FileWave Windows Network Sweeper

What

FileWave Windows Network Sweeper is a troubleshooting bundle for finding Windows clients that are online but not communicating correctly with the FileWave Server, then attempting a targeted repair. Typical causes include misconfiguration, user intervention, or a previously failed client upgrade.

When/Why

Run this during a normal peak-online window when you want to identify Windows devices that have recently checked in but have since gone quiet. A Group Policy deployment can enforce enrollment and check-in for many environments; the Client Deployment via GPO training gives one example of that approach, and the same general pattern can support other compliance checks.

How

Start with a small test group before running the process against a large exported list.

Prerequisites

• Run PowerShell as a user with administrative rights on the target Windows devices, usually a domain admin or an equivalent delegated admin account.
• The devices you are trying to catch must be online and reachable on the network.
• The process assumes the C$ admin share is reachable and that device names resolve correctly. Dynamic DNS needs to be working if you are relying on names instead of IP addresses.
• Know the FileWave Server FQDN and have a valid FileWave API token available.
• Download and unzip the Windows Network Sweeper bundle:

Windows Network Sweeper

PSTools is included in the download for convenience. You can also download the current PSTools package directly from Microsoft: PSTools download.

Before using the repair script broadly, confirm that the bundled FileWaveClient.msi is the client version you intend to install, or replace it with the correct installer for your environment. Also review the expected client version in 3_Check_Status.ps1 before treating its status output as authoritative.

Process Overview

1. Create an inventory query for Windows devices that have not checked in recently. A common starting point is OS Type = Windows and Last Connected within the past 30 days but not within the past 7 days. Adjust both date ranges for your environment.

2. Set the query output to include Device Name only. You can export IP addresses from the client view, but avoid using IP addresses from an inventory query in DHCP-heavy environments because the address may no longer belong to the same device.

3. Export the query results into the offline.txt file included in the ZIP. View > Export Current View is useful for this. Remove the header line that says Device Name.
4. Run 1_get_online.ps1 to test which exported devices are currently reachable. Reachable devices are written to online.txt.
5. If devices are found, run 2_repair_clients.ps1 to attempt the repair. This script uses PSExec to copy and run fix_fwclient.bat on the target device.
6. Run 3_Check_Status.ps1 to double-check repaired devices and identify anything that still needs manual remediation.

Related Content

• Client Deployment via GPO
• Creating a Superprefs Fileset
• Inventory Queries (Reports)

Digging Deeper

The download contains the scripts used in this workflow. Review them before running the bundle in your environment, test against a small set of known devices first, and keep the generated online.txt, output.txt, double_check.txt, and still_bad.txt files as your working record for follow-up remediation.