Agentless Scan

This section covers the following topics:

• Overview
• How an Agentless Scan Works
• Agentless Scan Requirements
• Supported Operating Systems
• Start an Agentless Scan

Overview

You can use ER2 to perform an agentless scan on network Targets via a Proxy Agent. Agentless scans allow you to perform a scan on a target system without having to:

1. Install a Node Agent on the Target host, and
2. Transmit sensitive information over the network to scan it.

Use agentless scans when:

• The Node Agent is installed on a host other than the Target host.
• Data transmitted over the network must be kept to a minimum.
• The Target credential set has the required permissions to read, write and execute on the Target host.
• The Target host security policy has been configured to allow the scanning engine to be executed locally.

For more information, see Agentless Scan Requirements below.

How an Agentless Scan Works

When an agentless scan starts, the Proxy Agent receives instructions from the Master Server to perform a scan on a Target host. Once a secure connection to the Target host has been established, the Proxy Agent copies the latest version of the scanning engine to a temporary location on the Target host.

The scanning engine is then run on the Target host. It scans the local system and sends aggregated results to the Proxy Agent, which in turn sends the results to the Master Server. Data scanned by ER2 is kept within the Target host. Only a summary of found matches is sent back to the Master Server.

Once the scan completes, the Proxy Agent cleans up temporary files created on the Target host during the scan and closes the connection.

Agentless Scan Requirements

Make sure that the Target and Proxy Agent host fulfill the following requirements:

¹ TCP Port allowed connections.

Supported Operating Systems

ER2 supports the following operating systems as agentless scan Targets:

Microsoft Windows Operating Systems

Ground Labs supports and tests ER2 for all Windows versions supported by Microsoft.

Prior versions of Windows may continue to work as expected. However, Ground Labs cannot guarantee support for these versions indefinitely.

Linux Operating Systems

Ground Labs supports and tests ER2 for all Linux distributions currently supported by the respective providers.

Prior versions of Linux distributions may continue to work as expected. However, Ground Labs cannot guarantee support for these versions indefinitely.

macOS Operating Systems

Ground Labs supports and tests ER2 for all macOS versions supported by Apple Inc.

Prior versions of macOS may continue to work as expected. However, Ground Labs cannot guarantee support for these versions indefinitely.

Start an Agentless Scan

To perform an agentless scan on a Target:

1. Log in to the ER2 Web Console.
2. Navigate to the Select Locations page by clicking on:
   • Scans > New Scan, or
   • the New Scan button in the Dashboard, Targets, or Scans > Schedule Manager page.
3. On the Select Locations page, click + Add Unlisted Target.
4. In the Select Target Type window, choose Server and enter the host name of the Target in the Enter New Target Hostname field.
5. Click Test. If ER2 can connect to the Target, the button changes to a Commit button.
6. In the Select Types dialog box, select Target locations from Local Storage or Local Process Memory, select the Target type, and click Done.
7. In the New Target page:
   1. Assign Target Group - Assign the Target to the Target Group selected from the dropdown box.

   2. Specify the Operating System of the Target - Select the operating system for the Target host from the dropdown box.

      Ensure that you select the correct operating system for the Target host. Certain features in ER2 (e.g. PRO Data Classification with MIP, PRO Data Access Management) may not work as expected if the selected operating system is incorrect or is set to "Remote Access Only".
8. Click Next.
9. The UI prompts you if there is no usable Agent detected on the Target host. Select Would you like to search this target without installing an agent on it? to continue.

10. Fill in the following fields and click Next:
    

    Field	Description
    Credential Label	Enter a descriptive label for the credential set.
    Username	Enter your Target host user name.
    Password	Enter your Target host user password, or passphrase for the private key.
    (Optional) Private Key	Upload the file containing the private key. Only required for Target hosts that use a public key-based authentication method. See Set Up SSH Public Key Authentication for more information.
    Agent to act as proxy host	Select a suitable Proxy Agent.

11. On the Select Data Types page, select the Data Type Profiles to be included in your scan and click Next. See Data Type Profiles.
12. Set a scan schedule in the Set Schedule section. Click Next.
13. Review your scan configuration. Once done, click Start Scan.