What do the weather, IT and end-user experiences have in common? A couple of things actually. One is that any of them can affect what kind of day you’re going to have. For example, nice weather, well-behaved computers, snappy network connections, and happy end-users with few support requests usually mean that it’s a pretty good day all around. The opposite is also true, of course.

The second is that just as meteorologists get blamed for any differences between the forecast and whatever Mother Nature produces, IT admins catch flak from users whenever their end devices perform in unexpected and unhelpful ways. It doesn’t matter how often the weather forecast is spot-on or how safe and reliable PCs and smartphones are from day to day, end-users can get testy when everything doesn’t “just work.”

While the latest Release 2022 R2 of the baramundi Management Suite (bMS) can’t predict or change the weather, it does come with enhancements and new end-user experience features that help IT admins head off potential endpoint problems before they become widespread and resolve issues more quickly. On top of that, the bMS 2022 R2 includes expanded measures for automation and smoother IT processes. 

There are few things more frustrating to users than losing a day’s work due to a sudden system crash. Not quite as bad but similarly annoying are programs that won't start properly or at all, preventing an end-user from getting their work done. If the problem becomes widespread, the IT team is faced with a flood of support tickets. 

The new Argus Experience module helps sysadmins by detecting and recording software hangs and crashes. Software anomalies can be investigated retrospectively and analyzed to spot patterns affecting individual workstations or multiple systems. It also can report the exact periods when crashes have occurred. That makes it possible to identify whether a particular update or software rollout, specific end devices or software builds, or high network loads are to blame. Less guesswork and faster troubleshooting and resolution means less frustration for IT admins and users, as well as fewer support tickets.

Argus Cockpit has been popular with managed service providers (MSPs) and IT admins overseeing multiple locations for some time because of its ability to keep track of different IT environments within one interface. With 2022 R2, it is now possible to easily configure these environments and assign users specific areas of responsibility. Key IT admins can define exactly how much access and privileges each person gets. For example, the CISO can be given restricted access to bAC reporting, or IT managers can be given read-only access to statistics without being able to change configurations.

Automation has always been the key factor in making endpoint management efficient. The new release brings three improvements to make admins’ work easier:

• Automation Studio includes a new free-text search that finds text strings within both the main scripts and in the embedded sub-scripts.
• Filtering capabilities using the familiar and always-useful universal dynamic groups (UDGs) now make it possible to define automated job assignments across all supported platforms.
• The same applies to custom commands: In addition to Windows commands, "Custom Commands" can be called directly from the baramundi Management Center on Android, iOS, macOS and Linux. In this way, applications can be started conveniently with minimal effort, or attributes such as IMEI, serial number or the Unique Device ID can be read out from the inventory automatically.

These are just a few highlights of the new 2022 R2 features. As usual, there are also numerous other improvements in functionality and usability for IT admins. All in all, the bMS 2022 R2 can’t guarantee pleasant sunny days for sysadmins or end-users. But with bEX it is pretty handy with the IT equivalent of an umbrella for those passing showers of endpoint glitches, and a great tool for charting your way through those occasional storms of system issues. The added features in Automation Studio, automated job assignments and expanded command functionality also help you get more done in less time so you can actually get out and enjoy more of the day.

Detailed information can be found in the release notes.