Collector configuration tool for Windows

Overview

Nxtcfg is a small console application that reads and modifies the configuration parameters of Collector. Run Nxtcfg with administrator privileges.

Installation

By default, the Nxtcfg tool is installed along with Collector when installing the Collector MSI. Here is the absolute file path:

C:\Windows\System32\nxtcfg.exe

If not required, add the option CFG_INSTALL=0 to the MSI command line when installing the Collector.

Options

Option

Description

Example

/start

Start the Collector.

nxtcfg.exe /start

/stop

Stop the Collector.

nxtcfg.exe /stop

/restart

Restart the Collector.

nxtcfg.exe /restart

Get the value of a particular configuration parameter from the Collector. See the table in the next section for the list of possible parameters.

nxtcfg.exe /g ip

Set the value of one or more configuration parameters of the Collector. See the table in the next section for the list of possible parameters.

nxtcfg.exe /s ip=nxdocs.data.eu.nexthink.cloud tcp_port=443

List all the configuration parameters of the Collector with their current values.

nxtcfg.exe /l

Example output for the /l option, used by a local administrator to double-check the installed version number.

Microsoft Windows [Version 10.0.19042.1766]
(c) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

C:\WINDOWS\system32>nxtcfg.exe /l

+ Copyright (C) 2004 - 2019 Nexthink S.A. All rights reserved.
+ nxtcfg.exe - Changes the configuration of the Nexthink Collector.
+ version 22.4.6.9

ip=nxdocs.data.eu.nexthink.com (::1)
udp_port=2001
tcp_port=443
tag=0
string_tag="default_string_tag"
cgpi=240
logmode=2
logsize=1
dwef=0
mss=1224
wme=1
wm_domains=not set
dsps=1
iops=1
prefer_ipv6=0
pkg_interval=1
custom_shells=0
customer_key=-----BEGIN CUSTOMER KEY-----docs [truncated] docs-----END CUSTOMER KEY-----
root_ca=-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----docs [truncated] docs==-----END CERTIFICATE-----
clt_state=functioning_properly
traffic_status=317 packets sent (341834 bytes)
tcp_status=[26.08.2022 09:11:28.439] [INFO] Connected
execution_policy=signed_trusted_or_nexthink
printing=disable
assignment_status=assigned
engage=enable_except_on_server_os
use_assignment=enable
data_over_tcp=enable
proxy_address=not set
proxy_port=not set
proxy_pac_address=not set
mtls_fingerprint=not set
mtls_issuer_common_name=not set
mtls_subject_common_name=not set
install_browser_extension=not set
nxtcfg.exe completed successfully.

Configuration parameters

Modifying some of the parameters requires a restart of Collector for all the changes to take effect. Rebooting the device forcefully restarts all Collector components as well. For each parameter, this is specified by the values in the column Restart required of the parameters table:

No No reboot or component restart is required.
Yes Collector restart or device reboot is required.

Parameter

Description

Default value

Range

Restart required

Fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of your Nexthink instance.

tcp_port

Port number for TCP communication with your Nexthink instance.

[1024 - 65535]

Yes

tag

Optional integer number to identify the installation.

[0 - 2147483647]

string_tag

Optional label to identify the installation.

any string (max 2048 chars)

cgpi

The CrashGuard protection interval value is the time interval since boot (in minutes) after which a dirty reboot, a spontaneous system restart, does not increase the CrashGuard.

240 min

Yes

logmode

Logging mode:

0 - Silent
1 - Verbose
2 - Debug (not recommended for production environements)

[0 - 2]

logsize

Maximum size of log file when logging is enabled. Logs are rotated after the maximum is reached.

32 MB

[1 - 512] MB

Yes

iops

Enable (1) or disable (0) IOPS monitoring functionality.

[0 - 1]

Yes

dwef

When set, Collector does not report when an application freezes or stops responding.

[0 - 1]

Yes

pkg_interval

Period, in hours, in which Collector checks for new installed packages and updates and reports them:

0 - Never report packages.
1 - Report packages after Collector initializes and then once per hour.
2-24 - Report packages 45 minutes after Collector initializes and then every 2 to 24 hours.

[0 - 24]

Yes

wme

(classic) When set, Collector reports Web and Cloud data.

[0 - 1]

Yes

wm_domains

(classic) List of domains for which to report the URL of web requests.

Comma separated domain names

prefer_ipv6

When set, the Collector prefers IPv6 to communicate with the Nexthink instance when the FQDNs resolves to both IPv6 and IPv4 addresses.

[0 - 1]

custom_shells

When set, enable Collector to report user logon events in environments where Explorer is not the default shell. For example, certain embedded (kiosk mode) or virtualized environments.

[0 - 1]

execution_policy

The security policy to apply when executing scripts of remote actions.

signed_trusted_or_nexthink

disabled
signed_trusted
signed_trusted_or_nexthink
unrestricted

customer_key

The customer key of the Nexthink instance.

Path to text file with the cryptographic key.

Yes

assignment_status

(classic) The status of the assignment of the Collector.

disabled

disabledThe Collector is not using the Assignment Service.
standbyThe Collector is awaiting assignment to an Engine.
assignedThe Collector is assigned to an Engine.

No (read‑only)

use_assignment

(classic) Instruct the Collector whether to use or not use the assignment service.

disable

disableInstruct Collector not to use the Assignment Service.
enableInstruct Collector to use the Assignment Service.

Yes (only when enabling)

engage

Activation of the features to engage with the employees.

enable_except_on_server_os

enable_except_on_server_osActivate the features to engage with the end-user, except on devices that run an OS of the server type.
disableDeactivate the features to engage with the end-user.
enableActivate the features to engage with the end-user.

Yes

data_over_tcp

Send the Collector data over TCP.

enable

disable No longer possible for Nexthink cloud instances.
enable Send end-user data over the TCP channel.

Yes

proxy_pac_address

URL of the PAC file to automatically configure the proxy settings.

<URL> The URL of the PAC file
"" Do not use a PAC file

Yes

proxy_address

FQDN of the proxy for manual configuration of proxy settings.

<FQDN> The address of the proxy.
"" Do not use manual proxy settings.

Yes

proxy_port

Port number where the proxy is listening for manual configuration of proxy settings.

<port number> The port number of the proxy.
"" Do not use manual proxy settings.

Yes

Nxtcfg in remote actions

Because Collector communicates with the Nexthink instance when running remote actions, it is not recommended to change any of the configuration parameters of Collector from a remote action. Thus, refrain from modifying any of the following configuration parameters when running nxtcfg.exe within a remote action:

ip
tcp_port
customer_key

For the same reason, do not stop or restart Collector with nxtcfg.exe using a remote action. Directly stopping or restarting Collector abruptly ends the communication between Collector and the Nexthink instance, resulting in Collector losing its state with respect to the remote action. Once Collector is up again, it executes the remote action from the beginning, potentially creating an infinite loop.

Instead, if you need to modify some Collector settings from a remote action that requires a restart, use the following code in the script of the remote action:

To stop Collector:

Stop-Service -Name "Nexthink Service" -Force
Stop-Service -Name "nxtrdrvwfp" -Force
Stop-Service -Name "nxtrdrv" -Force

To start Collector:

Start-Service -Name "nxtrdrv"
Start-Service -Name "nxtrdrvwfp"
Start-Service -Name "Nexthink Service"

Setting the customer key

Collector uses the customer key to validate the identity of the Nexthink instance and securely communicate with it via TLS. If that security parameter changes, you must adjust the configuration of your Collector instances.

The parameter customer_key is special because it does not admit a direct value as an argument but as a path to a text file holding the actual value of the customer key.

To set the customer key and root certificate, type in the following command:

nxtcfg.exe /s customer_key="C:\Nexthink-customer-key.txt" The instruction above assumes that you placed the files in the root directory of your C: drive

When listing the customer_key parameter with the /l option of Nxtcfg, the complete customer key is not displayed. Only the first few characters are shown. These characters are usually enough to identify the key while keeping the list of the other parameters readable.

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