What you can do with Symantec Enterprise Security Manager

Symantec ESM lets you perform a variety of functions.

Table: Symantec ESM functions describes these functions and explains how each component works:

Table: Symantec ESM functions

Task	Description
Perform policy runs	Policy runs audit your computers to find potential areas of vulnerability. When you perform policy runs, Symantec ESM reports security problems and their severity. You initiate policy runs from either the graphical user interface or the command-line interface. Symantec ESM uses agents to perform the policy runs. Policy runs are host-based. Symantec ESM provides a module that lets you perform network-based scans of computers without installing an agent on each computer.
Customize policies	Symantec ESM lets you create your own custom policies and apply the policies that are tailored to your needs. You can implement the policies that are specific to your industry, or you can implement the policies that ensure compliance with a government mandate.
Create reports	Symantec ESM has a powerful reporting tool that lets you dynamically create reports. You can report on any aspect of your Symantec ESM application. You can create reports on managers, agents, user accounts, or any other item that you choose. The reports can be broad and show only security states of managers or domains. They can also be detailed enough to show a specific security check on a few selected computers.

Task

Description

Perform policy runs

Policy runs audit your computers to find potential areas of vulnerability. When you perform policy runs, Symantec ESM reports security problems and their severity. You initiate policy runs from either the graphical user interface or the command-line interface.

Symantec ESM uses agents to perform the policy runs. Policy runs are host-based. Symantec ESM provides a module that lets you perform network-based scans of computers without installing an agent on each computer.

Customize policies

Symantec ESM lets you create your own custom policies and apply the policies that are tailored to your needs. You can implement the policies that are specific to your industry, or you can implement the policies that ensure compliance with a government mandate.

Create reports

Symantec ESM has a powerful reporting tool that lets you dynamically create reports. You can report on any aspect of your Symantec ESM application. You can create reports on managers, agents, user accounts, or any other item that you choose. The reports can be broad and show only security states of managers or domains. They can also be detailed enough to show a specific security check on a few selected computers.