portal Address, hostname, or FQDN	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal.
  Username for portal admin	Admin username used to log in to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Add or Remove	Select whether you want to Add or Remove members from the Administrators group. Selecting one option automatically updates the Add column accordingly.
  Add	Specify the member type (Domain User or Domain Group) to add or remove.
  Perform on	Select where to apply the changes: on One Device, All Devices on One Tenant, or All Devices on All Tenants.
  Tenant Name	Tenant name, required when performing on all devices within one tenant.
  Device Name	Device name if performing the action on a single Edge Filer.
  User	Domain user or group name to add or remove from the Administrators group.
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates execution to add/remove members as configured.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

• Report Zones
  This tab pulls information about all zones and their details from connected portals and outputs them to a CSV file. The generated report includes:

  • Portal Name
  • Zone Name
  • Cloud Folders
  • Devices
  • Total Size
  • Total Folders
  • Total Files

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Portal Admin Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Output Location	Browse to select or specify the folder location to save the resulting CSV report file.
  Start	Initiates the process and generates the Zones report.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

  Note:
  The resulting CSV file can be opened in Excel or any other compatible application for further analysis.

• Populate Shares
  This tab creates a share on an Edge Filer for each cloud folder (excluding "My Files"). It's especially useful when there are many cloud folders, and you need each one available as an individual share on the filer.

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Device Name	Specify the target Edge Filer device name where the shares should be populated.
  Domain Name	Required only if domain users own cloud folders.
  Ignore cert warnings for login	Checkbox: Select this to bypass certificate warnings when connecting to the portal.
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates the creation of shares from existing cloud folders.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

• Add Domain to Advanced Mapping
  This tab adds additional Active Directory (AD) domains to Advanced Mappings on Edge Filers, enabling users from other AD domains to access shares.

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Tenant (Empty if all devices on all tenants)	Specify tenant name, leave blank if operation is for all tenants.
  Device Name (Empty if multiple devices)	Specify device name, leave blank if operation is for multiple devices.
  Domain to be Added	Name of the Active Directory domain to be added to Advanced Mappings.
  Ignore cert warnings for login	Checkbox: Select this to bypass certificate warnings when connecting to the portal.
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates the process to add the specified domain to Advanced Mappings.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

• Shares Report
  This tab generates a detailed CSV report of all shares configured across all connected Edge Filers. The resulting report includes the following information:

  • Share Name
  • Share Path
  • Edge Filer Name
  • Edge Filer IP

  Field/Option	Description
  Address (Portal IP, hostname, or FQDN)	The IP address, hostname, or fully qualified domain name of your CTERA portal.
  Portal Admin Username	Admin username used to login to Portal Admin UI.
  Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Tenant (Empty to run on all)	Specify tenant name if the report is specific to one tenant; leave blank to run for all tenants.
  Filename (.csv)	Specify a filename with the .csv extension to save the generated report.
  Ignore cert warnings for login	Checkbox: Select this to bypass certificate warnings when connecting to the portal.
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates the process and generates the Shares report.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

  Note:
  The resulting CSV file can be opened in Excel or any other compatible application for further analysis.

• Import Certificate
  This tab allows importing and updating the UI certificate on older Edge Filers where the direct certificate import option isn't available. To import the certificate, fill in the following fields:

  Field/Option	Description
  Edge IP Address	IP address of the target Edge Filer.
  Admin Username	Admin username used to log in to the Edge Filer UI.
  Admin Password	Password associated with the provided admin username.
  Private Key File	Browse and select the private key file associated with the certificate.
  Certificate Files	Browse and select the certificate file(s) to import and update on the Edge Filer UI.
  Verbose Logging	Checkbox: Enable this option for detailed logging output in the console window.
  Start	Initiates the import and update of the UI certificate.
  Cancel	Cancels the current operation.

🖥️ Command Line Interface (CLI)

CTools can also be run directly from the command line. To see the available tools and options, use:

C:\Users\Admin\Downloads>"ctools.exe" --help

CTools is a GUI toolset to interact with your CTERA Environment

Usage: ./ctools.exe [tool] [parameters]

Tools:
  run_cmd                show_status
  suspend_sync           unsuspend_sync
  enable_ssh             disable_ssh
  enable_telnet          reset_password
  cloud_folders          delete_shares
  copy_shares            add_rem_members
  report_zones           populate_shares
  add_mapping            shares_report
  import_cert

For help using these tools, you can use the --help flag after selecting the tool
Ex: "./ctools.exe run_cmd --help"

Adding Requests for New Features or Scripts

This toolset (CTools) is intended primarily for routine administrative tasks. If you have suggestions or feature requests related to simple administrative tasks, please either create an issue on our GitHub repository or open a support case:

• GitHub Issues: https://github.com/ctera/ctools/issues
• CTERA Support: https://support.ctera.com