When preparing for audits (like SOC compliance) or conducting historical analysis, you often need reports that contain data going back several months or even years. While some reporting tools within the Automox console have limits on how much data can be pulled at once or how far back they look, there are multiple ways to retrieve the historical data you need.
Here is a breakdown of the reporting tools available, their historical limits, and how to extract larger datasets.
Data Extract
The Data Extract feature provides comprehensive reporting but has a strict historical limit.
Limit: Data Extracts can only retrieve data from the last 90 days.
Usage: It is not possible to generate a Data Extract report that goes back further than 90 days from the current date. The date range filter in the console will automatically adjust to enforce this maximum range.
Policy Results Report
If you need data going back further than 90 days, the Policy Results report is typically the easiest option within the UI.
Limit: The Policy Results report can go back exactly one year.
Usage: This is ideal for annual audits or reviews where you need to show policy enforcement, patch events, and results over the past 12 months.
Activity Log
The Activity Log tracks patch events and other console activity, and retains this information historically without dropping older data. However, there is a limit on the export size.
Limit: The Activity Log retains data indefinitely, but you can only generate and download 30 days of data at a time.
Usage: If you need to pull an entire year's worth of Activity Log data, you will need to adjust the date range filter to pull the data in multiple 30-day batches (e.g., pulling January, then February, then March separately).
Automox API (Recommended for large historical pulls)
For the most comprehensive historical reporting without the date constraints of the user interface, we recommend using the Automox API.
Limit: No UI constraints. You can pull historical events going as far back as needed.
Usage: You or your team can use the API to programmatically list all historical events for any required timeframe.
Documentation: For instructions on how to use this endpoint, please see our developer documentation: Automox API Reference - Events
Related Topics