# RMM Trial and Pilot Checklist

> Use this vendor-neutral worksheet on authorized, noncritical systems. Replace bracketed fields before the pilot begins.

## Pilot control

- Organization or customer: [name]
- Pilot owner: [name and role]
- Person authorized to stop the pilot: [name and role]
- Start and end dates: [dates]
- Authorized endpoints: [systems]
- Explicit exclusions: [systems, customers, or workloads]
- Required decision by the end date: [expand, remediate, pause, or remove]

## 1. Define success and stop conditions

- [ ] Each workflow has a named owner and measurable acceptance evidence.
- [ ] Cross-tenant visibility, unexpected privileged access, ambiguous device identity, or an unremovable agent stops the pilot.
- [ ] The team knows who may approve broader deployment.

## 2. Inspect the installer

- [ ] Record the download source, filename, version, size, signer, and signature status.
- [ ] Confirm how the agent updates and how it can be removed.
- [ ] Do not distribute reusable enrollment secrets through tickets, screenshots, logs, or shared scripts.

## 3. Start with one endpoint

- [ ] Use one authorized, noncritical device that represents the first production group.
- [ ] Confirm the device appears once in the correct customer and site.
- [ ] Compare operating system, hardware, software, services, storage, and current state with the endpoint itself.
- [ ] Record first-check-in time and expected heartbeat frequency.

## 4. Test technician access

- [ ] Enable multifactor authentication when available.
- [ ] Separate administrator and limited-technician roles.
- [ ] Confirm the limited role cannot view or act on another organization.
- [ ] Disable the test technician and verify that existing access no longer works.

## 5. Prove monitoring and alerts

- [ ] Trigger one reversible threshold or stop a noncritical test service.
- [ ] Record detection time, alert content, owner, duplicates, recovery detection, and closure evidence.
- [ ] Confirm offline, stale, recovered, and unknown states are distinguishable.

## 6. Run one harmless job

- [ ] Return a system fact or create and remove a temporary file.
- [ ] Retain the initiator, exact targets, content, timestamps, output, exit status, and failure state.
- [ ] Verify that an offline or unauthorized endpoint is not reported as successful.

## 7. Test patching conservatively

- [ ] Review applicability before approval.
- [ ] Use one narrow update and an authorized maintenance window.
- [ ] Record approved, installed, failed, excluded, pending-restart, offline, and unknown states.
- [ ] Verify the resulting endpoint state rather than relying only on command acceptance.

## 8. Test remote support

- [ ] Confirm authorization, consent behavior, notices, elevation, timeouts, and session logging.
- [ ] Review clipboard and file-transfer controls.
- [ ] Revoke the endpoint or technician and confirm old access no longer works.

## 9. Create controlled failures

- [ ] Disconnect the endpoint and inspect stale or offline handling.
- [ ] Run a harmless failing job and preserve its error evidence.
- [ ] Attempt an action outside the limited role and confirm it is blocked and logged.
- [ ] Confirm queued work does not become an unexplained success after the test window.

## 10. Review operating impact

- [ ] Measure agent CPU, memory, disk, network, service, and reboot behavior.
- [ ] Check coexistence with current RMM, patch, EDR, MDM, and remote-access authorities.
- [ ] Record every exception and the owner responsible for resolving it.

## 11. Prove removal and revocation

- [ ] Uninstall locally and through the product when both methods are supported.
- [ ] Check for remaining services, files, tasks, certificates, firewall rules, sessions, API keys, and device identities.
- [ ] Confirm removed identities cannot receive new work.

## 12. Make a written decision

| Workflow | Pass, fail, or unknown | Evidence | Owner | Next action |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Enrollment and identity | [status] | [reference] | [owner] | [action] |
| Monitoring and alerts | [status] | [reference] | [owner] | [action] |
| Jobs and automation | [status] | [reference] | [owner] | [action] |
| Patching | [status] | [reference] | [owner] | [action] |
| Remote support | [status] | [reference] | [owner] | [action] |
| Reporting and audit trail | [status] | [reference] | [owner] | [action] |
| Removal and revocation | [status] | [reference] | [owner] | [action] |

- Final decision: [expand / remediate / pause / remove]
- Decision owner: [name and role]
- Decision date: [date]
- Broader rollout scope, if approved: [scope]
- Remaining blockers and owners: [items]

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This vendor-neutral checklist is provided by Nizlo as a planning aid. It is not legal, compliance, security, or operational advice and does not authorize endpoint access or changes.