Glossary
- Action Password
- See signing password.
- Action Scripting Language
- The language used for crafting action scripts. Action can be crafted in different scripting languages, including AppleScript and Unix shells.
- BigFix Enterprise Suite (BES)
- The previous name for IBM Endpoint Manager.
- Client
- Software installed on each networked computer to be managed under the IBM Endpoint Manager. The Client accesses a pool of Fixlet messages, checks the computer it is installed on for vulnerabilities, and sends the Server a message when such a condition occurs. Previously known as the BES Client, it is now known as the IBM Endpoint Manager Client, or simply Client.
- Console
- A management program that provides an overview of the status of all the computers with the Client installed in the network, identifying which might be vulnerable and offering corrective actions. Previously known as the BES Console, it is now known as the IBM Endpoint Manager Console, or simply Console.
- Custom Site
- You can create your own custom content and host it in a custom site. This can only be done by a Master Operator that has been granted the rights to create custom content (use the Admin program to allocate these users).
- DSA
- Distributed Server Architecture. Multiple Servers are linked to provide full redundancy in case of failure.
- Fixlet message
- A mechanism for targeting and describing a problematic situation on a computer and providing an automatic fix for it.
- Fixlet servers
- Web servers offering Fixlet site subscriptions. They can be either internal to the enterprise network or external to the network (if direct external web access is allowed).
- Fixlet site
- A trusted source from which the Client obtains Fixlet messages.
- Generator Install folder
- The directory on the installation computer where the Generator places the installation files for the IBM Endpoint Manager system.
- Installation Computer
- A secure computer (separate from the IBM Endpoint Manager Server computer) that hosts and runs the Installation Generator.
- Installation Generator
- An application that creates installers for the core IBM Endpoint Manager system components.
- Management Rights
- Ordinary Console Operators can be limited to a specified group of computers. These limits represent the management rights for that user. Only a Site Administrator or a Master Operator can assign management rights.
- Master Operator
- A Console Operator with administrative rights. A Master Operator can do almost everything a Site Administrator can do, with the exception of creating new operators.
- Masthead
- Files containing the parameters of the IBM Endpoint Manager process, including URLs that point to where trusted Fixlet content is available. The IBM Endpoint Manager Client brings content into the enterprise based on subscribed mastheads.
- Mirror server
- A server required in the IBM Endpoint Manager system if the enterprise does not allow direct web access but instead uses a proxy server that requires password-level authentication.
- Operator
- A person who operates the IBM Endpoint Manager Console. Ordinary operators can deploy Fixlet actions and edit certain computer settings. Master Operators have extra privileges, among them the ability to assign management rights to other operators.
- Relay
- This is a Client that is running special server software. Relays spare your server and the network by minimizing direct server-client downloads and by compressing upstream data. Relays are automatically discovered by Clients, which dynamically choose the best Relay to connect to. Previously known as the BES Relay, it is now known as the IBM Endpoint Manager Relay, or simply Relay.
- Relevance Language
- The language in which relevance clauses are written.
- Root Server
- Refers to the HTTP or HTTPS services offered by the main Server as an alternative to IIS. The IBM Endpoint Manager Root Server is specially tuned to Fixlet traffic and is more efficient than IIS for this application. Previously known as the BES Root Server, it is now known as the IBM Endpoint Manager Root Server, or simply Root Server.
- Server
- A collection of interacting applications (web server, CGI-BIN, and database server) that coordinates the relay of information to and from individual computers in the IBM Endpoint Manager system. The server processes may be hosted by a single server computer or segmented to run on separate server computers or replicated on redundant servers. Previously known as the BES Server, it is now known as the IBM Endpoint Manager Server, or simply Server.
- Signing password
- The password (specified when the IBM Endpoint Manager system was installed) used by a Console operator to sign an action for deployment. It is called the action password in the Console interface.
- Site Administrator
- The person responsible for installing IBM Endpoint Manager and with the permission to create new Console operators.
- SQL server
- A full-scale database engine from Microsoft that can be acquired and installed into the IBM Endpoint Manager system to satisfy more than the basic reporting and data storage needs. A step up from SQLite
- Standard deployment
- A deployment of the IBM Endpoint Manager that applies to workgroups and to enterprises with a single administrative domain. It is intended for a setting in which all Client computers have direct access to a single internal server.
- System install folder
- The directory on the IBM Endpoint Manager Server where the Server software and related files (including Console and Client installers) will be installed.
- IBM Endpoint Manager database
- A component of the system that stores data about individual computers and Fixlet messages. The IBM Endpoint Manager Server’s interactions primarily affect this database, which runs on SQL Server.
- IBM Endpoint Manager
- A preventive maintenance tool for enterprise environments that monitors computers across networks to find and correct vulnerabilities with a few simple mouse-clicks.
- VPN
- Virtual Private Network. An encrypted channel (or tunnel) that allows companies to extend their local-area networks across the world by using an inexpensive Internet connection.
- WAN
- Wide-area network. Many offices are connected by WAN. The bandwidth of your WAN determines the placement of Relays in your deployment, with thin-client computing in a wide-area network requiring more relays to aggregate downloads and reduce overhead.