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Before being able to access ipMonitor's Administration and Reporting web interfaces, a user must enter an account name and password combination. Accounts are internal to ipMonitor and are not associated with Windows accounts.

ipMonitor provides a detailed User Account system to control which features individual users can access. Each User Account has its own List, Read, Write, Create, Delete and Attributes settings, which Administrators can apply to various features throughout the software.

Three distinct account levels can be created and managed from within ipMonitor's Administration interface:

1. Administrator Accounts have full access to all ipMonitor features.
2. User Accounts have Permission levels which Administrators can assign to different ipMonitor features and interfaces.
3. Guest Accounts make it possible to publish a common User Name and Password to access the Reporting Interface.

If you have not yet created your first Administrator Account using the ipMonitor Configuration Program, please proceed to the next step and follow the instructions in sequence to be able to log in to the software.

Click the PDF icon to open a printable PDF version of this tutorial. It includes all the information found here, including images from the ipMonitor software, diagrams, and links to additional resources.

Within the ipMonitor Administration interface, Administrator Accounts have full access to every ipMonitor feature. In addition, they are the only Accounts that have permission to administrate ipMonitor Users and Credentials.

The first Administrator Account must be created using ipMonitor's Configuration Program:

1. Log in to the ipMonitor host computer using a Windows Account with Administrative privileges for the host machine in order to start the ipMonitor Configuration Program.
2. Access the Administrator Account screen from the main menu screen of the Configuration Program.
3. Enter the desired User Name, and then enter the Password twice for confirmation. You may choose to enable or disable the Force Strong Passwords option when creating the new Administrator Account.

TIP Strong passwords can be enforced installation-wide to help ensure system security. When Strong Passwords are enforced, the following rules apply: One or more lowercase characters One or more uppercase characters One or more numeric characters One or more non-alphanumeric characters 6 or more characters in total

4. Click OK to save the Account.

Once you exit the ipMonitor Configuration program, access the Administration interface. Access the Accounts section from the Security menu option to edit any given Account information.

After the first Administrator Account is created, additional Accounts may be added directly from within the ipMonitor Administration web interface.

1. Click the Security menu option, and then select Accounts.
2. From the Accounts List screen, click the Add a User option.

3. Enter a new Account Name. The Account Name will be displayed in the Accounts List, and is required for the user to log in to ipMonitor.
4. Enter the Current Password for the Account you have used to log in to ipMonitor.
5. Enter the desired New Password for the new Account.
6. Enter the new Account's Password again for confirmation.

7. Each User Account has its own list of abilities that Administrators can turn on and off at any time. Choose the desired User Permissions from the Access Map provided.

Additional Administrator accounts may be added directly from within the Administration web interface, rather than through the Configuration program.

1. Click the Security menu option, and then select Accounts.
2. From the Accounts List screen, select a previously created User account to enter Edit Mode. To create a new User account, follow the steps outlined in the previous section of this tutorial.

3. Click the Promote to Administrator button located on the submenu bar.

TIPS Administrator Accounts can also be demoted back to User status by clicking the Demote from Administrator option on the menu bar.

4. All sessions currently in use by the Account being promoted will be terminated. Click Yes when prompted to confirm this action.

TIPS Administrator accounts cannot be deleted until they are demoted within the ipMonitor Administration interface. There must always be at least one Administrator Account. Administrator accounts cannot delete themselves, nor can they demote themselves.

Guest Accounts are designed to provide a common User Name and Password to access the Reporting Interface. This allows an Administrator to post the Account Credentials required to log in on an intranet site, or distribute the User Name and Password to those that require access.

Guest Accounts only have the ability to read and view data. They do not have access to the Administration Interface, nor do they have the ability to change or save their own settings (beyond the current session).

Creating a Guest Account functions in much the same way as creating an Administrator Account:

1. Click the Security menu option, and then select Accounts.
2. From the Accounts List screen, select a previously created User account to enter Edit Mode.

3. Click the Demote to Guest button located on the menu bar.

TIP Guest Accounts can also be promoted back to User status by clicking the Promote to Normal User option on the menu bar.

4. All sessions currently in use by the Account being demoted will be terminated, and any configured Credentials will be orphaned. Click Yes when prompted to confirm these actions.

Administrators have the ability to change their own or another account's password by entering Edit Mode for that Account. Changing your password or another user's password in this configuration area intentionally orphans any credentials owned by the user. This is a security precaution that prevents another ipMonitor administrator from hijacking another Account's Credentials for his own use.

To ensure that all previously configured Credentials are maintained after a password change, proceed with the following:

1. Click the Settings menu option, and then select My Settings.

2. Click the Reset... button adjacent to the Password field.
3. Enter the Password for the Account you have used to log in to ipMonitor.
4. Enter the new Password for the Account.
5. Enter the new Password again for confirmation.
6. Click OK.

In the event that the current Administrator login credentials have been forgotten and existing Accounts cannot be altered, a new Administrator account can be added at any time from within the ipMonitor Configuration program.

This process triggers a further security precaution against unauthorized access to the ipMonitor software. Local Administrator privileges are required to run the ipMonitor Configuration program. If the user does not have complete and unrestricted access to the ipMonitor host computer, the ipMonitor Configuration program will not load, essentially making it impossible to create a new ipMonitor Account.

To create a new Account using the Configuration program, follow the instructions outlined in the section of this tutorial entitled 'Creating the First Administrator Account'.

TIP Administrator Accounts must have unique names. Any attempt to add an Administrator account with the same user name as an existing account will be denied.

For more information regarding ipMonitor accounts, refer to the Security section of the Context-Sensitive Help system, and then select Accounts. The Context-Sensitive Help can be accessed by clicking the Help link located in the top right corner of ipMonitor's Administration web interface.

For information on other features and concepts related to those discussed in this article, refer to the following ipMonitor resources:

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Last Updated: April 12, 2006 | What did you think of this topic?