ITS Partners Insights

Video: Manage Any Device, Anywhere With IT Management Suite 7.6 (Altiris) by Symantec

Written by Chad Dupin | April 27, 2015

In this presentation, we will preview the new capabilities in the Altiris platform provided by Bomgar technology with a focus on their integrated solution with ITMS 7.6 and how you can drive down support costs, improve end user satisfaction and manage any device in your organization – no matter where it is!

 

 

Q&A From the Presentation:

Q: What does the integration between Altiris and Bomgar get you beyond what Bomgar offers on its own?

A: The integration allows for easy transition to the Bomgar Remote Support Console from the Computer Resource in the Symantec Management Console. This is in the form of a right-click action on the Computer Resource.

Q: Does the Agent Health also provide the health of the Solution Plug-ins?

A: Not in the current version of 7.6. This is something that has been mentioned to Symantec, but there is no further information on if or when that may be available.

Q: We use filters for all of our targeted resources. What are we missing by not using Targets?

A: Targets are just saved groupings of filters. If you were to have a Managed Software Delivery Policy where you "Exclude computers NOT in FilterX, Exclude computers IN FilterY, Include computers IN FilterZ" then you could save this Target as a Named Resource Target for future use without having to recreate it. Take a look at the ITMS 7.6 Administration Guide (pg 316) for more information on Resource Targets. The guide can be found here.

Q: I didn't see Asset Management listed in the slide on ITMS solutions, is it still included?

A: Asset Management is still included in ITMS, but today's webcast was primarily focused on managing the devices through the Client and Server Management Suites. One thing to note about changes in Asset Management Suite is that Barcode Solution has been removed from AMS in version 7.6

Q: Can Workflow Solution be installed on another machine other that the Notification Server / SMP?

A: Workflow Solution gets installed with the Symantec Management Platform. While the Solution gets installed on the NS, it is best practice to install Workflow Server and Process Manager database on separate servers from the Notification Server. The executable for this installation may be found in the Symantec Management Console under 'Manage > Workflows' and select 'Download Workflow Server and Designer'.

Q: Will the presentation will be available for download after the end?

A: Absolutely. You can view the recorded version of this webcast on youtube or vimeo.

Q: When a customer buys CMS or ITMS they do not receive a Renewal ID Number at the beginning. They receive the Renewal ID later, when maintenance is going to end. How they can receive Bomgar license if only a Sales Order or Certificate Number is available?

A: An email from the customer stating they've purchased Symantec and/or your sales order information will be accepted.

Q: Will pcAnywhere still be manageable with 7.6?

A: As part of the IT Management Suite 7.6 release on March 2, 2015, the End-of-Life (EOL) for pcAnywhere Solution was announced. Consequently, pcAnywhere console integration is removed during the ITMS 7.6 upgrade. However, the pcAnywhere application is not removed and will continue to function without a license. New installations of ITMS version 7.6 do not include pcAnywhere.

The pcAnywhere console integration will be uninstalled. However, the pcAnywhere application itself will remain installed. Specifically, pcAnywhere Manager will remain on the Notification Server. pcAnywhere hosts will remain on client computers. pcAnywhere Quick Connect installations will remain installed. The console integration that is removed during the ITMS 7.6 upgrade includes: pcAnywhere installation policies; the Host configuration view in the console; pcAnywhere reports; r- click menu to launch remote sessions. For customers that want to continue using pcAnywhere with the console, this document describes how to reinstall console integration.

Q: Does Bomgar support Symantec's VIP for multi-factor authentication?

A: Bomgar support RADIUS for two factor authentication for which Symantec VIP integrates.   We do not know of any customers who have integrated with Symantec VIP, however, we have customers who have integrated with DUO Security.   Thus, we should be able to easily support VIP but it has not been confirmed nor tested.  Additional details can be found here.

Q: With regards to the Agent Health, if Ian environment is in hierarchy and I want to view the Agent Health information from my Parent NS - does all of the health data get replicated back up to the Parent NS for viewability?

A: Yes. All Agent Health information is based on basic inventory information. All basic inventory should be replicated back up the hierarchy to the parent.

Q: What are the recommended hardware requirements for Workflow Server?

A: Hardware requirements depend on the size of the environment. Please reference pages 52 and 53 in the Workflow 7.6 User Guide for the latest hardware requirements.

Q: Customer has an environment completely separated from Internet, there is no single point of contact - can they install/use Bomgar?

A: Yes.  Many of our DoD customers use Bomgar internally only and do not expose the appliance to their DMZ.

Q: Will favorite Targets follow the user should they log into different machines?

A: Yes. This is the advantage of using the web-based console. Since all of the information is stored in the CMDB, a user may log into the console from different machines and view consistent information.

Q: If Bomgar is Agentless, how does it work?

A: There are a couple of different scenarios that Bomgar can support. If the device is attended (e.g. employee contacting service desk and device is in hand), the employee enters a code on a support portal or (if email is working properly) clicks on a URL from an email then downloads an executable that is remove at the end of the sessions; no footprint is left behind.

If the device is unattended (e.g. service, kiosk, POS), we leverage a secure technology we call "jump" which is explained best here.

Q: Is IIS 6.0 still required to be installed for ITMS 7.6?

A: IIS 6 Compatibility is still required when using IIS 7.5 or 8.5 on Symantec Management Platform Components .

Q: Can Virtual Hardware be used for the Internet Gateway (CEM server) in the DMZ?

A: The Internet Gateway can run on a Virtual Machine in the DMZ, but scalability may be impacted by up to 40% when running on virtual hardware. While this is supported, it is not recommended by Symantec at this time.

Q: Does the Bomgar appliance always have to sit in the DMZ?

A: No. Many of our DoD customers use Bomgar internally only and do not expose the appliance to their DMZ.