App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 SP1
Release Notes
December 2019
Important • If upgrading from a previous version to App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1, read Upgrading to App Portal 2019 R1 before beginning the upgrade. In addition, because App Portal 2017 R2 or later versions, no longer supports System Center Configuration Manager 2007, if you are still planning on using System Center Configuration Manager 2007, it is recommended that you remain on App Portal 2017 R1 or earlier.
Introduction
App Portal enables IT managers to enforce continual software license compliance and control software deployment, while increasing employee satisfaction and the efficiency of application software delivery. The universal enterprise app store ensures that governance is in place to check license availability, obtain proper approvals, and reclaim licenses that are no longer used.
Automated workflow and approvals streamline the process of self-service requests for desktop, mobile, and cloud applications. Integration with Application Readiness and software deployment systems rapidly deliver enterprise software and operating systems to employee's devices, reducing the burden on IT and managing the enterprise application lifecycle from request to reclamation.
AppBroker™ software for ServiceNow® and AppBroker software for BMC leverage asset management data from FlexNet Manager Suite, including product use rights, to ensure proper governance and compliance over the request and installation of software. But with AppBroker, instead of using the App Portal end user interface, employees request software directly in the ServiceNow or BMC MyIT self-service portal.
Changes in App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 SP1
In App Portal 2019 R1 SP1, 17 customer issues were addressed. For more information, see the Resolved
Issues in App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 SP1.
New Features and Enhancements
This section describes the new features included in App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 SP1.
| • | Flexible Approval |
| • | New Property to Enable Dashboard as Default Landing Page |
| • | Added Support to Update Requested Item (RITM) State in ServiceNow |
Flexible Approval
New flexible approval functionality has been added to App Portal in order to enable flexibility for an approver to approve or reject requests outside the enterprise network and without logging into App Portal. This provides a speedy on-the-go approval (or rejection) process, and subsequent delivery of the request without delays.
To facilitate the flexible approval process, incoming mail configurations are required. An App Portal administrator could already specify default outgoing email settings on the Email tab of the Site Management > Settings > Email view. Now, an option to configure incoming mail is also provided in the new Incoming Email tab. Once configured, an approver can approve requests by simply replying to an email notification using predefined keywords (e.g., Approve or Reject or any others that are defined in the Flexible Approval - Approval Keywords and Flexible Approval - Reject Keywords templates, respectively) along with any additional comments. The system further parses through these email responses and takes action of approving or rejecting the request accordingly based on the keyword provided in the reply.
The previous Email view (accessed from Site Management > Settings > Email) has been renamed to Mail Server and divided into two subtabs: Outgoing Email and Incoming Email.
The following table provides descriptions of the fields on the Incoming Mail subtab of Site Management > Settings > Email.
|
Property |
Description |
|
Mail Server Type |
The Mail Server type used by the approver: IMAP or POP3. |
|
Mail Server |
The IP address or Domain name of the IMAP or POP3 mail server. |
|
Port |
The port for the Mail Server of type IMAP or POP3. |
|
SSL |
Select this option to use SSL to receive email. Out of the box, this is enabled. |
|
|
The email address of the App Portal monitoring mailbox that receives replies from the approver. |
|
Password |
The email password of the App Portal monitoring mailbox that receives replies from the approver. |
|
Test |
Click the Test button to validate Incoming Email configurations. This displays the settings along with a message. If settings are valid, the validation message says “Incoming Email configuration settings are valid.” If settings are not valid, a validation message says, “Incoming Email configuration settings are invalid! Please recheck the Server, Port, and SSL details.” |
|
Scanning Interval |
The frequency (set in minutes) to monitor the mailbox which receives email responses from the Approver. |
New Email Templates Used for Flexible Approval
In order to use Flexible Approval functionality, default email templates are included in the product to provide customization to the email notification text. The following shows a sample email template. This is the Flexible Approval - Keywords Information template.
A new subtab, Flexible Approval, has been added to the Management > Communication > Notifications view to support Flexible Approval functionality. On this Flexible Approval subtab, the following new templates are provided:
| • | Flexible Approval - Approval Keywords—This template is not sent to approvers. Instead, it is used to define approval keywords for use in the General and Software subtab Request for Approval templates. Out of the box, Approved is displayed. Multiple keywords can be added, with comma separators. Special characters should not be added. The content in this notification template body replaces the variable ##APPROVALKEYWORDS## available in the Flexible Approval - Keyword Information email template. |
| • | Flexible Approval - Generic Acknowledgment—This email notification template is sent to an approver when the current user is not the approver or when the approval level is already processed. |
| • | Flexible Approval - Keywords Information—This email notification template is not sent to an approver. Instead, the content in this notification body replaces the variable ##EMAILAPPROVALPLACEHOLDER## in the General and Software subtab Request for Approval templates. |
| • | Flexible Approval - Mailto Links—This email notification template is not sent to an approver. Instead, this notification displays MAILTO links for Approve and Reject as variables ##MAILTOAPPROVE##, ##MAILTOREJECT##. This template is embedded into the Flexible Approval - Keyword Information notification template as variable ##EMAILAPPROVALMAILTOLINKS## and is resolved to show the Approve and Reject links. |
| • | Flexible Approval - No Response Acknowledgment Mail—This email notification template is sent to an approver when the approver approves or rejects the request with invalid keywords (e.g., keywords that have not been defined in the Flexible Approval - Approval Keywords or Flexible Approval - Reject Keywords notification templates). |
| • | Flexible Approval - Question Template Acknowledgment—This email notification is sent to an approver when the approver approves or rejects a request that contains a question template that has approver questions to answer. Here, the approver has to login to the App Portal website to perform the approval or rejection action after answering the questions. |
| • | Flexible Approval - Reject Keywords—This template is not sent to approvers. Instead, it is used to define rejection keywords for use in the General and Software subtab Request for Approval templates. Out of the box, Rejected is displayed. Multiple keywords can be added, with comma separators. Special characters should not be added. The content in this notification template body replaces the variable ##REJECTKEYWORDS## available in the Flexible Approval - Keywords Information notification template. |
| • | Flexible Approval - Request Already Approved Acknowledgment—This email notification template is sent to the approver when the approver tries to approve or reject a request that has already been approved. |
| • | Flexible Approval - Request Already Rejected Acknowledgment—This email notification template is sent to the approver when the approver tries to approve or reject a request that already has been rejected. |
| • | Flexible Approval - Request Cancelled Acknowledgment—This email notification template is sent to the approver when the approver tries to approve or reject a request that is already been cancelled / catalog item is archived from the App Portal user interface. |
| • | Flexible Approval - Standard Rejection Reason—This template will not be sent to approver and this notification is used to configure the standard rejection comments, when user does not enter any comments during email reply with Reject keyword, the system will set this reasons Out of the box and displays in the Notes tab of request details dialog in My Request page. |
| • | Flexible Approval - Successful Approval Notification Response—This email notification template is sent to the approver when the approver approves the request by replying with an Approve keyword through email and the approval is successful. |
| • | Flexible Approval - Successful Reject Notification Response—This email notification template is sent to the approver when the approver rejects the request by replying with a Reject keyword through email and the rejection is successful. |
In addition to the above new templates, the Request for Approval template (provided on the Software subtab of the Management > Communication > Notifications view) has been updated to account for Flexible Approval, enabling the approver to take immediate on-the-go action to Approve or Reject simply by replying to the email using predefined keywords.
Note • If the Incoming Email subtab configurations have been provided (including the Approve Keywords and Reject Keywords), a Flexible Approval variable will be resolved with a Editing Flexible Approval - Keyword Information notification template.
For additional information, refer to the following Online Help topics:
| • | HTML Email Format Option |
| • | Specifying Notification Language |
| • | Notification Editor |
| • | List of Notification Email Templates and Messages |
| • | Variable Reference |
New Property to Enable Dashboard as Default Landing Page
As part of the App Portal / App Broker 2018 R1 release, the Software Reclamation dashboard page became the default landing page for any users with View permission for the Reporting/Dashboard (provided under Admin-> Catalog Security -> Reporting/ Dashboard).
With App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1, the default out-of-the-box landing page has been reverted back to the Browse Catalog page and a new Enable Dashboard as default landing page property in the Catalog Appearance subtab of the Site Management > Settings > Web Site view has been added.
Note the following:
| • | If the Enable Dashboard as default landing page checkbox is checked and the user has Reporting / Dashboard permissions, then the dashboard will be the default landing page. |
| • | If the Enable Dashboard as default landing page checkbox is unchecked and the user has Reporting / Dashboard permissions, then Browse Catalog will be the default landing page. |
| • | If the Enable Dashboard as default landing page checkbox is checked and the user does not have Reporting / Dashboard permissions, then Browse Catalog will be the default landing page. |
The following shows the Software Reclamation dashboard page as the default landing page:
The following shows Browse Catalog as the default landing page:
Position of the Dashboard Tab Has Moved
Another related change in App Portal 2019 R1 is that the position of the Dashboard tab moves from the far left position to the position next to Reporting tab.
Added Support to Update Requested Item (RITM) State in ServiceNow
App Portal now includes enhanced support to update the Requested Item (RITM) state in ServiceNow according to status transition in App Portal with respect to an individual catalog requested item (along with the existing ServiceNow Request Status changes).
A new Requested Item State Mapping section has been added to the ServiceNow Integration settings page (Site Management > Settings > ServiceNow Integration view on the Admin tab).
Important Information
End-of-Life Support for System Center Configuration Manager 2007 as of App Portal 2017 R2
Reminder: Because end-of-life support for System Center Configuration Manager 2007 (SCCM 2007) has been reached, App Portal 2017 R2 removed support for System Center Configuration Manager 2007. As a result of this change:
| • | App Portal Administrators and end users will no longer see references to System Center Configuration Manager 2007. All references have been removed from the App Portal interface. For example, When you select Settings under Site Management on the Admin tab, you will notice that the Deployment > SCCM 2007 subtab has been removed. |
| • | All APIs that were exposed for System Center Configuration Manager 2007 have been removed. |
Important • If you are still planning on using System Center Configuration Manager 2007, it is recommended that you remain on App Portal 2017 R1 or earlier.
Resolved Issues
This section lists the customer issues that were resolved in the following releases:
| • | App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 |
| • | App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 SP1 |
App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 SP1
The following table lists the customer issues that were resolved in App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 SP1:
|
Issue |
Description |
|
IOJ-1589767 |
Question condition is not working when questions are defined for approver as target. |
|
IOJ-2075590 |
Active Directory group exception stops all group lookup. |
|
IOJ-2068842 |
Performance issues with My Apps - targeted devices link times out. |
|
IOJ-1995183 |
In OS deployment request, adding new computer should create DDR record directly into site server by App Portal web service. |
|
IOJ-1920910 |
App Portal has integration issue with Office 365. |
|
IOJ-1876072 |
Server error page is displayed during OSD checkout, when clicking on Back button. |
|
IOJ-1927200 |
In My Apps alert notification, clicking on My Apps link will result into exception. |
|
IOJ-1930308 |
Users of external domain (untrusted) are not able to submit the request. |
|
IOJ-1663804 |
Unhandled exception while accessing the App Portal. |
|
IOJ-1925360 |
Conditional questions is not honored, and the request goes to approval |
|
IOJ-1920639 |
Machine discovery fails for Chrome and IE browsers respectively and causes issue for catalog display. |
|
IOJ-1924074 |
Machine Policy refresh does not use alternate web service location. |
|
IOJ-1765401 |
App Portal performance optimization. |
|
IOJ-1874885 |
Email is not going to appropriate user in case of request on behalf. |
|
IOJ-1921897 |
Upgrade campaign does not function if the target catalog item requires approval. |
|
IOJ-1921160 |
Security vulnerabilities issues. |
|
IOJ-1921069 |
MyApps Retire Alerts regenerated even if less than threshold of last alert. |
App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1
The following table lists the customer issues that were resolved in App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1:
|
Issue |
Description |
|
IOJ-1914138 |
When creating a new question template the “available questions” are not sorted alphabetically. |
|
IOJ-1913589 |
My Apps Uninstall Alerts regenerated even if less than threshold of last alert. |
|
IOJ-1913340 |
MachineName variable is not being resolved for general CIs. |
|
IOJ-1911919 |
In side-by-side OSD tab Build Information comparison screen, only the new device is inserted into the task sequence collection. |
|
IOJ-1910530 |
Request to manual list only detects machines that exist in usercomputermap table. |
|
IOJ-1908820 |
License Reclamation Policy displays incorrect Has Uninstall Program flag. |
|
IOJ-1908386 |
SQL Injection Vulnerability to Processor issue. |
|
IOJ-1906726 |
Prevent user from specifying same computer name for new computer and old computer on Import New Computer checkout page. |
|
IOJ-1906261 |
Provide option to revert the behavior where users with Reporting / Dashboard permissions can have the dashboard displayed in the ribbon without it being the first launch screen. |
|
IOJ-1905889 |
SQL Timeout during DeleteInactiveUserComputerMap. |
|
IOJ-1903622 |
ServiceNow - AppPortal variable set does not get attached to catalog items during sync. |
|
IOJ-1900628 |
Computer association not created if selecting new device during side-by-side OSD checkout. |
|
IOJ-1900270 |
BMC Import timing out with catalogs/keywords/all call. |
|
IOJ-1900072 |
Choose Additional Applications setting applies to all Task Sequences but user gets prompted to select additional applications. |
|
IOJ-1899504 |
Implications of configuring ValidateRequest to True in Web.Config. |
|
IOJ-1899081 |
Response to approver review does not get sent to all approvers. |
|
IOJ-1898256 |
Clicking install now repeatedly allows multiple requests and duplicate requests to be submitted. |
|
IOJ-1897696 |
Browse Catalog search does not return all results. |
|
IOJ-1896164 |
User gets Cancel email even when User is unchecked to get cancel email. |
|
IOJ-1895039 |
Poor performance under browse catalog when searching when there are a large number of catalog items. |
|
IOJ-1891118 |
Approvers from external forest don't get displayed. |
|
IOJ-1890214 |
Reject Request API fails when HasUntrustedDomains flag is set to True. |
|
IOJ-1888407 |
Deadlocks in production environment. |
|
IOJ-1883927 |
All catalog items synced into service now are flagged as Failed. |
|
IOJ-1876203 |
Poor performance for computer sync query when using SQL Server 2016 to host SCCM DB. |
|
IOJ-1872233 |
Variables are not being passed. |
|
IOJ-1868498 |
Resolve custom variable parameters before App Portal catalog is synced into ServiceNow. |
|
IOJ-1860324 |
Approval reminder emails are not sent out. |
|
IOJ-1858949 |
App Portal continues to check ITSM ticket status for archived and canceled catalog items. |
|
IOJ-1849582 |
Special character in translated question's answers causes errors. |
|
IOJ-1848919 |
License Reclamation is based on the lower value between global vs My Apps policy threshold. |
|
IOJ-1818974 |
Update the integration to use the Requested Item record as the ServiceNow record that the App Portal communicates against. |
|
IOJ-1770799 |
ServiceNow qualified and unqualified requests issue. |
|
IOJ-1910537 |
[Setup] -Missing roles IIS: 221 and 148 message is displayed during AppPortal 2018 R1 setup installation on Windows server 2019 machine though IIS role 221 is installed. |
|
IOJ-1770799 |
Unchecking the Validate User does not let you move ahead on clicking next button. |
|
IOJ-1906238 |
XSS vulnerability on My Request > Request Detail page. |
Upgrading to App Portal 2019 R1
When upgrading an existing version of App Portal to App Portal 2019 R1 SP1, it is very important that you review the following information before you begin the upgrade.
| • | Supported Upgrade Versions |
| • | Planning Your Upgrade |
| • | Upgrade Notes |
You can only upgrade to App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 SP1 from the following previous versions:
| • | App Portal 2018 R1 |
| • | App Portal 2017 R2 |
| • | App Portal 2017 |
| • | App Portal 2016 |
| • | App Portal 2015 R2 |
| • | App Portal 2015 |
| • | App Portal 2014 |
To upgrade from one of these supported versions to App Portal 2019 R1 SP1, use the App Portal 2019 R1 SP1 installer, which can be downloaded from the Flexera Software Product and License Center.
When performing your upgrade to App Portal 2019 R1, it is recommended that you include the following steps in your upgrade process:
| • | Review the Release Notes—Thoroughly review this document, the App Portal 2019 R1 SP1 Release Notes. |
| • | Backup your database—Prior to upgrading, you need to back up your existing App Portal database. It will not be backed up automatically by the installer. even if you are performing a “fresh” install on an existing database. |
| • | Backup user interface customizations—If you have customized your App Portal user interface, back up this directory of files before performing the upgrade: |
[AppPortalInstallationDirectory]\Web\App_Themes\Flexera
| • | Upgrade and test in a lab environment—Before rolling out the App Portal upgrade in production, first upgrade App Portal in a lab environment using a clone or subset of your production data and test it thoroughly to make sure it still operates as per your requirements. |
| • | Production rollout—When you are ready to roll out the App Portal upgrade to your production environment, it is recommended that you include the following steps: |
| a. | Backup your existing App Portal database. |
| b. | Take a snapshot of the App Portal server, if possible. |
| c. | Provide downtime notice to your end users. |
| d. | Schedule your service window to allow for adequate testing post-production upgrade. |
| e. | Test your recovery model. |
Please note the following regarding upgrading from earlier versions of App Portal:
| • | Upgrading the App Portal Web Service—Upgrading the existing App Portal instance will not upgrade the existing App Portal Web Services application. You need to manually run the AppPortalWebServiceSetup_2019_R1.exe installer on your System Center Configuration Manager machine. |
| • | App Portal logo not being displayed after upgrade—If you have a problem loading the App Portal logo (which is the default logo provided by App Portal) after upgrading, then you need to manually change the following AppSetting entry in the WD_AppSettings table from “CompanyLogoURL” to “/esd/Images/ap-logo.jpg”. However, if you are going to be using a custom logo, there is no need to perform this step. |
| • | My Apps scheduled tasks now run under Service Account—Starting with App Portal 2017, the My Apps-related scheduled tasks (App Portal - Process Computers for My Apps Alerts and App Portal - Send out My Apps Email Notifications) will run under the Service Account instead of the System Account. However, if you are upgrading from a previous version, you need to manually change the account that those scheduled tasks will run under; the App Portal installer will not makes these changes. |
| • | Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.1—You should make sure that Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.1 is installed prior to upgrading an existing installation of App Portal. Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.1 is not bundled with the installer. |
Applying the 2019 R1 Service Pack 1 to App Portal 2019 R1
To apply the App Portal 2019 R1 Service Pack 1 to an installation of App Portal 2019 R1, perform these steps.
To apply the 2019 R1 Service Pack 1 to App Portal 2019 R1
| 1. | Log on to the Flexera Software Product and License Center and download the following file: App Portal 2019 R1 Cumulative Service Pack 1.exe |
| 2. | Copy this file to the machine where App Portal 2019 R1 is installed. |
| 3. | Double-click on the file to launch the installer. The Welcome panel of the App Portal 2019 R1 Cumulative Service Pack 1 wizard opens. |
A message box opens, stating that a previous installation of App Portal 2019 R1 was detected.
| 4. | Click OK to close the message box. The Next button on the wizard is enabled. |
| 5. | Click Next. The Release Notes panel of the wizard opens, listing the customer issues that were resolved in this Service Pack. |
| 6. | Click Next. The Ready to Install the Program panel opens. |
| 7. | Click Install. Progress messages are displayed while the Service Pack is installed. When installation is complete, the InstallShield Wizard Completed panel opens. |
| 8. | Click Finish. |
Note • An updated App Portal Web Service setup (AppPortalWebServiceSetup_2019_R1_SP1.exe) for the service pack is included with this release. Before installing, uninstall the previously installed web service.
System Requirements
This section lists the system requirements for App Portal / App Broker:
| • | Environment Requirements |
| • | Client Requirements |
| • | Server Requirements |
| • | Supported Deployment Technologies |
| • | Supported ITSM Systems |
| • | Supported Cloud Applications |
Environment Requirements
Prior to beginning App Portal / App Broker installation, make sure that your environment meets or is able to meet the following requirements:
|
Requirement |
Description |
|||
|
Microsoft Active Directory is required for App Portal / App Broker. It is fully supported under Windows Server 2008 R2 or later domains operating at all functional levels. |
||||
|
DNS |
If you choose Use Reverse DNS as a computer discovery method during App Portal installation, a DNS service is required that supports and contains Reverse DNS Zones. |
|||
|
Database Software |
Microsoft SQL Server 2012 or later, including Microsoft SQL Server 2017.
|
|||
|
SMTP Compatible Mail System |
App Portal / App Broker requires an SMTP-compatible mail system, and supports both local and remote SMTP servers. |
|||
|
IMAP/POP3 Compatible Mail System |
App Portal / App Broker requires an IMAP/POP3-compatible mail system, and supports both local and remote IMAP/POP3 servers.
|
|||
|
App Portal / App Broker supports the versions of IIS that are installed with Windows Server 2012 or later, The IIS Application Server and Web Server roles need to be installed. App Portal / App Broker is installed into a virtual directory named ESD and is accessible using http://alias/ESD. A DNS A-RECORD must be created to access the site if you wish to use an alias. |
||||
|
Integrated Authentication |
App Portal / App Broker uses a user’s current Active Directory credentials to authenticate to IIS/App Portal / App Broker. |
|||
|
Active Directory User Discovery must be enabled in System Center Configuration Manager and/or Altiris Client Management Suite for App Portal / App Broker to function properly. Additional Active Directory User Discovery extensions are also required. Extend the attributes using the Active Directory User Discovery method in the System Center Configuration Manager Console and/or Altiris Management Console. Include the following attributes in addition to the existing ones if performing manually: department title displayName distinguishedName manager company l (lower case L) (Only enter the letter l!) postalCode sn givenName physicalDeliveryOfficeName Important • This is only required if you are using standard discovery from System Center Configuration Manager or Altiris. If you are providing a custom SQL script to perform user and computer discovery, these steps are not required. Caution • The user discoverable attribute displayName is required to be extended in System Center Configuration Manager and/or Altiris Client Management Suite. This needs to be done before performing the user and computer sync process or the process will fail. |
||||
|
High Speed Connection |
The IIS server should be on the same physical network as the database server, and should be connected at a high speed (greater than or equal to 100 MBit). |
Client Requirements
The following are the App Portal client requirements:
|
Requirement |
Description |
|||||||||
|
Desktop Operating Systems |
Note • To deploy software to a device using App Portal / App Broker, the device needs to be managed by Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager, Symantec Altiris, or Casper. |
|||||||||
|
Mobile Operating Systems |
Note • To deploy mobile apps using App Portal / App Broker, the device needs to be registered and managed by AirWatch or MobileIron. |
|||||||||
|
Browser |
App Portal / App Broker supports the following browsers:
Note • The fall back to ReverseDNS on these browsers is only done if ActiveX is the primary computer discovery method chosen. If the discovery method is set to SCCM, then App Portal / App Broker will honor that for all browsers. |
|||||||||
|
Trusted Sites |
The App Portal / App Broker web site must be added to the trusted sites list for Internet Explorer. For example: http://APPPORTALSERVER Important • This is very important. |
Server Requirements
The following are the server requirements for the App Portal / App Broker Web Service and the App Portal / App Broker installation platform:
| • | App Portal / App Broker Web Service Server |
| • | App Portal / App Broker Installation Platform |
| • | Setting Permissions: App Portal Service Account |
App Portal / App Broker Web Service Server
The following are the system requirements for the servers where the App Portal / App Broker Web Service is installed:
|
Requirement |
Description |
|
Authentication |
Windows Authentication |
|
Microsoft .NET Framework |
Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 SP1 or later is required on all primary sites. |
|
IIS |
App Portal / App Broker supports the versions of IIS that are installed with Windows Server 2008 R2 or later. The IIS Application Server and Web Server roles need to be installed. |
|
ASP.NET |
ASP.NET needs to be installed. |
The instructions for installing the App Portal / App Broker Web Service depends upon your deployment technology:
| • | For System Center 2012 Configuration Manager and System Center Configuration Manager (Current Branch), the App Portal / App Broker Web Service is only needed at the CAS or Central site. |
For System Center 2012 Configuration Manager and System Center Configuration Manager (Current Branch), folders will be created called App Portal Users For Site XXX and App Portal Computers for site XXX.
App Portal / App Broker Installation Platform
The App Portal / App Broker installation platform must meet the following requirements:
|
Requirement |
Description |
|
Authentication |
Windows Authentication |
|
Operating System |
Windows Server 2012 or later |
|
IIS |
App Portal / App Broker supports the versions of IIS that are installed with Windows Server 2012 or later. The IIS Application Server and Web Server roles need to be installed. |
|
Microsoft .NET Framework |
Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.1 or later |
|
ASP.NET |
ASP.NET needs to be installed. |
Setting Permissions: App Portal Service Account
App Portal requires that you identify an account (App Portal service account) to use for the interaction with SQL and Active Directory. The App Portal service account will require administrative permissions on the client workstations if you wish App Portal to successfully run machine policy evaluation for accelerated software deployments and rerunning advertisements as necessary.
The service account must have Read permission on the Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager or Altiris Client Management database in SQL and Read/Write permission on the App Portal database that gets created during the installation process. The Installer Account will attempt to provision the Service Account with DB_DataReader permissions to the SCCM database and DBO permissions to the App Portal database.
Supported Deployment Technologies
App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 SP1 supports the following deployment technologies for software distribution:
| • | Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (Current Branch) |
| • | Microsoft System Center 2012 Configuration Manager |
| • | Altiris Client Management Suite 7.1 or later |
| • | AirWatch 9.1.2.4 (for mobile application deployment) |
| • | JAMF Casper Suite 9.6.4 |
| • | MobileIron 9.2 |
Note • App Portal supports JAMF Casper Suite 9.6.4 on premises version; the cloud version is not supported. Inventory can be collected from Macintosh computers running OS X 10.7.x or later.
The purpose of App Portal / App Broker’s support for multiple deployment technologies is to enable you to:
| • | Provide a seamless end user experience while you are upgrading from older versions of System Center Configuration Manager to System Center Configuration Manager (Current Branch). |
| • | Present a single instance to your users even if your organization uses both System Center Configuration Manager and Altiris deployment technologies across your enterprise. |
| • | Provide your users with a universal app store containing both desktop and mobile applications. |
You enter the deployment technology connection settings by opening the Deployment tab on the Site Management > Settings view, and then entering the settings on the ConfigMgr, SCCM 2012, Altiris, AirWatch, MobileIron, or Casper subtabs.
Site Management > Settings > Deployment Tab
App Portal / App Broker can only be connected to multiple servers of the same type if they are set up in a hierarchical relationship, with only the “main” site’s connection information entered on the Site Management >Settings > Deployment tab. The following table describes the acceptable hierarchical relationships for the three deployment technologies:
|
Technology |
Description |
|
System Center Configuration Manager (Current Branch) System Center 2012 Configuration Manager |
Single Primary Site OR Central Administration Site > Child Primary Sites For System Center Configuration Manager (Current Branch) or System Center 2012 Configuration Manager, App Portal / App Broker only communicates with one site: either a Single Primary Site or a Central Administration Site (which in turn replicates data to all Child Primary Sites). |
|
Altiris Client Management Suite 7.1 or later |
Single Primary Site OR Central Site > Child Primary Sites For Altiris. App Portal / App Broker only communicates with one site: either a Single Primary Site or a Central Site (which in turn replicates data to all Child Primary Sites). |
Important • App Portal / App Broker does not support connecting to multiple, disconnected deployment servers that are using the same deployment technology and version.
Note • When using System Center Configuration Manager, Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.1 is required to be installed on the IIS server in order to run the App Portal / App Broker service and web site. This is not required when using Altiris Client Management Suite.
Supported ITSM Systems
Both App Portal and App Broker include out-of-the-box support for integrating with ITSM systems.
App Portal
App Portal 2019 R1 SP1 provides support for the following ITSM systems:
| • | ServiceNow (versions: Kingston, London, and Madrid) |
| • | BMC Remedy IT Service Management Suite |
When App Portal’s ServiceNow or BMC integration is set up, whenever specified actions occur in App Portal (such as when a request is submitted), tickets in the attached ITSM system can be automatically opened or closed, or the status of a ticket can be reported on.
Note • If you would like to integrate with an ITSM system other than ServiceNow or BMC Remedy, you can use App Portal’s reusable framework to connect to and configure integration to that system.
App Broker Software for ServiceNow
With App Broker Software for ServiceNow 2019 R1 SP1, you can publish App Portal catalog items in the ServiceNow catalog. This enables ServiceNow users to request software directly in the ServiceNow self-service portal, with App Portal performing the license check and automated deployment. Using App Broker Software for ServiceNow, you can also submit a request for OS deployment and/or application migration from within the ServiceNow user interface, using a custom Employee App Provision Request wizard.
Important • To use App Broker Software for ServiceNow, you must have a ServiceNow MID Server that has access to the App Portal / App Broker REST APIs.
Important • In order for the out-of-the-box App Broker Software for ServiceNow workflow to function, you must have also purchased FlexNet Manager Suite and connected it to App Portal.
App Broker Software for BMC
With App Broker Software for BMC 2017, you can use MyIT as your front end app store, while App Portal performs the behind-the-scenes fulfillment of software requests, including automatically reserving licenses. Using App Broker Software for BMC enables you to provide your employees with a single service portal for all request types: software, hardware, and other IT services.
Important • In order for the out-of-the-box App Broker for BMC workflow to function, you must have also purchased FlexNet Manager Suite and connected it to App Portal.
Supported Cloud Applications
App Portal / App Broker 2019 R1 SP1 provides out-of-the-box support for the following cloud applications:
| • | Box |
| • | Salesforce |
| • | Microsoft Office 365 |
You can also manually create a connection to another cloud application system (such as DropBox, WebEx, GotoMeeting, Concur, etc.) so that you can create catalog items for that system.
If you connect App Portal / App Broker to one of these cloud applications, App Portal / App Broker can offer a catalog item that will automatically create an account for the requester in that cloud application.
Legal Information
Copyright Notice
Copyright © 2019 Flexera.
This publication contains proprietary and confidential information and creative works owned by Flexera Software LLC and its licensors, if any. Any use, copying, publication, distribution, display, modification, or transmission of such publication in whole or in part in any form or by any means without the prior express written permission of Flexera Software LLC is strictly prohibited. Except where expressly provided by Flexera Software LLC in writing, possession of this publication shall not be construed to confer any license or rights under any Flexera Software LLC intellectual property rights, whether by estoppel, implication, or otherwise.
All copies of the technology and related information, if allowed by Flexera Software LLC, must display this notice of copyright and ownership in full.
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Restricted Rights Legend
The Software is commercial computer software. If the user or licensee of the Software is an agency, department, or other entity of the United States Government, the use, duplication, reproduction, release, modification, disclosure, or transfer of the Software, or any related documentation of any kind, including technical data and manuals, is restricted by a license agreement or by the terms of this Agreement in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 12.212 for civilian purposes and Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement 227.7202 for military purposes. The Software was developed fully at private expense. All other use is prohibited.