Snow Inventory Agent

Official release of Snow Inventory Agent for Windows 26.1.1

We are pleased to announce the release of the Snow Inventory Agent for Windows 26.1.1.

Release Date: 2026-06-10

This release includes:

• Java_Home detection with environment variables
• Legacy webmetering deprecation
• Removal of 32 bit installer
• Performance improvements for Oracle scanners
• Fix for folder transversal when the name overlap
• Web Metering Improvements
• Third-party libraries updated

Customer Impact:

• It is now possible to use environment variables in the env.java_home system setting.
• The feature"legacy_webmetering" used by the agent to collect SaaS application usage before the introduction of the browser extensions, has been deprecated.
• The system setting <Setting key="legacy_webmetering.is_enabled" value="true"/> will no longer have any effect from this version of the agent and onwards.
• From this release onwards, no 32 bit versions of the agent will be provided.
• CPU usage and scan times have been reduced when collecting Oracle inventory data, helping minimize impact during full filesystem scans (for example, C:\* or /*).
• Corrected an issue where the agent would discard entries in the include criteria if the name of the folder contained the name of another folder entry.
• Example: In a situation where the agent is supposed to scan C:\temp and C:\temp2, the agent would discard C:\temp2, as its name was partially contained in the previous C:\temp entry.
• The web metering module now runs as an independent service (SnowWebMetering). This controls a local read-only API used for the extension communication.
• This enhancement brings extended privacy and security to web metering, by only writing to disk information that has already been matched against either the Allow List or Crules file, and brings back the support to Apple Safari browser.
• New troubleshooting commands are included in this release, facilitating support of this feature.
• NOTE: This new web metering version requires the use of the new Flexera Web Metering browser extension. Previous versions of the Snow Web Application Metering extensions will not work.
• The curl, libxml2, zlib, nemtrif/utfcpp, openssl, repo, cryptopp and sqlite3 third-party libraries used by the agent have been updated for increased security

Product Documentation: Agent Documentation

Please find more about the content of this release in the Release Notes.

Official release of Snow Inventory Agent for Linux 26.1.1

We are pleased to announce the release of the Snow Inventory Agent for Linux 26.1.1.

Release Date: 2026-06-10

This release includes:

• Cloud Instance Id     
• Java_Home detection with environment variables
• Binary security enhancement
• Agent Unique ID Improvements
• Removal of 32 bit installer
• Fix HTTP headers content type
• Performance improvements for Oracle scanners
• Command elevation improvements
• Fix for folder transversal when the name overlap
• Third-party libraries updated

Customer Impact:

• The agent now adds the Cloud Instance Id as part of the main inventory in the snowpack.
• It is now included under the <SystemIdentifier> tag inside the inv3x.xml file.
• It is now possible to use environment variables in the env.java_home system setting.
• The agent security has been enhanced by enabling additional binary hardening protections.
• The agent now collects the MachineID property, which is generated by the operating system during installation. This should improve the unique id generation, preventing different computers from merging into a single one.
• From this release onwards, no 32 bit versions of the agent will be provided.
• The agent now set its HTTP headers to content-type: "application/octet-stream".
• This improvement fixes communication issues when Web Application Firewall (WAF) is in use.
• CPU usage and scan times have been reduced when collecting Oracle inventory data, helping minimize impact during full filesystem scans (for example, C:\* or /*).
• Corrected an issue where the agent would discard entries in the include criteria if the name of the folder contained the name of another folder entry.
• Example: In a situation where the agent is supposed to scan C:\temp and C:\temp2, the agent would discard C:\temp2, as its name was partially contained in the previous C:\temp entry.
• The agent has been enhanced to read sudo permissions with (ALL : ALL) NOPASSWD. Previously, it was limited to (ALL) NOPASSWD and (root) NOPASSWD.
• The curl, libxml2, zlib, nemtrif/utfcpp, openssl, repo, cryptopp and sqlite3 third-party libraries used by the agent have been updated for increased security

Product Documentation: Agent Documentation

Please find more about the content of this release in the Release Notes.

Official release of Snow Inventory Agent for macOS 26.1.1

We are pleased to announce the release of the Snow Inventory Agent for macOS 26.1.1.

Release Date: 2026-06-10

This release includes:

• Java_Home detection with environment variables
• Binary security enhancement
• Web Metering Improvements
• Fix HTTP headers content type
• Performance improvements for Oracle scanners
• Command elevation improvements
• Fix for folder transversal when the name overlap
• Fix for SwidTag collection
• Third-party libraries updated

Customer Impact:

• It is now possible to use environment variables in the env.java_home system setting.
• The agent has been improved to prevent library injection.
• The web metering module now runs as an independent service (SnowWebMetering). This controls a local read-only API used for the extension communication.
• This enhancement brings extended privacy and security to web metering, by only writing to disk information that has already been matched against either the Allow List or Crules file, and brings back the support to Apple Safari browser.
• New troubleshooting commands are included in this release, facilitating support of this feature.
• NOTE: This new web metering version requires the use of the new Flexera Web Metering browser extension. Previous versions of the Snow Web Application Metering extensions will not work.
• The agent now set its HTTP headers to content-type: "application/octet-stream".
• This improvement fixes communication issues when Web Application Firewall (WAF) is in use.
• CPU usage and scan times have been reduced when collecting Oracle inventory data, helping minimize impact during full filesystem scans (for example, C:\* or /*).
• Corrected an issue where the agent would discard entries in the include criteria if the name of the folder contained the name of another folder entry.
• Example: In a situation where the agent is supposed to scan C:\temp and C:\temp2, the agent would discard C:\temp2, as its name was partially contained in the previous C:\temp entry.
• The agent has been enhanced to read sudo permissions with (ALL : ALL) NOPASSWD. Previously, it was limited to (ALL) NOPASSWD and (root) NOPASSWD.
• The agent now correctly collects swidtags found in the include paths.
• The curl, libxml2, zlib, nemtrif/utfcpp, openssl, repo, cryptopp and sqlite3 third-party libraries used by the agent have been updated for increased security

Product Documentation: Agent Documentation 

Please find more about the content of this release in the Release Notes.

Official release of Snow Inventory Agent for Unix 26.1.0

We are pleased to announce the release of the Snow Inventory Agent for Unix 26.1.0.

Release Date: 2026-06-10

This release includes:

• Removal of HP-UX support from code

Customer Impact:

• Following the end-of-support for HP-UX in December 2025, this release completely removes the code used for HP-UX inventory.

Product Documentation: Agent Documentation 

Please find more about the content of this release in the Release Notes.

Need to Know: Web Metering 2.0

Release Date

Web Metering 2.0 will be released as part of the FlexNet Inventory Agent 25.5.0 (2025 R2.5) on May 13 for Europe and APAC, and May 20 for the Americas.

For the Snow Inventory Agent, it will be available in version 26.1.1 on June 10.

What is it

Web Metering 2.0 is an enhanced capability within Flexera that enables tracking of web application usage through browser extensions integrated with both the FlexNet and Snow agents.

At its core, it introduces a new shared web metering module that operates across both agents, enabling direct communication between the browser extensions and the agent. This modern architecture replaces the previous file-based approach, resulting in a more secure and efficient data collection process.

How it works

Web Metering 2.0 improves the data flow by redefining how browser activity is captured and processed:

• Browser extensions capture URLs visited by users
• Data is sent directly to a local agent API over HTTP or HTTPS
• The module filters and processes URLs using Allow List rules
• Only relevant and sanitized data is retained and passed to the agent
• The agent consolidates the processed data and sends it upstream for SaaS usage recognition

What has changed

No raw browsing data stored on disk

URLs are now processed before being stored. Previously, raw browsing activity was cached on disk before being processed by the agent.

Stronger protection of sensitive data

Query parameters are removed from URLs by default. Enhanced Allow List rules control what data is retained and apply masking when Personal Information is detected.

Direct communication between extension and agent

The new web metering module introduces a write-only, machine-local API endpoint running on 127.0.0.1:40400, which is not externally accessible. TLS can be configured to encrypt communication between the browser extension and the agent.

Improved troubleshooting

The new module allows testing of URL matching and sensitive data removal directly from the command line.

Improved browser coverage

This design restores support for Apple Safari following previous limitations on extension-generated data.

The Firefox extension is now available in the Mozilla store, improving the installation and update experiences.

Consistent implementation across agents

A single, shared web metering module is used across both FlexNet and Snow agents, helping standardize behaviour and simplify deployment.

Security considerations

Web Metering 2.0 is designed with a strong security-first approach to ensure customer environments remain protected while delivering accurate SaaS usage insights.

The solution uses a machine-local, non-externally accessible communication mechanism, ensuring no additional external services or attack surfaces are introduced. TLS can be enabled to further secure communication between browser extensions and the agent.

Sensitive data exposure is minimized through filtering, masking, and by avoiding unnecessary data storage.

Importantly, the feature is fully customer-controlled and opt-in, preserving existing trust boundaries and ensuring organizations maintain complete control over their data and deployment.

Introducing Web Metering 2.0

Re‑architected for Security, Enhanced Privacy, and Safari Support Is Back

We’re pleased to announce Web Metering 2.0, a significant enhancement to web application metering for FlexNet and Snow agents. This release introduces a newly re‑architected browser data ingestion pipeline, delivering stronger security, improved privacy protections, and expanded browser support—including the return of Apple Safari.

What’s New in Web Metering 2.0

Web Metering 2.0 has been redesigned from the ground up to provide a more secure and privacy‑focused experience while maintaining reliable usage insights.

Key benefits include:

• 🔐 Enhanced Security
• Improved protections across browser data collection and ingestion.
• 🛡️ Reduced PII Collection
• Optimized data handling to minimise the capture of Personally Identifiable Information (PII).
• 🌍 Expanded Browser Support
• Full support for Apple Safari, alongside Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, and Mozilla Firefox.

What You Need to Know

To use Web Metering 2.0, customers must deploy both a new agent version and the new Web Metering browser extensions.

Required Agent Versions

• FlexNet Agent: Available in v25.5.0 (scheduled for May release)
• Snow Agent: Available in v26.1.1 (scheduled for June release)

Important:

Existing agent versions are only compatible with the current browser extensions.

The new extensions labelled “Flexera Web Metering” will work only with the agent versions listed above and later.

🌐 Current Browser Extension Downloads

Please continue using the following extensions until the new version of the agents are released.

• Google Chrome
• https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/snow-web-application-mete/blojlgglhfcmpigjbkllcgjmhincdjhb
• Microsoft Edge
• Snow Web Application Metering - Microsoft Edge Addons
• Mozilla Firefox
• https://github.com/SnowSoftware/agent-firefox-extension/

ANNOUNCEMENT: Updates to Versioning for Snow Inventory Agents

We want to inform you that the Snow Inventory Agents will move to a new version, to better align with the recent changes to Snow License Manager and Snow Inventory Server.

This will also bring the End-of-Life (EOL) to earlier versions of the agent. Please consider upgrading to a newer version if this affects your environment.

As Semptember 30, 2026, the following products will reach End-of-Life (EOL):

• Snow Inventory Agent for Windows v6.x
• Snow Inventory Agent for MacOS v6.x
• Snow Inventory Agent for Linux v6.x
• Snow Inventory Agent for Unix v7.x

 End-of-Support (EOS) for these versions will follow on December 31, 2026. After this date, Flexera will no longer provide technical support, updates, or patches for these versions, regardless of whether they are hosted by Flexera, a partner, or within your own infrastructure.  

What’s Coming Next 

We are excited to share that we are targeting the release of the following products by the end of Q2 2026: 

• Snow Inventory Agent for Windows 26.1.0
• Snow Inventory Agent for MacOS 26.1.0
• Snow Inventory Agent for Linux 26.1.0
• Snow Inventory Agent for Unix 26.1.0

These upcoming versions will include improvements to web metering designed to address the recent breakage with the browser extension on Apple Safari, as well as other improvements designed to help you get even more value from your Flexera investment.  

Note:  These new versions are a change to the naming and support cycle rather than a major feature with architectural changes.

What You Should Do 

To ensure continued support and access to the latest features, we recommend: 

• Upgrading to a newer version of Snow Inventory Agent, or.
• Wait for the new release, if you are using web metering on Apple Safari.  

If you have questions, please contact your Flexera Support team. 

Official release of Snow Inventory Agent for Windows 7.5.0

We are pleased to announce the release of the Snow Inventory Agent for Windows 7.5.0.

Release Date: 2025-12-03

This release includes:

• OneDrive on-demand files exclusion from scan
• Correction for temp folder creation
• Correction to Google Cloud virtual machines model
• Third-party libraries updated

Customer Impact:

• The agent now excludes files that exist only in the cloud and are not stored locally from the scanning process. This improvement prevents unnecessary downloads during scans and enhances overall system performance.
• The agent no longer creates a folder named “%TEMP%“ when the Windows %TEMP% environment variable is not present or set and the system setting "env.temp_dir" in the snowagent.config is set to an invalid folder. Now it will exit with an error code.
• The agent now correctly reports "Google Compute Engine" as the model for Google Cloud virtual machines, instead of "Google Compute". With this correction, Google Cloud virtual machines will now correctly be displayed in the "All cloud servers" report.
• Third-party libraries for curl, libxml2, nlohmann-json, openssl and sqlite3, used by the agent, have been updated for increased security.

Product Documentation: Agent Documentation 

Please find more about the content of this release in the Release Notes.