macOS
.pkg so the old runlayer-scan artifacts don’t conflict with com.runlayer.aiwatch.Overview
A signed, notarizedaiwatch binary installs once per device via .pkg. Tenant config — the host and a single organization API key — is pushed via an MDM Configuration Profile; everything else (mode, Sessions, optional discovery, scan tuning) is managed in Runlayer settings and fetched by the device.
Capabilities
All behaviors ship in the same.pkg and a single deployment profile that combines the tenant config, PPPC / Full Disk Access, and Login Items payloads. The tenant-config payload supplies just the host and organization API key. Devices refresh behavior — Monitor / Protect / Enforce mode, Collect session data, optional discovery, and Advanced scan settings — from Settings → AI Watch → Manage settings during the 15-minute hook reconcile; no profile edit or re-push. AI Watch 0.29.6 or newer can also install or remove the managed Chrome and Firefox extensions from the Browser extension tab there.
If you need multiple tenant configurations (different host or key), deploy one copy of the profile per group (the PPPC and Login Items payloads it carries are identical across copies; only the tenant-config values differ).
Project and client-config detection is always enabled after AI Watch is installed. Before the first successful settings sync, the endpoint starts in Monitor with Sessions and optional runtime discovery disabled, so no hooks are installed. One organization API key authenticates AI Watch scans, hooks, session events, and managed updates; no enrollment keys are required.
- Running-process and container discovery are disabled until the synced settings enable them.
- Monitor is the default mode.
- Sessions and hooks fail closed before settings sync. A successful settings sync or an explicit legacy MDM
Sessions=true/ Protect / Enforce setting enables them. - Sessions coverage follows the client surface. Installing the full hook set does not make a client emit events it does not support. Cursor’s classic IDE and Agents Window load the endpoint hook config, while Cursor CLI emits a subset. Cursor Cloud Agents require the separate repository/team hook collector; it is monitor-only and does not inherit endpoint configuration.
Enforcement=false, Protect and Enforce with Enforcement=true. A valid Mode value overrides the legacy Enforcement boolean.0.29.6 or newer, the same settings page can install or remove the managed Chrome and Firefox extensions and configure their mode and Sessions behavior without an MDM profile update. The tenant host, organization API key, and CPU/memory limits remain MDM-owned.
Advanced scan tuning (optional). Detect scans walk each user’s home directory to a bounded depth within a per-scan time budget, and keep CPU and memory use within configurable caps. The defaults fit most fleets — override them only if scans miss deeply-nested project configs (raise depth), run out of time on very large home directories (raise timeout), or you want a smaller footprint on constrained hosts (lower the CPU / memory caps).
<integer> on macOS, matching AIWATCH_* MSI properties on Windows). Omit them to keep the defaults. Values outside the range are clamped; non-integer or non-positive values are ignored. The CPU / memory caps are best-effort: the scan is throttled to stay within the configured CPU budget and aborts if it exceeds the memory ceiling.
Prerequisites
- JumpCloud admin access with the target Macs enrolled in JumpCloud MDM and at least one Device Group for the rollout.
- Devices running macOS 14 (Sonoma) or newer. The packaged binary does not load on macOS 13 or older; for those devices, use the manual CLI path instead.
- Devices enrolled via UAMDM (User-Approved MDM) or DEP/ADE. TCC payloads are ignored on manually-enrolled MDM.
- A single organization API key with the Shadow AI Scan role. Don’t create one by hand — the setup wizard in Settings → MDM configuration mints it when you create the configuration and pre-fills it into the downloaded profile. Only a wizard-minted key links devices to the configuration card. The same key authenticates scanning, enforcement, sessions, and managed updates.
- Your Runlayer tenant host URL (e.g.
https://your-instance.runlayer.com).
arm64). For Intel Macs or other
architectures, use the manual CLI path
or contact your Runlayer account team.Artifacts
com.runlayer.aiwatch.config.mobileconfig, com.runlayer.aiwatch.pppc.mobileconfig, com.runlayer.aiwatch.loginitems.mobileconfig). The merged profile uses a new profile identifier, so it does not supersede them automatically — unscope/remove the three legacy profiles when you scope the merged one to avoid duplicate payloads.Deployment
Get the deployment profile
com.runlayer.aiwatch.mobileconfig pre-filled from the setup wizard’s macOS tab — it already carries your tenant host and org API key, plus the PPPC / Full Disk Access and Login Items payloads.If you hand-edit the template instead, open it in a text editor and replace the two tenant placeholders:Upload the Configuration Profile as a policy
- Device Management → Policy Management → Add New.
- Select Device Policy → macOS.
- Find MDM Custom Configuration Profile and select Configure.
- Name the policy (for example
Runlayer AI Watch – macOS profile) and uploadcom.runlayer.aiwatch.mobileconfigunder Settings. - Assign the target Device Groups and save.
- On the policy Status tab, confirm each Mac returns exit status
0.
AF2M8HC7A2 — no edits required.Upload the .pkg to the Private Repo
- Device Management → Software Management → Apple.
- Add New → JumpCloud Private Repo.
- Name the app
Runlayer AI Watchand uploadaiwatch-<version>-macos-arm64.pkg. Wait for JumpCloud validation to finish. - Assign the same Device Groups as the profile.
- Choose forced installation rather than self-service, then save.
- Confirm the app status is successful on the test Mac.
0.29.6 or newer, open the Browser extension tab and turn on Install browser extension to install managed Chrome and Firefox without changing or re-deploying the profile. To rotate the API key or change resource limits or identity overrides, edit and re-deploy com.runlayer.aiwatch.mobileconfig. No .pkg reinstall. Keep each Apple PayloadVersion at 1.
Verification
On a test Mac after installation and configuration:Common post-deploy issues
Users see 'Background Item Added' after install
Users see 'Background Item Added' after install
com.runlayer.aiwatch.mobileconfig (which carries the Login Items payload) is scoped to the same device group as the .pkg, then force an MDM sync and check:enabled allowed visible.Gatekeeper blocks the package
Gatekeeper blocks the package
source=Notarized Developer ID.Full Disk Access is enabled but TCC still denies access
Full Disk Access is enabled but TCC still denies access
/usr/local/lib/runlayer/aiwatch/aiwatch is enabled under System Settings → Privacy & Security → Full Disk Access. For MDM, the PPPC profile pins Full Disk Access to identifier com.runlayer.aiwatch and Developer ID team AF2M8HC7A2.Confirm the installed binary matches:Authority=Developer ID Application: Anysource Inc. (AF2M8HC7A2) and Identifier=com.runlayer.aiwatch. Custom or ad-hoc signed builds will not satisfy the PPPC CodeRequirement.Customize scan schedule (optional)
The bundled LaunchAgent ships with a 15-minuteStartInterval. Most tenants don’t need to change it, and the interval is an operational tuning knob, not a security control — Detect coverage comes from the scan itself, not its cadence. On a managed fleet, push the script below via your MDM’s recurring-script mechanism (Jamf Policy, Kandji Custom Script, SimpleMDM Script, etc.). On a manual test Mac, run it directly with administrator access:
.pkg upgrade resets StartInterval to the bundled default — the override script must run on a recurring schedule, or be re-applied after each upgrade.Upgrade
The rootcom.runlayer.aiwatch.update LaunchDaemon checks hourly and installs the signed + notarized .pkg at the version selected by your Runlayer tenant. An MDM Custom App push or another manual installer run remains a fallback, but the next hourly tick will restore the selected version. To hold a manually pushed version, pin it in Client Updates first.
Upgrades replace the previous /usr/local/lib/runlayer/aiwatch/ install cleanly, so obsolete modules and version metadata cannot survive an upgrade or rollback. The separate Runlayer CLI installation is preserved. Mid-scan upgrades are safe — a running scan finishes on the old version, and the next LaunchAgent tick picks up the new one.
MDM Configuration Profiles are unchanged across version upgrades. Preferences written manually under com.runlayer.aiwatch also remain in place.
Uninstall
For full package and hook cleanup guidance, see Remove AI Watch.Troubleshooting
For deployment diagnostics and common macOS package issues, see Troubleshooting.Windows
AI Watch deploys to Windows as a signed MSI installed once per device. The MSI writes only bootstrap credentials toHKLM\Software\Runlayer\AIWatch and registers device-local SYSTEM Scheduled Tasks for scans, hook reconciliation, and managed updates. Mode, Sessions, discovery, and scan tuning come from the Runlayer settings sync after the first successful check-in.
Prerequisites
- JumpCloud admin access with the target devices enrolled and a Windows Device Group for the rollout.
- Devices running Windows 10 1809+ / 11, 64-bit. Windows Home and S mode are not supported.
- The organization API key minted by the wizard (
rl_org_...).
Artifact
Download the signedaiwatch-<version>-win-x64.msi from the wizard’s Windows tab. JumpCloud deploys the MSI directly.
Create the Windows app
- Device Management → Software Management → Windows.
- Add New → JumpCloud Private Repo.
- Name the app
Runlayer AI Watch, upload the signed MSI, and wait for validation.
Set the Command Line Options
msiexec /i <uploaded MSI>, so the value contains only switches and MSI properties — no executable and no filename:Assign and install
- Assign the Windows Device Group.
- Choose forced installation, then save.
- Confirm JumpCloud reports the application as installed.
What the MSI creates
All three tasks live in a hidden\Runlayer Task Scheduler folder and run as SYSTEM:
RunlayerAIWatch Windows service keeps the hook daemon running per user session. It may sit idle in Monitor with Sessions off; its idleness is not, by itself, an install failure.
Verification
Run from an elevated 64-bit PowerShell session:OrgApiKey value in screenshots or support tickets.
Then open Shadow AI → Devices in Runlayer and confirm the device appears and its last-seen timestamp advances. A JumpCloud “installed” result proves delivery, not backend check-in — allow up to 15 minutes for the first scheduled scan.
Updates
Managed updates are on by default:AIWatchUpdate checks the Client Updates policy hourly and installs the selected MSI as SYSTEM. Use JumpCloud to bootstrap or repair the package and Runlayer Client Updates for ongoing version selection. Devices on an MSI that predates AIWatchUpdate need one ordinary JumpCloud package push before automatic updates take over.
For full package, scheduled-task, and hook cleanup, see Remove AI Watch.
Troubleshooting
Device does not appear in Runlayer after 15 minutes
Device does not appear in Runlayer after 15 minutes
- Confirm the device is in the assigned JumpCloud Device Group and the profile + package (macOS) or MSI (Windows) succeeded.
- Confirm the host is the correct tenant and an org key is present (macOS:
defaults read /Library/Managed\ Preferences/com.runlayer.aiwatch.plist; Windows: theHasOrgApiKeycheck above) without exposing the key. - Confirm outbound HTTPS to your tenant host.
- Trigger a scan manually — macOS:
sudo /usr/local/bin/aiwatch scan; Windows:Start-ScheduledTask -TaskPath "\Runlayer\" -TaskName "AIWatchScan". - Review logs — macOS:
~/.runlayer/logsandlaunchctl print; Windows:C:\ProgramData\Runlayer\Logs\scheduled-task.log.
Windows tasks are missing
Windows tasks are missing
OrgApiKey, so a missing property leaves no \Runlayer tasks. Do not add an OMA-URI policy to compensate.macOS scan misses protected folders
macOS scan misses protected folders
0 and the Mac is UAMDM or ADE enrolled. Package installation alone cannot grant Full Disk Access.Hooks show drift or are absent
Hooks show drift or are absent
AIWatchHooks task (Windows) or the bootstrap daemon (macOS); restart already-running AI clients after reconciliation so they reload hook configuration.