Device Explorer

Use the Device Explorer Dashboard in BigFix to explore all connected devices in table and chart formats. Filter, sort, add devices, perform remediation, schedule maintenance, and export reports—all from one unified view.

Device Explorer - Overview

The Device Explorer Dashboard is a unified application within BigFix SaaS Remediate that allows administrators to view, manage, and take actions on all devices connected to their account. Whether you're filtering for a subset of devices, exploring details of a specific device, or preparing for remediation or reporting, this dashboard provides an interactive, visual-first interface to handle it all.

Note: Devices only appear in this dashboard if the BigFix agent is installed and reporting.
BigFix currently supports up to 50,000 linked devices per account, with performance optimized for both large and small environments.

The Device Explorer app in BigFix allows to view and explore their linked devices in a table format, displaying important details like device name, last connection time, OS information, and device type. To simplify device exploration use filter or device search. Click on specific device to access more details.

The Device Explorer app displays all devices linked to your BigFix account. BigFix currently allows adding up to 50,000 devices.

Add Device

To add new devices

  1. Click Add Device.

  2. Use the dropdown to choose the target OS (Windows, macOS, Linux, etc.).

  3. Download the corresponding agent installer.

  4. Follow guided steps to install the agent on the target device.

🛠 Devices won’t appear in the dashboard until the agent is installed and the device checks in.


Device Explorer Overview

Device Explorer Top 5 by category

Devices in Maintenance Window

Overview - Top-level charts

The dashboard provides quick access to high-level metrics through interactive chart widgets:

  • Top 5 by Device Type: Displays the most common device types such as desktops, laptops, or servers.
  • Top 5 by OS Family: Breaks down the device count by operating system family—e.g., Windows, macOS, Linux.
  • Top 5 by Tags: Shows top organizational or functional tags applied to devices.
  • Devices in Maintenance Window: Visualizes the number of devices currently in active maintenance windows.
  • Devices Requiring Critical Remediations: Highlights devices missing security-critical patches or updates.
  • Devices Requiring At Least One Remediation: Broader view of any device that needs updates or patches.
Note: Clickable count showing the full inventory. Clicking any section of these charts will automatically update the device table with the filtered list.

List - Device table

This is the main area for in-depth device exploration. The table supports sorting, filtering, and quick action on device records.


Device Explorer List
Displayed Columns

Displayed Columns Include:

  • Number: Assigned by BigFix to indicate the order in which the device was added.
  • Device Name: Local name of the device (sortable and searchable).
  • Last seen: Indicates when the device last checked in with BigFix.
  • ID: Unique identifier of the device.
  • OS family: High-level OS classification, such as “Red Hat” or “macOS”.
  • Operating System: The specific OS version (Example, Windows 10, Ubuntu 22.04).
  • Device Type: Such as laptop, desktop, or server.
  • IP Address / MAC Address: Captured during the device’s last connection.
  • DNS Name: Helpful for network-based tracking.
  • Relay: Shows the current relay server.
  • Relay Selection / Relay Installed: Indicates if a relay is installed and if it was manually or automatically selected.
  • Distance to Relay: Useful for understanding latency and proximity for patch distribution.
  • Maintenance Window Definition / In Maintenance Window / Next Maintenance Window: Shows configuration and current/next window status.

🔄 The table displays 100 devices without pagination.

The app also showcases these devices in a table and enables in-depth exploration of each device.

The table includes various fields that help to view and investigate all devices associated with the account.

The table presents the following details:

  • Device Number - Assigned by BigFix to show the order of device addition to the user’s account.
  • Device Name - The local name of the device.
  • Date and Time Device Last Seen - The last connection time of the device’s agent to the BigFix service.
  • Device ID - A unique device identifier.
  • Device OS Family - The operating system running on the device, for example, Mac OS or Red Hat Linux.
  • Operating System Installed on the Device - The specific operating system version on the device.
  • Device Type - Indicates if the device is a computer or server.
  • Device IP Address - The IP address from the device's last connection to the BigFix service.
Note: When a device is removed from Device Explorer, it stops sending or receiving data via BigFix. To resume using BigFix on that device, reinstall the BigFix agent.


BigFix customers may have thousands of devices linked to their account. To use the filter in the Device Explorer app, click the Filter button at the top left of the device table. The filter panel will slide out from the right side of the screen. Various device properties, such as device name, operating system, and IP address, can be used to filter.

The Device Explorer app supports filter , sorting, and saving views to refine data and narrow down displayed results to only the most relevant items, save them, and access back quickly.

Click on a specific device to be redirected to the Device Details page for more information about the selected device.

Filtering and Search

  • Click the Filter button to open the filter panel.

  • The panel slides in from the right and supports filtering on:

    • Device Name

    • Operating System

    • IP Address

    • Device Type

    • Maintenance Status

    • And more

Filters help you narrow down to only relevant devices, and you can save filtered views for future use.

Remediate Devices

  • Select one or more devices from the list.

  • Click the Remediate button to launch patching or fixlet deployment.

Devices not in a maintenance window or otherwise restricted will be eligible for action.

Set Maintenance Window

Select devices and click the Set Maintenance Window button:

  • Define start time, end time, and recurrence.

  • Devices in this window will defer actions until outside the window.

  • This helps prevent disruption during critical business hours.