A Scheduled Activity is the execution of a ThinMan Command at a specific date and time on specific devices, groups of devices or classes of devices. When an activity is associated to a group/class of devices, the command will be applied to all the devices belonging to that group/class at the moment of the activity execution.
Scheduled Activities are shown in the ThinMan Console interface under the Scheduled Activities tree on the left panel.
The table below shows the available commands, each of them correspond to a ThinMan operation that can be found in the contextual menu of a device.
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
| Power On, Power Off, Reboot | To schedule the operation of Power-On/Power-Off/Reboot of certain devices. Remember the Power-On feature is enabled only on devices that support the WOL feature (e.g. Virtual Machine in VirtualBox does not support it, Praim Berry does not support the WOL feature) |
| Send Message | To schedule the operation of sending a message to certain devices. |
| Update | On ThinOX devices: to schedule the the operation of updating the firmware and to install Add-Ons. Unlike the manual operation of update that does perform downgrade, a scheduled activity of type update does not perform downgrade. On Windows devices: to schedule the operation of updating the Service Pack/Praim Update/Praim Hotfix/Agile Update or the installation of third-party Software (for the third-party software installation, additional parameters can be inserted. Be sure that the installer can run in silent mode). |
| Apply Device Image/ Apply Device Backup Image | Available on Praim Windows Devices, to schedule the operation of Applying Device Image/Device Backup Image |
| Set Device Password | On ThinOX devices: to schedule the operation of setting the security password On Praim Windows devices: to schedule the operation of setting the password for the user "Admin"("admin" for B91-VDI model), the command is not available on Agile4PC. |
| Set ThinMan Server Address | To schedule the operation of setting the ThinMan Address on devices (automatizes the feature Set ThinMan Server Address) |
| Disk Protection | Available on Praim Windows Devices. To schedule the operation of changing the Write Filter status. Remember that this operation will restart the devices (for more information, read Agile - Enable Disk Protection/Disable Disk Protection]. |
| Set automatic Windows updates | To schedule the operation of Activating/Deactivating automatic Windows updates. This operation requires Agile version 2.11.1 or higher and ThinMan version 8.5.7 or higher. |
| Check for and install Windows updates | To schedule the operation of cheking available automatic Windows updates and install them. This operation requires Agile version 2.11.1 or higher and ThinMan version 8.5.7 or higher. |
| Send Custom Command | To schedule the operation of sending a Custom Command. For more information about this operation read Contextual Menu - Special Functions - Send Custom Command. |
| Export Inventory | To schedule the operation of Exporting the Inventory. For more information about this operation read Export Inventory Menu. |
Connection to ThinMan Server is Needed
A schedule activity will be performed ONLY on devices connected to ThinMan with WSS, HTTPS Linked or HTTPS connection, i.e. only on devices that point to a ThinMan Server. Devices with a TCP/UDP or HTTPS Unlinked connection are ignored even when belonging to a group/class selected on the Scheduled Activity.
Scheduled Activities & Concurrent Operations
From ThinMan 7.5.7, certain types of activities can be executed concurrently on a specific number of devices. For more information on how to change the default settings for the concurrent number of devices interested by the activity, read Options - Activities tab.
¶ Adding a Scheduled Activity
Right-click on the "Scheduler Activities" tree and select "Add..." from the contextual menu.
Select the activity from those available on the list. Following the wizard will complete the definition of the scheduled activity.
¶ Managing a Scheduled Activity
A Scheduled Activity can be modified, deleted or executed.
Right-click on the activity to access the contextual menu:
- Do Now: to execute immediately the activity.
- Activity Enabled: when selected(with the mark) it indicates the activity is enabled otherwise it is disable.
- Move Up/Move Down: to change the priority of the activity by moving one position up/down.
- Delete: to remove the activity.
- Properties: to edit the activity properties (see below).
When selecting an activity of the tree (left panel), the list of all devices associated to the activity will be shown in the working area of the ThinMan console.
In any case, the effective devices list involved in the activity will be recomputed runtime at the scheduled time and its possible repetition.
The Details Window shows all the parameters of the selected activity.
¶ Properties of a Scheduled Activity
¶ Activity Tab
In this tab, insert the name and description of the activity. Also, it is possible to disable the activity by changing the status.
¶ Action tab
This tab appears only in certain types of activities (update, apply device image, apply backup device image, apply snapshot). It allows to configure the parameters for the action that will be executed on the schedule. The example below shows the parameters for an update, it is possible to select the thin client models that will receive the upgrade.
¶ Schedule tab
It allows to configure the schedule of the activity. Two different types of Schedule Modes are provided: Weekly or Standard.
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The "Standard Mode" allows inserting multiple activity schedules. Every schedule will be executed independently from others schedules. Every schedule can have its repetition period or can be executed only once. On the image below, the activity will be executed every day at 12:00 p.m., the 1st of January 2022 at 6:00p.m., every 14 days starting from November 2nd. at 4:00 p.m.). A new schedule can be inserted clicking on Add; a selected schedule can be edited or removed clicking on the corresponding button (Edit or Remove).
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The Weekly Mode allows to select on which days of the week the activity will be executed. On the image below, the activity will be executed every week from Monday to Friday at 6:00 p.m.).
¶ Time Slot tab
It offers two choices:
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Always On: the scheduled activity will be performed at the scheduled time.
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Enable Time Slot: allows to define a time window within which the activity will be executed.
The Time Slot may be useful to avoid that a scheduled activity involving many devices could prolong overlapping business hours.
When set and enabled, Time slot may be considered as an a "mask" to match the time scheduled and its possible repetition. When a schedule triggers and the Time Slot is enabled, ThinMan will check if the time belongs to Time Slot window. If it does, the activity will be executed.
Scheduled Activities and Time Slot
When enabling the time slot, be sure it is coherent with the Scheduling of the activity. E.g. If the activity has been program to happen at 6:00p.m with no repetition but the slot time has been established between 6:30p.m. and 10:30 p.m. the activity will not be triggered.
¶ Classifier tab
It allows selecting specific class values that have been associated to certain devices. When selecting more than one class value, the devices that will be associated to the activity will be all the devices that belong to at least one of the class values selected.
On the image below, the activity will be applied to all the devices that have been associated to the class SO with the value ThinOX or that have been associated to the class to_be_updated with the value yes. For more information read Classifier.
¶ Group tab
It allows selecting specific groups. The activity will be applied to all the devices belonging to the groups selected. For more information read Group Properties.
Dynamic Device List for Activities
Using classifier classes and groups to define the device involved in a scheduled activity, offers the advantage that the device list is recomputed at each schedule trigger making actually devices list dynamic and self updating on basis of class and groups criteria.
Devices Not Considered
Pay attention that when you select a group or a class of devices to which to apply a scheduled activity, the devices notified to ThinMan by a TCP/UDP or HTTP Unlinked connection will be kept out from the activity even when belonging to the selected class or group.
¶ Devices tab
It allows selecting specific devices to which the activity will be applied.
Listed Devices
In the device list will be present only devices notified to ThinMan by a WSS, HTTPS Linked or HTTPS connection. Devices notified by TCP/UDP or HTTPS Unlinked connection will be kept out from the displayed list.
¶ Conditions tab
It allows selecting various Conditions associated to the action:
- Apply only once on each device: this is particularly useful when updating. The update will be applied only once on each device.
- Apply only to new devices (currently not listed on ThinMan): when associating an activity to groups/classes, it will be applied only to the devices that were not listed on the group/class the moment the activity was created.
- Apply only to devices with Device Profile Status: "Applied": when the devices associated to the activity are under a Device Policy that applies a Device Profile, the activity will be executed on the devices that have already been configured.
- ThinMan User not logged for (min): the activity is executed only on the devices that are protected by the ThinMan Login and the user has already logged off for almost n minutes from the device.
¶ Classify devices depending on activity result
When creating an Scheduled Activity, it is possible to select the option "Use automatically generated classes and values" (see image below).
When selecting this option, a class will be created in the Classifier with the name of the activity with the following values:
- TO-DO: All devices selected for the activity will be classified as "TO-DO".
- SUCCESS: All devices that completed the Scheduled Activity successfully will be classified as SUCCESS.
- NOT-SUCCESS: All devices that did not complete the Scheduled Activity will be classified as NOT-SUCCESS.
Select the option Select devices with the TO-DO value only to classify the previously selected devices(on the classifier, group and devices tab) as TO-DO. Whenever the activity has been scheduled to be repeated (see scheduled tab), select this flag to avoid the activity be executed on already classified devices SUCCESS and NOT-SUCCESS.
With the option activated, the possible repetition of the activity on devices classified as "SUCCESS" or "NOT-SUCCESS" is avoided; those classified as "TO-DO" are exclusively considered. Note that, when opening the properties of an already created scheduled activity (right click on the scheduled activity to access the contextual menu) the conditions tab will look like the image below.
ThinOX devices cannot be downgraded through a Scheduled Activity
Note that the Update activity cannot be applied if it would result in a version downgrade.
¶ Examples
¶ Wake up thin clients in the morning
It can be useful to power on thin clients before the end users start working. Another similar activity could be to power-off thin clients in the evening, after the end users finish working.
To create an activity of this type you have to:
- Create an activity of type Power On.
- Assign this activity a name (e.g. "power_on").
- Choose the weekly schedule mode, select the days you want to be repeated (e.g. Monday to Friday) and set the time (e.g. 8:00 a.m.)
- Skip the window below.
- Select on the following tabs the class values, the groups of devices or the devices where the power-on action will be applied. Notice that selecting a group/class allows you to apply the activity to every new device that you add afterwards to the group/class.
Finally, click on Finish.
Note
Power On command is done via a broadcast message (WOL - Wake On LAN). In some cases, when the network configuration or the routers or the switches are filtering and blocking broadcast messages, the command will not work (the WOL UDP Broadcast Packet is blocked or filtered).If the device is part of a group, ThinMan will also try to use the broadcast address for the network subnets defined using IP Ranges in the Network tree.
To maximize the probability to power-on the devices in the subnets.See also WOL - Relay
¶ Update thin client during the night
This example shows how to create a scheduled activity that allows updating multiple thin clients during night hours avoiding the working hours.
To create an activity of this type you have to:
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Create an activity of type Update.
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Select the package name you will use for the update.
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Assign this activity a name.
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In case you want to update a specific model; on the Apply to models section, select the option "Selection Models" and check the model(s) you want to update, otherwise keep the option "All models".
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Set the time to the needed date and time.
Skip the next tab.
- On the following 3 tabs, select the class values, the groups of devices and/or the devices where the upgrade action will be applied. Notice that selecting a group/class allows you to apply the activity to every new device that you add afterwards to the group/class.
Finally, on the last tab you can specify certain conditions. When defining an Update Scheduled Activity, the "Apply only once on each device" condition will be selected by default. We highly suggest to use the option Classify devices depending on activity result to track the success of the devices'update.
¶ Generate the Inventory file in the night
This example shows how to create a scheduled activity that creates the Inventory file during the night.
Publish Inventory Files on ThinMan Web Server
The inventory files produced by scheduled activities are placed in the C:\ProgramData\Praim\ThinMan\ServerData\Inventory\ ThinMan Server folder.The files can be published on the ThinMan web server and can be downloaded from the URLs: http://<ThinManAddress>:20080/inventory/<filename> or https://<ThinManAddress>/inventory/<filename>
It is also possible to download all the generated inventory files through these links:
http://<ThinManAddress>:20080/inventory?download=tar or https://<ThinManAddress>/inventory?download=tar
Be sure, you have enabled the Publish Inventory files on Options - Activities tab.
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Create an activity of type Export Inventory.
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Assign a name to the activity.
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Click on Set format and detail button to define the format and fields you want to include on the generated file (for more information, read Export Inventory Menu). Define the filename of the generated Inventory file. You can use the placeholder "<timestamp>" in the filename to obtain a different filename for every execution. Without "<timestamp>" placeholder, the file will be overwritten every time the scheduled activity is executed. (e.g. inventory_<timestamp>.csv). The files are saved in the folder \ProgramData\Praim\ThinMan\ServerData\Inventory\.
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Specify the timing of the activity. In this example, we are programming the activity to be executed every sunday at 6:00p.m.
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Skip the step below.
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On the following 3 tabs, select the class values, the groups of devices and/or the devices whose attributes will be saved in the Inventory file (e.g. select all the tree by ticking on the Devices tree in the groups selector). Notice that selecting a group/class allows you to apply the activity to every new device that you add afterwards to the group/class.
Finally, click on Finish.
Once the activity is defined, it will create the Inventory file at the specified time (on this example, 6 p.m.). You can access the file from the C:\ProgramData\Praim\ThinMan\ServerData\Inventory\ directory or you can use the Thinman Web Server to access them:
http://<ThinManAddress>:20080/inventory/<filename> https://<ThinManAddress>/inventory/<filename>
To download all the generated inventory files you can use these links:
http://<ThinManAddress>:20080/inventory?download=tar https://<ThinManAddress>/inventory?download=tar
¶ Update a ThinOX device conneted to a Gateway
Before proceeding, remember you need to download the upgrade file from Mypraim and add it to the Package Repository.
- Add an Scheduled Activity of type Update.
- The Package Repository will open. Select the ThinOX package update.
- Write a name for the Scheduled Activity.
Click on Next.
Click on Next.
Select the date and hour when you want the update to be executed and click on Next.
Select either the classes, groups or individual devices where you want to execute the update and click on Next.
Finally, select the Conditions you want to be applied on the devices where the update will be executed. The Apply only once on each device condition is selected by default. We highly recommend using the Use automatically generated classes and values option to create a class (with the same name of the scheduled activity) with 3 possible values that will allow you to track the devices where the update:
- Has not been executed (TO-DO class)
- Has been executed successfully (SUCCESS)
- Has been executed but failed (NOT-SUCCESS) Also, enable the option Select devices with the TO-DO value only to be abble to repeat the same activity but only execute the update on the devices under the class TO-DO.
In this example, the devices are connected to a Praim Gateway and the Repository Replica service has been enabled on the gateway (see image below). Hence, when update operation will be executed on the device, it will download the package from the Praim Gateway Repository rather than from the ThinMan Server's Package Repository.
Once the update is executed on a device, this will move from the TO-DO class to the SUCCESS or NOT-SUCCESS class.
Finally, when the Scheduled Activity finishes (see image below) you will observed all the devices with the new version. To be sure the devices connected to the Praim Gateway have download the package from the gateway's repository, verify on the taskbar the column Details should indicate the package has been taken from the gateway.
