AI Docs

Windows Agent Updates & Versioning | 8.1 onwards

4 min read

image-20251116-164640.png

Versioning of the Certero Windows inventory agent was changed in v8.1 to minimise agent reinstalls during agent auto-updating. Agents will now update themselves efficiently, updating new components only as required. Agent updates do not require any user interaction or a reboot. This article explains how to manage agent auto-updating and how to recognise and report on agent versions across your Windows fleet.

Auto-update Settings

The settings which control if Windows agents can auto-update may be configured in two places: Global Settings and Computer Systems Configuration .

1) Global Settings

Main Menu > Global Settings > Other Options > Client Agent :

This global agent auto-update setting will apply to agents which don't fall into scope of any Computer Systems Configurations (explained next). You will un-tick this option if you do not want your agent fleet to update itself when the Certero Platform is upgraded, for example if agent upgrades must be managed by your internal change control.

2) Computer Systems Configuration

As per the following example Configuration, an enabled Computer Systems Configuration (1) controls auto-update behaviour (2) for either Windows or Mac agents (3), and also enables/disables module functionality such as Distribution, Patching, etc. (4).

The scope of the Configuration, i.e., which computers it applies to, is managed using the Query Builder to build criteria logic. Any computer matching the criteria will be subject to the Configuration. The criteria below will target non-server operating systems, thus enabling agent auto-updates and AppsMonitor for desktops and laptops as per the settings in our example, above.

Multiple Configurations can be created. A computer which falls into scope of more than one Configuration will adopt the settings of the Configuration with the highest priority (lowest number):

A use case for multiple Configurations is to manage the staged deployment of agent updates under change control.

Here's how it might work:

  • Disable auto-update in Global Settings so that agent auto-updating is managed only by
    Computer Systems Configurations .

  • Create a fleetwide Configuration with criteria to include the whole agent fleet in the scope.

  • Create a pilot Configuration with criteria to include only a pilot group of computers for testing new agent versions prior to release to the whole fleet.

  • When a new Certero Platform version is released, begin your change control.

  • Disable auto-updating in the fleetwide Configuration settings.

  • Ensure auto-updating is enabled in the pilot Configuration settings.

  • Update the Certero Platform.

  • Observe the pilot agents auto-updating (assuming that the new Platform build contains agent changes).

  • When you're happy that the pilot group is not adversely impacted by the updated agent, re-enable auto-updating in the fleetwide Configuration to enable all agents to auto-update.

  • The auto-update option in the fleetwide Configuration remains enabled until the next Certero Platform release, and auto-update in the pilot Configuration can remain enabled at all times.

Windows Agent Versions & Reporting

The current version of the Windows agent for your Certero Platform can be found by examining the agent installer file.

Main Menu > User > Downloads :

Download the Client Agent Setup for Windows executable:

Right-click the downloaded file and choose Properties . Select the Details tab and check the file version .

The last section of the version string is the revision number , and this is what indicates a current Windows agent. In the example above, we want to see revision number 37007 across our active Windows agent-based computer fleet. Agent installs on new computers joining the network will have a full matching version string, but existing agents when they auto-update will only have a matching revision .

To report on this, navigate to Computer Systems > Windows Systems . On the Summary tab filter on Last Update greater than -30d and on the Client tab filter Type = Agent . Then group by agent version by dragging and releasing the Version header cell next to the active/archive selection drop list:

The grouped view will show you the currency of your agent versions. In my example below, my entire fleet is up to date because all computers have the current revision number 37007 :

It's trivial to create a Dashboard chart to track this visually, and remember that you can click on a bar on the chart to drill into the computers with a specific agent version:

Thanks for reading!