UMS Web App

The development of the UMS Web App is inspired by a number of IGEL’s customer use cases. With the finalization of the help desk use case, IGEL has begun working on the next use case of device management and control. It allows users to manage IGEL OS-powered devices easily and intuitively via the UMS Web App. As a first step towards this, IGEL has introduced the new configuration section of the Web App.

This configuration section enables IT to manage and structure profiles within a directory tree. Users can create and structure directories and subdirectories, rename profiles, and assign devices or add files to profiles.

Customers have expressed a strong liking for the Web App, especially the convenience of using it to manage and control IGEL OS-powered endpoints. At the same time, they want more control over what functions can occur at the application level. We answer this need with app-specific features to enable more restrictions:

• A new restriction helps prevent admins and help desk staff from accidentally performing bulk actions. It gives the option of limiting users from performing an action affecting all devices, and applies to all device-related actions and commands. User rights for single device or bulk actions for the web app are first set in the UMS console.
• Additionally, we have added a restriction that limits new users from deleting logs. IT can also set up the restriction for existing users.

UMS Console

Monitoring the health of IGEL OS-powered endpoints is one of the main daily tasks of an administrator. Quickly and easily identifying devices that are no longer operating as intended helps troubleshoot problems and maintain a stable infrastructure.

Our newly introduced Heartbeat feature makes it much easier to detect devices that become non-operational. An activated Heartbeat configures all devices to execute a regular signal back to the UMS. How often the device should trigger a signal can easily be defined by the chosen interval.

Every Heartbeat will trigger an update of the new system information Last Contact. Based on this timestamp, customers can create views and identify endpoints which have not contacted the UMS within a specific time period.

This facilitates identifying ‘dead’ devices which can be unused assets, out-of-date devices, and worse, devices that are no longer secure.

Another simple but powerful improvement is the new view criteria Configuration Change Pending. It allows admins to more easily search for devices which are still waiting for updated settings, including the latest configuration to be applied to the device. Once these devices are identified, you can trigger any action needed to complete the configuration update.

Better Control, More Options

IGEL partners depend on us to anticipate customer challenges in our evolving digital workspace culture and to provide new innovations like our updated UMS 6.07.100. Its features further refine how IT can securely and efficiently manage IGEL OS-powered endpoint environments, whether using the console or the Web App.

Let’s see how we can help your customers have the most secure, efficient management and control of all their devices – all from a single screen! Check out top reasons you should choose the IGEL Universal Management Suite here, then download the complete UMS data sheet here.

The post IGEL Builds on Industry-Leading Endpoint Management and Control Capabilities with new UMS Features appeared first on IGEL.

Not unlike other organizations, IGEL, a developer of edge operating system software for cloud workspaces and endpoint hardware, had to quickly send literally all employees from their IGEL offices to their homes. This was no problem for employees who occasionally work from home and were already equipped with IGEL OS-powered mobile devices like laptops and tablets. But for those who come to the office every day, like development engineers based in Germany who use fixed desktop PCs or IGEL desktop endpoint devices, the change was significant.

These people are truly “the heart” of IGEL. They are the passionate minds that develop and maintain IGEL OS and the rest of IGEL’s suite of software solutions. How could these crucial employees move their digital office environment to their homes without missing any key functionality or compromising security? The answer: IGEL’s own UD Pocket. It’s a small USB stick, no bigger than a thumbnail, that turns any x86-64 endpoint device like a desktop or laptop PC into a trusted endpoint for secure and fully managed working in virtual and cloud-based environments.  And with the IGEL Cloud Gateway (ICG) feature, that work can take place in a fully secure and managed fashion from home or anywhere else.

The coronavirus crisis overtook Germany faster than expected, so rapid action was called for. Nearly 60 developers based in IGEL’s Augsburg, Germany subsidiary needed to work “overnight” from their home offices. Fortunately, because IGEL employees already use devices with IGEL OS, the team was able to quickly mobilize to work from home. UD Pockets were mailed to employees’ homes and the development teams were able to remain productive in their new home offices.

“The use of UD Pockets and IGEL UMS has made the process easy for us to quickly turn our in-office workers into mobile work warriors!” – Tobias Hafner, IT Administrator IGEL

All members of the IGEL development team are now fully equipped to work from home, with their familiar development environment and remotely collaborating using unified communications tools like Microsoft Teams and Zoom, thanks to IGEL’s own solution. Read the full case study here.

Our own IGEL experience of taking our offices home with us is just one example of how IGEL OS software, along with VDI and DaaS solutions from key partners like Amazon, Citrix, VMware and Microsoft WVD, gives people the freedom to work from anywhere while also giving IT teams full management and control for devices both on the corporate network or off – even in our employees’ homes. The goal for all of us now is to stay healthy.

We believe that keeping people productive in their work, while enabling them to treat their family’s health as their top priority, helps not only maintain a positive state of mind, but will also help all of us  quickly return to “normal” once the current crisis passes. Hopefully that’s much sooner than later!

Stay healthy!

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Maximum Supported Environments

We are happy to announce that we now support the UMS with Microsoft SQL Server 2019 (with cluster support). IGEL offers an outstanding range of different environments with maximum flexibility for the installation of your UMS server, client and backend database. Please find the complete overview of the supported environments in our Knowledge Base.

Improved User Experience

The implementation of the following pre-checks also increase the efficiency of maintaining the UMS:

• Database version check: UMS Installer and UMS Administrator check whether your database version is supported as soon as a database is selected.
• Free disk space check: Before downloading a new firmware update, the UMS will check the free disk space.

In both cases you will immediately receive a warning to adjust your settings or increase your free disk space if necessary.

In the section “UMS Administration” you will find a new node “UMS Features” to show or hide the following advanced UMS features:

• Template Profiles
• Master Profiles
• Shared Workplaces

To inform you about expiring or already expired certificates and license packs, we have set up some new notification types that will remind you of needed updates. Additionally, you will find a new option to show already archived notifications.

A new job command “Send messages” allows to schedule the automated transmission of messages to endpoint devices and makes it much easier to inform end-users about upcoming updates, etc.

Further Improvements

The release includes many more features and add-ons to optimize your daily work with the UMS:

• You can choose a specific reply port for the online check
• The Universal Customization Builder for Windows is now available for free and no longer requires a license
• The UMS Server supports FTP passive mode for the Universal Firmware Upload
• UMS Licensing ID fingerprint hast been added to the administration section of the UMS (UMS Administration > Global Configuration > Licenses)
• If you want to transfer a file from the UMS to a specific device, the file target location can now be edited in the context menu
• In the UMS Administrator tool we have implemented multi select for the cipher suite list to be used by the UMS server

Last but not least, we have been working on some architectural optimizations that will have a major positive impact on the UMS performance, especially for large enterprise installations which organize several thousand devices in one directory.

The ongoing and constant improvement of the UMS is one reason why IGEL UMS is the best endpoint management and control solution for your IGEL OS-powered endpoints.

You can download the complete release notes from our IGEL Knowledge Base.

The post UMS 6.04: Improved User Experience & Even More Supported Environments appeared first on IGEL.

To begin with, the IGEL UMS Console, which system administrators use for their daily work, has been refined and optimized for even faster management of large numbers of devices – ranging from a few endpoints to upwards of tens of thousands of devices.

Further, secure shadowing of devices outside the corporate LAN (via IGEL Cloud Gateway) has also been added, enabling helpdesk staff to see users’ screens, even when they are working remotely from their home office or traveling.

Finally, the release is nicely rounded out with many nifty user experience features such as copying a device’s complete system information to the clipboard in one click.

Additionally, the complete IGEL UMS architecture has received improvements including support for up to 100,000 endpoint devices in a single cluster. To scale to this number and beyond, IGEL’s UMS R&D team completely re-engineered the UMS architecture with an array of improvements designed for massive scalability, including a new caching algorithm and a highly capable memory management system, to name just a couple of the enhancements.

Beyond its even greater scale, the IGEL UMS is ready for the modern global enterprise with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8 now added to the list of supported software platforms, and support for Microsoft SQL Server Always On Availability Groups.

All this innovation underscores the impact and significance of the UMS 6.03.110 release. Legendary for its simplicity, the IGEL UMS is now ideal for any organization of any size, from the small business to the Global 500 enterprise!

Learn more about this latest UMS release here.

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It’s the latest in an approach that is the reverse of user-friendly. While 7GB may not have much impact on newer PCs that generally have a terabyte or more of storage, older PCs could feel the impact. More importantly, the average user no longer has free will!  While the blog brings up the evergreen ‘optimization’ benefit, in reality, users are being told: you no longer have control over your own desktop/PC. Add to this the track record of Windows updates and it’s evident users are already suffering from update fatigue since some update rounds have had their share of glitches. Perhaps the most notable mishap was the October 2018 update that actually deleted user data; there were so many critical issues that Microsoft withdrew the update while they fixed the problems.  The update was re-released in November, and today its adoption hovers only around the 20% adoption mark.

At IGEL we can’t resist gloating a little bit about this latest example of Windows 10’s update program and Microsoft’s dictatorial style in pushing out updates. We’ve been saying for some time that Windows 10 at the endpoint is getting more unmanageable and remains much more vulnerable to security threats. Our firm belief is that Windows belongs in the data center – not at the endpoint – where it can be better and more securely managed, with the proper hardware investment needed to perform well.

IGEL OS: The Answer at the Endpoint

Endpoints standardized on the Linux-based IGEL OS are the superior choice to serve users roaming on many devices at just as many locations for its manageability, stable operation, and ease of use. Putting Windows at the endpoint, in a VDI environment, is like towing a car to address a flat tire; a good spare is the better option. A well-designed, read-only Linux operating system is the spare tire, the safety net. IGEL OS is exceptionally light weight, seamlessly updated “over the air,” and has hardened security that is impermeable to cybersecurity threats.

Best of all, when we’re dealing with legacy investment, we can get off the Windows treadmill by using IGEL OS software to extend the life of our workstation assets and avoid without the high cost of a hardware refresh. We are then no longer tethered, at will, by Microsoft and its constant cycle of Windows updates and extended support programs.

As icing on the cake, IGEL OS is fully integrated into the IGEL Universal Management Suite (UMS) to give IT professionals a centralized device management system that is so efficient one person can manage tens of thousands of endpoints. Instead of having to find budget for the next hardware refresh, IT groups can provide users with the most customized, secure EUC experience available, via the Linux-based IGEL OS.

It’s time to get off the Windows treadmill.  Learn more about the new IGEL Workspace Edition here.

The post Windows 10: The (Bad) Gift that Keeps on Giving appeared first on IGEL.

New UMS capabilities don’t stop there. The new version also includes an IGEL Cloud Gateway (ICG) Remote Installer; new and improved notifications; SSL/TLS Certificate Exchange; and the migration from 32-bit to 64-bit for increased memory and improved performance and reliability for large installations.

These new enhancements are a continuation of IGEL’s focus on the continued platform refinements that provide our customers and partners with the industry’s most innovative, software-defined endpoint security and optimization solutions. The new features are designed to make it easier for IT organizations to manage their iOS devices in the same way they would all other endpoints. Further, we’ve enhanced the integration with the IGEL Cloud Gateway by simplifying installation and upgrades and made it easier to manage licensing and certificates.

Introducing MDM Essentials for UMS

When organizations upgrade to IGEL UMS version 5.09.100, they will gain access to a free preview of MDM Essentials for UMS. Available for up to five iOS devices, the MDM Essentials for UMS app is available through the Apple App Store. Key management and security features include the ability to send current profile settings to the device;refresh/update device information;device lock;clear passcode; wipe device; restart the device; and, reset the device to factory defaults.

With MDM Essentials for UMS, organizations can also easily configure settings on supported devices including allowing or denying camera functionality and access to the App Store; setting passcode policies; configuring Wi-Fi settings; controlling the addition of POP3 or IMAP mail accounts; and, printer settings for Air Print.

Simplifying Integration with IGEL Cloud Gateway

With IGEL UMS 5.09.100, organizations benefit from easy and user-friendly two-step installation of ICG with selected certificate and user support to prevent inaccurate input. Organizations can also easily upgrade their ICG version and replace the IGC certificate.

Expanded Notifications and Certificate Options

The IGEL UMS 5.09.100 alerts users when licenses are about to expire or if new firmware versions are available for their devices. Users can also upgrade existing UMS SSL/TLS certificates to current algorithms to increase security and meet compliance, or use a certificate from their corporate PKI or preferred CA. Further, there is a failsafe mechanism to prevent any device from becoming unmanageable.

New IGEL License Portal (ILP)

In conjunction with the new UMS release, IGEL has also launched a new ILP with user enhancements that make the portal more intuitive and user friendly. Offering a responsive design, the ILP makes it easy to administer licenses from a tablet or even mobile phone. Thus, when working on the road or at remote locations, the portal is now easier to use from any device.

The modernized and redesigned ILP also offers productivity enhancing features such as a dashboard overview where all licenses and subscriptions can be seen in a single view. With simplified user management, the ILP also features an improved overview screen for easier navigation and interaction.

Availability and Support

The IGEL UMS version 5.09.100 is available now.Learn more in the IGEL Community. To experience the capabilities of the IGEL Universal Management Suite (UMS), download here, or request free evaluation hardware.

The post New Release of IGEL Universal Management Suite Includes Mobile Device Management for iOS appeared first on IGEL.

I’m thrilled and proud to introduce you to the first version of the ‘IGEL Software Platform: Step-by-Step Getting Started Guide.‘  A free book, written by the IGEL Community, on how to install and configure the IGEL software stack, all screen-shot by screen-shot.

Simply put, our goal is to take any complexity and guesswork out of getting to know the IGEL Platform by providing you with the tools, knowledge, and understanding to quickly install, configure and master the IGEL software suite.

Download the ‘IGEL Software Platform: Step-by-Step Getting Started Guide’ NOW!

We start with the basics, the ability to download the IGEL Platform trial software and perform basic installation and configuration. We walk you, step-by-step, through what is required for you to get up and running in a proof-of-concept or lab scenario.

When finished, you will have a fully working IGEL End-Point Management Platform consisting of the IGEL Universal Management Suite (UMS), IGEL Cloud Gateway (ICG) and at least one IGEL OS installed, connected and centrally managed!

All this, screen-shot by screen-shot. No guesswork! Easy as eating Pie!

Version 1 includes the following:

• Download IGEL Software
• How to Install the IGEL Universal Management Suite (UMS)
• How to Open Firewall Ports Required by UMS
• How to Create an AWS Instance for IGEL Cloud Gateway (ICG)
• How to Open Firewall Ports Required by ICG
• How to Create Required DNS Records
• How to Create and install an SSL Certificate for ICG
• How to Install the IGEL ICG Software
• How to License the IGEL ICG
• How to Install IGEL OS Universal Desktop Converter (UDC)
• How to Add IGEL Devices to the UMS
• How to License the IGEL OS UDC
• How to Create Basic Folder Structure
• How to Create Basic UMS Profiles
• How to Configure Custom Desktop Wallpaper

Over time the IGEL Community will release new versions. We will not only improve and update existing sections but also add additional topics and configurations, all step-by-step, screenshot-by-screenshot. With steps so simple your Mom could do it but packed with a slew of links for you to learn more and dive deeper!

I would be remiss not to mention the incredible contributions of the #IGELCommunity.  Together we are better!

Stay up to date with what’s new with this project, and what’s technically new at IGEL, please join the IGEL Community and our very active Slack group.

Yes, for some life might be complicated, but now the process of getting the IGEL Platform up and running is fun and easy!  You will love it, trust me!

Download the ‘IGEL Software Platform: Step-by-Step Getting Started Guide’ NOW!

Thanks for downloading!

The post IGEL Community Releases “How-To Install and Configure IGEL Software Platform” Made Easy Book appeared first on IGEL.

IGEL’s deployment of more than 2,300 UD6 endpoints for Fulton Financial’s Lancaster, PA headquarters and branch offices is one of our latest victories in which IGEL won a ‘bake-off’ against the competition. Our Platinum Partner, Plan B Technologies, facilitated the testing to validate how IGEL could support Fulton Financial’s desire to upgrade its endpoints to deliver Citrix VDI throughout its locations.

Begun last year, the deployment is a stellar success. In the coming months we will be adding more endpoints to serve all of Fulton’s more than 3,500 end users.

One of the key reasons we won this particular bake-off is Fulton Financial’s need for an endpoint solution that could support multimedia. Like many organizations now, Fulton Financial wants to use audio and video technologies to deliver a richer media experience in training programs and internal communications. IGEL solved this easily because the UD6 fast Intel Celeron® quad-core processor supports 3D and other rich media applications.

In one IGEL endpoint solution, Fulton Financial has met all its key objectives:

• High-performance multi-media capability
• ‘Hands-free’, endpoint security and optimization via IGEL’s Universal Management Suite (UMS)
• Centralized management and cost savings using the UMS
• PC-level performance without the PC investment
• Superior integration with Citrix virtualization solutions

We are winning against the competition because we really do have it all: stellar performance, simple, secure management and functionality like multimedia enabling processors that match how employees want to receive information today.

Take a minute to learn more: click here for the case study or watch the video here.

The post IGEL and Plan B Deliver it All for Fulton Financial appeared first on IGEL.

Talk about perfect timing!  Check out the pages of our new website!  We tuned up our messaging to reflect our intensified focus on software innovation. The new site gives insight into how IGEL has revolutionized the endpoint with benefits for all personas, including CxOs, IT professionals, security professionals and end users. You’ll see great, detailed information on how IGEL enables enterprises to convert any x86 device and control every PC from one, easy-to-manage, platform.

Simple. Smart. Secure.  That is our mantra and IGEL software exemplifies this vision for giving enterprises a powerful unified endpoint security and optimization solution that is easy to use, and provides the security controls enterprises need to support a mobile, multi-device workforce.

The numbers prove IGEL’s solution is exactly what our enterprises have been looking for:

• Global software sales up 19% in 2016
• A 95% increase in North American software sales
• 2017 projected software sales at <50% increase worldwide

In keeping with our software website kickoff, we’re launching a new service.  For the first time, our partners and customers can download software licenses right on the site.  It’s a convenient way to access these IGEL products:

• IGEL Universal Desktop Converter (UDC) – IGEL UDC provides businesses of all sizes with a lower cost alternative to traditional desktop hardware, helping them to dramatically reduce their desktop replacement costs, and eliminating the need to invest in new hardware. The UDC converts any x86 device, regardless of manufacturer or form factor. This Endpoint conversion software takes only minutes to turn old devices into a universally deployable IGEL Linux-based Endpoint.
• IGEL Universal Management Suite (UMS) – IGEL UMS is a single endpoint security and optimization solution that gives IT automated backend control while delivering a familiar, trouble-free environment for users. Hardware and operating system agnostic, IGEL UMS makes it possible to manage all endpoints from one intuitive solution.

To request a software demo or download a trial license, visit: localhost:9000/free-hardware.

No matter where our customers are on their path to desktop virtualization, IGEL can deliver a software solution that frees the enterprise from additional hardware expenditures and helps them move to a far more efficient endpoint security and optimization environment. We easily convert existing assets into software endpoints, enabling further virtualization and future-proofing endpoint assets. See more about our simple, smart, secure story by watching these videos.

Then, come visit with us at an upcoming event where you’ll have an opportunity to participated in IGEL’s global competition to win a Tesla P100D, the world’s fastest, smartest and cleanest software-defined car. Visit here to see upcoming events and how you can enter for a chance to win.

If you’re new to IGEL’s solution, request a demo and you’ll see why we are capturing the market with our innovative solutions that not only fit how people are working today, but anticipate the IoT future!

Let’s make it a great year!

The post IGEL Hits One Out of the Park with Best Software Sales Year on Record appeared first on IGEL.