Introducing ConnectWiseAutomateAgent: PowerShell Automation for Your RMM

The Problem Every MSP Faces

If you’re a Managed Service Provider (MSP) using ConnectWise Automate (formerly LabTech), you know the drill: deploying agents to hundreds or thousands of endpoints, troubleshooting connectivity issues, managing agent versions, and dealing with the occasional “agent went offline and won’t come back” scenario.

Manually managing these agents through the GUI is time-consuming and error-prone. You need automation. You need PowerShell. You need ConnectWiseAutomateAgent.

What is ConnectWiseAutomateAgent?

ConnectWiseAutomateAgent is a comprehensive PowerShell module designed specifically for managing the ConnectWise Automate Windows agent. It provides 24 functions that cover every aspect of agent lifecycle management:

Installation - Deploy agents with a single command
Configuration - Manage settings, proxy configuration, and visibility
Troubleshooting - Access logs, test connectivity, restart services
Maintenance - Update, reinstall, or remove agents programmatically

The module is open-source (MIT license), actively maintained, and available on the PowerShell Gallery for easy installation.

Why PowerShell?

PowerShell is the lingua franca of Windows automation. If you’re managing Windows endpoints at scale, you’re already using PowerShell. ConnectWiseAutomateAgent brings your RMM agent management into the same ecosystem you’re already using for:

Active Directory management
Group Policy operations
System configuration
Software deployment
Compliance reporting

Now your RMM agent becomes just another manageable component in your automation workflow.

Real-World Example: Mass Deployment

Let’s say you just onboarded a new client with 150 workstations. Here’s the traditional approach:

Log into ConnectWise Automate
Generate deployment link for the client’s location
Visit each workstation (or remote in)
Download and run installer
Wait for agent to check in
Repeat 149 more times

Here’s the PowerShell approach with ConnectWiseAutomateAgent:

# Install the module once
Install-Module ConnectWiseAutomateAgent

# Get list of computers from Active Directory
$computers = Get-ADComputer -Filter * -SearchBase "OU=Workstations,OU=NewClient,DC=domain,DC=com"

# Deploy to all computers in parallel
$computers | ForEach-Object -Parallel {
    Invoke-Command -ComputerName $_.Name -ScriptBlock {
        Install-CWAA -Server "https://automate.yourmsp.com" `
                     -InstallerToken "your-secure-token" `
                     -LocationID 42 `
                     -Hide `
                     -Rename "YourMSP Monitoring"
    }
} -ThrottleLimit 10

Time saved: Hours → Minutes Error rate: Reduced dramatically

Key Features That Save Time

1. Intelligent Installation

The module handles everything the manual process does, plus more:

Automatically detects and installs .NET Framework 3.5 if missing
Tests server connectivity before attempting installation
Handles proxy configurations automatically
Validates server version compatibility
Cleans up after itself
Waits for agent registration before returning success

Install-CWAA -Server "https://automate.msp.com" `
             -InstallerToken "abc123" `
             -LocationID 100 `
             -Proxy "http://proxy.client.com:8080" `
             -Hide

2. Troubleshooting Made Easy

Agent offline? Instead of remote desktop and clicking through logs:

# Check what's wrong
Get-CWAAInfo | Format-List
Get-CWAAError -Tail 50
Test-CWAAPort -Server "https://automate.msp.com"

# Quick fixes
Restart-CWAA
Invoke-CWAACommand -Command "Send Status"

# Nuclear option
Redo-CWAA -Server "https://automate.msp.com" -InstallerToken "abc123"

3. Stealth Deployment

Some clients don’t want their users seeing “LabTech” or “ConnectWise” in Add/Remove Programs:

# Hide completely
Hide-CWAAAddRemove

# Or rename to something client-friendly
Rename-CWAAAddRemove -Name "IT Management Agent"

4. Proxy-Aware

Working with clients who have strict firewall policies? No problem:

# Configure proxy for the module
Set-CWAAProxy -ProxyServerURL "http://proxy.client.com:8080"

# Install with proxy settings
Install-CWAA -Server "https://automate.msp.com" `
             -InstallerToken "abc123" `
             -LocationID 50 `
             -Proxy "http://proxy.client.com:8080"

Installation is Instant

# From PowerShell Gallery (recommended)
Install-Module ConnectWiseAutomateAgent

# For older systems without Gallery access
Invoke-RestMethod 'https://raw.githubusercontent.com/christaylorcodes/ConnectWiseAutomateAgent/main/ConnectWiseAutomateAgent.ps1' | Invoke-Expression

That’s it. No dependencies. No complicated setup. Just install and start automating.

Who Should Use This?

MSPs - Manage agents across multiple clients efficiently IT Administrators - Automate internal agent deployment and maintenance System Engineers - Integrate RMM into broader automation workflows DevOps Teams - Include monitoring agent in infrastructure-as-code

Real-World Use Cases

Use Case 1: Automated Onboarding

Create a client onboarding script that deploys the RMM agent as part of a larger provisioning workflow alongside:

Domain join
Software installation
Security configuration
Baseline compliance checks

Use Case 2: Health Monitoring

Build a scheduled task that runs daily to:

Check agent status on all endpoints
Test connectivity to the Automate server
Automatically restart stuck agents
Alert if agents fail to respond

Use Case 3: Bulk Updates

When ConnectWise releases a critical agent update:

Get-ADComputer -Filter * | ForEach-Object {
    Invoke-Command -ComputerName $_.Name -ScriptBlock {
        Update-CWAA
    }
}

Use Case 4: Disaster Recovery

Rebuild scenario where you need to redeploy agents quickly:

# Import computer list from backup
$computers = Import-Csv "backup-computers.csv"

# Redeploy all agents with original settings
$computers | ForEach-Object {
    Invoke-Command -ComputerName $_.ComputerName -ScriptBlock {
        Install-CWAA -Server $using:_.Server `
                     -LocationID $using:_.LocationID `
                     -InstallerToken $using:Token
    }
}

Open Source and Community-Driven

ConnectWiseAutomateAgent is open source under the MIT license. The code is on GitHub, issues and pull requests are welcome, and the community is growing.

GitHub: https://github.com/christaylorcodes/ConnectWiseAutomateAgent PowerShell Gallery: https://www.powershellgallery.com/packages/ConnectWiseAutomateAgent

Getting Started

Install the module

Install-Module ConnectWiseAutomateAgent

Check available commands

Get-Command -Module ConnectWiseAutomateAgent

Get help for any function
```
Get-Help Install-CWAA -Full
```

Deploy your first agent

Install-CWAA -Server "https://automate.yourmsp.com" `
             -InstallerToken "your-token" `
             -LocationID 100

What’s Next?

In upcoming posts, we’ll dive deeper into:

Advanced deployment scenarios - Complex proxy configurations, multi-server failover
Troubleshooting techniques - Debugging agent issues with PowerShell
Integration patterns - Using the module with PDQ Deploy, Group Policy, Intune
Security best practices - Handling installer tokens, securing deployments

Conclusion

If you’re managing ConnectWise Automate agents manually, you’re working too hard. ConnectWiseAutomateAgent brings the power of PowerShell to your RMM operations, saving time, reducing errors, and enabling automation at scale.

The module is free, open source, and ready to use. What are you waiting for?

Try it today:

Install-Module ConnectWiseAutomateAgent

Questions or feedback? Open an issue on GitHub or contribute to the project!