Difference between revisions of "Retain Mobile"

Revision as of 16:22, 18 December 2014

Level 1

The Retain for Mobile module allows the capture and archiving of MMS, SMS, and phone call information from Android smartphones. (Android 2.2.2+ is supported.)

Installation

To enable mobile data archiving the following tasks must be completed, in order:

1. The Router must be installed and be available outside the host network. (in DMZ)
2. The Mobile Module must be configured, and a Mobile worker created.
3. The Retain Android application must be installed to users’ phones.
4. Devices must be registered under ‘Device Management’.
5. Users must use the registration email to verify device registration with the GWAVA server.
6. The data path folder(s) must be manually created.

The Retain Router should be installed in the DMZ area of the host network. The Router must be available to the internet and the Retain Server. The Router and Worker may be installed on the same machine, or apart, however both the Router and the Worker must have access to the Data Path location. If they are not to be installed on the same machine, a mapped drive must be created to the location. See the install guides for more information.

The Retain.apk application is found in the Retain program installation folder in the ‘…/Retain330/mobile/android’ directory. Use your existing mobile device management system to distribute the APK to devices. (The application may take up to 15 minutes to receive configuration after it is registered. No data will be archived until the application is registered and configured.) The application sends collected information, approximately every hour, to GWAVA Inc. systems, where the organization’s data is then directed to the corresponding Retain Server’s router. As such, there are no schedules for the module.

Configuration

Host Name

The host name of the router endpoint must be accessible from outside the network. This is the connection information which GWAVA will use to deliver the mobile messages to the Retain Server. While an IP Address will work in this field, DNS is strongly recommended.

Data Path

The data path is the store location for messages received by the router, but not yet input into the Retain Server. This must be a location which the router will have constant and reliable access to. This location must also be accessible to the worker assigned to the router. A mapped drive will be required if the data path is not located on the same box as the mobile worker and mobile router. This path should be the path to the data directory from the Router, and should be absolute. Folders will not be created automatically. If the data path is being created on a Linux system, the ownership should be tomcat:tomcat. After entering the configuration, test the connection. Provisioning options allow for automatic user accounts, and associated passwords mailed to the designated address. Defaults are shown.

After the module configuration has been saved, a worker must be created to allow the information to be accepted into the Retain Server. The Mobile worker, Profile, and Device Management menu pages will not be available until the Mobile Module has been configured, and the configuration has been saved.

Worker

The Mobile worker is a special worker configuration which contacts the Retain Router with all the information it needs to function. This includes the configuration settings for the data path and connection information. In general, the Mobile Worker is configured the exact same as most workers in the Retain system, however there is one setting for the Mobile Worker which is specific to the Mobile Module; the data path. The data path is essential for the worker to function with the Mobile Module.

The mobile data is delivered to the Retain Server through a router service, which must be informed how to contact the Retain Server. While the Router is gathering information between jobs, the mobile data is stored. The stored location is specified by the data path. This is why the Router and the worker must have direct and constant access to the data path; the data path stores the message data collected by the Router and retrieved by the Worker.

To ensure connection to both the data path and the Retain Server are correct, the Connection and the Module Specific tabs must be reviewed and configured. The Connection tab holds the connection address which the Retain Worker will use to contact the Retain Server. Depending on where the Server and the Worker are located in the network, and because the Worker may be installed alongside the Router in the DMZ, the connection information must be accurate to allow a clean connection to the Retain Server. An IP Address will work, but the DNS hostname of the Retain Server is also recognized and supported.

The port and address must be open or forwarded through security and firewalls from the Worker to the Server. In addition, the Retain Server will not accept connections without the password set here. The password is randomized and doesn’t need to be changed. Set the correct information and move to the ‘Module Specific’ tab.

Under the Module Specific tab, the only field that applies to the Mobile Module is the field at the bottom marked ‘Message Router’.

The path that the Worker will use to connect to the mobile Data directory should be placed here. This may be a mapped drive or a local path. The path should be absolute. The connection to the data directory is essential to the worker function, if this is unavailable or blocked, mobile jobs will fail. The worker will delete files after adding them to Retain according to the time frame listed. A setting of ‘0’ will tell the worker to delete files immediately after importing them into the Retain Server.

Once the Mobile Worker has been configured, save the changes. Once the settings have been saved, the worker will be created, and the configuration saved to the bootstrap file. The bootstrap file must be uploaded to the Retain Worker before the Worker will function. Select the ‘Download File’ link to save the configuration file. Browse to the worker’s page, (http://<RetainWorkerIPAddress>/RetainWorker), and upload the configuration file. Once uploaded, the worker automatically reads the configuration and checks with the Retain Server for jobs.

Profile The Mobile Profile allows the administrator to dictate what types of message data is collected from registered mobile devices. The profile is universal, and once configured works for the entire mobile system.

The Mobile Profile is fairly straightforward. To enable message data collection for the mobile system, the profile must be activated.

Under Message Settings, the different types of messages which can be archived from Mobile devices are listed and configured. The message source and type are available for selection or exclusion.

Finally, the Miscellaneous tab allows for configuring attachments. Attachment size and general attachment settings can be configured here. If there is a maximum limit, set it in the field below.

Before the profile can be saved, some setting must change for the Retain Server to recognize that something needs to be saved. If no setting has been modified, toggle a setting to trigger the save changes icon to activate and then save the changes.

If changes are not saved, then the profile will not be saved. Jobs cannot be run unless the profile has been saved.

Once the module, worker, and profile have been configured, devices must be added through Device Management.

Device Management Devices are added to and deleted from Retain through the Device Management interface. Multiple devices may be selected, and all selected devices remain selected until either action is taken, or the administrator has navigated away from the page.

Once a device is added to the interface, Retain creates an email which contains an activating link. Users need to open this email and follow the link on their mobile device. The link should be activated through the Retain application on the Android device. The activation email can be customized. The template this email is generated from is located in the file: …\RetainServer\WEB-INF\classes\config\mobile\registeruser.html The email sent to users may be customized, including any specific instructions for the organization, can be added or modified here, and all emails sent to users will contain information placed in this template.

When a user is sent an email, the Retain system creates a unique device and user identification key, and ties it to the organization from which it came, allowing the Retain system to ‘route’ the appropriate messages to the owning Retain Server. Devices which have installed the application and activated through the emailed link, will display in the Retain Server as ‘registered’, in that they will show a code, a device key, and a UID key. Once registered, device data including SMS, MMS, and phone call data will be archived in the Retain System.

To add a device to the Retain system, open the Device Management window and select the ‘Add Devices’ button. The Add Devices window opens, which allows administrators to select and add multiple users. The system may also add users which are not cached in the Retain system, but they must be added one at a time. Manually input the name and associated email address at the bottom and select the ‘add user’ button.

Mobile Router Page The Retain Router has its own webpage. This page can be used to test the connection to the Retain Server, as well as verify that communication is open and that devices registered in the Retain Server are listed in the Retain Router.

To access the Router page, open a browser and enter the connection URL. http://Retain_Router_IP_or_Domain/RetainRouter

For example: http://192.168.1.21/RetainRouter

Devices which are active are listed along with daily statistics. The daily statistics are reset every night, and full statistics are kept in the Retain Server.

This page is mainly an informational page.

Video of Retain for Mobile training given 10/10/2014 given by Chase Taylor

Level 2

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