Prerequisites and requirements

The following packages must be pre-installed on your Red Hat® Enterprise Linux® systems before you install BigFix MCM and BigFix Mobile:

License Requirements

Ensure you have the appropriate license for BigFix MCM and BigFix Mobile.
  • You can manage Windows and macOS laptops using MDM APIs with the following licenses:
    • BigFix MCM
    • BigFix Lifecycle
    • BigFix Compliance
  • BigFix Mobile license is mandatory to manage mobile devices.

Core Component Requirements

  • BigFix Root Server: The BigFix Root Server should be installed on Windows Server or Linux.
  • BigFix Console: The BigFix Console should be installed on a Windows machine to interact with the BigFix infrastructure
  • BigFix WebUI: The BigFix WebUI should be installed on the BigFix Root Server.
  • BigFix Client: The BigFix Client version 10.0.10 or later must be installed on the machine where BigFix Plugin Portal will be installed.
  • BigFix Plugin Portal: The BigFix Plugin Portal can be installed either on the same RHEL machine where BigFix MCM Server will be installed or on a different Windows machine.
Resources:

Enable MCM and Mobile sites

From BigFix Console, in the Licence Overview Dashboard, navigate to the BigFix Mobile domain and enable the following sites:
  • BigFix Mobile Client Management
  • BigFix Modern Client Management

Credential Requirements

Ensure that the following credentials are available and valid:

Firewall and network Requirements

  • Open necessary ports:TCP 443, 52311, 5671
  • Allow access to external domains:
    • Apple Push Notification Service
    • Google Firebase Cloud Messaging
    • Microsoft Endpoint Services
For more details, refer to Firewall port requirements

System Requirements for MDM Server

  • The target computer, where the MDM server will be installed, must meet the following specifications:

    • Operating System: RHEL 7, RHEL 8, or RHEL 9
    • CPU: Minimum 4 cores, 8 cores (recommended)
    • Memory: Minimum 8 GB , 16 GB (recommended)
    • Storage: Minimum 32 GB, 64 GB (recommended)

    For more information, refer to the BigFix Capacity Planning Guide, Section 3.10: BigFix Modern Client Management (MCM).

Software Requirements for MDM Server

  • Curl package

    The curl package is a prerequisite for both Docker and Podman installations. By default, the curl package is usually pre-installed on most systems. However, it must be confirmed and installed if absent, as it is required to perform outbound URL checks for network reachability.

    You can verify if curl is installed with the following command:
    curl --version
  • Docker (CE v19.x or RHEL version 1.13 or later) and Docker Compose 1.25.x
    Note: To install a compatible Docker CE version on RHEL8 or RHEL9, refer to Installing Docker CE and Docker compose on RHEL8 or RHEL9.
  • Uninstall Podman
    Important: Uninstall Podman to ensure proper execution of MCM startup scripts and to avoid conflicts with Docker - the container runtime required for MCM services.
    • DNF command to remove Podman
      sudo dnf remove podman
    • Yum command to remove Podman
      sudo yum remove podman
sudo hash -r

  • The BigFix MDM server is typically deployed in the DMZ. Hence, appropriate security measures must be applied to the OS, firewall configuration, and system accounts.

Next Steps

Once all prerequisites are met, follow the installation instructions Installing MDM services to complete the setup.