ControlUp monitors the location of a device using:
The location reported by the device's OS. This is available only on Windows and macOS devices and requires that Location Services is enabled in the device's OS settings. For Windows devices, the Windows service Geolocation Service must also be running.
The remote IP address from the device's internet service provider (ISP). ControlUp uses an external database to get the location from the IP address.
The location reported by the device's OS tends to be more accurate. ISP location accuracy varies depending on the ISP and the region. If the ISP location can determine only the country, then the device is placed in the center of the country on the map.
VPN and Proxy
If a device is using a VPN or a proxy, then the remote IP address can't determine the true location of the device. You can fix this by creating a split tunneling rule and excluding your tenant URL from the VPN/proxy. You can find your tenant URL on the Agent Downloads page.
Device location and location source
On the Devices Overview page, you see a map with the location of all devices. On this page, device locations are always determined using the remote IP address from the device's ISP.
When you drill down into the details for a specific device, a map is shown in the top-left corner. In this map, the location is determined using the device's OS Location Services if it is available. If Location Services is not available, then the remote IP address from the device's ISP is used. Hover over the map marker to see the location source.
Devices dashboard location columns
These location-related columns are available on the Devices grid:.png)
Column Name | Description |
|---|---|
Location | The device location found using the remote IP address from the device's ISP. |
Remote IP Address | The device's public IP address. This IP address determines the location in the Location column using an external database. |
Remote Address Geolocation Last Update | The time and date that the device location reported by the remote IP address last changed. |
Agent Geolocation | The coordinates of the location reported by the device's OS, if Location Services is enabled in the OS settings (Windows and macOS only). |
Location history
Use the Location History report to see the historical locations of devices.
The following events trigger an entry in the report:
A device's public IP address changes. This can happen when a device changes to a different internet connection, or to a VPN.
All network interfaces are disconnected on a device. In this case, ControlUp has no way to tell where the device is located.
The location reported from a device's OS changes. For Windows devices, ControlUp reports a new location only if the OS location changes by more than 250 meters.
The status of Location Services changes on a device's OS. For example, an entry is created in the report if Location Services is disabled, or if Windows can't estimate a device's position.
Manage location privacy
By default, all ControlUp users can view location data from all devices. You can restrict this visibiilty either at the user level or the device level.
Prevent certain ControlUp users from viewing location data - Location data is viewable only if the user has the permission
View Device Location. To restrict access, assign the user a custom role that excludes this permission. Additionally, you can limit the scope of the permission to certain sets of devices by applying Tag and Group targets. For example, you can grant a user permission to view ‘HR’ devices but not ‘Executive’ devices.Prevent certain devices from reporting location data - You can use the following Extended Settings to customize how location data from devices is recorded. For example, you can use these settings to completely hide all location reporting from ‘Executive’ devices so that no ControlUp users can view their location. Note that you must combine both of these settings to hide both location sources (Location Services and remote IP address). Read Completely hide device location for details on how to apply these settings.
Disable device location: Prevents reporting device location from Location Services.
Custom device location by IP range: Hides a device’s location reported by the remote IP address by overriding it to a custom set of coordinates.
Limitation: Location still visible in Compliance
These settings will control location privacy in Employees, Devices, Unified Communications, and Applications. They do not control loation privacy in Compliance.