Sessions

VPAM is an application that enables you to receive secure support through remote connections, known as sessions. Sessions are necessary to receive remote support. Sessions are formed between the Application that connects to your assets through Gatekeepers and the VPAM server.

Your VPAM server can host simultaneous sessions from different users at the same time. To know if there are any occurring sessions in your VPAM server, navigate to the Vendor Access tab > Sessions.

The Sessions page displays a list of the existing active, inactive, and pending sessions in your VPAM server. In the new UI, locate the occurring sessions in the Active Sessions tab.

Sessions Status

The session list can display different statuses depending on its connection:

  • Active Session: A user is currently connected to the Application.

  • Inactive Session: The Application is ready for connection, but there are no users connected to it.

  • Pending Session: The session is in the process of becoming active. This status appearswhen a user attempts to initiate a connection, but the Application has not yet checked in with the VPAM server. This status provides the following additional information:

    • Time Remaining: Estimated time until the session becomes active, based on the expected check-in time.

      TIP: Refresh your browser window to update the estimated time.

When the Application connects, the status changes from Pending to Active.

Connect to a Session

To connect to a session, you must meet the following requirements:

  • You must have access to the vendor and Application that you want to connect to.

  • The Application must be properly installed and registered.

  • You have access to the Connection Manager.

Initiate a session with the following steps:

  1. Navigate to Remote Support tab > Customers.

  2. Open their details page bu clicking View or the customer's name.

  3. Locate the Gatekeeper that you want to connect to.

  4. Click Connect.

After you click connect, the system redirects you to the Session Information page where the session is handled.

IMPORTANT:
To connect to a session you must have the Connection Manager installed. If you have never downloaded and installed the Connection Manager, ensure that you read the Connection Manager documentation.
NOTE:
If you have already installed the Connection Manager, you may also initiate a Browser-Based Session.

Connection Status

The Session Information page displays one of the following status for the connection.

Status Values Description
Downloading Components... The Connection Manager is currently getting the parts it needs to run.
Insufficient Privileges The logged-in user is not authorized to connect.
Failed to Connect to Service Logging in to the Applicationwas unsuccessful refer to the diagnostic log.
Connection Failed Indeterminate error occurred during connection attempt refer to the diagnostic log.
Connection Complete The connection has completed successfully. The user is now connected to the session.
Connection Disconnected Either the user has disconnected from the session, or the session has been ended.

Session Information

The Session Information page contains a detailed account of your current session. From this page, you have the following available actions:

  • View History: Displays the session's detailed history in the reports section, showing all activities and events that have occurred during the session.
  • End Session: If you're a system Admin or the session Owner, you can manually end the session and disconnect all connected users. However, sessions automatically end when idle, after the last user disconnects. Manual intervention is only required if you want to end the session before this happens.
  • Session Access: Defines who is allowed to connect to the session. By default, access is restricted based on user group and department permissions:
    • Users in the same User Group and Department as the session owner are allowed to connect to the session.
      Learn more in the Internal Users and Departments documentation.
    • Users in other User Groups and Department with access to the Gatekeeper Group are also allowed to connect.
      Learn more in the Internal Users, Departments, and Application documentation
NOTE:
If you are not currently connected to the session, you can still view session identifiers and interact with limited options.

The Session Information page for the current session contains the following details:

  • Application: The application's name. Click to view application details.

  • Description: A brief description of the application.

  • Initiated by: The user name of the person who started the session. Click to view user details.

  • Date created: The date and time the connection was established.

  • Duration: The current duration of the session.

  • Version: The version of the application.

  • Tunnel method: The method used for the session tunnel.

  • Local host name: The local host name.

  • Local IP address: The local IP address.

  • Session access: Indicates whether the session is public or private. Private sessions restrict access to the user who initiated the session and administrators.