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Configuration Guide
Learn how to configure BigFix according to your needs.
Extending BigFix management capabilities
BigFix 10 delivers a few significant new functions for enhancing the visibility and management of devices on your network regardless of whether the devices are physical or virtual.
Managing cloud resources
The IT ecosystem in every organization keeps expanding to include a variety of endpoints such as servers, Mac and Linux desktops, and laptops. With the advent of cloud computing, more and more IT organizations consider shifting their entire on-premise infrastructure including data centers to the cloud, such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, VMware, and Google Cloud Platform (GCP). Consequently, managing endpoints is becoming increasingly complex, which has necessitated endpoint management solutions to also support cross-hosting environments.
Managing cloud plugins
BigFix 10 Platform includes a plugin for every cloud provider supported, namely Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, VMware and Google Cloud Platform (GCP). Each of these cloud providers has its own uniqueness, capabilities, and ways to interface with an external program and they handle access to data and capabilities differently.
Planning the installation of cloud plugins
Cloud plugins can be installed on computers running the Plugin Portal. Optionally, they may all be installed on the same Plugin Portal instance.

Configuration Guide
Learn how to configure BigFix according to your needs.
- Introduction
  This guide explains additional configuration steps that you can run in your environment after installation.
- BigFix Site Administrator and Console Operators
  In BigFix there are two basic classes of users.
- Integrating with LDAP
  You can add Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) associations to BigFix.
- Enabling SAML V2.0 authentication for LDAP operators
  Starting from Version 9.5.5, BigFix supports SAML V2.0 authentication via LDAP-backed SAML identity providers.
- Disabling local operators
  Starting from BigFix Version 10.0.8, this feature provides a mechanism where the creation and use of any local operator is prohibited in favor of LDAP-based operators.
- Using multiple servers (DSA)
  Some important elements of multiple server installations.
- Server object IDs
  The BigFix server generates unique ids for the objects that it creates: Fixlets, tasks, baselines, properties, analysis, actions, roles, custom sites, computer groups, management rights, subscriptions.
- Customizing HTTPS for Gathering
- Using the DHE/ECDHE key exchange method
  By default, BigFix 10.0 Patch 1 components use the DHE/ECDHE key exchange method if the version of the BigFix component on the other side of the SSL communication allows it.
- Configuring secure communication
- Real Time AV Exclusions
  BigFix Console, Server and Relay components of the architecture perform high volume file operations. This activity is a substantial part of the functionality that these BigFix architecture components provide.
- Downloading files in air-gapped environments
  In air-gapped environments, to download and transfer files to the main BigFix server, use the Airgap utility and the BES Download Cacher utility.
- Getting client information by using BigFix Query
  The BigFix Query feature allows you to retrieve information and run relevance queries on client workstations from the WebUI BigFix Query Application or by using REST APIs.
- The Plugin Portal
  The Plugin Portal is a new component introduced in BigFix 10 to help manage cloud devices as well as modern devices such as Windows 10 and MacOS endpoints enrolled to BigFix. For details on modern client management, see the Modern Client Management documentation.
- Extending BigFix management capabilities
  BigFix 10 delivers a few significant new functions for enhancing the visibility and management of devices on your network regardless of whether the devices are physical or virtual.
  - Managing cloud resources
    The IT ecosystem in every organization keeps expanding to include a variety of endpoints such as servers, Mac and Linux desktops, and laptops. With the advent of cloud computing, more and more IT organizations consider shifting their entire on-premise infrastructure including data centers to the cloud, such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, VMware, and Google Cloud Platform (GCP). Consequently, managing endpoints is becoming increasingly complex, which has necessitated endpoint management solutions to also support cross-hosting environments.
    - Understanding cloud setup
      BigFix Console and WebUI provide operators with a single representation of a cloud resource, regardless of whether it is managed by the BigFix Agent, by the Platform/Config/c_pluginportal.html through the cloud plugins, or by both. This way, you as an operator can have complete visibility into and control over your cloud infrastructure.
    - Discovering cloud resources
      BigFix 10 provides the capability to discover resources that you own on any of the supported cloud providers.
    - Correlated devices
      BigFix 10 has the capability of correlating multiple representations of the same computer, allowing operators to manage them as a single entity (also referred to as correlated device throughout this documentation) as well as to operate on a specific representation as needed.
    - Managing cloud plugins
      BigFix 10 Platform includes a plugin for every cloud provider supported, namely Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, VMware and Google Cloud Platform (GCP). Each of these cloud providers has its own uniqueness, capabilities, and ways to interface with an external program and they handle access to data and capabilities differently.
      - Planning the installation of cloud plugins
        Cloud plugins can be installed on computers running the Plugin Portal. Optionally, they may all be installed on the same Plugin Portal instance.
      - Installing cloud plugins
        Each cloud plugin has a specific installation task on BES Support, which becomes relevant on computers where the Plugin Portal is installed.
      - Verifying the cloud plugin installation
        Once the deployment of a cloud plugin has completed, its first discovery attempt is expected to start immediately and the discovered resources should be displayed in the Computers view of the BigFix Console or in the Devices page of the BigFix WebUI within a few minutes.
      - Configuring cloud plugins
        Cloud plugins are installed with a base configuration that can be updated later on, primarily through the BigFix WebUI.
    - Activating cloud analyses
      When a cloud plugin is installed, the following BES Support analyses must be activated to take advantage of the new cloud-related capabilities of BigFix 10.
    - Working with the cloud plugin dashboard
      The information displayed by the Cloud Plugin Dashboard.
    - BigFix Agent installation on cloud resources
      Starting from Patch 2, you can install the BigFix Agent on the discovered cloud resources (AWS and Azure), using the cloud provider services through the corresponding BigFix cloud plugin.
    - Troubleshooting
      This section helps you troubleshoot some common issues or limitations.
- Persistent connections
  The capability to establish persistent connections was added to the product.
- Relays in DMZ
  The capability to establish a persistent TCP connection between the parent relay in the more secure zone and its child relay inside the DMZ network was added to the product. This allows you to manage systems in a demilitarized zone (DMZ network).
- Working with PeerNest
  The BigFix Client includes a new feature named PeerNest, that allows to share binary files among Clients located in the same subnet. The feature is available starting from BigFix Version 9.5 Patch 11.
- Archiving Client files on the BigFix Server
  You can collect multiple files from BigFix clients into an archive and move them through the relay system to the server.
- BigFix Configuration Settings
  A number of advanced BigFix configuration settings are available that can give you substantial control over the behavior of the BigFix suite. These options allow you to customize the behavior of the BigFix server, relays, and clients in your network.
- Additional configuration steps
  These topics explain additional configuration steps that you can run in your environment.
- Migrating the BigFix Server (Windows/MS-SQL)
  This section details the steps and operational procedures necessary for migrating the BigFix Server from existing hardware onto new computer systems.
- Migrating the BigFix Server (Linux)
  This section provides basic information on migrating your BigFix Server from existing Linux hardware onto new systems.
- Server audit logs
  The BigFix Server generates a server audit log file which contains the access information (login/logout) and information about the actions performed through the Console or the WebUI by the different users.
- List of advanced options
  The following lists show the advanced options.
- Security Configuration Scenarios
  BigFix provides the capability to follow the NIST security standards by configuring an enhanced security option.
- Client certificate
  To comply with the modern industry standards, starting from product version 10.0.7, the client certificate of the BigFix Agent will have a validity period of 13 months.
- Client Authentication
  Client Authentication (introduced in version 9) extends the security model used by BigFix to encompass trusted client reports and private messages.
- Maintenance and Troubleshooting
  If you are subscribed to the Patches for Windows site, you can ensure that you have the latest upgrades and patches to your SQL server database servers.

Planning the installation of cloud plugins

Cloud plugins can be installed on computers running the Plugin Portal. Optionally, they may all be installed on the same Plugin Portal instance.

However, this option should be taken into account only if it meets the capacity planning requirements of the Plugin Portal that are included in the BigFix Capacity Planning guide.

It is strongly recommended to have only one instance of cloud plugin per type (AWS, Microsoft Azure, VMware , GCP) in a BigFix deployment. The purpose of this recommendation is to avoid having the same cloud resources discovered more than once, which would cause the correlation of multiple instances of the same proxied computer under one correlation computer, adding unnecessary complexity and load to the displaying and management of correlation computers.

While requiring specific configuration information that depends on the supported cloud platform, the installation of every cloud plugin requires the input of credentials that would allow the embedded SDK to call the APIs of the corresponding cloud platform and access related cloud services. As all cloud plugins perform a credential-based discovery, their capability to discover virtual machines and retrieve related data depends on the permissions granted on the cloud platform side to the user owning the credentials. More information about the required permissions are available in Installing cloud plugins.

Note: Each cloud plugin supports multiple sets of credentials. However, only one set may be specified at installation time. Any further credential sets can be added later on using the BigFix WebUI.

When installing the AWS, Microsoft Azure and the Google Cloud plugins, you must ensure that these plugins are able to access related cloud services using HTTPS over the Internet.

The cloud plugins are installed in the following default paths:

Windows:

C:\Program Files (x86)\BigFix Enterprise\BES Plugin Portal\Plugins\Plugin_name

Non-windows:

/opt/BESPluginPortal/Plugins/Plugin_name
/var/opt/BESPluginPortal/Plugins/Plugin_name