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KACE Systems Management Appliance 14.1 Common Documents - Administration 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 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 Configuring Content Security Policy
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 About Remote Control 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 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 Manage quarantined file attachments
Using reports and scheduling notifications Monitoring devices
Getting started with 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

Select Dell Update download settings

Select Dell Update download settings

You must configure and schedule catalog updates before you create schedules to update devices.

Dell Update packages are provided in catalogs: one for servers and one for clients.

1.
Go to the Dell Update Download Settings page:
◦
If the Organization component is not enabled on the appliance, click Security, then click Dell Updates.
◦
If the Organization component is enabled on the appliance, log in to the appliance System Administration Console, https://appliance_hostname/system, or select System in the drop-down list in the top-right corner of the page, then select Settings > Control Panel.
2.
Click Dell Update Download Settings.
The current status of the Dell catalog is displayed.
3.
In the Configure File Downloads tab, select the following options.

Option

Description

Disabled

Prevents the downloading of Dell Update packages. This prevention includes the installers that are required to install the updates.

All files

Maintains a full cache of subscribed packages on your appliance. This option downloads all deployment packages, without checking to determine whether they are required for your environment.

Files detected as missing

Allows the appliance to determine which packages to download based on the results of Detect jobs. If a Dell Update detection signature has been detected as Not Installed on any managed device, the package is downloaded. If no managed devices are detected as Not Installed, no packages for this update are downloaded.

Delete unused files after __ days

Deletes Dell Update packages that have not been deployed in the specified number of days. Dell Updates that are marked as Inactive or Disabled are automatically deleted during the download process.

4.
In the Actions tab, select the following options.

Option

Description

Update

Description

Actions

For each type of updates (Signature or Update Files), provides a description and access to the available actions:

•
Check for Update: Click to download Dell Update signature files.
•
Delete: Click to immediately remove all Dell Updates from the appliance. This can be useful if you no longer need any update and you want to quickly reclaim the disk space that they used.
•
Run Now: Click to immediately download the Dell Updates to which you have subscribed, regardless of the subscription schedule.
5.
Select schedule options for Dell Update signatures in the Schedule section. File signatures include the security bulletins and other files that define Dell Updates downloaded from Quest.

Option

Description

Signature Download

Select None to prevent the downloading of Dell Update signatures.

Every day at the specified time

Select day to download Dell Update detection signatures every day, or select a day of the week to download once a week.

Select the time to start the download. Time is displayed in 24-hour clock format, where 0 is midnight, 1:00 a.m. is 1 and 11:00 p.m. is 23.

* 
NOTE: When setting up Dell Update downloads, timing is important. The appliance activity log is created at 1:30, and maintenance tasks occur between 01:00 and 01:30. Quest recommends that you schedule Dell Update downloads to occur after the log and maintenance tasks are complete, which is about 3:00.

On the nth of every month or on a specific month at HH:MM

Select the day of the month to download Dell Update detection signatures on a monthly basis.

6.
Set the schedule options for Dell Updates.

Option

Description

After signature download

Downloads packages after the signatures have been downloaded. This option is not available if the Disabled option is cleared in the Configure File Downloads section.

Every __ minutes

Specifies the frequency with which packages are downloaded. This option is available only if Files detected as missing in the Configure File Downloads section is selected.

Download Blackout: Start __ End __

Specifies a time period during which files cannot be downloaded. For example, use an early morning stop time to prevent the process from using a large amount of network bandwidth during regular working hours.

If you select this option, the appliance stops file downloads at the specified time. It does not start file downloads again until the next specified download time. When the download resumes, it starts up where it left off. Downloads that are incomplete might not appear on the Dell Update Catalog page.

7.
Click Save.

Configure Dell Update schedules

Configure Dell Update schedules

The appliance can automatically identify and install the firmware and driver updates required for your Dell clients and servers according to the schedule you set. If the Organization component is enabled on your appliance, you create Dell Update schedules for each organization separately.

Consider creating labels to group Dell Updates and devices. You can then use those labels when you create Dell Update schedules. For example, you could create a label that groups updates by application families, such as drivers or firmware. Or, you could group all Dell servers running Microsoft Windows 7 into a single label and then run a Dell Update schedule to bring them up to date. For more information about creating labels for updates and devices, see Using Smart Labels for patching.

1.
Go to the Dell Updates page:
a.
Log in to the appliance Administrator Console, https://appliance_hostname/admin. Or, if the Show organization menu in admin header option is enabled in the appliance General Settings, select an organization in the drop-down list in the top-right corner of the page next to the login information.
b.
On the left navigation bar, click Security, then click Dell Updates.
2.
Optional: Review the available updates and inactivate the updates that you do not want to install.
Updates are available only if the appliance settings are configured to download Dell catalog updates.

To review and inactivate updates:

a.
On the Dell Updates panel, click Show available updates in the Catalog section.
b.
Select the check box next to an update.
c.
Select Choose Action > Change Status to > Inactive.
3.
Schedule inventory and updates.
This is similar to creating patch schedules in the Patch Management section. You can collect inventory independently, or as part of an inventory and update schedule that also installs the updates. Normally, inventory is performed automatically as part of an update schedule.

To schedule inventory and updates:

a.
On the left navigation bar, click Security, then click Dell Updates.
b.
On the Dell Updates panel, in the Schedules section, click Detect missing updates .
c.
Select Choose Action > New.
d.
On the Dell Update Schedules list page, do one of the following:
▪
To create a new Dell Update schedule using the Schedule Detail wizard, click Choose Action > New (Wizard).
▪
To create a new Dell Update schedule using the Schedule Detail page, click Choose Action > New (Classic).
▪
To edit an existing schedule, click the schedule name in the list, then on the Dell Update Schedule Summary page that appears, click Edit.
The Schedule Detail page or wizard appears, as selected. The same options are available in each selection. You can switch between the page and wizard by clicking Classic View or Wizard View in the top-right corner, as applicable.
e.
Configure general information about the schedule:

Option

Description

Name

A name that identifies the schedule. This name appears on the Dell Update Schedules list page.

Description

A brief description of the Dell Update schedule.

f.
Select one of the following actions.
These actions are identical to patch scheduling actions. See Configure patch schedules.

Action

Description

Detect

Scans for compatible Dell Updates.

Detect and Deploy

Scans for compatible Dell Updates, downloads the applicable files to the agent device, and deploys the update to the selected devices.

Deploy

Deploys the update to the selected devices.

* 
NOTE: Dell Update deployment actions require a reboot of applicable managed devices.
g.
Select the target devices using the following options.
These options are identical to the ones appearing in patch scheduling actions. See Configure patch schedules.
Normally, you create different schedules for laptops, workstations, and servers, because these three types of devices have very different usage characteristics.

Action

Description

All Devices

To apply this schedule to all managed devices, select this options. Clear the check box to limit the update action to specific labels or devices.

Device Labels

Restrict the action to the Dell updates using the labels that you select here. This is the most commonly used option.

1.
Click Manage Associated Labels.
2.
In the Select Labels dialog box that appears, drag one or more labels (as applicable) to the Limit Run to area, then click OK.

To use this option, you must already have Smart Labels for the feature updates. See Using Smart Labels for patching.

Devices

Run Dell updates on the devices that you select. Only compatible Dell devices appear in the list.

•
To search for devices, begin typing in the field.
•
To remove all specified devices and start again, click Remove All.
•
Scoped users can see only those devices that are associated with their role, when the role is assigned a label. For more information about user roles, see Add or edit User Roles.

Operating Systems

Select the operating systems of the devices that you want to update. The default is all operating systems. When this option is configured, the schedule only applies to devices with the selected operating systems.

1.
Click Manage Operating Systems.
2.
In the Operating Systems dialog box that appears, select the OS versions in the navigation tree, as applicable.

You have an option to select OS versions by their family, product, architecture, release ID, or build version. You can choose a specific build version, or a parent node, as needed. Selecting a parent node in the tree automatically selects the associated child nodes. This behavior allows you to select any future OS versions, as devices are added or upgraded in your managed environment. For example, to select all build current and future versions associated with the Windows 10 x64 architecture, under Windows > Windows 10, select x64.

h.
Set an alert dialog to offer users a chance to delay or cancel the action:

Option

Description

Options
1.
Silent- No alerts are shown.
2.
OK- The schedule runs immediately.
3.
Cancel- The schedule is cancelled until its next scheduled run.
4.
Snooze- The user is prompted again after the Snooze Duration.
i.
Set a reboot prompt dialog to offer users a chance to delay or snooze the reboot.

Option

Description

Options
1.
Prompt User- Wait for the user to accept the reboot before restarting the device
2.
No Reboot- The device does not reboot even though a reboot might be required for the patch to take effect.
3.
Force Reboot- Reboot as soon as a patch requiring it is deployed.
4.
Automatically reboot when no one is logged in- Automatically reboot the managed device if no users are logged in
j.
In the Schedule tab, specify the applicable options for the schedule.
These options are identical to the ones appearing in patch scheduling actions. See Configure patch schedules.

Option

Description

None

Run in combination with an event rather than on a specific date or at a specific time. This option is useful if you want to patch servers manually, or perform patch actions that you do not want to run on a schedule.

Every _ hours

Run at a specified interval.

Every day/specific day at HH:MM

Run daily at a specified time, or run on a designated day of the week at a specified time.

Run on the nth of every month/specific month at HH:MM

Run on the nth day every month, (for example, the first or the second) day of every month, or a specific month, at the specified time.

Run on the nth weekday of every month/specific month at HH:MM

Run on the specific weekday of every month, or a specific month, at the specified time.

Custom

Run according to a custom schedule.

Use standard 5-field cron format (extended cron format is not supported):

* * * * *
| | | | +────────day of week (0-6)(Sun=0)
| | | +────────month (1-12)
| | +────────day of month (1-31)
| +────────hour (0-23)
+────────minute (0-59)

Use the following when specifying values:

•
Spaces ( ): Separate each field with a space.
•
Asterisks (*): Include the entire range of values in a field with an asterisk. For example, an asterisk in the hour field indicates every hour.
•
Commas (,): Separate multiple values in a field with a comma. For example, 0,6 in the day of the week field indicates Sunday and Saturday.
•
Hyphens (-): Indicate a range of values in a field with a hyphen. For example, 1-5 in the day of the week field is equivalent to 1,2,3,4,5, which indicates Monday through Friday.
•
Slashes (/): Specify the intervals at which to repeat an action with a slash. For example, */3 in the hour field is equivalent to 0,3,6,9,12,15,18,21. The asterisk (*) specifies every hour, but /3 restricts this to hours divisible by 3.

Examples:

•
15 * * * * Run 15 minutes after every hour every day
•
0 22 * * * Run at 22:00 every day
•
0 0 1 1,6 * Run at 00:00 on January 1 and June 1
•
30 8,12 * * 1-5 Run weekdays at 08:30 and 12:30
•
0 2 */2 * * Run every other day at 02:00

View Task Schedule

Click to view the task schedule. The Task Schedule dialog box displays a list of scheduled. Click a task to review the task details. For more information, see View task schedules.

Timezone

The timezone to use when scheduling the action. Select Server to use the timezone of the appliance. Select Agent to use the timezone of the managed device.

Run on next connection if offline

Run the action the next time the managed device connects to the appliance, if the device is currently offline. This option is useful for laptops and other devices that are periodically offline. If this option is not selected, and the device is offline, the action does not run again until the next scheduled time.

Delay run after reconnect

Delay the schedule by a specified amount of time. The time delay period begins when the patch action is scheduled to run.

End after

The time limit for patching actions.

For example, if you schedule patches to run at 04:00, you might want all patching actions to stop at 07:00 to prevent bandwidth issues when users start work. To do so, you could specify 180 in the minutes box.

When this time limit is reached, any patching tasks that are in progress are suspended, and their status on Security logs is Suspended.

These patching tasks do not resume on the next run and instead start from the beginning with each scheduled patching action.

* 
NOTE: The Agent Timezone is only available if there is a Dell device in inventory to pull the Timezone information from.
k.
Click Save.
The schedule appears on the Dell Update Schedules page. The schedule is disabled by default.
* 
TIP: Before you enable a schedule, test it on a small subset of the devices to make sure everything is working the way you expect.
l.
To enable the schedule, select the check box next to the schedule name, then select Choose Action > Enable.
The inventory and update runs according to the specified schedule.

View Dell Update schedules

View Dell Update schedules

You can view summary information for the Dell Update schedules that exist on the appliance. If the Organization component is enabled on your appliance, you view Dell Update schedules for each organization separately.

1.
Go to the Dell Update Schedules page:
a.
Log in to the appliance Administrator Console, https://appliance_hostname/admin. Or, if the Show organization menu in admin header option is enabled in the appliance General Settings, select an organization in the drop-down list in the top-right corner of the page next to the login information.
b.
On the left navigation bar, click Security, then click Dell Updates.
2.
On the Dell Updates panel, click Detect missing updates or Deploy available updates in the Schedules section
Columns available on the Dell Update Update Schedules page are identical to the ones on the Patch Schedules page. For more information about the fields on the Patch Schedules page, see View a list of patch schedules.
3.
(Optional) To change column visibility, select Column Visibility from the Table Options drop-down list above the table on the right.

Review Dell Update schedule details

Review Dell Update schedule details

When you configure a Dell Update schedule, this page displays details about the schedule configuration and its status.

1.
Go to the Update Schedule Summary page:
a.
Log in to the appliance Administrator Console, https://appliance_hostname/admin. Or, if the Show organization menu in admin header option is enabled in the appliance General Settings, select an organization in the drop-down list in the top-right corner of the page next to the login information.
b.
On the left navigation bar, click Security, then click Dell Updates.
c.
On the Dell Updates panel, in the Schedules section, click Detect missing updates .
d.
Click the name of a schedule.
2.
Review the contents of the Configuration section.

Option

Description

Created

The date and time the schedule is created.

Modified

The date and time the schedule is last modified.

Last Run

The date and time the schedule is last run.

Name

A name that identifies the schedule. This name appears on the Dell Update Schedules list page.

Action

The action associated with the schedule:

•
Detect: Scans for compatible Dell Updates.
•
Detect and Deploy: Scans for compatible Dell Updates, and downloads the applicable files to the agent device for later deployment.
•
Deploy: Deploys the update to the selected devices.

Description

A brief description of the Dell Update schedule.

Devices

This field only appears when the schedule is configured to apply to all devices.

Device Label

One or more Smart Labels associated with the devices against which the schedule runs. For more information, see Using Smart Labels for patching. This field only appears when the schedule is configured to apply to selected devices.

Device Name

One or more selected devices against which the schedule runs. This field only appears when the schedule is configured to apply to selected devices.

Detect Label

One or more Smart Labels associated with the scheduled updates. For more information, see Using Smart Labels for patching. This field only appears when the schedule is configured to detect selected updates.

Alerts

Detect and Deploy schedules only. The alerts displayed to users when update actions run:

•
OK: Run immediately.
•
Cancel: Cancel until the next scheduled run.
•
Snooze: Prompt the user again after the Snooze Duration.

Reboot

Detect and Deploy schedules only. The options for rebooting the managed device:

•
No Reboot: The device does not reboot even though a reboot might be required for the update to take effect. This option is not recommended because deploying updates without rebooting when required can leave systems unstable. Further, updates that require reboots are only shown as deployed after the reboot.
•
Prompt User: Waits for the user to accept the reboot before restarting the device. If the user snoozes or cancels the reboot, the update stops until a reboot occurs. Selecting a Snooze Duration in the agent dialog box that appears on the target device pauses the reboot prompt for the specified snooze interval.
•
Force Reboot: Reboots as soon as an update that requires it is deployed. Forced reboots cannot be canceled. Force Reboot works well for desktops and servers. You might not want to force reboot on laptops. Force Reboot works well with servers because they usually have no dedicated users. However, it is important to warn users that services will not be available when servers are being updated and re-booted. See Best practices for patching.

Schedule

The selected update schedule. Click View Task Schedule to see a detailed task scheduler. In the dialog box that appears, click a task to review the task details. For more information, see View task schedules.

Run on Next Connection in Offline

Indicates if the schedule runs the action the next time the managed device connects to the appliance, if the device is currently offline.

Timezone

If this option is configured, it specifies the time zone to use when scheduling related action. When set to Server, the schedule uses the appliance time zone. If it's set to Agent, it uses the time zone of the managed device.

Delay Run After Reconnect

If configured, this option indicates the amount of time the schedule is delayed for. The time delay period begins when the update action is scheduled to run.

End After

If configured, this option indicates the maximum amount of time the schedule can run for. When this time limit is reached, any update tasks that are in progress are suspended.

3.
In the Schedule Status section, review the overall schedule status on any of the following tabs:

Tab

Contents

By Machine

Devices selected for updating. Each entry displays the device name, its IP address, the update status (see Fields in the Patch Schedule Detail pages), update results, and the date the update is completed. You can expand a device node to view the applicable updates. Each entry shows the update ID, associated Knowledge Base article number, update name, the current status (Installed, Not Installed, or Deploy Failure), and the date the update is detected.

By Update

Updates selected for detection and deployment. Each entry displays the update ID, associated Knowledge Base article number, update name, and the numbers of devices that are updated, not updated, and those that encountered detect or deploy failures.

Installed

Updates successfully installed on devices. Each entry displays the update ID, associated Knowledge Base article number, and the update name. You can expand an update node to view the devices on which the update is installed.

Not Installed

Updates that are not installed on devices. Each entry displays the update ID, associated Knowledge Base article number, and the update name. You can expand an update node to view the devices on which the update is to be installed.

Detect Failures

Incomplete updates that resulted in a detection failure. Each entry displays the update ID, associated Knowledge Base, update name, and the associated error code (see Error codes caused by patching and scripting). You can expand an update node to view the devices on which the failure is encountered.

Deploy Failures

Incomplete updates that resulted in a deployment failure. Each entry displays the update ID, associated Knowledge Base, update name, and the associated error code (see Error codes caused by patching and scripting). You can expand an update node to view the devices on which the failure is encountered.

4.
Optional. After reviewing the schedule details, you can perform any of the following actions:
◦
To edit the update schedule, click Edit. For more information, see Configure Windows Feature Update schedules.
◦
To run the update schedule, click Run Now.
◦
To make a copy of the update schedule, click Duplicate.
◦
To delete the update schedule, click Delete.
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