What is a task?

A task is an action that Strobes is performing either on-demand or on schedule. Tasks are generated by several connectors. These are connectors which perform scans, import inventory/vulnerabilities, and export reports/assets.. There are 3 types of tasks:

• Scan tasks
• Import tasks
• Export tasks

Scan Tasks

When you use a connector to initiate a scan; be it ad-hoc, scheduled, or remote scan, all of them are grouped under the Scans tab. 

For tasks created under 'Scans', the following information is available:

• The connector used to initiate the scan.
• The configuration name of the Scan.
• The Scan type. There are two scan types 'Ad-hoc' or 'Scheduled'. More about scan types here.
• The status of the scan. The status can be 'Running', 'Aborted'. 'Failed' or 'Finished'.
  • Running means that the scan is ongoing.
  • Aborted means that the scan has been stopped by the user.
  • Failed means that the scan was not completed successfully. This usually happens when improper input has been fed to the scanner.
  • Finished means that the scan has been completed successfully and the results can be viewed and a report can be generated for the vulnerabilities identified.
• The information about when the scan was initiated and when it got completed.

The following options will be available for scans depending on the status of the scan:

• If the scan has been 'Aborted' or if it has 'Failed', you will only have the option to 'View Logs' as shown below.
  
  
  
  
• If the scan is currently 'Running', you will have the option to 'View Logs' and 'Abort Scan' as shown below.
  
  
  
  
• If the scan is 'Finished', you will have the option to 'View Logs', 'View Results' and 'Generate Report' as shown below. If any vulnerabilities have been identified during a scan, they will be populated against the asset on which you have run the scan. If no vulnerabilities have been identified, you will receive a message saying that 'No results found' under the 'Vulnerability Management' page. The same goes with 'Generate Report' as well. If any vulnerabilities have been identified, an 'Export' task will be created and a report will be generated which contains the vulnerabilities identified, else you will receive a message saying that 'No vulnerabilities were discovered in this scan to generate a report.'
  
  

Import Tasks

'Import' Tasks will get created when you either import 'Vulnerabilities' or 'Assets'. Here are the links to Importing Assets and Importing Vulnerabilities.

For tasks created under 'Import', the following information is available:

• The connector used to import the inventory or vulnerabilities.
• The configuration name provided while using the connector.
• The 'Import Status'. The status can be 'Running', 'Aborted', 'Failed' or 'Finished'.
  • Running means that the import is currently ongoing.
  • Aborted means that the import has been stopped by the user before it got completed.
  • Failed means that the import was not successful. This usually happens when improper input has been fed to the connector which is doing the importing.
  • Finished means that the import was successful.
• The information about when the import was initiated and when it got completed.

The following options will be available for imports depending on the 'Import Status':

• If the status is either 'Aborted', 'Failed' or 'Finished', you will only get the option to 'View Logs'.
• If the status is running, then you will have the option to 'Abort Scan' and 'View Logs' as shown below.
  
  
  
  

Export Tasks

'Export' tasks are created while exporting vulnerabilities or assets.

For tasks created under 'Exports', the following information is available:

• The 'Export Type' of the report. There are two different types 'Asset Report' and 'Vulnerability Report'. Here are the links to Exporting Assets Reports and Exporting Vulnerability Reports.
  • The 'Asset Report' export task is created when one of the following exports is done:
    • 'Assets CSV' is exported. 
    • 'Assets Risk Report' is exported. 
    • 'Assets Overview Report' is exported. 
  • The 'Vulnerabilities Report' export task is created when one of the following exports is done:
    • 'Vulnerabilities CSV Report' is exported. 
    • 'Threat Summary Report' is exported.
    • 'CVE Overview Report' is exported.
    • A report has been generated with a template.
• The 'Report Name' which the user has provided while generating the report.
• 'Exported By' shows the name of the user who has exported the report.
• 'Export Status'. The status can be 'Running', 'Aborted', 'Failed' or 'Finished'.
  • Running means that the export is currently ongoing.
  • Aborted means that the export has been stopped by the user before it got completed.
  • Failed means that the export was not successful. This is only possible when you are trying to export 'Assets Risk Report' and 'Assets Overview Report' when the assets are not at any risk. More about risk summary here.
  • Finished means that the export was successful and that the report is available for download.
• The information about when the export was initiated and when it got completed.

The following options will be available for exports depending on the 'Export Status':

• If the status is either 'Aborted', 'Failed' or 'Finished', you will only get the option to 'View Logs'.
• If the status is running, then you will have the option to 'Abort Scan' and 'View Logs' as shown below.
  
  
  
  

When you click on 'View Logs', you will be able to view the console output on the server for the action which you are performing. These logs are especially useful when one of your tasks fails and you want to understand the root cause of the failure. A sample view of the logs will be as shown below.