Restrict Applications Manager Client sessions per user

Products

• Automic Applications Manager

Issue/Introduction

A requirement exists to restrict the Applications Manager Client to only one session per user for risk or security compliance.

Symptoms

• Users can open multiple Client sessions from the same workstation or different workstations.
• Risk teams require a single-session enforcement policy.

Environment

• Applications Manager 9.x
• Java Client

Resolution

Applications Manager does not have a native server-side setting to limit a user to one active session globally. However, sessions can be restricted at the workstation level by configuring a fixed RMI port. When a fixed port is used, only one outbound connection can bind to that port on the workstation at a time, preventing additional sessions from launching.

Configuration Steps

1. Log into the Master server and navigate to the $AW_HOME/site directory.
2. Edit the awenv.ini file.
3. Set a fixed port: ClientRMIPortNumber=#### (replace #### with an available port number, e.g., 5048).
4. Navigate to the web/classes directory.
5. Edit the Options.properties file and ensure ClientRMIPortNumber=#### is active (remove any # comment characters).
6. Restart Applications Manager processes for changes to take effect.

Note: If a second session is attempted on the same workstation, it will fail with an RMI connection error because the port is already in use.

Workaround Limitations

Consider the following constraints when implementing this restriction:

• Multiple Network Interfaces: If the workstation has multiple valid IPv4 addresses (e.g., multiple network interfaces), a second connection may still be possible as the machine may connect via a different local IP/port combination.
• Local Bypasses: Users may bypass this restriction if a firewall is not in place by performing the following actions on their workstation:
  • Editing the local client.properties file to remove the comment from the #localOptions=true line. This prevents RunClient.jar from downloading the Master's Options.properties.
  • Editing the local Options.properties file to remove or comment out the ClientRMIPortNumber line.