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KACE Systems Management Appliance 13.2 Common Documents - Administrator Guide

About the KACE Systems Management Appliance Getting started
Configuring the appliance
Requirements and specifications Power-on the appliance and log in to the Administrator Console Access the Command Line Console Tracking configuration changes Configuring System-level and Admin-level General Settings Configure appliance date and time settings Managing user notifications Enable Two-Factor Authentication for all users Verifying port settings, NTP service, and website access Configuring network and security settings Configuring Agent settings Configuring session timeout and auto-refresh settings Configuring locale settings Configuring the default theme Configure data sharing preferences About DIACAP compliance requirements Configuring Mobile Device Access Enable fast switching for organizations and linked appliances Linking Quest KACE appliances Configuring history settings
Setting up and using labels to manage groups of items Configuring user accounts, LDAP authentication, and SSO Deploying the KACE Agent to managed devices Using Replication Shares Managing credentials Configuring assets
About the Asset Management component Using the Asset Management Dashboard About managing assets Adding and customizing Asset Types and maintaining asset information Managing Software assets Managing physical and logical assets Maintaining and using manual asset information Managing locations Managing contracts Managing licenses Managing purchase records
Setting up License Compliance Managing License Compliance Setting up Service Desk Configure the Cache Lifetime for Service Desk widgets Creating and managing organizations Importing and exporting appliance resources
Managing inventory
Using the Inventory Dashboard Using Device Discovery Managing device inventory
About managing devices Features available for each device management method About inventory information Tracking changes to inventory settings Managing inventory information Finding and managing devices Registering KACE Agent with the appliance Provisioning the KACE Agent Manually deploying the KACE Agent Using Agentless management Adding devices manually in the Administrator Console or by using the API Forcing inventory updates Managing MIA devices Obtaining Dell warranty information
Managing applications on the Software page Managing Software Catalog inventory
About the Software Catalog Viewing Software Catalog information Adding applications to the Software Catalog Managing License assets for Software Catalog applications Associate Managed Installations with Cataloged Software Using software metering Using Application Control Update or reinstall the Software Catalog
Managing process, startup program, and service inventory Writing custom inventory rules
Deploying packages to managed devices
Distributing software and using Wake-on-LAN Broadcasting alerts to managed devices Running scripts on managed devices Managing Mac profiles Using Task Chains
Patching devices and maintaining security
Using the Security Dashboard About patch management Subscribing to and downloading patches Creating and managing patch schedules Managing patch inventory Managing Windows Feature Updates Managing Dell devices and updates Managing Linux package upgrades Maintaining device and appliance security Manage quarantined file attachments
Using reports and scheduling notifications Monitoring servers
Getting started with server monitoring Working with monitoring profiles Managing monitoring for devices Working with alerts
Using the Service Desk
Configuring Service Desk Using the Service Desk Dashboard Managing Service Desk tickets, processes, and reports
Overview of Service Desk ticket lifecycle Creating tickets from the Administrator Console and User Console Creating and managing tickets by email Viewing tickets and managing comments, work, and attachments Merging tickets Using the ticket escalation process Using Service Desk processes Using Ticket Rules Run Service Desk reports Archiving, restoring, and deleting tickets Managing ticket deletion
Managing Service Desk ticket queues About User Downloads and Knowledge Base articles Customizing Service Desk ticket settings Configuring SMTP email servers
Maintenance and troubleshooting
Maintaining the appliance Troubleshooting the appliance
Appendixes Glossary About us Legal notices

Configuring assets

Configuring assets

About the Asset Management component
Using the Asset Management Dashboard
About managing assets
Adding and customizing Asset Types and maintaining asset information
Managing Software assets
Managing physical and logical assets
Maintaining and using manual asset information
Managing locations
Managing contracts
Managing licenses
Managing purchase records

You can configure assets and Asset Types as needed.

About the Asset Management component

About the Asset Management component

The Asset Management component includes assets and Asset Types (templates). It enables you to manage assets added automatically through inventory and assets you add manually.

Default Asset Types include: Device, Cost Center, Department, License, Location, Software, and Vendor. You can create custom Asset Types as needed. See Customizing Asset Types.

Using the Asset Management component you can:

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Manage items throughout their lifecycle. Track software and other items from procurement to deployment, usage, and end of life. Or, track peripherals such as printers, network devices, and phones. See Identifying the assets to track.
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Manage software License Compliance. Track the licenses you own, as well as the number of copies of applications installed on devices. Options for managing License Compliance differ for items in the Software Catalog inventory and the Software page inventory. See Setting up License Compliance.
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Track data. Track purchase orders (POs) by entering each PO as an asset and linking it to the items purchased, received, and distributed. See Add License assets for Software page inventory.
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Track physical assets. Track physical assets, such as device hardware and software, as well as other physical assets, such as office furniture. You can track the use of these items as well as the status of their warranties. See Managing physical and logical assets.
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Track logical assets. Track logical assets, such as geographic locations, cost centers, departments, vendors, and so on. Logical assets are normally used as the basis for reporting. For example, logical assets answer questions such as “how many devices does this department have?” and “when do the licenses we bought from a software vendor expire?” See Managing physical and logical assets.
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Create and track relationships between assets. Create peer-to-peer and parent-child relationships between assets. These relationships enable you to track assets by PO (purchase order), location, department, project, and other criteria. See Establishing relationships between asset fields.

Using the Asset Management Dashboard

Using the Asset Management Dashboard

About the Asset Management Dashboard widgets
Customize the Asset Management Dashboard

The Asset Management Dashboard provides an overview of managed assets for the selected organization (if applicable), or the appliance.

If the Organization component is enabled on the appliance, and you are logged in to the Administrator Console (http://appliance_hostname/admin), the Asset Management Dashboard shows information for the selected organization. When you are logged in to the System Administration Console (http://appliance_hostname/system), the Asset Management Dashboard shows information for the appliance, including all organizations.

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TIP: The appliance updates the summary widgets periodically. To update most of the widgets any time, click the Refresh button in the upper right of the page: . To update most individual widgets, hover over the widget, then click the Refresh button above the widget. Some widgets may require additional steps.

About the Asset Management Dashboard widgets

About the Asset Management Dashboard widgets

Asset Management Dashboard widgets provide overviews of managed assets for the organization or appliance, as selected.

This section describes the widgets available on the Asset Management Dashboard. If the Organization component is enabled on your appliance, widgets show the information for the selected organization at the Admin level and for the appliance at the System level.

This dashboard provides a high-level overview of your asset usage. Use it to quickly review the state of your assets and look for any indicators that can improve your asset configuration. For example, you can focus on how your software licenses are used and identify which software titles need to have their license renewed.

Widget

Description

Assets By Type

This widget shows a donut chart, where each section of the chart indicates the percentage of your assets by their asset type, such as device, software, location, license, and others. Hovering over each section of the chart displays the percentage of the assets of the selected type.

Assets By Status

This widget shows a donut chart, where each section of the chart indicates the percentage of your assets by their status, such as Active, Disposed, Missing, or other. Hovering over each section of the chart displays the percentage of the assets in the selected status.

Cost ($) of Unused Licenses By Product

This widget shows a bar chart, where each bar represents the cost of unused licenses for each product. You can use this information to reassign or cancel unused licenses, and to redirect your resource where they are most needed.

License Compliance

If you have created License assets for software, this widget shows the number of Agent-managed devices that have a particular licensed software installed, and the number of licenses available. If the Organization component is enabled on your appliance, the widget shows the information for the selected organization.

License assets can be created for applications listed on the Software page and the Software Catalog page, and the license mode for applications must be Unit License or Enterprise for license information to appear on this widget. Applications with other license modes, such as Shareware, Freeware, or Not Specified, are not displayed on this widget.

This widget is for information only, and the appliance does not enforce license compliance. For example, the appliance does not prevent software from being installed on Agent-managed devices if a license is expired or otherwise out of compliance.

The following colors indicate threshold levels:

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Red: Usage is at or above the critical threshold setting.
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Orange: Usage is at or above the warning threshold setting but below the critical threshold setting.
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Green: Usage is below the warning threshold setting.

To change the threshold levels, see Configure appliance General Settings without the Organization component.

For information about managing License assets, see Managing inventory.

Software Titles

This widget displays the software titles defined in the Software Catalog, with the highest number of installations on managed devices. If the Organization component is enabled on your appliance, the widget shows the information for the selected organization.

Software Publishers

This widget displays the publishers defined in the Software Catalog, with the highest number of software titles installed on managed devices. If the Organization component is enabled on your appliance, the widget shows the information for the selected organization.

Assets by Location

This widget shows a donut chart, where each section of the chart indicates the percentage of your assets by their location. Hovering over each section of the chart displays the percentage of the assets in the selected location.

Software Installed But Not Used in 60 Days

This widget shows a bar chart, where each bar represents a software title and the corresponding number of instances of that product that have not been in use in the last 60 days. You can use this information to further investigate whether these titles are needed, to reassign or uninstall unused software, and to redirect your resource where they are most needed.

Expiring Software License Maintenance

This widget shows a vertical bar chart, where each bar represents the number of software licenses that are about expire in the given time period.

Expired Software License Maintenance

This widget shows a donut chart representing the ration of expired and current licenses. Hovering over each section of the chart displays the percentage of the software licenses that are either expired or current, as selected.

Expiring Contracts

This widget shows a vertical bar chart, where each bar represents the number of contracts that are about expire in the given time period.

Expired Contracts

This widget shows a donut chart representing the ration of expired and current contracts. Hovering over each section of the chart displays the percentage of the contracts that are either expired or current, as selected.

Software License Configuration

If you set up License assets for software, and specify the license type, such as site, subscription, or unit, that information is displayed in this widget. If the Organization component is enabled on your appliance, the widget shows the information for the selected organization.

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