Examining metrics in depth
Some functionality of Custom Dashboards is linked with Finder (classic).
Nexthink Finder is a Windows-only desktop application whose functionality is now available within the Nexthink web interface. Nexthink can now be used directly from a browser and most functions no longer require an additional desktop application.
To obtain the value of the represented metric with improved precision, hover the cursor over a figure in a widget. In some cases, extra information will appear inside a pop-up which will also present two options for examining the metric in depth:
Show details (count metrics only)
Investigate in Finder
When displaying the values of count metrics in a dashboard, you may be interested in knowing which objects are behind the numbers. For any figure in a dashboard that represents a count metric, it is possible to see the objects that have contributed to the total. The list of these objects is called the details of the metric. If you selected grouping options or additional display fields when creating your metric, they are displayed in the details.
Investigate in Finder (classic)
Nexthink Finder is a Windows-only desktop application whose functionality is now available within the Nexthink web interface. Nexthink can now be used directly from a browser and most functions no longer require an additional desktop application.
If you want to go deeper into your investigations and have access to Finder, you can drill-down directly from the widget representation of a metric to Finder. This works with any kind of metric and not just with count metrics. When drilling-down from the Nexthink web interface to Finder, Finder generates and runs a new investigation on the fly that keeps as much contextual information as possible to recreate the same conditions found in the web interface. Once in Finder, you can modify the generated investigation, find relations with other objects and activities, and analyze the results with the full potential of Finder.
Getting improved precision
Hover the cursor over the displayed values in a KPI, table or bar chart widget to bring up a pop-up that displays the same value but with higher precision whenever possible. In addition, get the variation with respect to its previous value. For instance, the pop-up below displays an additional decimal digit and the variation of the following KPI widget:
In the case of values that represent a count ratio, the pop-up displays not only the ratio with higher precision but also the number of involved objects. For example, in the bar chart below, see the precise ratio of Windows laptops, the variation of the ratio with respect to its previous value, and the number of Windows laptops with respect to the total number of devices in the pop-up:
Displaying the details of count metrics
To display the details of a count metric from a dashboard:
In the dashboard, find a widget (KPI, table or bar chart) that displays the metric. It is not possible to show the details of a metric from a line chart.
Hover the cursor over the figure. A small pop-up will appear.
Click Show details in the pop-up. The list of the objects that contributed to the count metric total is displayed.
Optional: If the list of objects is too big to fit in the dialog box, use the controls at the bottom left of the dialog box to move through pages. There is a limit to the maximum number of objects the Nexthink web interface can display in the details. If the limit is reached, the dialog box will indicate it with an appropriate message.
Optional: Click the arrow link with the label CSV in the bottom right corner of the window to export the list as a CSV file.
Click OK once you have finished closing the dialog box and return to the dashboard.
In the table widgets, if you have grouped the results of the count metric, you get an exact list of objects that correspond to the clicked figure according to the grouping options.
Note that service dashboards do not have the option to display details. Showing the details is only available in dashboards based on metrics.
By default, the Nexthink web interface stores the details of count metrics for the current day, week, month and quarter. To keep historical data for previous periods, reserve additional disk space for the Nexthink web interface.
Drilling-down to Finder (classic)
A prerequisite for drilling-down to Finder is ensuring that the address of Nexthink web interface is correctly configured, as is the case when updating Finder.
To drill-down from Nexthink web interface to Finder to investigate the results of a metric in detail:
Log in to Nexthink web interface as a user with Finder access from a machine that has Finder properly installed.
Locate, in a dashboard, the KPI, table or bar chart widget that holds the value of the metric that you want to analyze with the help of Finder. Line charts do not support drilling-down to Finder.
Hover the cursor over the value of interest. A pop-up will appear.
Alternatively, display the details of a count metric and hover the cursor over the name of an object in the list. A pop-up will also appear.
Click the link Investigate in Finder inside the pop-up.
If the value of the metric in Nexthink web interface is aggregated from several Engines, a dialog box will display the list of related Engines.
Click the name of the Engine to which Finder must connect.
Finder opens a view related to the metric, based on the contextual information taken from the Nexthink web interface.
The contextual information partially determines what you see in Finder when it opens. The context includes:
The type of metric that you are drilling-down from.
The group by options of the metric.
The current node of the hierarchy that you are viewing in the Nexthink web interface.
The current time frame in the Nexthink web interface.
These are the results that you get in Finder, according to the type of metric from which you drill-down:
When drilling-down from the value of a count metric (total or ratio), Finder runs an investigation that returns the list of counted objects.
When drilling-down from the value of a quantity metric, Finder runs an investigation on devices and displays the results in a list. The list is ordered by the aggregate that defines the quantity.
When drilling-down from the name of an object in either a top metric or in the details of a count metric, the behavior of Finder depends on the kind of object selected:
If the object is a device, Finder opens its device view.
If the object is a user, Finder opens its user view.
For any other kind of object, Finder runs an investigation that returns a list with the object as the single result.
The results in Finder include the context of the Nexthink web interface:
Group options
If any group by options are specified in the definition of the metric, Finder includes them in the results of the executed investigation (not applicable to drilling-down to the device or user views).
Hierarchy
The results of the investigations are limited to the node of the hierarchy viewed in the Nexthink web interface: they are transformed into a condition on a set of entities (not applicable to the device or user views).
Date
The date of the investigation run in Finder matches the date viewed in the Nexthink web interface (the time frame must be bound to one single day, see limits below).
Limits of drilling-down to Finder
In some cases, when drilling-down from the Nexthink web interface to Finder, it is possible to get inconsistencies between the results displayed in Finder and the values observed in the Nexthink web interface. To deal with these situations, Finder highlights a warning message at the top of the view that explains the reason for the possible differences.
No data available
The data retention period in the Engine is shorter than in the Nexthink web interface. When drilling-down to Finder, the Engine may have already lost the history of the data requested if the date selected in the Nexthink web interface lies too far in the past. Finder displays the following message:
There is no data or only partial data in the Engine for the time frame you have requested (time frame). The oldest historical data in the Engine dates from date.
Data from multiple Engines
This occurs when the values displayed in the Nexthink web interface are aggregated from multiple Engines. When displaying the results in Finder, only the results of one Engine are available; therefore, inconsistencies may arise. Finder displays the warning:
The data displayed in the Nexthink web interface is taken from multiple Engines. The results shown below are only for the Engine name Engine.
Time frame longer than one day
If the selected time frame in the Nexthink web interface is longer than one day (that is, the time frame is a week, a month, or a quarter), Finder ignores the time frame and displays the results for today. This is because the Nexthink web interface aggregates the results of every metric daily, adding them up to make the total for the time frame selected. This is different from launching an investigation that aggregates results over the whole time frame. The warning message in Finder reads:
The weekly/monthly/quarterly data displayed in the Nexthink web interface cannot be retrieved in Finder. The results shown below are for today.
Not historicized data
Some metrics are based on values for which the Engine does not keep a historical record. The Nexthink web interface keeps track of what a metric’s value actually was when its daily computing was completed. This is similar to the limitation that you get when you want to compute metrics for dates in the past. Finder displays the message:
The data displayed below may differ from what is available in the Nexthink web interface as object properties and categories may have changed since the metric was computed.
The time frame of count metrics that count all objects
When viewing a widget that displays a count metric that counts all objects (active and inactive), the time frame in the Nexthink web interface must be of one day (choosing any other time frame disables the widget). If you drill down to Finder, the time frame in Finder changes to the full available period to better reflect the results seen in the Nexthink web interface. Finder warns you about the change of time frame with the following message:
Time frame changed: these results go from the oldest available date in the Engine (date) to now (date).