SAMLITE 4.0 - FAQ's                                                    Appointment for Demo This list of Frequently Asked Questions contains the latest support information, common issues, downloads, instructions, troubleshooters, and more.                     Click on question to reveal the Answers. General Q.    What is SAMLite? A.  SAMLite is an easy to use and easy to deploy tool to help organizations manage and keep track of their installed software in the environment. The solution also addresses key areas of asset management, from requisition, movement and auditing of software within an organization Q.    Why do I need SAMLite? A.  If your organization relies on computer systems to run its business, then chances are that the type of software used will be an important factor on your business productivity. Using SAMLite will help your organization gain control over your software usage, allowing you to prevent usage of unauthorized software, monitor usage patterns and plan software expenditure budgets based on usage patterns. Auditing software usage is typically an expensive and time consuming effort, and the information gets out of date quickly. With SAMLite, the cost of time and money to get the information is significantly lower and the information is always up to date. Q.    How does SAMLite gather software information? A.  SAMLite uses a scripting language called KiX to collect information on the software installed on each PC. The KiX scripts can either be run through a logon script, or using a floppy disk created with a simple utility. Each time a script runs, it performs a search in the Windows registry for installed software. This information is then passed to a central SAMLite repository to be processed by the SAM Administration Console. Q.    What type of organizations will find SAMLite useful? A.  SAMLite’s features make it an attractive option for any organisation which does not have time to manually audit the software installed on their computers. If your organisation has any of the following characteristics, then SAMLite will benefit you: Organisations where users can add or remove software from their PC's Organisations that don't have time to manually audit their PC's Organisations with high reliance on software and computer systems for its business Organisations with many branches linked over WAN connections Organisations that have a high software expenditure annually Q.    What does software maintenance include? A.  Version Upgrade - Free same version product updates (example: v4.00.00 to v4.1.00) Significant discounts on major new releases and modules Updates - Access to Fixes, software patches, documentation updates and release note updates Bulletins - Industry news bulletins Top SAMLITE V4 Concepts Q.    What is a SAM Repository or SAM Folder? A.  Using Passive Collection, the SAM Repository, SAM Folder or Audit file share is a shared folder used by SAMLite to collect data from client computers. With Active Collection, the SAM Repository, SAM Folder or Audit file share is a shared folder used by SAMLite's Active Probe to send commands and receive data collected from client computers. Its default value is \\COMPUTER\samdefaultshare$. SAM repository's folder structure is shown below: Incoming File received from Passive / Active Scans Outgoing Used by Active Probes Archive Successfully imported XML files Dead XML files which could not be imported The SAM repository is configured using the SAMLite Audit Script Deployment Wizard from the MMC Administration Console shown below. Top Deployment Q.    SAMLITE Audit Script Wizard throws an error when deploying logon scripts to the Netlogon folder. What should I do? A.  Delete the SAM folder in Netlogon folder on all Domain controllers. Deploy the Logon script by running the Audit Script Wizard again. Q.    What is the proper TCP/IP configuration especially for the host and domain entries for SAMLite? A.  The process is smooth for Windows 2000 users since it requires DNS. However large organisations with Windows 9x and Windows NT clients, the DNS Suffix has to be filled in order for SAMLite to accurately collect the domain information. Q.    What about users using dial-up? Does the script run for them? A.  Yes, SAMLite is based on the concept of attaching the logon script to the user's account. Q.    Why are some software installed but not detected by SAMLite? A.  The way that SAMLite detects software in a computer is by looking into the Windows registry and extracting the information from there. If a software exists in a machine but is not detected by SAMLite, it is because that software did not make a registry entry when it was installed. Q.    I already have a login script running in my environment. How can I merge the SAMLite login script into my existing login script? A.  SAMLite scripts can be called from existing login scripts. Try to minimize the amount of modification to existing scripts upon installing and deploying SAMLite. A good approach is to have user accounts call MAIN.BAT which calls the rest of the existing login scripts and SAMLite scripts. That way none of the existing scripts need to be modified. Q.    How do I collect data for desktops that are not connected on the network? A.  The SAMLite Diskette is a set of utilities designed to make collection of asset information from non-networked PCs possible. Audit data can be captured from desktops by running a utility in the SAMLite Diskette. Data collected should then be copied back to the main SAMLite repository where it can then be managed by the SAM Administration Console. Q.    How do I collect data from Windows 3.x and Linux/Unix desktops? A.  Currently, SAMLite only supports Novell and Windows 9x and above. SAMLite is currently not supported to collected data from 16-bit Windows and Linux/Unix desktops. Q.    How long does it take to deploy 1000 desktops? A.  Active Collection Simply configure a probe, enter the domain Administrator's password, and you are ready to perform data collection for the entire domain. Passive Collection Assuming that the infrastructure is in place, it will only take 1 day for the installation and configuration of SAMLite. However, the period of audit data collection varies from organization to organization. The time range for the data collection is largely dependent on the logon policies of the company. If all users are required to login daily then reports can be generated from the SAM Administration Console more speedily. Q.    Since SAMLite is a networked application, what type of impact will it have on my production network? A.  Version 4. Using Passive Collection, SAMLite copies 630kb of files to the client workstation. Thereafter, each time the script runs, a file with a typical size of 10-80 kb (depending on the amount of software detected) is sent to the SAM Administration Console, which is fairly insignificant even for large amounts of transfers on a WAN network. Using Active Collection, the resulting files are about 5-10 kb (depending on the amount of software detected) since Active Probes compress and encrypt communications. Version 3. When executed for the first time, SAMLite copies 200kb KIX files to the client workstation. Subsequent logons bypass this step, saving valuable bandwidth and time. Thereafter, each time the script runs, a file with a typical size of 5-6 kb is sent to the SAM Administration Console, which is fairly insignificant even for large amounts of transfers on a WAN network. Q.    A computer named “ADM101” has been detected by SAMLite in an initial run of SAMLite. Later on, this computer changes its name to “ADM102”. How does SAMLite behave in this situation? A.  If the computer name is changed, SAMLite will detect it as a new machine and it will be managed as a new machine in the SAM Admin Console. To ensure that there is no duplication of data, the administrator has to delete the old computer name from the SAM Admin Console (in the Machines tab) as well as the physical audit file from the sam share folder. Q.    The migration from Version 3 to Version 4 hung or did not complete. What should I do? A.  Ensure that the UDL file is not read-only. Save the UDl file with the correct database login information. Migration must be done from C:\temp and that the Version 4 Database must be empty. Alternatively, paste all Version 3's XML files into the incoming folder of the Version 4's SAM repository. Q.    How fast is data collection and are there any files that remain on the client's computer? A.  Active Collection Under good network traffic conditions, collections may take about 20 seconds per computer. SAMLite is designed to capture relevant data. No files will reside on the client's machine. Passive Collection Under good network traffic conditions, collections may take about 5 seconds. Audit files of less than 1 MB will reside on the client's C:\SAM folder. No agents run on the client. Q.    I want to have two separate installations of SAMLite, but still want to see data collected from both sites. How do I achieve this? A.  Simply copy all the XML files stored in the Archive folder of the SAM folder or SAM repository from site A into the Incoming folder of site B. You must ensure that the SAMLite license in site B is sufficient to import additional nodes from site A. Q.    I am using a third party firewall. How should I configure it? A.  Personal Firewalls normally prompt users for authorisation when a remote request is detected. Alternatively, manually open these ports. You will need to configure Windows to use a specific port range in order to limit the RPC ports. Port Number Type Description 135 TCP DCOM 137 TCP NETBIOS 138 TCP NETBIOS 139 TCP NETBIOS 139 TCP NETBIOS 445 TCP NETBIOS 5000-5020 TCP RPC The remote computer must respond to the PING sent by the Active Probe. Do not close RPC ports required by WMI (TCP port 5000 to 5020). For Windows Firewall settings on Windows XP SP2, refer to Working with Windows XP SP2 Q.    Are there any deployment checklist for Version 4? A.  1. Log in as local admin 2. Turn off all firewall and make sure that there was no sql installed before or any other software using any ports running 3. Install the IIS 4. Test IIS, START>RUN>inetmgr <enter> 5. Run aspnet_regiis –I in command under the Windows\Microsoft.net\Framework\v1.1.4322\ 6. Only for Windows 2000: Set ASPnet user to have local admin rights 7. Install msde, follow by running the service pack 3a 8. Run setup /upgradesp sqlrun blanksapwd=1 in the service pack3a msde folder 9. Install the Administrator Console (MMC) from the SAMLite CD 10. Deploy the audit script locally first to the \\<COMPUTERNAME>\samdefaultshare$ 11. Go into the \\<COMPUTERNAME>\samdefaultshare$ 12. Run the sam.bat 13. Verify that the SAMLite server's data was captured 14. Install the active probe from the SAMLite CD 15. Configure the active probe using the Wizard from the MMC 16. Run wbemtest and connect to \\<ANOTHER COMPUTERNAME>\root\cimv2 with the Domain Administrator/Local Administrator password to see if it’s correct 17. Add credentials using the Wizard from the MMC 18. Probe a sample of the pcs. 19. Install license file into Program Files\SAMLITE\MMC 20. Install SAMLite Web Dashboard from the SAMLite CD. 21. Optionally, configure a collection schedule using the MMC 22. Configure software views, custom fields and the SAMLite Web Dashboard's overview page   Q.    How can Version 4 be deployed in a Novell Netware environment? A.  Create a samshare directory in the \\sys\pub\ folder and ensure it is shared out to all ( test the path first as the sys may not be accessible although the computer is accessible) Deploy the script locally onto the samlite machine first Open up sam.kix file and modify the audit path UNC to \\sys\pub\samshare (or any name if you wish) Copy the sam folder from the samlite machine to \\sys\pub folder Test by double clicking on the \\sys\pub\sam\sam.bat and see if the .xml file will go to the \\sys\pub\samshare folder. If the above is working, you may proceed to include the line #\sys\pub\sam\sam.bat into their login script. Perform a test by logging on and off one of the pc. Next, you will have to then write a DOS batch file to copy the files in \\sys\pub\samshare\incoming to the \\samlite\defaultshare$\incoming folder. Schedule the DOS batch file to run during startup or any predefined time. The DOS batch file should be configured to delete the .xml files after copying. Q.    How to I install the appropriate language packs so that SAMLite can support other languages? A.  To install the language files for Microsoft Windows 2000 Control Panel > Regional Settings > Language settings for system Check the appropriate languages Windows may require the Installation CD Top Windows XP with SP2 Q. After I installed Windows XP SP2, I get SQL Server Does not exist or Access Denied Error. What should I do? A.  This is a known issue with MSDE and Microsoft® Windows XP SP2 . Microsoft® Windows XP SP2 may affect the behavior of Microsoft® SQL Server 2000 Desktop Engine (MSDE 2000). If you’re connecting to a network by means of TCP/IP, named pipes, or remote procedure call (RPC), the Windows Firewall will block the ability of the database to connect to the network. If you are using MSDE 2000 with SQL Server 2000 SP3a, you should not have a problem because the network and SQL Browser technology are already turned off by default. Reference: http://www.microsoft.com/sql/techinfo/administration/2000/security/winxpsp2faq.asp You can install MSDE SP3a to overcome this problem. Alternatively, for a quick workaround, you can create the SAMLite database on a separate machine. For more information on Microsoft® Windows XP and SP2, please review Working With Windows Xp Sp2.Pdf from the CD’s \Documents folder. Q. Whenever I scan Windows XP SP2 machines, I receive a credentials error. What should I do? A.  Disabling Simple File Sharing is necessary in order to enable the creation of Access Control Lists for shared disks and folders 1. Click Start > My Computer > Tools > Folder Options > View. 2. Scroll to the bottom of the list of advanced settings and un-check Use Simple File Sharing (Recommended). 3. Click OK. Top MSDE & File Import Issues   Q. I cannot connect to MSDE. What should I do? A.  • Browse to C:\Program Files\Microsoft Sql Server\80\Tools\Binn\Svrnetcn.Exe (note the hard disk which MSDE resides) or type this in a command prompt: Svrnetcn.Exe • Ensure that all Instances has Named Pipes and TCP/IP protocols enabled Q. How do I update my MSDE SP3A? I am using the default password. What should I do? A.  From the CD’s directory containing the SP3A, type this in the command prompt setup.exe /upgradesp sqlrun blanksqpwd=1   Q.   Nothing is imported. What should I do? A.  • Check that the SAM.UDL in Program Files\Samlite\MMC is pointing to the correct database • Ensure that there are no other SAMLite installations in your environment • Relocate the repository from the default location (Default: Program Files\SAMLITE\MMC\SAMDefaultShare$) • Check to see if the SAM Import Service is started. If it is not started, right click, then select Restart the service, the computer or uninstall SAMLITE MMC Console ensure that the service has been uninstalled. Reinstall SAMLITE MMC Console from the CD. You will need to reconfigure your installation. Look in the directory where the repository is configured (Default: \\Computername\SAMDefaultShare$ ) • Look in the Dead, Archive or Incoming folder to check if there were any files generated setup.exe /upgradesp sqlrun blanksqpwd=1 Further information: • The SAMLite Central Agent Service must have full rights (read/write/modify) to the repository folder Q.   Import failed and the tags in the XML tags are mostly empty. A.  From the DEAD folder of the designated Repository location, open up the failed XML file. If the file exhibits symptoms shown below, it indicates that WMI was detected but corrupted. Since it is corrupted, no data can be collected, hence the empty tags (from the XML files) shown below: <SAMWin32_BaseBoard> </SAMWin32_BaseBoard> <SAMWin32_BIOS> </SAMWin32_BIOS> <SAMWin32_ComputerSystem> </SAMWin32_ComputerSystem> <SAMWin32_DiskDrive> </SAMWin32_DiskDrive> <SAMWin32_DisplayConfigurations> </SAMWin32_DisplayConfigurations> <SAMWin32_LogicalDisk> </SAMWin32_LogicalDisk> <SAMWin32_NetworkAdapterConfiguration> </SAMWin32_NetworkAdapterConfiguration> <SAMWin32_OperatingSystem> </SAMWin32_OperatingSystem> <SAMWin32_Printers> </SAMWin32_Printers> <SAMWin32_PhysicalMemory> </SAMWin32_PhysicalMemory> <SAMWin32_Processor> </SAMWin32_Processor> <SAMWin32_SystemEnclosure> </SAMWin32_SystemEnclosure> <SAMWin32_QuickFixEngineering> </SAMWin32_QuickFixEngineering> <SAMWin32_Software> To verify that WMI was attempted to be installed, a folder called WBEM will be created in SYSTEM32 or SYSTEM. A possible cause is that WMI was attempted to be installed silently. SAMLite’s documentation warns users of this possible scenario and strongly recommends WMI to be installed manually. Q. How do I backup and restore the SAMLITE database? A.  To backup: From the command prompt go to C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\80\Tools\Binn osql –Usa <ENTER> Enter password <ENTER> sp_detach_db [ @dbname = ] 'dbname' <ENTER> GO Database is detached and ready to be backed up from Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL\Data To restore: From the command prompt go to C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\80\Tools\Binn osql –Usa <ENTER> Enter password <ENTER> EXEC sp_attach_db @dbname = N'SAMLITE', @filename1 = N'c:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL\Data\DATABASENAME.mdf', @filename2 = N'c:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL\Data\ DATABASENAME_log.ldf'<ENTER> GO Database is attached. Top Installation Q.    What are the System Requirement/prerequisites? Do I need a separate computer? A.  Version 4 Depending on the computer's specifications, aseparate computer is recommended but not mandatory.Login scripts (if using Passive Collection) must be deployed onto the Server. Administrative Console Operating System Supported • Microsoft® Windows 2000 (all versions) • Microsoft® Windows XP (all versions) • Microsoft® Windows 2003 (all versions) Software Pre-requisites • MS Internet Information Services 5.0 or above • MS .NET Framework 1.1 Minimum Hardware Requirements • Pentium III 800 MHz • 256 MB Memory • 50 MB Hard Disk Space    Active Probe Only required for Active Collection   Domain Admin Credentials must be provided (preferably a dedicated service account) Operating System Supported • Microsoft® Windows 2000 (all versions) • Microsoft® Windows XP (all versions) • Microsoft® Windows 2003 (all versions) Software Pre-requisites • MS Internet Information Services 5.0 or above • MS .NET Framework 1.1 Minimum Hardware Requirements • Pentium III 800 MHz • 128MB Memory • 1 MB Hard Disk Space    Web Dashboard Operating System Supported • Microsoft® Windows 2000 (all versions) • Microsoft® Windows XP (all versions) • Microsoft® Windows 2003 (all versions) Software Pre-requisites • MS Internet Information Services 5.0 or above • MS .NET Framework 1.1 • Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher (client) Minimum Hardware Requirements • Pentium III 800 MHz • 128MB Memory • 50 MB Hard Disk Space   Version 3 Depending on the computer's specifications, aseparate computer is recommended but not mandatory. Login scripts must be deployed onto the Server. Server Hardware Requirements The server resources below can cater for 50 to 100 users in a simple network environment.  SAMLite Server 128 MB RAM 4 GB Hard Disk space Pentium II and above Desktop PC Requirements Recommended 486 or better processor 16MB RAM or better Windows95/98 or NT 4.0/Windows 2000 OS (Win32x client required) IE 4.02 or newer Server software requirements MS Windows NT 4.0 SP4 or better/Windows 2000 NT option pack (for Windows NT 4.0) Novell Netware 4.1 or better Windows NT environment: Windows NT Domain infrastructure (preferably with central master domain) Windows 2000 environment: Windows 2000 domain infrastructure with at least one Domain Controller Novell environment: Novell NDS infrastructure Network connectivity   Q.    Can I audit standalone computers? How do I create a stand-alone SAMLite diskette for auditing non-networked PC's? A.  Version 4 To create the samdisk, navigate to the tools\diskaudit folder on the SAMLite cd and just type mkdisk to create the disk. Insert the disk into a floppy drive and run samdisk from the prompt to begin collecting the software data from that machine. Copy the resultant XML file to the SAMLITE repository's incoming folder. Version 3 To create the samdisk, navigate to the SAMToolkit\SAMLiteDiskette folder on the SAMLite cd and just type mkdisk to create the disk. One additional task that you have to perform manually is to copy the enumerate.vbs file from the same directory into the floppy. Then insert the disk into a floppy drive and run samdisk from the prompt to begin collecting the software data from that machine. Q.    I do not have a Microsoft SQL Server installed in my company. Can I still run the SAMLite Administration Console? A.  Yes you can. The SAMLite Administration Console is able to run with the Microsoft SQL Server Data Engine (MSDE), which is a free limited version of SQL Server. MSDE can be downloaded from our Web site or is available on the SAMLite CD. Q.    How do I uninstall SAMLite? A.  Version 4 Use the Windows Add/Remove Programs from the Control Panel to remove SAMLITE MMC, Active Probe (if installed) and SAMLITEWEB (Web Dashboard), . Note that this will not remove audit files, or the logon scripts if they have been deployed. These components will need to be manually deleted. Version 3 Use the Windows Add/Remove Programs from the Control Panel. Note that this will not remove any reports that have been generated, the audit files, or the logon scripts if they have been deployed. These components will need to be manually deleted. Q.    Version 3: Could not open file named: SETUP.LST A.  If you are trying to run the SAMLite setup.exe from within the downloaded zip file, try extracting the implementation files first to a local drive and then run setup.exe. Q.    Cannot generate SSPI context. A.  This message may occur if you try to install SAMLite to a machine that belongs to a login domain, but is currently disconnected from that login domain. Reconnect the machine to the login network and try again. Top Administration   Q.    "Active Probes has not been detected on the IP you specified". What should I do? A.  Ensure the following: Internet Information Services (IIS) version 5 and above is installed .Net Framework 1.1 is installed ActiveProbeSetup.exe on the CD is installed 1) Firstly, confirm that you have installed Active Probe (by running ActiveProbeSetup.exe on the CD) on the machine. 2) Check if .NET framework 1.1 is installed on your machine. You can verify this by doing the following Click Start, and then click Control Panel. Classic view, double-click Administrative Tools. Make sure you have Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 Configuration in the list. If you do not have the above, please go to <CD>\support\NETFramework1.1 and double click on dotnetfx.exe to install the framework. If you have verified that Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 is already installed, it is likely that ASP.NET is not installed and registered with IIS. a) On the command prompt, run the following command. C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v1.1.4322\aspnet_regiis –i b) When done, Click Start->Control Panel->AdministrativeTools-> Internet Information Services Under <machinename>->WebSites->Default Web Site -> , right click on Active Probe -> Properties Under Virtual Directory Tab, click on Configuration Double check under Mappings that you have .asmx and aspx in the list. c) On the command prompt, type iisreset to restart IIS.   Try accessing the URL of the ActiveProbe. http://<IP Address>/ActiveProbe/ActiveProbe.asmx. You should see the ActiveProbe Web Service page.   Also if the machine is a domain controller, you may receive “Server Application Unavailable” error when you access the URL, this is a known issue with ASP.NET on Domain controller, following the following KB article to solve the problem. http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q315158 Q.    How can I delete pending scans or failed scans from SAM Event Log?   A.  Simply press Delete on the keyboard. Scheduled scans cannot be deleted directly. Please use the Wizard on step 3 to delete the schedule itself. Q.    My Scheduled Collection is not running. I have just created a schedule for today. What is the problem?   A.  When scheduling an active scan, ensure that the time has not elapsed. If SAMLITE database is residing on another server, check to see that the schedule has not exceeded the time on the database server. If not, the scan will be scheduled for the next run time, if configured to do so. Also, ensure that the schedule has not been unchecked from the Collector Wizard or “Step 3: Collect Data” from the SAMLite Administrative Console”. Q.    How do I remove x software from the software list? A.  Simply select the software that you want to delete and hit the “Del” key. Note, if the software is still installed on any machines, it will reappear next time an import in performed. Q.    How do I delete a machine from the machine list? A.  Simply select the machine that you want to delete and hit the “Del” key. Note you can select multiple machines from the list by holding down the Shift or Ctrl keys. Q.    I have manually removed a software from my machine. But when I access the Removals tab, the software is not listed to be removed. A.  For the software to appear in the Removals list under the Removals tab, it must first be recorded as installed on a particular machine. Q.    Must the SAM Administration Console be running for SAMLite to collect data? A.  No, it is not necessary for the SAM Administration Console to be running while SAMLite collects data. These 2 processes can be executed independently of each other. Q.    Why is the data on the SAM Administration Console not updated even though I have it running 24 hours a day? A.  Version 4 If you are only using Passive Collection, the data collection is dependant on the frequency of logins and the number of logins. Active Collection is able to actively pull data from clients. Additional configuration and installation of supporting files may be required using the Active Collection method. Version 3 The SAM Administration Console will only show data that are has been collected by the SAMLite login scripts. SAMLite login scripts are only run when clients login to the network and so it is at that point in time when the data actually gets updated. After the data has been collected by the SAMLite login scripts, an import is required in the SAM Administration Console to enable the new data to be managed in the SAM Administration Console. Q.    How does the Recorded Removals work? After removing recording a software removal, the software still appears in the Software Summary of the SAMLITE Dashboard (Web Reports)? A.  The Recorded Removals is required in the reconciliation process. It is generally used to logically indicate the transfer of software ownership. It does not remove the software from your environment. Q.    What about users using dial-up? Does the Login Script / Passive Collection run for them? A.  As long as users are properly configured to run SAM’s Login script (located in NETLOGON\SAM\SAM.BAT), all logged on users will be audited. Q.    Is SAMLITE capable of automatically detecting the exact physical location of any machine, without user intervention? A.  No, locations must be assigned by the administrator. Q.    SAMLITE’s CPU detection does not seem quite accurate. For example, an Athlon XP 2400+ machine (2.0GHz), is reported with 1975MHz as their CPU speed and is classified as "AMD Athlon(tm) (undistinguished model)". A.  The CPU detection is totally reliant on how Windows reports it. There is nothing we can do about it, programmatically. Q.    When we delete machines, will it also delete the software and hardware information for that PC? A.  Pressing “Delete” on the Machine Listing on SAMLite Administrative Console will cause all related software and hardware information to be deleted. Information on other computers will not be deleted. Q.    Why is not SAMLITE able to obtain the Operating System's product key?   A.  The product key is encrypted for security and therefore cannot be obtained by SAMLITE. Top SAMLITE V4 Dashboard (Web Reports) Q.    The SAMLite Dashboard is showing incorrect information about my environment. I have just configured my SAMLite 4 Administration Console to point to a new Database. Previously, it was pointing to an old database. A.  The Dashboard’s Database connection must be configured separately again. • To do so click on Start Menu > Programs > SAMLite Web Reports > DBWizard. • Follow the wizard to point the Dashboard to the latest Database. . Q.    The chart does not show properly. What can I do? A.  The Office Web Component may not be installed properly. Reinstall it from the CD from the following location, support\OfficeWebComponent10.0\owc10.exe. Top SAMLITE V3 Report Generation Q.    What is the difference between the "Recorded Installations" Report and the "Detected Installations" Report? A.  The Recorded Installation report is used to identify software installations that are done and recorded by the Administrator for reconciliation purposes. The Detected Installation report, however, operates by identifying which software installation has been detected between periods of time. Please refer to the SAM Documentation: SAM Architecture.doc in the SAM cd for more information regarding reports. Q.    Why is the date in the report in American/European format? A.  The format of the date that is displayed in the reports follows the regional settings on the computer where you are running the SAMLite Administration Console. If the setting is “mm/dd/yy” then the date shown in the report would be reported with the month, followed by the day and then the year. Top Security Q.    Could the use of the SAMLite network-shared folder lead to users deleting or putting in arbitrary files on the network share? A.  Yes it is possible. A workaround to this would be to create the SAMLite network-shared folder as a hidden shared folder (ie. append $ to the name the network-shared folder). Q.    With the recent threat of viruses infected networks through network-shared folders, is the SAMLite network-shared folder vulnerable to these viruses? A.  Unfortunately because SAM Lite keeps data that is collected in a network-shared folder, it is vulnerable to viruses like Nimda, a malicious virus that creates delinquent files in network-shared folders. However, it is unlikely that the virus scripts will ever be executed from those folders, since it is used only by SAMLite. Any such scripts will be removed with regular anti-virus cleaning. One of the things that can be done is to create the network-shared folder with a “$” at the end of the share name. This will stop the server from advertising the file share, and at the time of writing, it is not conclusive yet whether viruses can detect hidden shared folders Q.    Will SAMLite notify any third party organizations of the information collected? A.  No, absolutely not. Q.    CAN SAMLite Web Dashboard be limited to a certain group of Domain users? A.  Yes. Go to C:\program files\SAMLite\SAMLiteWeb (or the installation directory) Right Click SAMLiteWeb > Security Tab Add The User(s) by clicking Add Press OK START > Run > INETMGR Right Click on the SAMLiteWeb Click Properties > Directory Security Tab Anonymous Access & authentication control > Edit Uncheck Anonymous access Press Ok Press Ok START > Run > IISRESET Top Common Issues Q.    Does SAMLite support getting information from Netware Servers, DOS clients, Unix hosts and Macs? A.  Currently, SAMLite only supports Novell and Windows 9x and above. The direction of SAMLite is based on clients’ feedback and their request for support on certain Operating System. SAMLite is currently not supported to collect data from 16-bit Windows and UNIX desktops. Q.    The status of the Active Scan stays at Pending Scan and does not change. What is wrong? A.  Please check the following: The Active Probe must be configured correctly If problem persists, use the SQL authentication instead of Windows authentication For Windows 2000, ensure that the Aspnet account is a member of the local administrators Check if the shared folder has be created successfully Check if Everyone has full control to the shared folder in security tab of the SAM shared folder's property If problem persists, use the Deploy Audit Script Wizard to configure the SAM shared folder to point to another directory Q.    "The RPC server is unavailable" is reported by SAM Event Message Log A.  Checklist: Client firewalls must be configured to support SAMLITE For Win9X, install WMI (Support folder of the CD), restart; install DCOM, restart; apply 9xWMI.reg and restart Q.    "Out of environment space" is reported while login script runs A.  Please refer to the Microsoft article for resolution at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/q230205/ Q.    Does SAMLite detect MS Office products as a suite or it detects as individual components? A.  It depends on the produce suite that you have. If you install MS Word 2000 that is part of the MS Office 2000 Professional suite, it lists itself as MS Office 2000 Professional. If you buy the product separately, then it will list itself as Word 2000.Conclusion - if its part of a suite, the suite will be listed no matter what components you install. Q.    When using Active Scan, I receive this error in the Windows Application Log: Access to performance data was denied to... A.  Windows 2000/2003 limits WMI-data access to Windows 2000/2003 administrators. If you attempt to access information from an unprivileged account, the Application log records the following event: Event ID 1000 Source Perflib Description: Access to performance data was denied to ... as attempted from C:\WINNT\System32\WinMgmt.exe Workarounds: Instead of using IUSR_COMPUTERNAME as the account used for Active Probe's anonymous access (under IIS), use a SAMLITE service account with Domain Administator rights. Use this only in a secured intranet server running IIS. Create a service account for SAMLITE as a member of Domain Administrator. Place it in its own Organization Unit without any Group Policies attached. Specify this credential in the Credentials Wizard in the SAMlite Console and the Active Probe's anonymous credentials under IIS. Avoid placing users in an Active Directory Organization Unit which may contain Group Policies restrictions that disallow SAMLITE from retrieving the User Display Name Note: Depending on restrictions set by the Systems Administrator, these workarounds may not cater to all environments Q.    I am running SAMLite with Sharepoint Portal Server 2003 or below. While performing Active Collection, I get the following error message in SAMLite v4.0 Message Event Log “The request failed with HTTP status 401: Unauthorized”. A.  Sharepoint intercepts requests to SAMLite thereby causing SAMLite’s service to fail. Follow these instructions: • From the CD, navigate to Tools\Sharepoint, copy and paste ActiveProbe.Web.config into the Program Files\SAMLite\ActiveProbe. • Rename the existing Web.config to Web.config.old • Rename ActiveProbe.Web.config to Web.config • Type IISRESET in the command prompt • Try to perform a scan again   Workarounds: Create a service account for SAMLITE as a member of Domain Administrator. Place it in its own Organization Unit without any Group Policies attached. Specify this credential in the Credentials Wizard in the SAMlite Console and the Active Probe's anonymous credentials under IIS. Avoid placing users in an Active Directory Organization Unit which may contain Group Policies restrictions that disallow SAMLITE from retrieving the User Display Name Note: Depending on restrictions set by the Systems Administrator, these workarounds may not cater to all environments Q.    When SAMLite is installed on a Windows 2003 Server, the SAMLite Passive Scan does not produce any results although the Login Script runs A.  Under SAMDefaultShare$ (or any shared folder configured with SAMLite), allow everyone Read, Modify and Write permissions. < Q.    In a Workgroup environment, the Active Collection does not work although the Local Administrator's password was provided.