Managing Aged Devices in CYRISMA: Best Practices and Billing Guidance
This article outlines how CYRISMA handles aged devices that have not been scanned or checked in for an extended period and provides best practices for managing and retiring these devices to optimize your usage and billing.
Written by Liam Downward
Updated at January 22nd, 2025
- User Manual
- Agents
- The Cyber Risk Assessment Process
- API Documents
- General Questions and Troubleshooting
- The Cyber Risk Assessment Process (Video Tutorials)
- Sales and Prospecting Articles
- CYRISMA Partner Portal Access
- Glossary
- CYRISMA Change Log
- Support Ticket SLA
- Onboarding Framework
- PSA Integrations
- Billing Questions
- Self Onboarding Guide
Table of Contents
How CYRISMA Tracks and Bills Devices
CYRISMA considers a device a billable target under the following conditions:
- Agent Installation: Devices with CYRISMA agents installed are tracked and counted as targets.
- Network Discovery: Devices identified via network discovery and added as "mergeable targets" are also billed until manually removed.
Devices remain billable even if they have not checked in or been scanned for an extended period unless they are explicitly removed.
Best Practices for Managing and Retiring Aged Devices
To ensure an optimized and cost-effective deployment, follow these recommendations:
Set Up Alerts for Inactivity
Configure notifications in CYRISMA to alert you when a device has not checked in for a specific duration (e.g., 30 days).
Alerts help identify dormant devices early, allowing you to take appropriate action.
Regularly Audit Your Target List
- Schedule periodic reviews of your target list to identify devices that are no longer active or required.
- Use the admin portal to check the last scan or check-in date for each device.
Remove Dormant Devices
- Devices that have been inactive for over 30 days and are no longer necessary for scans should be manually removed from the target list.
- To remove a device:
- Navigate to the Targets section in the admin area.
- Select the dormant device(s).
- Use the Remove Target option to delete them from the system.
Enable Proactive Monitoring
- Proactively monitor all active agents using CYRISMA’s agent management tools.
- Address agent inactivity promptly to maintain operational efficiency.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Are devices that haven’t checked in still billed?
Yes, devices are billed until they are manually removed from the target list, even if they have not checked in or been scanned for an extended period.
Q: What’s the recommended timeline to review and remove inactive devices?
We recommend reviewing inactive devices every 30 days to identify and remove those that are no longer in use.
Q: Can CYRISMA automatically remove aged devices?
Currently, automation for removing aged devices is not available. However, this feature is under consideration for future updates.
Q: Can I be notified if an agent hasn’t checked in for an extended period?
Yes, you can configure alerts to notify you if an agent fails to check in for a specified number of hours or days.
Key Benefits of Following Best Practices
- Cost Efficiency: Avoid unnecessary billing for inactive devices.
- Operational Clarity: Maintain a clean and accurate target list.
- Enhanced Monitoring: Proactively address issues with inactive agents.
For further assistance, contact CYRISMA Support at support@cyrisma.com.