Simple question but I was unable to find an answer to it.
We have a task that updates the Cisco Secure Client VPN. Currently we have a single task that uninstalls the old VPN, installs the new version, and then restarts the computer. I’m omitting some information for brevity, but this is essentially how it works.
During this process, there are moments where internet connection can be lost:
After the VPN is uninstalled
After the VPN is installed but before the restart
I understand that BigFix will prefetch the packages to install, but if internet connection is dropped during the action will this cause the action to pause until a connection is reestablished?
Finally, given our scenario, would it be preferable for us to have our single fixlet approach or to set it up as a baseline?
Yes it would. Generally we would use ‘prefetch’ downloads so all the downloads needed from the baseline are cached before the action starts, and they’re available during execution regardless of network connection.
As long as you check the box “start the client downloads before constraints are satisified”, and give the agent time to complete the downloads bfore you allow it to start, then the agent won’t need network access for any of the work. Everything the agent needs is stored on the local machine.
This would be true for a single action, or for a multi-action group, such as a baseline.
This is one of the most important benefits of using BigFix. The Client is where the brains of the platform reside, so policy actions, which run repeatedly, or future scheduled actions such as the one being discussed here, only require the Client to be running.