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Agent

Installation

Tip:
Before you install the Agent, please read chapter Select the Detection Method which will provide you with more information on how to use the Agent.

Only computer administrators can install the software.

  1. Run AlvaoAssetAgent.msi on the workstations where you wish to install the Agent.
  2. The Installation Wizard opens. Select the installation parameters on the Settings page. Follow the Wizard instructions to complete the installation.

If the installation finishes correctly, you should be able to find the C:\Program Files\ALVAO\Asset Management Agent folder on your hard drive. This folder contains Agent executables. The system service ALVAO Asset Management Agent X.X.X must exist in the system.

Installation Parameters

  • WSURL – address of the ALVAO Asset Management web service, e.g.: http://server/assetwebservice/assetwebservice.asmx.
  • AUTHCODE – the Agent authentication code.
  • USETCP – allows to connect the Agent over TCP/IP – the possible parameter values are yes or no.
  • PORT – TCP/IP port number on which the Agent listens (normally the 760 port). If you are connecting over TCP/IP.

The example of setting the parameters during the silent installation – the Agent authentication code is 1234, the Agent will be using the connection over TCP/IP, and the port where the Agent listens is 760:
msiexec /i AlvaoAssetAgent.msi /quiet WSURL="https://app.company.com/assetwebservice/assetwebservice.asmx" AUTHCODE="1234" USETCP="yes" PORT="760"

Tip:
You can change the Agent settings later by running the Agent as an application (usually the C:\Program Files (x86)\ALVAO\Asset Management Agent\Agent.exe files) and selecting the Settings item.
Note:
If you experience any problems with the Agent, the log file that is generated automatically while the Agent is running can help with troubleshooting. Log writing is disabled by default. You can enable it by running AMAgent.exe from within the application folder. Then select Settings on the first page and Generate log file on the next page. Set the log detail level to Detailed. The service log will be then saved to the file agsvc.log.
Notification:
If you set the log detail level to Detailed, the Agent will send large amounts of data to the log file. This will slow down the detection process considerably. We therefore recommend using the Detailed level for troubleshooting purposes only. This option should be disabled during normal operation.
Note:
If you wish to use the Agent on Windows 95/98/ME, you need to install the Agent version 5.0! - for more information please refer to the manual for version 5.0 (ep.chm) which can be found in the Computer Registry 5.0 application installed.
The Windows 2000 operating system requires Agent v5.10 or lower too.
Agent 10.0 must be used for Windows XP.

Installation Over GPO

If you are installing the Agent via GPO on a 32-bit OS and you want to set up the communication with AM WebService or over TCP/IP, use the following ADM 32b file and ADML 32b file. Place the ADML file into the localization files folder (the en-US folder for the server with EN Windows).

If you are installing the Agent via GPO on a 64-bit OS and you want to set up the communication with AM WebService or over TCP/IP, use the following ADM 64b file and ADML 64b file. Place the ADML file into the localization files folder (the en-US folder for the server with EN Windows).

Autonomous Agent Settings

In its basic configuration, the Agent contacts Asset Management WebService every 2 hours to find out whether computer detection should be performed. If the Agent is unsuccessful when sending the detection, it tries again in 15 minutes. These values can be changed using the value creation in the registry of a computer where the Agent is installed on:

Value Name Type Default value
ScheduleUpdateIntervalMinutes REG_DWORD 120
DetectionUploadRetryIntervalMinutes REG_DWORD 15
  • 32-bit OS:
    SOFTWARE\ALC\ALVAO Asset Management\Agent
  • 64-bit OS:
    SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\ALC\ALVAO Asset Management\Agent

Settings of Web Service

By default, the web service saves the received detections into the %ProgramData% folder. If you want to change the folder for saving the detections, edit the tProperty table in the ALVAO database and insert or edit the line where the sProperty column has the following value: AssetManagement.WebServiceDetectionFolderPath and insert a path to folder, into which the service should save the detections received from Agents, to the sPropertyValue column.

Path to Folder Examples:
  1. UNC path: \\server1\detections
  2. Local path: E:\detections

Looking for the cause why the Agent is not communicating with WS

The text of the exception or the error code from the Agent may help with the diagnosis. You can find them as follows:

  1. Run AMAgent.exe in the installation folder of the Agent.
  2. A window opens where you must select Settings and click on Next.
  3. On the General tab, enable Record to file and select the detail Status and errors.
  4. Click on OK to confirm the changes.
  5. Restart the Agent service. The Agent will try to connect to the web service immediately.
  6. Find the agsvc.log file in the installation folder of the Agent and open it, e.g. in Notepad.
  7. Look for the following line in the log:
    [CheckDetectSchedule] calling WS end with error: ...

    This is followed either by the text of the exception or by the error code.

    Exceptions are returned by the web service – e.g. authentication error, the computer is not in the DB, etc.

    An error code can indicate a problem with secure communication. In such a case there should be a numeric error code. The detail of the error can be found on the MSDN website:
    https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/ms681381%28v=vs.85%29.aspx
    If there is a communication error, the code is usually 12xxx and can be found on the following website:
    https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa385465%28v=vs.85%29.aspx

Command Line

The Agent can be run from the command line with specified parameters. This chapter includes a detailed description of all available command line parameters.

Parameters:

  • /dd – instant device detection on the machine where the Agent is running. (only works together with the parameter /df)
  • /dsw – instant software detection on the machine where the Agent is running. This option will run a complete detection, including the files on all hard drives with no exceptions. (only works together with the parameter /df)
  • /dssw – instant software detection on the machine where the Agent is running. This option will run a normal software detection process. (only works together with the parameter /df)
  • /df – executes the selected detection methods (parameters /dd, /dsw, /dssw) and saves the resulting detection files to the folder from which the Agent has been launched, or to a folder specified behind the parameter /f.
  • /f [path] – path to a shared folder or the path to a folder where the selected detections will be saved (parameter /df). Specifies the shared folder path which saves the detection requests. If left blank, the path specified in the Agent settings will be used instead (option Settings when the Agent is launched from the - Start menu). If this parameter is left blank and no path is specified in the Agent settings, the server installation path \Share folder will be used by default.
  • /a – the Agent will execute detection requests saved in the shared folder and then stops its operation.
  • /l [file] – the Agent will write its log entries into the file specified behind this parameter.
  • /v [number] – this parameter sets the logging detail level (only works together with the parameter /l). Logging detail levels: 0 = Status and Errors, 1 = Normal, 2 = Full.
  • /s – the Agent will run in the background. No information window will display on the screen.
  • /h – opens a Help window for command line parameters.
Tip:
If you wish to run full software detection while ignoring some drives or paths, run the Agent without the command line and set up the software detection details in the Wizard correctly.

Example 7. Agent – example of device and software detection

We need to run the Agent in such a way that it immediately performs both the device detection and normal software detection; we also want the Agent to save the detection files to the D:\Detections folder

AMAgent /dd /dssw /df /f D:\Detections
Note:
If you use the Agent to create detection files, the detection file names will be created automatically according to the computer name and will include the _SW extension for software detections and the _HW extension for device detections.

Example: For a computer with the name JOHNPC, the Agent will create the following files: JOHNPC_SW.cxm and JOHNPC_HW.cxm.

 

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