How Zluri’s Discovery Engine Works?

This article explores how Zluri's advanced discovery engine works to optimize license usage, and enhance overall IT visibility. 

When an organization continuously purchases and uses more SaaS applications, the need for comprehensive visibility into all these tools becomes essential. The first step to effectively monitor, control, and secure these applications is through a robust discovery process. 

The discovery engine is the foundation of any SMP, as you can't manage SaaS apps without identifying them first. This is where Zluri excels, offering a distinct advantage over other SaaS management platforms. 

Zluri's Discovery Engine is designed to help you effortlessly identify and manage all the SaaS applications used across the organization. Let's know more about Zluri.

What is Zluri?

Zluri offers a SaaS management platform that is structured around five core engines: discovery, manage, optimization, security, and compliance.

• Discovery Engine: This is the foundation of the SaaS management platform. It identifies all the applications present in a company’s SaaS landscape, collecting crucial data such as user names, usage reports, and license details.
• Manage Engine: Utilizing the data from the discovery engine, the managed engine oversees and administers all visible SaaS applications.
• Optimization Engine: This engine embeds optimization-based control and monitoring across all SaaS applications in the organization, ensuring efficient usage and cost-effectiveness.
• Security Engine: It ensures that all SaaS applications and the data shared within the organization remain secure from potential threats.
• Compliance Engine: This engine ensures that all SaaS applications adhere to company policies and regulatory requirements.

Each of these engines plays a vital role in creating a secure, efficient, and compliant SaaS environment within an organization. 

Now, let's explore how Zluri's superior discovery engine works!

Zluri's Discovery Engine: How Does It Work?

Zluri is a leading SaaS management platform (SMP) boasting the world’s largest app library with over 225,000 applications. This extensive library, combined with advanced discovery methods, ensures Zluri achieves 100% SaaS discoverability.

Zluri employs 9 powerful discovery methods to trace SaaS applications within an organization's ecosystem. This approach provides IT admins with a detailed view of app usage, allowing them to identify and manage both active and idle applications effectively. 

The discovery methods include IDPs & SSO, Finance & Expense Systems, Direct Integrations, Desktop Agents, Browser Extensions, CASBs, MDMs, HRMS, and Directories. Thus, it ensures 100% accurate detection and management of SaaS app licenses across your entire IT infrastructure.

Once identified, Zluri helps to find and eliminate redundant, unused, underutilized, and risky apps, while also helping you optimize SaaS app usage and costs.

1: SSO and ID Providers

Zluri's integration with Single Sign-On (SSO) and Identity Provider (IDP) systems is a crucial discovery method that helps organizations gather and manage essential data about their SaaS applications and user activities. By connecting with widely used systems such as Okta and Google Workspace, Zluri is able to pull comprehensive information to enhance visibility and control over application usage within an organization.

Zluri integrates seamlessly with SSO and IDP systems to collect directory information, which includes details about users, their roles, and departments. 

This data is vital for understanding who has access to which applications and managing permissions effectively.

Through SSO and IDP systems, Zluri collects data on authorized apps and login events. This includes information about:

• Sign-in Attempts: Tracks the number of times users attempt to log in to applications.
• Access Frequency: Records how often users access specific apps.
• Login Success/Failure: Details whether login attempts were successful or failed.

Further, Zluri also captures data shared with third-party applications, such as names, email addresses, and other relevant user details. This helps in understanding the flow of information and ensuring that data shared with external services is monitored and managed.

2: Finance & Expense Systems

Zluri’s integration with expense and finance management systems is a crucial discovery method that enables organizations to capture and manage data related to their SaaS applications that may not be visible through traditional SSO or identity provider systems. By connecting with financial tools like Netsuite and QuickBooks, Zluri ensures comprehensive visibility into all expenditures related to SaaS applications, including those purchased by employees.

This integration allows Zluri to collect detailed transaction data related to SaaS applications. These systems provide insights into apps that might not be tracked by SSO systems, especially those purchased directly by employees.

See the updated list

Employees often buy software using corporate or personal cards and seek reimbursement. Zluri captures these transactions, ensuring that apps purchased outside of the central procurement process are still identified and managed. This includes applications bought with personal funds and reimbursed later, which might otherwise be missed.

Through finance systems, Zluri gathers crucial transaction details such as:

• Amount Spent: Records the monetary value spent on each app.
• Date of Expense: Captures when the transaction occurred. Zluri maps these transactions to the specific apps purchased, providing a comprehensive view of SaaS expenditures.

For organizations that prefer not to connect directly with their financial systems, Zluri offers the option to manually upload transaction data. Users can upload CSV files containing expense data, which Zluri then processes to match with SaaS applications.

3: Direct (Out-of-Box) Integration 

Zluri’s direct integration method is a powerful approach to discovering and managing SaaS applications. By connecting directly with over 800 of the most commonly used SaaS apps across various categories, Zluri ensures comprehensive and granular visibility into your organization's SaaS landscape. This list of supported apps continues to grow, ensuring ongoing relevance and coverage.

Through direct integration, Zluri gathers detailed information about which users have access to each SaaS app and their level of permission (e.g., user or admin). This helps in understanding and managing user roles and access levels across the organization.

Zluri tracks license details for each user, including the specific plan, pricing, and features available in their subscription tier. This information helps in managing licenses more effectively, ensuring that the organization is using the most cost-effective options and that licenses are not being wasted.

The integration also includes access to and analysis of audit logs, which provide a record of what changes have been made within the SaaS applications. This feature is essential for understanding app usage, monitoring security, and maintaining compliance.

This method, combined with the flexibility of custom integrations, makes Zluri a comprehensive solution for SaaS management.

4: Desktop Agents

Zluri’s desktop agent method provides a detailed view of the applications and activities occurring on individual devices within an organization. The desktop agent is a lightweight application that resides in the computer's toolbar. It operates with minimal resource consumption, ensuring it does not interfere with the user’s work or system performance.

Zluri's desktop agents gather only non-sensitive information from the system. This includes data on installed apps, apps running in the background, and sign-in/sign-out details. The focus is on collecting information that helps in managing SaaS applications without compromising user privacy.

It also captures device-level information, such as product ID and hardware details. This data helps in understanding the hardware context in which the SaaS applications are being used, aiding in asset management and troubleshooting.

While the desktop agent provides valuable insights, it is optional for users. Zluri can still surface all SaaS applications within an organization using other discovery methods like SSO, finance systems, direct integrations, etc.

How Zluri Processes Information from Desktop Agents

• Metadata Tracking When an application is open on the desktop, Zluri captures basic metadata, such as the application name and server URL. This information helps identify the SaaS application.
• Activity Logging Each time an application is opened, it is logged as an activity. Zluri aggregates these activities daily at the organizational level, calculating the frequency of app usage. This results in a percentile score for each user regarding a particular app within the organization.
• Usage Insights The SaaS operations manager or IT/software asset manager can view how many employees have installed and are using the applications directly from the Zluri dashboard. This visibility aids in decision-making regarding app management and optimization.

The Zluri desktop agent is compatible with macOS, Windows, and Linux operating systems, ensuring broad coverage across various user environments.

5: Browser Extensions

Zluri uses browser extensions to collect data on websites visited by users, providing an additional layer of visibility into SaaS application usage. This discovery method is available for Chrome, Firefox, and Microsoft Edge, making it accessible for a wide range of users.

The browser extensions capture data about websites visited, including the URL, title, and timestamp of opening or closing the tab. This information helps identify SaaS applications being accessed via web browsers.

The browser extensions are optional and designed to respect user privacy. Zluri does not read cookies, browser history, or any content from the websites visited, focusing only on SaaS-related activities.

Each visit to a website whose domain is in Zluri's master list is identified as a SaaS application. The browser extension logs the visit timestamp and duration, counting each visit as an activity.

Zluri aggregates the activity data at least daily, calculating how frequently users are accessing subscribed SaaS applications. This data is used to generate a percentile score for each user, reflecting their usage of specific applications within the company.

Prompting Installation

• Administrators can prompt users to install the browser extension directly from Zluri.
• Navigate to Sources > Agents > Users, and filter users based on criteria such as no agent installed, no browser agent installed, or any other relevant filter.
• Administrators can send prompts to selected users or all users at once.

Monitoring Installation

• Zluri allows administrators to check how many users have installed the browser extension, ensuring compliance and comprehensive data collection.

Further, you can also check how many users have installed it.

By collecting and analyzing web activity data, it provides valuable insights that support effective SaaS management and optimization.

6: MDMs (Mobile Device Management Platforms)

Mobile Device Management (MDM) discovery method employed by Zluri helps you manage and monitor employees' devices and the applications installed on them. MDM solutions provide comprehensive data about devices, including detailed application information, making it a vital component for organizations aiming to control their SaaS landscape effectively.

MDMs store extensive employee data, encompassing device details and the applications installed on each device. This data includes the list of applications, associated users, and device-specific information. Zluri leverages this inventory to maintain an up-to-date record of all software within the organization.

MDM provides insights into user activities, helping administrators monitor application usage and compliance. In some cases, MDMs can track specific activities performed on devices, offering granular visibility into software interactions.

MDM works in conjunction with other discovery methods used by Zluri, such as desktop agents and browser extensions. The combined data from these methods offers a holistic view of the organization's SaaS ecosystem, aiding in comprehensive management and optimization.

7: Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASBs)

Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) are security tools that act as intermediaries between an organization's devices and the internet. They play a crucial role in monitoring and controlling cloud service usage, providing valuable insights into application activity and user behavior.

By observing network traffic, CASBs can identify and list the cloud applications being used within an organization. This method is particularly useful for uncovering applications that may not be explicitly listed or managed through other discovery methods.

Zluri integrates with CASBs to gain an exhaustive list of cloud applications utilized across the organization. It provides granular details on user interactions with cloud applications. Further, Zluri collects and analyzes information on URL access patterns, including timestamps of when URLs were opened and closed.

By leveraging CASB data, Zluri offers enhanced visibility into cloud application usage and user behavior. This information supports better management and optimization of cloud resources, as well as improved security monitoring.

8: Human Resource Management Systems (HRMS)

Human Resource Management Systems (HRMS) are essential tools for managing employee information, including personal details, department affiliations, and job roles. While HRMS primarily focuses on employee data rather than directly monitoring application usage, it provides valuable insights that can aid in discovering and managing SaaS applications.

Zluri integrates with HRMS to import and utilize employee data, such as department, user roles, and job titles. This integration helps in mapping employee information to application usage, though it does not directly track application usage itself.

By aligning employee data from HRMS with SaaS application management, Zluri can better understand which employees are using which applications and ensure appropriate access levels.

Zluri can use departmental data from HRMS to analyze application usage patterns within different teams or departments. Further, this insight helps in optimizing application deployments and managing licenses more effectively based on departmental needs.

9: Directories

Directories, such as Google Directory and Azure Active Directory (AD), are central repositories for managing user identities, roles, and access permissions within an organization. These directory services are critical for handling authentication and authorization across various applications and services. Zluri leverages data from these directories to enhance its discovery and management of SaaS applications.

By analyzing directory data, Zluri can map user access to different SaaS applications based on group memberships and role assignments. This helps in identifying which users have access to which applications and ensures that access rights are appropriately aligned with their roles.

Further, directories provide insights into user authentication events, such as logins and access attempts. Zluri uses this data to monitor application usage patterns, helping to identify frequently used apps and detect any unusual or unauthorized access attempts.

Now, let’s understand the benefits that you can avail from Zluri’s discovery engine.

Advantages of Zluri’s Discovery Engine 

Understanding which applications are being used across an organization is critical for optimizing costs, improving security, and ensuring compliance. Here are the key benefits of Zluri’s discovery engine in SaaS management:

1. Eliminates Shadow IT: Zluri’s discovery engine identifies unauthorized applications running within the organization. By pinpointing these unapproved tools, IT can take action to eliminate shadow IT, reducing security risks and ensuring all software used meets company standards.
2. Provides Real-Time App Insights: With real-time insights, app discovery tools can reveal who purchased an app, who its users are, and how frequently it is being used. This transparency helps organizations better understand their software usage patterns and make informed decisions about software investments and usage policies.
3. Improved visibility to SaaS Spend: Zluri helps to identify idle and least-used applications within the SaaS landscape. By discarding these unnecessary tools, your organization can significantly reduce their SaaS spending, ensuring that budget is allocated to more critical and widely used applications.
4. Enhance Security & Compliance: Maintaining compliance with industry standards is crucial for avoiding legal and financial penalties. Zluri’s discovery engine helps to enhance the security and compliance of all applications in the SaaS environment. This further ensures your organization to stay compliant and avoid regulatory issues.

Overall, a comprehensive app discovery process is essential for effective SaaS management. It helps organizations uncover hidden risks, optimize costs, and maintain compliance, ultimately leading to a more secure and efficient IT environment.

Optimize Your SaaS Stack With Zluri

Zluri offers an excellent SaaS management tool designed to help you discover, manage, secure, and optimize your SaaS applications from a single platform. It gives you complete visibility into your SaaS ecosystem, allowing you to monitor and control application spend effectively. It provides real-time insights and detailed reports, helping you identify and eliminate SaaS wastage.

Moreover, the platform simplifies usage monitoring, enabling you to assess application efficiency and optimize licensing costs. Zluri’s automated features streamline IT tasks including access management, onboarding, offboarding, etc. It also helps eliminate shadow IT by revealing unauthorized apps and ensuring compliance with organizational policies.

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