App Runner

There is a computer in nearly every work environment, most of them connected to a specific network, for enhanced monitoring and sharing. For even more efficiency, or simply security related issues, some rules imply only having access to certain applications. These can be remotely configured and handled with the help of specialized applications like App Runner.

The application comes with two modules, a server and a client that needs to be installed on target computers. One of the main disadvantages is that neither the client or server component can detect available networks, with the only possibility to connect computers is manually adding specific details such as port and IP address.

What's more, there is no implemented feature that allows you to view or handle computers connected to the server, with the only option related to security being to allow client connections only from certain IP addresses.

When in comes to application blocking, both the server and client components can be viewed and run. Configuring the list is only done from the server, with the possibility to simply browse for the EXE file or shortcut, and even attribute custom parameters.

A list is displayed with all allowed programs, as well as one for currently running ones, with the possibility to kill the process. This is done from the server app, the client only being able to view and start allowed programs, or just stop running ones.

Most time is spent with the overall setup and distribution of the server and client components to targeted machines. Once this is done you can save settings and have the application automatically launch at startup.

Taking everything into consideration, we can say that App Runner might not be the best application to remotely handle programs, but nor does it completely disappoint. Incredibly little system resources are used, with the main window spending most of its time hidden in the system tray once setup is completed, making for a small and practical utility.