IMSurfSentinel Documentation

Introduction

Thank you for choosing IMSurfSentinel software. You are joining thousands of parents, schools and employers all over the globe who have chosen to monitor and control web browsing and instant messaging activities. IMSurfSentinel allows recording of instant messenger conversations, browser activity and keystrokes without any indication to the computer user that such recordings are being made. In addition, instant messenger conversations, browsers and other programs can be shut down automatically if certain words and/or phrases are used. Finally, logs of instant messenger conversations, browser activity and keystrokes can be emailed to you at set intervals so you never need direct access to the computer being monitored after the software is installed.

You are free to try IMSurfSentinel on your computer without charge for 30 days. The trial version is fully functional. Simply follow the instructions below.

Feature Summary

For a feature summary, click here.

Installation

Operation of the software is simple. Installation is accomplished simply by executing agsetup.exe on the computer to be monitored. Once the software is installed, and configuration is accomplished, monitoring and blocking is automatic.

To download agsetup.exe, visit IMSurfSentinel.com and click on download. This will take you to the download page where more details are available to help you download and install the software. In summary, simply click on the download link and select Open if given that option by your browser. Once agsetup.exe has started, simply follow the instructions and complete the setup process. Finally, complete the configuration that is described below. Alternatively, you can click Save and select a folder on you computer to save the installation program. Once the download is complete, double-click on agsetup.exe to start the installation.

Configuration

To configure IMSurfSentinel, select a category on the left side of the main program window by clicking on it and then complete the fields listed on the right side of the main program window. There are six different categories from which to select: General Preferences, Logging, Blocking - IM Conversations, Blocking - Browser URLs, Blocking - Other Programs and Email. The details of configuring each IMSurfSentinel category are described below. Once the configuration is complete, click the Hide button to put the program in Stealth mode so it will not be detected by users of the computer.

General Preferences The General Preferences page is shown to the right. This page is displayed when you click on General Preference in the left pane of the program window. There are three separate sections of the General Preferences window: Online Resources, Startup Options and Control Options. Each of these sections are described below.

You can get access to IMSurfSentinel.com and online documentation by clicking the appropriate link at the top of the General Preferences page of IMSurfSentinel.

For automatic operation at Windows Startup, check the box labeled "Start with Windows." When this box is checked, IMSurfSentinel will start automatically when Windows starts. It is recommended that this box be checked.

When you first start IMSurfSentinel, the main screen shown above is displayed. During normal operation, the main screen is hidden. This is accomplished by clicking the "Hide" button. To display the main screen again, you press a combination of keys called a "Hotkey." This key combination can be configured by selecting a combination from the "Hotkey" combo-box. Simply click the down arrow next to the Hotkey control and select the desired key combination. You can also password protect this option by entering a password in the edit box labeled "Password." If you enter a password in this box, you will be required to enter that password when you try to activate the main screen by pressing the Hotkey. You must confirm the password in a second box to make certain that you have typed the password correctly.

Logging One of the most desirable features of IMSurfSentinel is its ability to monitor instant messenger activity, web browsing activity and keystroke activity. This monitoring activity is called Logging.

You can select which activities you want to log by checking the appropriate checkbox on page 2 of the main program window under Items to Log which is displayed to the right. To log instant messenger conversations, check the box labeled "IM Conversations." To log Internet Browser activity, check the box labeled "Browser Activity." Finally, to log all keystrokes, check the box labeled "Keystrokes."

Monitoring of all the aforementioned computer activities occurs at set intervals. You can change that interval by selecting an interval from the combo-box labeled "How Frequently Logs are Saved". The recommended interval is 30 seconds.

Blocking Another key feature of IMSurfSentinel is the ability to block undesired activity. For example, if you learn based on viewing your child's instant messenger activity that he or she is communicating with someone using inappropriate language, you can block those conversations in the future. Simply click on the Blocking - IM Conversions menu in the left window pane to display the IM Blocking Word List in the right pane. Next, enter a series of words and/or phrases that are objectionable. Each word or phrase should be on a separate line in the word list. This is accomplished by pressing the Enter key between each word or phrase. Then click the Hide button. If one of these words or phrases appears in the IM conversation, the conversation will be closed.

Email Direct access to the computer being monitored is not required to view log files. You can monitor computer use remotely via email. IMSurfSentinel can be configured to email IM conversations, browser activity and keystroke logs to you at a specific time interval. This is helpful because it allows you to monitor these activities without requiring physical or network access to the computer being monitored. With this feature, you can monitor the activity on a computer at a distant location such as at work or while traveling.

Enter the SMTP mail server that IMSurfSentinel should use to send email messages. This information would have been used to configure Microsoft Outlook Express or some other email program. The two fields to complete are: Login User Name and Login Password. In addition, check the box labeled "Requires SMTP Authentication" if your ISP requires this option.

Finally, complete the information detailing where email messages should be sent. This includes the email address of the recipient of the email messages, the frequency with which email messages will be sent and which data items should be included in the email messages.

Conclusion

Once all the above items are completely configured, simply click the button labeled Hide and the IMSurfSentinel will enter stealth mode and be invisible to the end user. To reactivate IMSurfSentinel, simply press the hot-key combination specified above and enter the password, if any.