KBOX Systems Management Appliance

Like the vendor's KBOX 2000 product line launched last month, their KBOX Systems Management Appliance (also known as the KBOX 1000 series) is targeted to mid-market implementations, supporting from 100 to 8,500 end user nodes. While the KBOX 2000 series focuses on the provisioning of end-user machines, the KBOX 1000 models provide endpoint management capabilities to the network administrator, supplying such capabilities as hardware and software inventory, software distribution, patch management, and more.

The KBOX 1000 appliances utilize both an agent and agent-less approach. Detailed information and interactions can be facilitated via agents that are available for the management of Windows, Linux, or Mac OS X machines; while agentless support is offered for "...any network addressable device."

The 1U appliances integrate with LDAP, A/D, and SAN storage or can operate as stand alone devices. They include dual Intel Xeon processors and dual Gb Ethernet ports. Access is via a Web interface; IE 6.0+, Netscape, Mozilla, Firefox, Opera, and Safari are listed as compatible. Included hard drives are hot swappable.

Key features of the devices include the ability to inventory endpoint hardware and software, distribute software, manage patch deployments, and, in the 1200 appliance, security vulnerability scanning and remediation capabilities.

Inventory features leverage the appliance's auto-discovery capabilities, and wizard-based reporting tools provide access to the information gathered. The box includes better than 50 canned reports, and ad-hoc reporting is also possible.

Remote distribution capabilities allow the administrator to use the KBOX to install apps, service packs, updates, etc. to end user machines; filters are available to target groups of machines for potentional deployments. And patches can be centrally managed and deployed in an automated (scheduled) fashion; compliance reporting is included.

For the 1200 appliance only, additional features include security vulnerability scanning and reporting (individual, groups, or all nodes); pre-packaged security audit templates; and automated security remediation and/or quarantine capabilities for infected endpoints.

Other KBOX 1000 features include application metering; support for E-mail or broadcast alerts; remote control (via support for remote control technologies including VNC, XP Remote, NetOps, and Dameware); a self-service user software library allowing users to download approved titles and access a central knowledgebase; scripting support for existing and 3rd party scripts, as well as an XML based scripting language; and pre-packaged configuration enforcement scripts and policies including such items as registry settings and desktop settings. An optional Help Desk Module provides user trouble ticket submission, tracking, and management features.

In addition to the product renaming, new features (all previously described in this brief) in the KBOX 1000 series include support for Linux and Mac, wizard based reporting, application metering, and the introduction of two separate hardware models, as follows:

- KBOX 1100: Supports from 100 to 5,000 users. Includes 3.0 GHz processors, 2 GB of memory, and 160 GB of storage via 3 160 GB SATA 7.2K drives (RAID 1 supported).

- KBOX 1200: Supports from 1,000 to 8,500 users. Includes 3.4 GHz processors, 4 GB of memory, and 294 GB of storage via 4 147 GB SCSI 10K drives (RAID 5 supported).

The KBOX Systems Management Appliance is available now. Visit the vendor's Web site for further information.