Conrad Sallian's community posts

Hi Mike,

Also Conrad, I wanted to mention that using Gmail for sending the internet-ID during host install seems problematic. I don't know if they are tightening up security but sending via gmail seems unreliable, even when 'Less secure app access' is enabled, more often than not the email sending is blocked. This always happens when hosts are installed at customer sites (i.e., different IP's) it get blocked but if installing from a know IP (like our office - that has been used before and 'authorized' it) - it works OK.

I see. But unfortunately, there is little we can do in this situation  :) We only provide interface to connect to an SMTP server. The actual mail sending process is beyond our control and happens on the mail provider side. In our documentation we use Gmail as an example, but perhaps there are better alternatives.

FYI we have started using mailJet (https://www.mailjet.com) and it works from the installer. It is free for low volume use (200 emails\month) and takes very little config with SPF\DKIM available to ensure less 'spammy' delivery.

Thank you for the suggestion. We will test out this service and will perhaps start recommending it in our documentation.

Let me know if you need further assistance.

Hi Mike,

Under security authorization, the 'Single Password' option is disabled..?

The Single password option is disabled if you enable "Automatically generate Host password" checkbox in Step 3.

I have the RUT host installed on the PC used to run the MSI configurator but the host is stopped.

Do you mean it didn't start after installation?

It looks to me as if there is some conflict between installed host settings and attempting to set settings for a 1-Click host install?

There shouldn't be any conflict - the old settings either stay the same or get [partially or completely] overwritten by the new settings, depending on your choices during the configuration process.

Hello Jeff,

Thank you for the kind words.

I am unable to get _any email_ thru any pkg build, MSI or one-time (exe).

Do you use Gmail or a similar service as your SMTP? Note, that for security reasons Gmail may limit the usage of their SMTP by third-party apps unless you explicitly allow such usage. See more information in this document. Other services may have similar limitations.

Besides, if you have 2-factor-authentication enabled for your email account you'll need to create an "app password" in order to circumvent 2FA and enable your build to use your SMTP server for sending emails.

Additionally, I am unable to get a connection thru pasting code directly from a Host on which a viewer is installed, thinking I could sync the address book (already checked the viewer on the same Host!).

I am sorry, may I ask that you clarify this paragraph? You installed Viewer and Host on the same computer, correct?

Note, that in order to sync your address book automatically (full-fledged synchronization) among multiple Viewers you will need to install our self-hosted server and set up the address book sync role.

The latter part of above was in attempts to use a temporary work-around by pasting code, but that also is futile as the msg reads: code is incorrect or applying code fr om a different viewer (however both ARE on the same workstation).

Please, refer to this knowledge base article https://www.remoteutilities.com/support/kb/the-code-you-entered-is-incorrect-error/ .

After install (running the built package), and accessing settings for the Host, there is not a password set (>Security >Authorization >Single Password);

We couldn't reproduce the issue. With the "Automatically generate Host password" checkbox enabled in step 3 of the configuration process and when accessing the settings for the Host afterwards, the checkbox "Single password" is set.

When configuring your installer, try enabling some other Host options (I mean options in the Host configuration window rather than those in the configurator wizard) and then see if they apply. Please, let us know the result.

Hello Pepa,

it might be rather difficult to actually find a stored connection if there are hundreds or thousands of them

The address books has all the necessary means for you to find a connection regardless of how many there are:

1. Folders to keep your address book organized.
2. Instant search function that allows you to quickly find a connection by typing a search term.
3. Sorting and grouping, including a custom sort field.

Also, if a new Agent connection was to be stored permanently, the user would have to provide sufficient details to make the bookmark usable (e.g. think up a descriptive name), which would take some unnecessary effort.

When address book records are added from an email or automatically imported using the self-hosted server's auto-import feature, the descriptive name of a connection is populated automatically and taken from the remote computer/hostname.

Hope that helps.

Hello Nick,

The domain controller that you want to add must be in directly visibility to the Viewer. Unfortunately, by design there is no way to broker this connection somehow, not to mention security implications.

Thanks.

Hello Pepa,

Still - perhaps it would be possible to provide this record-less approach at least in the PRO license type?

For the PRO license this wouldn't make much sense because the PRO license allows you unlimited address book records anyway.

Hello Pepa,

Thank you for your suggestion.

Public API is on our wishlist for future versions, but unfortunately for now it isn't among our immediate priorities.

Don't hesitate to ask me if you have other questions.

Hello Pepa,

Thank you for your message.

Does a "tech" refer to a person or to a simultaneous connection?

A "tech" refers to a Viewer currently being actively used (i.e. with a remote session running).

If we have 20 employees but never exceed 10 simultaneous connections, do we need 20 licenses or would 10 licenses suffice? If those 10 simultaneous connections are made by 5 distinct people, could we get away with just 5 licenses?

I believe that in this example your 10 simultaneous connections may or may not be established from 10 Viewers (i.e. some Viewers may initiate multiple simultaneous connections).  But for Remote Utilities licensing the number of simultaneous connections from the same Viewer is irrelevant because it's not limited. You should only count the Viewers.

Therefore, in this scenario you need a 5-tech license because you are writing that there are 5 employees who are supposed to work from 5 Viewers (one employee from each Viewer) simultaneously. This is regardless of how many connections each employees establishes from their Viewer.

Also, our license is neither hardware-bound nor attached to a specific person. This means that any 5 employees can work from any 5 Viewers simultaneously. Just make sure that the Viewers are registered with the license key.  

What exactly does an "endpoint" entail?

A remote computer where either Host or Agent is running. Endpoints are represented in your address book as connections.

If we don't want to use address books at all (we very much prefer the "agent" solution as then we can prove to our customers that we can't connect to their systems without their knowledge and approval), should we even care about the number of endpoints?

You will not be able not to use the address book at all. Before you connect to a remote computer you first must add a connection to your address book.

Hi Ashley,

While the antivirus software can be the same, it evolves just like any other software (engine updates) with threat definition databases updated on a regular basis. Currently, Remote Utilities is clean across all antivirus programs (according to VirusTotal reports) so this may not necessarily be the cause, but whenever there is an issue with the Host service not working properly antivirus/security software should be checked first. Besides, you mentioned problems not only with remote update but also with clean Host installation. It looks like the same factor in both cases affects how the Host service starts (or rather does not start in this case).

As always, before we can tell what might possibly be going on, we need to look at the logs. These are the following logs:

- Host log (C:\Program Files(x86)\Remote Utilities - Host\Logs\)
- Host installation log (C:\ProgramData\Remote Utilities\install.log )
- Windows Events Log -> Application log

Could you please send us these logs to support@remote-utilities.com for examination.

Thank you.

Hello Ashley,

Whether you are installing the Host from scratch or updating and existing installation, it looks like something prevents the Host service from starting after either the update or new installation.

What antivirus software is installed on the Host computers? We need to eliminate this cause first before we proceed troubleshooting.

Also, here is a related knowledge base article https://www.remoteutilities.com/support/kb/host-service-won-t-start/