VMware Salt for VCF Components API

Introduction

What is Salt?

Salt is a powerful, industry-standard automation and configuration management tool. It allows administrators to define how software and infrastructure should be configured, and then automatically applies those settings across thousands of systems simultaneously.

How is Salt embedded into VCF?

Starting with VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 9.1, the Salt engine was embedded directly into the core VCF stack to manage all overall VCF configurations. You do not need to install it separately; the backend server—known as Salt RaaS (Returner as a Service) for VCF—is automatically deployed alongside your VCF Management Services. You can monitor this service in Operations Fleet Lifecycle, where it is listed simply as "Salt RaaS."

With VCF 9.1.1, we introduced the VMware Salt for VCF Components API (referred to as Salt for VCF API). This API provides a programmatic, automated way to manage configuration settings across your entire VCF environment at scale.

How to Use This Guide

You should view this documentation as a technical reference manual for automating VCF configurations. It is designed to help you build and execute automated configuration tasks by detailing:

• The available Salt for VCF API interfaces.

• The specific VCF component configurations you can manage.

• The required files, data structures, and formats needed to make successful API calls.

API Structure and Access

The Salt for VCF API is organized logically into modules (called resources) and functions (called methods).

For example, in the API call test.echo('hello, world'):

• test is the resource.

• echo() is the method.

• 'hello, world' is the argument, which can be passed by position or by keyword.

Accessing the Endpoint

You can access the VMware Salt for VCF Component APIs securely over HTTPS using tools like cURL. Once enabled, clients connect to the Salt RaaS for VCF server via the following endpoint:

https://<your-vcf-ms-hostname>/raas/rpc

Connecting and Permissions

For detailed instructions on enabling the endpoint, connecting to the API, and managing user access, refer to the VCF 9.1.1 Administration SDKs, APIs, and CLI > VMware Salt for VCF Components API TechDocs.

• Endpoint Enablement & Connection: See the TechDocs for prerequisites and connection steps.

• Permissions: API access is controlled through VCF Operations Identity and Access Management. See the TechDocs to learn how to properly assign user permissions.