Installed Application List For RPM and DEB

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1

Hello,

When I run the query below, I can retrieve the data for DEB and RPM in XML format. However, extracting the application name and version from this data takes quite a long time (around 30 minutes with a PowerShell command).

Is there any way to retrieve the information in the format “ComputerName | App Name | App Version” directly from BigFix for DEB and RPM packages via the BigFix API?

If technically possible, could you please also share a sample query?

(name of computer of it, values of it) of results of properties whose (name of it = “Installed Unix Packages List”) of BES Fixlets whose (analysis flag of it and name of it = “Installed UNIX Packages”)

2

Why are you doing it that way? You can easily retrieve this using Web Reports by following these steps:

  • Edit your Retrieved Property relevance to split the name and version with a pipe (|). For example:
Q: if name of operating system as lowercase does not start with "linux" as lowercase then "N/A" else if name of operating system as lowercase contains "linux" as lowercase AND exists rpm  then (unique values of (name of it & " | " & version of it as string) of packages of rpm) else ("N/A")
A: BESAgent | 11.0.2.125-rhe7
A: GConf2 | 3.2.6-22.el8
A: ModemManager | 1.10.4-1.el8
  • Save the updated RP (using the same name or a new one, as you prefer).
  • Once the data has populated, open Web Reports and add the updated RP as a column.
  • Export the data in CSV format for further analysis.
3

Thank you for your reply and the example query.

However, this example seems to only retrieve RPM packages, and it does not filter based on the operating system being Linux. In our environment, server names do not contain the word “linux” (e.g., ISTPRDXXXXXX01, ANKDMZXXXXXX01), so we need the OS check to be based on the actual operating system property.

Ideally, we would like a single query that:

  • Works only for computers where the OS is Linux
  • Retrieves both RPM and DEB packages in the same output
  • Shows the computer name in the first column, followed by the application name and version

Would it be possible to adjust the example query accordingly?

4

The relevance I shared aligns closely with that property. You should update your RP to split package name and version with a pipe (|) so it’s easier to consume in Web Reports.

My query refers to the OS name, not the server name. It targets machines where the operating system contains “linux”.

For a combined approach covering both RPM and DEB, use the relevance below and expand as needed:

if (name of operating system contains "RHEL") then (unique values of (name of it & " | " & version of it as string) of packages of rpm) else if (name of operating system contains "Ubuntu") then unique values of ((name of it | "Missing Name") & " | " & (version of it as string | "Missing Version") ) of packages of debianpackage else "N/A"