Monitoring and reporting software usage

BigFix Inventory collects listing of running processes and associate this data with detected software using usage signatures or by matching path.

About this task

BigFix Inventory collects information about the running processes with their statistics: First Used, Last Used, Total Run Time, Total Runs, Average Runs per Day, and Average Run Time. Based on that information, reports software usage for software instances that are discovered and are having usage signatures or are Java based application (from 9.2.15)

10.0.10 Starting with BigFix Inventory version 10.0.10, the amount of data transferred from endpoint to server is reduced by limiting the data exchange to last 30 days. BigFix Inventory combines incoming updates with existing data and because of server side optimization, the already stored data is not processed again in the database. This process of handling data collection leverages in reducing the load on the network and BigFix Platform.

Monitoring and reporting of software usage is enabled by default if during the initial configuration you choose the default scan settings. For more information, see: Default scan configuration.

Otherwise, follow the instruction at Manual scan configuration to enable the collecting of software usage statistics by ensuring Application usage statistics checkbox is selected in Additional Scan Capabilities section of Initiate Software Scan action.

How usage reporting works?

There are two method of linking Metering Data/process with the detected Software Component release:
  1. Using usage signature without splitting statistics per Component Instance
  2. 9.2.15 Starting from application update 9.2.15, based on path for processes named; java, java.exe, javaw.exe, jp2launcher.exe with splitting statistics per Component Instance.

It is possible to distinguish between usage of BigFix and Oracle Java that is installed on a single computer.

Starting from Software catalog 9.2.15 usage signatures for Java based application are not longer included as path based matching is used and no signature is needed.

Starting with BigFix Inventory version 11.0.6, additional information is collected about the path, size, and version of an executable, if this capability is supported by the BigFix client for a given operating system. Additionally, the algorithm for matching usage data with discovered software has been enhanced to utilize additional information:
  • First, usage is matched with the software inventory using the catalog-defined usage matching rule.
  • According to these rules, usage for a given software inventory component is determined by a specific process name.
  • The process path must also match the inventory path, if both paths are detected.
  • If usage is not matched according to the defined rules, it is matched by comparing the process path with the inventory path.
  • Some process paths are excluded from comparison, including /bin, /sbin, /usr/bin, /usr/lib, and /usr/sbin.

<11.0.6 and later> Checklist for Configuration BigFix Inventory for collecting usage data

  1. Log in to the BigFix console.
  2. Ensure that the fixlet “WARNING: BES Client has not activated Application Usage Statistics Collection” is not relevant for computers expected to report usage statistics. If it is relevant, use this fixlet to enable the collection of Application Usage Statistics required for BigFix Inventory Software Usage reporting.
  3. Verify that the Initiate Software Scan action is scheduled. To optimize scan duration, deselect the option "Application Usage Backward Compatibility for BigFix Inventory 11.0.5 or lower”. Application Usage for BigFix Inventory 11.0.6 and later is always collected. For more information, refer to Initiating software scans.

<11.0.5 and lower> Checklist for Configuration BigFix Inventory for collecting usage data

Procedure

  1. Log in to the BigFix console.
  2. Ensure that the Application Usage Statistics analysis from Sites > External Sites > BigFix Inventory is activated. To activate right-click the analysis, and click Activate. For more information, see Activating the analyses.
  3. Ensure that the Initiate Software Scan action have Application usage statistics checkbox selected in Additional Scan Capabilities section. For more information, see: Initiating software scans.
  4. Review the properties: Status of Scan for Application Usage Statistics and Time of Last Successful Scan for Application Usage Statistics in the Software Scan Status analysis from Sites > External Sites > BigFix Inventory is activated. To activate right-click the analysis, and click Activate. For more information, see Activating the analyses.

Results

Software usage report

The results of collecting and matching application usage statistics are reflected in the following reports:
  • Metering Data shows the raw aggregated information about processes running on given computer with statistical information like: First Used, Last Used, Total Run Time, Total Runs, Average Runs per Day, Average Run Time.

    The Metering Data report now includes the columns: File Path, File Version, File Size, Component Name, Component Version, and Component Path, providing detailed Process and File associations for each software component. If a process is associated with multiple components, its records are duplicated accordingly (one for each component).

  • Software Classification / Software Installation panel lists the discovered software components with the details about usage statistics.
    Important: In case of signature based usage reporting statistics are not Component Instance specific, but each record contains the same data.
  • Usage per Computer panel provides an overview of the software usage statistics that are aggregated for all instances on product level and presented in the report for each computer.
    Important: In case of signature based usage reporting statistics and multiple Component Instance presented values are multiplied by number of instances.
For more information about the reports, see: Available reports.
Tip: To view information about usage on the reports, configure the report view to display the columns that collect software usage statistics. To do that, hover over the Manage Report View icon Manage Report View icon, select Configure View and choose the applicable columns.

What to do next

If you are in the initial deployment phase, or if you do not need information about software usage, you can disable the collection of this information to improve the BigFix Inventory performance and shorten the import time. For more information, see: Disabling the collection of software usage.

In the case of obstacles of unexpected output, visit Troubleshooting usage monitoring.