Endpoint Security and Compliance Management Design Guide Using IBM Tivoli Endpoint Manager

64 Endpoint Security and Compliance Management Design Guide Using IBM Tivoli Endpoint Manager

3.1 Logical component overview

In 2.2.4, “Managed environment” on page 32, we introduced the key components

of the Tivoli Endpoint Manager platform. In Figure 3-1, we depict these

components placed in a logical context; in this section, we take a closer look at

each of these components.

Figure 3-1 High-level components in a logical context

Most of the components in Figure 3-1 are within the control and responsibility of

the organization that deploys the overall solution, except for the Tivoli Endpoint

Manager Fixlet Servers. The Fixlet Servers exist outside of the organizational

control and are hosted by IBM.

Arrows in the diagram indicate data flow, not network traffic initiation. Network

flow is examined further in 3.3, “Network communications and usage” on

page 106. Figure 3-1 shows that data flows from the Fixlet Servers (external to

organization) into the Tivoli Endpoint Manager Server. This diagram does not

mean that the Fixlet Servers initiate the connection; it merely depicts the way that

the data flows.

A basic Tivoli Endpoint Manager solution contains a Tivoli Endpoint Manager

Server, Tivoli Endpoint Manager database, Tivoli Endpoint Manager Console,

Chapter 3. IBM Tivoli Endpoint Manager component structure 65

and one or several Tivoli Endpoint Manager Agents. Tivoli Endpoint Manager

Relays are suggested in most deployments. Other components are optional,

depending on what features of the system the organization plans to use.

Next, we explain each component in turn and its role in the overall system.

3.1.1 Fixlet Server

We first look at the Fixlet Servers and how they interact with the Tivoli Endpoint

Manager Server, shown in Figure 3-2.

Figure 3-2 Fixlet Server component in context

In 2.2.5, “Key terms” on page 36, we briefly introduced Fixlet messages and

Sites. Sites are a logical collection of Fixlets that are related in some way. For

example, they all relate to patching Microsoft Windows endpoints. Or, they relate

to measuring and managing compliance to a particular standard or operating

system. These Sites are normally hosted on the IBM Tivoli Endpoint Manager

Fixlet Servers as a

cloud service and are therefore external to the organization

that uses Tivoli Endpoint Manager. A Fixlet Server is not a component that the

organization must build or maintain.

By hosting the sites externally, each organization can subscribe to a content feed

from these servers and receive updates to their content dynamically, when that

content changes. This approach removes the manual steps required to ensure

that the organization has the latest patches, compliance controls, or any other

update to a subscribed site.

Obtaining updates in this way does not actively change your environment, it

merely provides the new content. Use of this new content to change the

organization endpoints must still be performed by an approved administrator.

Furthermore, any existing actions are equally not affected by this new content.

3.1.2 Tivoli Endpoint Manager Server

Next, we look at the Tivoli Endpoint Manager Server. We look at how it interacts

with the other surrounding Tivoli Endpoint Manager components, shown in

Figure 3-3 on page 66.