{"id":13320,"date":"2026-02-10T08:57:08","date_gmt":"2026-02-10T16:57:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/?p=13320"},"modified":"2026-02-12T11:39:47","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T19:39:47","slug":"version-17-enterprise-security","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/alwaysup\/version-17-enterprise-security\/","title":{"rendered":"AlwaysUp 17: Hang Protection, Enterprise Security Improvements & Much More"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"AlwaysUp<\/div>\n

AlwaysUp<\/a> version 17 is now available to all customers.<\/p>\n

While the primary focus of this new release is to improve logging and monitoring capabilities for our security-conscious enterprise clients, we managed to squeeze in a couple fresh features as well. The end result is clear — higher uptime<\/b> and greater security<\/b> for anyone looking to run their important Windows applications 24\/7.<\/p>\n

So, without further ado, let’s dive in and review the highlights of AlwaysUp 17.<\/p>\n

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AlwaysUp will automatically restart your script if it hangs<\/h2>\n

While the vast majority of folks use AlwaysUp to run exe files, a good portion run scripts. And instead of running 24\/7 continuously, those batch files, Python and PowerShell scripts are designed to perform a specific job and exit when done. It’s a beautiful arrangement, because AlwaysUp simply fires them up again a few seconds or minutes later.<\/p>\n

However, trouble takes hold when a script gets stuck and never completes its work<\/b>. In that case, the job will remain stalled — and AlwaysUp will let it continue like that, indefinitely.<\/p>\n

For customers in that frustrating situation, introducing a periodic sanity check<\/a> is a great solution. The idea is that the sanity check would eventually notice that the script isn’t doing its work and restart it.<\/p>\n

But it can be difficult to find the right sanity check for each situation. If your script doesn’t write a log file<\/a>, consume too much resources<\/a> or map a drive letter<\/a>, what should you install to detect the misbehavior? It’s a challenge.<\/p>\n

AlwaysUp version 17 introduces a new option — a simple watchdog timeout<\/b>.<\/p>\n

For example, suppose you have a batch file that typically takes about 30 seconds to do its work. To protect yourself against the script getting stuck and hanging until someone notices, you can instruct AlwaysUp to terminate and restart the batch file if it runs for longer than 5 minutes. That safety net will tolerate a long-running script (say, if it has lots of work to do) but provides a solid backstop that ensures the batch file will never flounder for too long.<\/p>\n

The new feature is available on the Monitor<\/b> tab, where it’s very easy to set:<\/p>\n

\"Protect<\/a><\/div>\n

Be sure to take advantage of it if you’re running a script that occasionally gets its knickers in a twist<\/a>!<\/p>\n

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Full support for group Managed Service Accounts (gMSA)<\/h2>\n

Group Managed Service Accounts (gMSAs)<\/a> have become very popular with Windows administrators. With automatic password management, support for clustered services and built-in security features, what’s not to like?<\/p>\n

Recent versions of AlwaysUp are compatible with gMSAs but version 17 takes support up a notch. For example, AlwaysUp no longer prompts for a password<\/b> when you enter a gMSA on the Logon tab:<\/p>\n

\"No<\/a><\/div>\n

There are several internal improvements as well, to ensure smooth operation as AlwaysUp runs your application in the gMSA.<\/p>\n

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Extensive reporting to the Windows Event Logs<\/h2>\n

The experts agree: Logging is a foundational pillar of any effective information security system. Indeed, without the systematic, automated recording of system events, it’s nearly impossible to investigate potential threats and problems. You’re flying blind.<\/p>\n

Our team is well versed in bedrock ISO 27001 principles<\/a> so we understand the importance of logging<\/b>. And in AlwaysUp 17, we rewrote key components to report all sensitive operations to the standard Windows Event Logs<\/a>. From there, enterprise administrators can pipe those events into Splunk<\/a>, SolarWinds Security Event Manager<\/a>, Graylog<\/a> or any other SIEM<\/a> compatible with the Windows operating system.<\/p>\n

Here’s a quick rundown of the major changes in this area:<\/p>\n