Getting to know your new Management Console

Getting to know your new Management Console.

Written by Giuseppe

Last published at: November 9th, 2022

You have successfully installed your new ThinScale Management Console and you are now wondering how to operate it.

This article will explain each section with examples, step by steps actions and pictures to better guide you into it.

Let's begin.

The first thing you will see is the full Management Console with all the default features and folders.



  • FOLDERS


Now let's create a folder called POC. 

Simply right-click the main "Devices" root folder and select "New Folder".



Do the same thing within the Profiles section.

You will have something like this:



  • PROFILES

The next step is to populate the Profile.

For the purpose of this article, I will create a Secure Remote Worker profile. The same steps are needed for other profiles' type.

Right-click the POC folder, previously created, and select "New Profile".

Give it a name and click Add. Save the Profile and close it.



To have more info about the profile please have a look at this article.

The next step is to assign the profile to a device folder.

Select the POC folder from the Device tab.

Click the Profiles tab on the left-hand side, click the white space and then select "Assign Profile" from the Console Ribbon Bar or by right-clicking the space and choosing Assign Profile.



Select the POC Profile from the list and you are done.


Profile Inheritance    

Please note, that Profile assigned to a Parent folder will be inherited also for the child folder, only if no profile is assigned to the child folder.


  • ACCESS KEYS (Previously called Sites)


You will be asking yourself, what is an Access Key?

Think of a site like a way of redirecting devices into a special location. Have a look at this article for more info. 

You can also use a silent installation command to redirect a device into a specific folder during installation.

Have a look at this article for more info.


  • SOFTWARE PACKAGES


Software packages are in reality real software packages ready for deployment.

To create a package have a look at this article, which will show you a step by step guide on how to create one.

Alternatively, you have commonly used packages pre-made in the Product downloads section of the portal my.thinscale.com. Simply pick the required package and download it.

Once the package has been created or downloaded, assign it to the folder where your devices are, the same way you would assign a profile. 



Simply click the white space on the left-hand side and from the Console Ribbon bar select "Assign Package", or right-click the space and choose "Assign Package".



This will install the package for all Devices within that Device Folder.

Do not forget to edit your profile assigned to that same Device Folder so that the installed application appears in the Application Dashboard.

Simply navigate to Local Applications, right-click the list on the right pane and choose Add. 

Example:

Software Package Inheritance

Please note, that Software Packages assigned to a Parent folder will NOT be inherited for the child folder. A Software Package must be also assigned to the child folder.


  • ROLES AND USERS


Roles and Users are useful especially in a scenario where multiple people/departments will connect using the same Console.

You can limit functionalities and the view of the Management Console by using the "Permissions" option and have them applied to specific roles.

You can read more about creating and utilizing users and roles in this article.



Domain User

You can also use a domain account to login to the Management Console. Simply add the group or the user to the Administrators Role and you are done. 


  • NOTIFICATIONS


Notifications are useful if you want to receive all the information about the device's events or console events via emails.

To create a new Notification, right-click the tab and select the "New Notifications" option.

If the SMTP server is not enabled an error message will be displayed. Click Yes to enable it or no to ignore it.


Once the SMTP is enabled and a test email has been sent, you can now add a new Notification. Below, an example Notification which will send an email every time a user logs in to the Management Console.



  • LICENSES


To install a new license or replace an expired one right-click the license tab and click "Install License".


Paste the license key in click "Test License" and then "Install".

There are other functionalities within the Management Console, like "Audit Log", "Windows Updates Reporting Tab", "Clients Events 

Reporting Tab", "Powershell Module" and more.