SystemTools 'ToolNews' - November 23, 2021

1. News
• Hyena v14.4 Released
• Exporter Pro Updated to v3.3.0
2. Tips
   
• AD Query Library
• Advanced Settings
3. New Hyena Upgrade Policy
4. Keeping in Touch
• Help us keep you informed
• Help us spread the word !
5. Contact Information

Hyena v14.4 Released

Hyena v14.4 has been released and is available in both x86 and x64 versions in English, French, German, and Spanish. Hyena v14.4 is available as a free update if your license free update period date is after November 1, 2021; Check under Settings > Licensing to see if your license is eligible for a free update. See the 'New Hyena Upgrade Policy' topic below for information on upgrading.

Hyena v14.4 can be downloaded from:

https://www.systemtools.com/hyena/download.htm

Built on Updated Visual Studio Platforms

Continuing the changes from previous releases, Hyena v14.x versions have been rebuilt on modern versions of the Visual Studio (VS) platform, enabling better security, compatibility, and conformance to industry standards.

Other Changes Include:

• Added option to select duplicates in 'Select From File' option.

• Added 'View Logon Information' function for most Computer objects.

• Added option to show RODCs to the user 'View Logon Information' dialog.

• Added grouping options to the 'Show Logged On Users' function.

• Fixed sorting on the Group Member Matrix view.

• Added additional logic to acquire the domain SID when managing users to prevent error when running on lower-priv'ed accounts.

• Local groups with user accounts from trusted domains will now show the AD Properties dialog instead of local-style dialog.

• Member Global groups of local groups on computers will now show the AD Properties (or Shell) dialog instead of local-style dialog.

• Created advanced settings to disable the above behavior, 'UseLocalPropDialogForLocalAdUsers' and 'UseLocalPropDialogForLocalAdGroups'

• Added ms-DS-ConsistencyGUID to the list of GUIDs for proper display

• Preview window on User Properties will now use AD functions to show AD groups members

• Added default server to 'Add to User...' function to avoid errors when run on non-domain joined computers.

• Added advanced setting 'DisableHyenaInternetAccess' that will disable all internet access. This setting will disable the update checking option, and not allow any links to be clicked on dialogs (ie support links, email links, etc.)

Exporter Pro Updated to v3.3.0

Exporter Pro has been updated to v3.3.0; Exporter Pro is included with any Hyena installation and always includes the latest revisions and updates.

Changes include adding numerous attributes to the AD GUID data types for exporting, now compatible with the same GUID data types as Hyena.  Exporter Pro has also been rebuilt using the same version of Visual Studio that Hyena is based on.

AD Query Library

Since the creation of Active Directory, Hyena has supported customized queries, which are used in all of Hyena's views. The Query Library feature was created in order to have a ready and updatable resource for examples of complex queries that also show some of the extended flexibility in Hyena's implementation of the LDAP standard that AD is built on.

Hyena's Query Library is accessible through the 'AD Queries' button on the main ribbon.  Click on the 'Query Library' button on the upper right corner of the Query Manager. 

The Query Library is organized in a manner to mirror the existing query categories in Hyena: Container/OU Contents, Users, Groups, Global Groups, Local Groups, Universal Groups, and Computers. 

To use the Library, first determine whether you want to manage Active Directory through Containers and OUs, or through the built-in nodes for Users, Groups, etc. that are found under an Active Directory domain in Hyena and change the option to reflect what query category you want to manage (Container/OU Contents, Users, etc).  Click the 'Query Library' button to access the Library.

As an example of a common request, if a query is needed to show only enabled users (ie to NOT show disabled accounts), find and select the query in the Library titled "Enabled Users".  Selecting this query in the Library will show its properties, including the LDAP filter of:

(&(objectCategory=person)(objectClass=user)(!(userAccountControl:1.2.840.113556.1.4.803:=2)))

This LDAP filter will show users, and the last portion (userAccountControl) filters out the disabled accounts. The pre-defined queries in the Library are an excellent source of ideas on how to best leverage the capabilities of the LDAP filtering mechanism together with Hyena's ease-of-use. 

To add any query from the Library to the current query list, simply select the queries and click the 'Import' button.

For more information on how to modify the AD queries in Hyena, watch the 'Hyena Active Directory Query Basics (201)' video available here:

https://www.youtube.com/user/SystemToolsSoftware

Advanced Settings

Hyena has a number of special settings (nearly 100) that are not available in the standard Settings dialog, due to their special purpose. These Advanced Settings are accessible under Settings > Advanced. Prior to making any changes, click the Help button to access the Advanced Settings help topic and look at the various settings to see which ones may be applicable to your environment.

Starting in November of 2020, SystemTools modified our maintenance and upgrade policies going forward for all future sales. The annual software maintenance renewals were discontinued in exchange for upgrades, which now offer a full two (2) years of future free updates. The cost to upgrade, 50% of the new license cost, has not been changed.

What has not changed is that our software license itself is still perpetual, including any version that was active at the time of purchase or renewal, plus any future versions through the free update period.

For example, if a 3-user Enterprise license is upgraded today for $430, the free update period would expire on November 23, 2023. Any software updates released prior to November 23rd would be free and can be used perpetually.

Help us keep you informed

Help us keep you and other users in your organization informed of updates and releases of SystemTools products.

Any Hyena user can register for this newsletter (ToolNews) by selecting "Newsletter Signup" on Hyena's Help menu. You can also go directly to our ToolNews registration page as well. We could also use the help of our existing customers by passing along this newsletter to other SystemTools users within your company.

We use an automated service to handle sending this newsletter, including subscribing and unsubscribing. All new subscriptions require confirmation, and we will never share our newsletter email list with anyone.

Help us spread the word !

For nearly 25 years Hyena has helped tens of thousands of IT managers, administrators, help desk personnel, and auditors simplify the management and reporting of Windows. We have found over and over that the number one source of newcomers to our products has come from word-of-mouth of other happy users. The entire SystemTools Software family and community would very much appreciate it if you would mention Hyena to friends and associates that you feel could use it to simplify their jobs as well.

As our user base has grown, the amount and quality of feature recommendations has grown as well, making for an even better product for existing and future users. Simply put, the more we grow the exposure of SystemTools Software products, the more return you get from your investment.

Thank you for your help in keeping Hyena improving and growing !

Sales - sales@systemtools.com
Support - support@systemtools.com

Thank you for your support.