Three of NetVision's recently released feature upgrades that we know you'll love.

NetVision recently released version 7.2 of our product suite. Recently, we covered a few of the new features that were introduced, including the ability to find the real owner of files and folders, identify where permissions may differ from a share level folder, and track workstation logon activity. This time, we'll discuss three more enhancements and how they can add value in your environment.


1.  Combined Permission and Activity Reporting

Access Rights Inspector provides calculated effective rights reporting across the file system essentially answering "Who has access to what?". One of the really powerful uses of this tool is to run a report showing to what a given user or group has access. As you drill down on a specific file or folder, you have access to effective rights as well as explicit rights assignments so that you know how those permissions are actually assigned. But until recently, if you wanted to review the recent activity on that file, you'd have to switch over to NVMonitor reporting and then adjust the scope of the report to that specific file.

That's a few more clicks of the mouse than we were comfortable with. So, with the release of 7.2, the Access Rights Inspector details pane provides file activity data from NVMonitor right there. No additional clicks required. It also tells you who uses the file most so you can quickly identify the potential owner or high-frequency user to answer any questions about that particular file.


2.  Role Based Access to Reports

NetVision's reporting console provides access to reporting for the entire NetVision suite. Because there are numerous types of users who want access to NetVision reporting, it was a natural extension to provide role-based access to reports. A department manager should perhaps only have access to the reporting on the security groups and files that are relevant to their department. A finance auditor might only need access to the READ events on certain files and certain exceptions rather than ALL file activity.

Previously, these scenarios were handled with the built-in report scheduling and automated emailing of reports to users based on their need. But, role-based access to reports provides additional control so that report consumers can set their own report schedules and leverage the report parameters which make searching through data a breeze.


3.  Automatically Linked Reports

One of NetVision's clear advantages is our separation of data from display. Our event information is normalized and stored in a relational database. Reporting, then, is extremely flexible in that the same set of data (e.g. group changes) can be viewed in numerous formats (e.g. a pie chart based on who did it, a bar chart based on type of change, a tabular view of chronological changes, etc.) Some NetVision users felt a bit overwhelmed by all the choices.

So, with the 7.2 release, NetVision introduced linked reports into our policy management console. As you are managing policies, there is an additional tab that enables you to select from a recommended report template list. Upon saving the policy, those reports are automatically created in the reporting console. The initial feedback is extremely positive. Linked reports save a few steps and make process of selecting the best report template for you a lot easier.


by Matt Flynn
NetVision