Chat now with support
Chat with Support

KACE Systems Management Appliance 10.2 Common Documents - Administrator Guide

About the KACE Systems Management Appliance (SMA) 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 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 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 Provisioning the KACE SMA Agent Manually deploying the KACE SMA 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
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 Maintaining device and appliance security
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 KACE SMA
Appendixes Glossary About us Legal notices

Upload Agent updates manually

Updating the KACE SMA Agent on managed devices

View KACE SMA Agent updates
Configure Agent update settings
Upload Agent updates manually

The KACE SMA automatically checks with Quest for KACE SMA Agent updates at approximately 03:40 every day. In addition, the appliance checks Quest for Agent updates whenever the appliance is rebooted.

When Agent updates are available, they are automatically downloaded to the KACE SMA, provided that the appliance is connected to the Internet, and an alert appears on the Home page of the KACE SMA Administrator Console. Until you configure deployment settings, however, Agent updates are not automatically deployed to managed devices. Click the link in the alert to configure deployment settings.

In addition, you can check for Agent software updates, obtain Agent updates manually, and configure Agent update settings any time. Obtaining updates manually is useful if your appliance is not connected to the Internet.

View KACE SMA Agent updates

You can view KACE SMA Agent updates in the Administrator Console.

1.
Go to the appliance Control Panel:
◦
If the Organization component is not enabled on the appliance, log in to the KACE SMA Administrator Console, https://KACE_SMA_hostname/admin, then click Settings.
◦
If the Organization component is enabled on the appliance, log in to the KACE SMA System Administration Console, https://KACE_SMA_hostname/system, or select System in the drop-down list in the top-right corner of the page, then click Settings.
2.
On the left navigation bar, click Appliance Updates.
The Appliance Updates page appears. The current Agent bundle appears in the Agent section.
3.
Optional: To check for updates: In the Agent section, click Check for Update.
The appliance checks for updates, and the results appear on the Logs page.
Configure Agent update settings

After Agents are installed on devices, they are designed to update themselves automatically based on the Agent update settings you choose on the Update Agent Settings page. This is true regardless of the provisioning methods used to deploy the Agents, including KACE SMA provisioning, GPO wizard, other GPO deployments, or image deployment.

If you have multiple organizations, you configure Agent update settings for each organization separately.

1.
Go to the Update Agent Settings page:
a.
Log in to the KACE SMA Administrator Console, https://KACE_SMA_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 Settings, then click Provisioning.
c.
On the Provisioning Panel, click Update Agents.
If a new Agent update is available, it appears in the Available Agent Bundle section.
2.
Click Apply in the Available Agent Bundle section.
The new Agent version number appears in the Advertised Updates section, and the Enabled check box in the Agent Settings section is cleared, disabling automatic updates. This enables you to test the updates on selected devices before deploying them system-wide.
3.
View or specify the following Agent update settings:

Option

Description

Enabled

Deploy the update to the selected KACE SMA devices during the next scheduled inventory interval. Clear the check box to prevent updates from being installed.

Modified

Read-only: The time the most recent Agent bundle was downloaded.

All Devices

Deploy the update to all devices that have the KACE SMA Agent installed. If this option is selected, the Devices and Labels elements do not appear on the page.

Devices

Update only specific devices. Select the device names in the drop-down list that appears when you click in the field, or type the first few characters of a device name to sort the list. For example, type Dev to list matching device names such as Device-1, Device-2, and so on. This option is not available when you select All Devices.

Manage Associated Labels

Display the Edit Labels dialog. Search for and select labels, and update devices assigned to the selected labels. This option is not available when you select All Devices.

Notes

Any additional information you want to provide.

4.
Click Save.
The update is deployed to the selected devices during the next scheduled inventory interval. If you use Replication Shares, and failover to the KACE SMA is not selected, Agents are updated after the Replication Shares are updated.
5.
If you limited deployment to specified devices for testing, select additional devices in the Agent Settings section of the Update Agent Settings page when your testing is complete.
The update is deployed to the selected devices during the next scheduled inventory interval.
6.
If you have multiple organizations, repeat the preceding steps for each organization.
Upload Agent updates manually

In most cases, Agent updates are automatically downloaded to the KACE SMA when they become available. However, you can download updates from Quest and manually upload Agent updates to the appliance as needed. This is useful if your appliance is not connected to the Internet, or if Agent updates are available but have not yet been downloaded to the appliance automatically.

To download Agent updates from Quest, you must obtain customer login credentials by contacting Quest Support at https://support.quest.com/contact-support.

1.
To manually check for updates, go to the appliance Control Panel:
◦
If the Organization component is not enabled on the appliance, log in to the KACE SMA Administrator Console, https://KACE_SMA_hostname/admin, then click Settings.
◦
If the Organization component is enabled on the appliance, log in to the KACE SMA System Administration Console, https://KACE_SMA_hostname/system, or select System in the drop-down list in the top-right corner of the page, then click Settings.
2.
On the left navigation bar, click Appliance Updates to display the Appliance Updates page.
The version of the current Agent bundle appears in the Agent section.
3.
Click Check for Update in the Agent section.
The appliance checks for updates, and the results appear on the Logs page.
4.
To obtain updates:
a.
Log in to the Quest Support site using your customer login credentials:
https://support.quest.com/kace-systems-management-appliance/download-new-releases.
b.
Download the Agent update bundle and save the file locally.
5.
Go to the Update Agent Settings page:
a.
Log in to the KACE SMA Administrator Console, https://KACE_SMA_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 Settings, then click Provisioning.
c.
On the Provisioning Panel, click Update Agents.
6.
Do one of the following:
◦
If a new update appears in the Available Agent Bundle section, click Apply.
◦
If you manually downloaded an update, go to the Manually Upload Agent Bundle section, click Browse or Choose File, locate the file that you downloaded, then click Upload.
The new Agent version number appears in the Advertised Updates section, and the Enabled check box in the Agent Settings section is cleared, disabling automatic updates. This enables you to test the updates on selected devices before deploying them system-wide.
7.
Specify deployment options In the Agent Settings section. See Configure Agent update settings.
8.
If you have multiple organizations, repeat 6 and 7 for each organization.

Manually deploying the KACE SMA Agent

Manually deploying the KACE SMA Agent

Obtaining Agent installation files
Manually deploying the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices
Manually deploying and upgrading the KACE SMA Agent on Linux devices
Performing Agent operations on Linux devices
Manually deploying and upgrading the KACE SMA Agent on Mac devices
Performing other Agent operations on Mac devices
Viewing information collected by the Agent

Manual deployment is useful when automated Agent provisioning is not practical or when you want to deploy the KACE SMA Agent using email, logon scripts, GPO (Group Policy Objects), or Active Directory.

•
Email: To deploy KACE SMA Agents through email, you would send an email to your users that contains one of the following:
◦
The Agent installation file.
◦
A link to the appliance where the Agent file can be downloaded.
◦
A web location where the required installation file can be downloaded.
•
Logon scripts: Logon scripts enable you to deploy the KACE SMA Agent when users log on to a device. If you use logon scripts, you would upload the appropriate file in an accessible directory and create a logon script to retrieve it.

Obtaining Agent installation files

Obtaining Agent installation files

Agent installation files are available on the appliance.

You can find the KACE SMA Agent installers for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux devices on the KACE SMA in the following directory:

\\KACE_SMA_hostname\client\agent_provisioning

* 
NOTE: File sharing must be enabled to access the installers. See Enable file sharing at the System level.

Manually deploying the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices

Manually deploying the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices

Manually deploy the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices using the installation wizard
Manually deploy the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices using the Command line
Manage the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices using the Windows system tray

You can manually deploy the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices using the installation wizard or from the command line on devices.

When you install the Agent manually, the Agent executable files must be installed in the following locations:

•
Windows 32-bit devices: C:\Program Files\Quest\KACE\
•
Window 64-bit devices: C:\Program Files (x86)\Quest\KACE\

The Agent configuration files, logs, and other data are stored in:

•
Windows 32-bit devices: C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Quest\KACE
•
Window 64-bit devices: C:\ProgramData\Quest\KACE
Manually deploy the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices using the installation wizard

You can manually deploy the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices by running the installation wizard on devices.

1.
Go to the shared directory of the appliance:
\\KACE_SMA_hostname\client\agent_provisioning\windows_platform
2.
Copy the ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86.msi file to the device.
3.
Double-click the file to start the installation and follow the instructions in the installation wizard.

The device information appears in the appliance Inventory within a few minutes. See Managing applications on the Software page.

Manually deploy the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices using the Command line

There are several ways to deploy the Agent from the command line on Windows devices.

For example:

•
In a batch file as part of a logon script that runs the installer (msiexec) and sets various parameters, such as the value of the host.
•
Set an environment variable for the server name then run the installer.
•
Change name of the installer, which automatically sets the server name during the installation.

The following table shows command line parameters used to deploy the Agent.

Table 21. Command line parameters for the Agent

Description

Parameter

Windows Installer Tool

msiexec or msiexec.exe

Install flag

/i

Example:

msiexec /i ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86

Uninstall flag

/x

Example:

msiexec /x ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86

Silent install

/qn

Example:

msiexec /qn /i ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86

Log verbose output

/L*v log.txt

Example:

msiexec /qn /L*v C:\temp\log.txt /i ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86

Auto set hostname: Rename the installation file to the name of the server name, which automatically sets the hostname

rename agent_installer.msi_hostname.msi

Example:

msiexec /qn /i ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86_kace_sma.example.com.msi

Set properties

PROPERTY=value (Must use ALL CAPS)

Example:

msiexec /qn /i ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86.msi HOST=kace_sma.example.com

Set server name

set KACE_SERVER=kace_sma_name

Must be followed by an msiexec call to install

Example:

set KACE_SERVER=kboxmsiexec /i ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86

Prevent the installation of logon or bootup hooks, and preserve existing userinit.exe files

NOHOOKS=1

Example:

msiexec /qn /i ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86.msi HOST=kace_sma.example.com NOHOOKS=1

Install the Agent but do not start the service. This enables the Agent to be imaged and cloned to other devices

CLONEPREP=yes/no

Example:

msiexec /qn /i ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86.msi HOST=kace_sma.example.com CLONEPREP=yes

Set the debug level for the Agent when it generates logs

DEBUG=true/all

Example:

msiexec /qn /i ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86.msi HOST=kace_sma.example.com DEBUG=true

Force the Agent to communicate through HTTPS only. It cannot fall back to HTTP if HTTPS is unavailable

SSLREQUIRED=true

Example:

msiexec /qn /i ampagent-6.x.xxxxx-x86.msi HOST=kace_sma.example.com SSLREQUIRED=true

The system looks for the value of host in these locations in the order shown:

1.
The installer file
2.
The HOST property value
3.
KACE_SERVER (environment variable)
4.
The amp.conf file
* 
CAUTION: If you leave the host value empty, you must set the environment variable. Otherwise, the Agent will not connect to the appliance. Quest recommends that you use the fully qualified domain name as the hostname.
Manage the KACE SMA Agent on Windows devices using the Windows system tray

You can view the status of the KACE SMA Agent, force inventory, and display agent information using the Windows system tray.

To access the KACE SMA Agent status using the system tray, you must enable the Agent Status On Device option in the Agent and Communication Settings section. For more information, see Configure Agent communication and log settings.

1.
On the Mac device where the KACE SMA Agent is running, in the Mac menu bar, click .
The color of the icon indicates if the agent is connected to the appliance. A red icon is displayed if the agent is disconnected. If the agent is connected, a green icon appears. If the agent is snoozed, the icon is orange.
The agent menu appears.
2.
To find out if the agent is connected to the appliance, observe the Status icon in the menu.
3.
To run the device inventory, click Inventory in the menu.
4.
To restart the agent, click Restart Agent in the menu.
5.
To temporarily suspend the agent's activity during a specific time period, click Snooze Agent, and select a time period in the menu. You can snooze the agent for 15 minutes, 30 minutes, one hour, or two hours.
* 
NOTE: You can only snooze the agent if the Agent Snooze on Device option is enabled in the Agent and Communication Settings section on the appliance, and if the maximum number of snoozes is not reached. For more information, see Configure Agent communication and log settings.
Snoozing an agent does not stop any ongoing agent processes on the device. It only prevents the agent from starting a new process. If an agent snooze is not possible, for example, due to configuration, an error message appears.
6.
To find out more information about the agent application, click About.
Related Documents

The document was helpful.

Select Rating

I easily found the information I needed.

Select Rating