Configure Computers View

Figure 1: Configure Computers View

This view is used to access various Spector Client (Client) features on Client monitored computers.

Selecting Configure Computers from the tree list in the Scope window displays this view in the Results window. The content of this view is determined by the following:

All computers with an installed Client display within the Manage Computers view
All computers that have an install or uninstall pending will display in this view
If View All Computers in Configure Computers view is enabled, all computers displayed in the Manage Computers view are also displayed in the Configure Computers view

By selecting Configure Computers in the Scope window and clicking on the right mouse button, the Control Center displays a pop-up menu. All items in this list are standard Microsoft Management Console functions except for All Tasks. Selecting All Tasks displays a submenu, which provides access to the following functions:

Show Groups Only
Show Group Computers
Show All Computers
Find Client

Please refer to the section Manage Computers View for more information on these menu items.

The functionality of the Control Center associated with administering a Client is enabled in this view. By selecting any computer in the list and clicking on the right mouse button, the Control Center displays a pop-up menu.

The initial menu displayed consists of the following items:

Refresh Refreshes and re-displays the data for the selected computer
Properties Displays a tabbed dialog providing some general information related to the administration of the computer
Configure Computer Allows you to quickly set various recording state aspects of the Client on the computer, such as enabling/disabling capture of the display, emails, chats, etc.
All Tasks Displays a submenu, providing access to the following tasks:

Client Settings
Start Recording
Stop Recording
View Log File
Restart Client
Find Client

The icon next to the computer name in the Results window provides a visual clue as to whether or not you will be able to perform the tasks in this menu.

If the Control Center is able to communicate properly with the computer, a colored administrative tools icon appears next to the computer name for that computer
If the Control Center is unable to properly communicate with the computer, a grayed out computer icon is displayed.

The state of the Client installation activity, as well as the state of each of the major recording function is displayed in the Configure Computers view.

Under the State column, one of the following states will be displayed:

Recording If the Client is actively recording, while a user is logged onto the computer, Recording will be displayed
Disabled If a user is logged on to the computer and Client is not recording, Disabled will be displayed
Log Off If no user is logged onto the computer (and thus, the Client is not recording), Log Off will be displayed
Blank (empty) If the Control Center cannot talk to the Client on the computer, text will not be displayed under the State column

For each of the major recording functions (Web, Keystrokes, Chat/IM, Email, and Snapshots), the Configure Computers view displays the current state of that function. Yes denotes that the function is enabled, while No denotes that it is disabled.

Configure Computer

Selecting Configure Computer displays the settings property pages for all the Client settings of a monitored computer. These property pages are identical to those found in the administrative user interface on the Client installation. While there are a few Client settings that can only be edited locally on the computer, most settings can be edited remotely from the Control Center.

Note: CEAdminExt.dll must be present in the Control Center's installation folder for this feature to function properly. This DLL is included with the Control Center installation.

In order to remotely modify a Client's settings, the Control Center requires that the Client be installed and running on the monitored computer. The Client is functional and operating only after a user has logged on to a computer on which the Client has been installed. However, for Windows NT/2000/XP computers, the Client settings can be modified whether or not a user is logged on to the computer. This is because the Client installs a service on Windows NT/2000/XP computers to handle requests from the Control Center, and the service automatically starts when the computer is booted. Thus, while certain functionality, such as manually starting or stopping a Client, requires that a user be logged on to the computer, modifying the Client settings on these computers does not.

If the Control Center cannot communicate with the computer (because the Client is not running, network problems, or the computer is turned off), a grayed out computer icon is displayed next to the computer to provide a visual clue of this state

If the Results window has been set to Show Groups Only, selecting Configure Computer displays a dialog box to allow you to select a configuration file (with .ini extension) to apply to all computers in the selected group (domain)

Remember, when working with a single computer, the Control Center communicates directly with a service on the computer to modify the Client settings. However, when Show Groups Only is set, the Control Center imports the selected configuration file. Instead of displaying the Client property pages as a single dialog box, the Control Center displays the same property pages in wizard format.

When Finish is selected on the final property page, the Control Center saves the configuration to the selected file and copies the file to all Client monitored computers in the group (domain). The Client is internally set to look for and read the new settings file at ten-minute intervals. If any computer in the selected group (domain) is not on the network (shut down, network problems, etc), the Control Center maintains those computers and the configuration file to copy in a DelaySettings.xml file. The Control Center checks this file at the same interval specified by the Update Interval in the Spector Network properties tab.

Note: Background computer updating must be enabled. As the appropriate configuration files are copied to their associated computers, the computer names are removed from the DelaySettings.xml file.

Start/Stop Recording

The Client can be started and stopped remotely by selecting these menu items. These are immediate commands that are sent to the computer.

Once Start is executed, the Client on the computer begins recording immediately
Once Stop is executed, the Client on the computer stops recording immediately

Verification of either command is returned to the Control Center and it is displayed to the administrator.

Note: It is possible for either command to execute, while not receiving a successful response. This is due to potential network problems, such as timeouts. If this occurs, the Control Center properly and automatically updates the status of the computer the next time it is checked during background updating.

When the Results window has been set to Show Groups Only, the starting or stopping is effective for all computers in the group (domain).

Note: The Startup Method and the use of a computer list file can affect this process. See Startup Method for more information on this feature.

View Log File

Sometimes it is necessary to view the Client log file to solve problems or to relay information to technical support. You can remotely view the Client log file by selecting this menu item (if the proper access to the network file system is available to the computer).

Restart Client

See Manage Computers View for more information on this feature.

Find Client

See Manage Computers View for more information on this feature.