Configuring Windows Application Inventory

Introduction

Open iT supports configuring application inventory reporting. This will produce the following aggregated data type used for historical reporting:

• (156) Windows Application Inventory

The following sections will guide you on the necessary configurations for the relevant files to enable comprehensive windows application inventory reports.

warning

Follow the verifications shown in the Open iT Core Client.

Requirements

• An Open iT Core Client connected to an Open iT Core Server or a coexistent Open iT Core setup
• Activated SystemAnalyzer collection and Windows Application Inventory

Verifying Application Inventory Configuration

Once all the requirements have been met, no further configurations should be necessary. However, you can also check this specific configuration file to make sure everything is set up correctly. This additional verification offers assurance that your windows application inventory data will be collected and reported.

Step 1: Open the Scheduler Configuration

1. Go to the scheduler directory, which is by default in C:\Program Files\OpeniT\Core\Configuration\scheduler.

2. Open collect_system_winappinfo.oconf.

Step 2: Verify the Windows Application Inventory Configuration

1. Locate the root.scheduler.jobs.collect_winappinfo.general.active setting.

2. Verify that its value is set to true.

   A value of true indicates that the Windows Application Inventory is activated.

If this is not yet set to true, check the SystemAnalyzer collection and Windows Application Inventory again and make sure they are set to true.

Verifying Windows Application Inventory Data Collection

After enabling the collection, you can verify that the data is collected and sent to the server by following these steps:

Step 1: Open Command Prompt

1. Open a command prompt with Administrator level privileges.

Step 2: Navigate to the bin Directory

1. Run the following command to go to the Open iT Core bin directory.

   By default, this is located at: C:\Program Files\OpeniT\Core\bin

   Command Syntax

   cd <bin_dir>

   Example

   cd C:\Program Files\OpeniT\Core\bin

Step 3: Run the Windows Application Inventory Collector

1. Once in the directory, run the command:

   Command Syntax

   openit_winappinfo.exe

2. Verify that the following output is displayed:

   Expected Output

   Running "Windows Application Info" (WinAppInfoCollector)

Step 4: Verify Generated Data Files

1. Verify that the temp directory, which is by default in C:\ProgramData\OpeniT\Data\temp, contains a winappinfo directory with .data files containing Windows Application data.

Collecting Windows Application Inventory from Another Drive

By default, the Windows Application Inventory collector scans applications installed on the C: drive. If applications or executables are located on another local drive, you must configure winappinfo.oconf to include that drive in the collection.

Step 1: Configure the Target Drive

1. Open the winappinfo.oconf file in the Configuration directory.

   By default, this is located at: C:\Program Files\OpeniT\Core\Configuration.

2. Add or update a file system source for the target drive.

   Example 1: Updating the File System Source

   To collect applications from another drive, locate the filesystem1.target.path setting and replace its value to the path of your preferred drive. In this example, it is set to D:\.

   Example: winappinfo.oconf

   filesystem1
   {
       description=Primary file system source.
       target
       {
           description=Specify where to obtain the information from.
           source
           {
               type=string
               value=filesystem
           }
   
           path
           {
               description=Path to Windows Registry key possibly having sub-keys with useful values.
               type=string
               value=D:\
           }
   
           pattern
           {
               description=Check properties for files matching these patterns (space separated). Full path is automatically grabbed as 'exepath'.
               type=string
               value=*.exe
           }
   
           grab_definitions
           {
               description=Specify which grab definition to use in order to get file system values.
               type=string
               value=filesystem_main
           }
       }
   }

   Example 2: Adding the file system source

   To collect applications from another drive in addition to the default drive, copy the entire filesystem node configuration, paste it as a new node, and rename it (i.e., filesystem_D). Then, locate the filesystem_D.target.path setting and set its value to the path of your preferred drive. In this example, the value is set to D:\.

   Example: winappinfo.oconf

   filesystem_D
   {
       description=Primary file system source.
       target
       {
           description=Specify where to obtain the information from.
           source
           {
               type=string
               value=filesystem
           }
   
           path
           {
               description=Path to Windows Registry key possibly having sub-keys with useful values.
               type=string
               value=D:\
           }
   
           pattern
           {
               description=Check properties for files matching these patterns (space separated). Full path is automatically grabbed as 'exepath'.
               type=string
               value=*.exe
           }
   
           grab_definitions
           {
               description=Specify which grab definition to use in order to get file system values.
               type=string
               value=filesystem_main
           }
       }
   }

3. Save the file.

Step 2: Run the Windows Application Inventory Collector

1. Open a command prompt with Administrator level privileges.

2. Go to the Open iT Core bin directory.

   By default, this is located at: C:\Program Files\OpeniT\Core\bin.

   Command Syntax

   cd <bin_dir>

   Example

   cd C:\Program Files\OpeniT\Core\bin

3. Run the Windows Application Inventory collector, run the command:

   Command Syntax

   openit_winappinfo.exe

   Expected Output

   Running "Windows Application Info" (WinAppInfoCollector)

Step 3: Verify Generated Data Files

1. Verify that the temp directory, which is by default in C:\ProgramData\OpeniT\Data\temp, contains a winappinfo directory with .data files containing Windows Application data from the configured drive.

Sample Report

Windows Application Inventory

This report is generated using data type (156) Windows Application Inventory.

Windows Application Inventory