Configuring Collector for endpoint devices

Configure Collector with your customer-specific data and settings to ensure connection to your Nexthink instance. Create multiple Collector profiles with different configurations for different device groups.

Select the correct installation artifact, as described in the Installing Collector on Windows documentation, then continue with the relevant section on this page.

Configuring Collector with the Nexthink Collector Installer

Prerequisites

• General prerequisites apply

• The Nexthink Collector Installer downloaded from Nexthink platform, found in the following folder in the ZIP file:

  • Installer\Collector\Nexthink_Collector_Installer_Silent.exe: It generates silent Collector installers. When deploying the Collector on a device, a silent installer renders the installation procedure unnoticeable to the end-user of the device.

  • Installer\Collector\Nexthink_Collector_Installer.exe: It generates installers that open a command-line window.

Configuring the installer

The Nexthink Collector installer is a tool that helps you deploy Collector by producing a standalone executable file.

To generate the executable, use the graphical interface of the installer to set the installing options of Collector:

1

Double-click the appropriate Nexthink Collector installer executable file for generating either:

• A silent installer: Nexthink_Collector_Installer_Silent.exe

• An installer that opens a command-line window: Nexthink_Collector_Installer.exe

2

Specify the configuration settings of the Nexthink instance that will receive the data under Nexthink Appliance settings:

Address	Use the URL of your Nexthink instance, sometimes referred to as the destination URL.
Data over TCP	Select the option to send data over a TCP channel.
Ports (TCP)	443
Ports (UDP)	This feature must not be selected when using the Nexthink cloud platform.
DNS	Tick the option Prefer IPv6 if you want the Collector to favor the use of IPv6 over IPv4 to communicate with the instance.

3

Set the General settings. Optionally tick the box for any additional setting. In particular:

1. Installation options that are not shown in the dialog box take their default value. Check Install configuration tool to modify them later with the Collector configuration tool. In the case of an update, the values of the non-visible settings are preserved from the previous installation.

2. Check the option Web and Cloud Data if you have purchased the Web and Cloud product. Furthermore, click the button Settings to the right of this option to open a dialog box where you can list the domains for which you want to store the full URL paths of web requests. That is, for every web request that falls under one of the specified domains, Collector reports the full URL path and not just the domain.

3. Check the option Use the assignment service if you have activated the rule-based assignment of Collectors.

4. Select the activation of the Engage features depending on the target operating system:

   • Enable except on servers: Collector launches campaigns only on devices that do not run a server operating system.

   • Enable on all devices: Collector launches campaigns on devices with any type of operating system.

   • Disable: Collector ignores campaigns.

5. Select the Script execution policy for remote actions that Collector will run on the device:

   • Signed by a trusted publisher or by Nexthink (default): Collector runs on the device, only those remote actions with a PowerShell script that is signed either by Nexthink or by a company whose certificate is listed in the Trusted Publishers certificate store.

   • Signed by a trusted publisher: Collector runs on the device, only those remote actions with a PowerShell script that is signed by a company whose certificate is listed in the Trusted Publishers certificate store.

   • Disabled: Collector runs no remote action on the device.

   • Unrestricted: Collector runs any remote action on the device, regardless of the digital signature of its script.

6. Optional: Type in an integer number (0—2147483647) as Collector tag to identify the group of Collectors generated with the installer. The Collector tag is useful for defining the entities to build up hierarchies.

7. Optional: For more flexibility in the identification of Collectors, type in a label (maximum 2048 characters) as Collector string tag to identify the group of Collectors generated with the installer. The Collector string tag is useful for defining the entities to build up hierarchies.

8. Choose the Customer Key file that protects the connection to the Nexthink instance.

9. Specify a couple of directories:

Output directory	Select Browse to select the folder in which the executable files of both Collector install and uninstall will be created.
Optional: Logs directory	Type in the network place where Collector deployed with this method must save the installation logs.

4

Optionally provide the custom proxy settings of Collector under the Proxy configuration section:

1. Select Automatic proxy to provide a PAC file for the automatic configuration of the proxy settings.

PAC address	URL of the PAC file

1. Select Manual proxy to manually provide the proxy settings.

Proxy address	FQDN of the proxy
Proxy port	Port number to which the proxy is listening

5

Click Create to trigger the generation of three files:

• Executable file to install the Collector: NEXThink_Collector<Nexthink_Experience_FQDN>.exe

• Executable file to uninstall the Collector: NEXThink_Collector_Uninstaller<Nexthink_Experience_FQDN>.exe

• Text file with the list of the settings used to create the executable installer: NEXThink_Collector<Nexthink_Experience_FQDN>.exe.txt

6

Select OK to close the dialog box.

Installer exit codes

The installer executable returns one of the following values:

Exit code	Description
0	Success; reboot is not required
-1	Success; reboot is required
3	Failure; the Collector installation started but msiexec failed
other	Failure; the actual value corresponds to a Windows internal error code

The uninstaller executable returns one of the following values:

Exit code	Description
0	Success; reboot is not required
-1	Success; reboot is required
1	Success; Collector was not found and nothing was uninstalled
3	Failure; Collector uninstallation started but msiexec failed
other	Failure; the actual value corresponds to a Windows internal error code

Configuring Collector with Windows Installer

Prerequisites

• General prerequisites apply

• An MSI editor, such as Orca

• The Collector MSI installer, found in the following folders in the ZIP file, depending on your CPU:

  • arm64\signed\NEXThink_Collector.msi

  • x64\signed\NEXThink_Collector.msi

Creating MST file

Create an MST which you will use alongside an MSI file to customize the installation process.

Find a complete list of installation parameters on this page: Collector MSI parameters reference table.

Mandatory MST parameters

Parameter	Description
DRV_IP	Provide the FQDN of the Nexthink instance. URL structure: <customer_name>.data.eu.nexthink.cloud
CRD_PORT	Value: 443
CRD_KEY	Provide a customer key that has been provided to you by your Nexthink representative. Open the key file in text editor, copy the entire text and paste it to the MSI editor as the property value.
DATA_OVER_TCP	Enable to send end-user data over the TCP channel of Collector

Registering the VDI Client Extension

When installing Collector, the VDI Client Extension is enabled automatically for all devices in your environment when using VDI Experience. Ensure you are using Collector version 25.4.1 or above.

For older Collector versions, Nexthink recommends upgrading to the most recent Collector version to ensure that the VDI Client Extension is enabled automatically.