Viewing installed applications

Absolute applies normalization to all publisher and application names that are detected on your devices. Normalization removes the naming inconsistencies that may exist within installed software, making it easier to search, filter, sort, and analyze your devices' applications in the Absolute console. It also aggregates the data leading to more accurate reporting results.

For example, if the detected publisher for an installed Windows application is Microsoft Corporation, while another Windows application is Microsoft Corp., the normalized publisher name Microsoft is used for both applications.

Similarly, if the detected application name on one device is SecureDoc Disk Encryption 8.3 (x64), while another is SecureDoc Disk Encryption (x86) 7.5, the normalized application name SecureDoc Disk Encryption is used for both devices.

Normalization is applied to all publisher and application names shown on the Assets > Applications page and a device's Applications tab in Device Details.

In the current release, the Applications page shows the applications installed on your active Windows and Mac devices only.

To detect the applications installed on your devices, you first need to activate the Installed Applications policy in one or more policy groups.

To view the Applications page, your user role needs to be granted View permissions for Software reports. All default user roles are granted this permission.

On the navigation bar, click and then click the Applications tab. The Applications page opens.

No filters are applied to the page, but you can refine the application list by adding filters based on the following fields: Application, Device group, Publisher, and Version.

The Applications page includes a default collection of application-related information organized in the following columns:

You can search for an application by application name, version number, or publisher.

To search for an application, enter all or part of the keyword in the search field and click Search or press Enter.

By default, the page's data is sorted by application name, in ascending order. To sort the data by publisher, click the Publisher column heading. To reverse the sort order, click the column heading again.

While you are viewing a page or report, its data is not updated dynamically as new data becomes available. To show the most recent data available in the system, such as information that was just uploaded from a device, click the icon in the bottom left of the page. The Last updated field updates to the current date and time.

You can export the Applications page to a report in CSV, Excel, or XML format. If desired, you can filter the page before exporting it.

To export the page, click > Export.

NOTE  Application version numbers are not included in the exported report.

You can open an application's device list view to view the list of devices with the application installed.

To open an application's device list view:

1. On the Applications page, click a linked application name in the Application column.

The page refreshes to show the list of devices with the application installed. The application's publisher and the number of detected versions show under the application name.

Information is organized in the following columns:

• Device: contains the device name The name assigned to the device in the operating system. For Chromebooks, device name is not applicable and therefore shows as "Chrome" in the Absolute console. and serial number The identification number assigned to the device by the device manufacturer. For Windows devices, this value may correspond to the serial number of the BIOS, the motherboard, or the chassis, depending on the manufacturer. for the device
• Username Username of the user who was logged in to the device when an agent connection occurred. If no user was logged in during the most recent agent connection, the last detected username shows. If you are viewing a report and want to see if a user was logged in during the most recent connection, add the Current Username column to the report. If no user was logged in at the time of the connection, "No Data" or two em dashes (— —) show in the column.
• OS Name The name and version of the operating system detected on a device. The operating system is software that manages the software and hardware installed on a computer and allows programs and services to run. It is responsible for the basic operations of a computer system.
• Version: the full version number of the installed application
• Installed: the date and time (local device time) when the application was installed on the device, or when it was last upgraded
• Install location: the full path to the location where the application is installed on the device
2. To filter the page by a particular version, click the Version filter, select the version from the selection list, and then click Apply.
3. You can add more filters to refine the device list, or add columns to show more information about the detected application. If desired, you can then save your changes by clicking > Save to report.
4. To view all applications installed on a particular device, click the linked device name in the Device column to open the device's Device Details > Applications page.
5. To return to the list of all detected applications, click the Applications tab.

Depending on the Absolute licenses associated with your account, and your user role, you may be able to perform some or all of the following tasks in device list view of the Applications page:

• View individual devices
• Adjust the columns in the results grid
• Add or remove filters
• Save the device list view as a new report
• Export the device list

NOTE  To identify the application in a custom or exported report, the Application name and Publisher columns are automatically included.

• Request any of the following actions on one or more devices:
  • Freeze
  • Remove Freeze
  • Delete File
  • Send Message
  • Run Script
  • Perform EDD Scan
  • Manage Supervisor Password
  • Report Missing or Stolen
  • Report Found (applies to Missing devices only)
  • Wipe
  • Unenroll