Creating the Jamf Connection

IT Asset Management (Cloud)

Use the following procedure to create a connection to Jamf on the FlexNet Beacon. A connection is required to be configured for a single source for inventory collection. The inventory beacon is responsible for uploading the data to the central operations databases of IT Asset Management.

To create the Jamf connection in the FlexNet Beacon UI:

  1. Log into your selected inventory beacon.
    Tip: Starting the FlexNet Beacon interface requires that you are logged in with administrator privileges.
  2. In the navigation pane on the left, select the Inventory systems page. To create a new connection, click the down arrow on the right of the New split button, and choose Powershell.
    The Create PowerShell Source Connection dialog appears.
    Tip: The New... button defaults to creating a connection for Microsoft SQL Server. If you use the down arrow on the split button, you can choose between SQL Server, Spreadsheet, PowerShell, and Other connections. However, while you are creating a connection to a Microsoft SQL Server database (regardless of the Source Type of the connection), use only the SQL Server option.
  3. Complete the values in the dialog, as follows:
    Control Comments

    Connection Name

    		 A descriptive name for this connection, such as Jamf adapter. The name may contain alphanumeric characters, underscores or spaces, but must start with either a letter or a number. When the data import through this connection is executed, the data import task name is the same as the connection name.

    Source Type

    		 Select Jamf from the list.
    Use Proxy

    Optionally, if you use a proxy server to enable Internet access, complete (or modify) the values in the Proxy Settings section of the dialog box in order to configure the proxy server connection.
    Proxy Server

    Enter the address of the proxy server using HTTP, HTTPS, or an IP address. Use the format https://ProxyServerURL:PortNumber, http://ProxyServerURL:PortNumber, or IPAddress:PortNumber). This field is enabled when the Use Proxy check box is selected.
    Username and Password

    If your enterprise is using an authenticated proxy, specify the username and password of an account that has credentials to access the proxy server that is specified in the Proxy Server field. These fields are enabled when the Use Proxy check box is selected.
    Jamf In order to establish a connection with Jamf on the FlexNet Beacon, you need to specify the base URL, Client ID and Client Secret.
    For example, the customer should enter a URL such as https://[YOURCOMPANY].jamfcloud.com/api. The adapter will then automatically append the appropriate paths to this base URL when calling the various endpoints.
    Note: The above Jamf Pro API URL is a default value that can be used as an example. Users should replace the [YOURCOMPANY] portion of the URL accordingly.

    For client credentials, this information is available to users with either a Jamf Cloud or Jamf On-Premises account. To retrieve the required information, see Client Credentials in the Jamf Online Help documentation for detailed steps on how client credentials can be used to interact with Jamf Pro APIs.

    Connection is in test mode (do not import results)

    Controls the uploading and importing of data from this connection:

    • When this check box is clear, the connection is in production mode, and data collected through this adapter is uploaded to the central server and (in due course) imported into the database there.
    • When the check box is set:
      • The adapter for this connection is exercised, with data written to the intermediate file in the staging folder on the inventory beacon (%CommonAppData%\Flexera Software\Beacon\IntermediateData)
      • The immediate upload that normally follows data collection is suppressed, so that you can inspect the contents of the file
      • The catch-up process that retries stalled uploads, normally scheduled overnight, runs as usual and uploads the file to the central server
      • At the central server, the file contents are discarded (and not imported into the central database).
    Overlapping Inventory Filter

    This control does not apply to the Jamf adapter, and you may leave it at the default setting.
  4. Click Test Connection
    This will make sure that you can successfully connect to both the endpoint and the specified Client ID and Client Secret are correct. Note: making a request to get the Jamf version is part of the test connection.
    • If the connection is successful, click OK to close the message. Click Save to complete the addition. The connection is added to (or updated in) the list.
    • If the connection is unsuccessful, the appropriate error message will display. Click OK to close the message. Edit the connection details and retest the connection.
  5. In the FlexNet Beacon PowerShell Source Connection dialog, click Save to save the connection.
  6. Select your new connection from the displayed list, and click Schedule....
  7. In the dialog that appears, select the name of your chosen schedule for inventory collection through this connection, and click OK.
  8. At the bottom of the FlexNet Beacon interface, click Save, and if you are done, also click Exit.
After a successful data import - hardware details, installer evidence and WMI evidence from Apple devices in your Jamf estate will be visible in the appropriate pages of IT Asset Management (hardware details can be viewed on the All Inventory page, while installer evidence and WMI evidence are accessible under the Evidence tab for devices).
Note: To know more about the operations available on the Inventory Systems page of FlexNet Beacon, see the Inventory Systems Page in the online help. For scheduling data imports through this connection, see Scheduling a Connection, also in the online help.

IT Asset Management (Cloud)

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