Webtools Agent

Laserfiche webtools agent is a service that allows certain Laserfiche desktop applications to connect to the repository through web application servers such as the web client. By default, it is installed when you first use Laserfiche scanning or the Laserfiche Office plug-in with the web client, as part of the Windows client installation, or as part of the Quick Fields installation.

In some cases, if you are having issues with one of these components, your support contact may ask you to manually install or update webtools agent. You can do so in the Laserfiche web client. Select your user name in the upper right corner and then select Options. Under Advanced, you can download and install webtools agent, and view the status of the service.

Webtools agent is used by the following components:

  • Scanning
  • The Laserfiche Office plug-in
  • Quick Fields, Quick Fields scanning, and Snapshot, to allow longer sessions without needing to log in multiple times
  • Copying and pasting text in the web client

Administration

Webtools agent runs as a web server locally on the user's computer that captures requests from the local web browser to https://plugin.laserfichelocalhost.com. It must be installed on each computer you want to use it on, but only needs to be installed once per computer, even if multiple users will be accessing it, or it will be used for multiple repositories. Up to three users can run webtools agent at a time per machine. By default, it will install at C:\Program Files (x86)\Laserfiche\Webtools Agent. Webtools agent connects to the web client server for authentication and security token information via your browser. It also interacts with Laserfiche Plugin Container.exe to retrieve a current list of available plugins, and to launch the appropriate plugin for the desired user task.

The browser on the machine on which it was installed must be able to communicate with https://plugin.laserfichelocalhost.com. Webtools agent uses ports 18435, 18436, or 18437, and will attempt each until it finds an open port. If none of these three ports are open, webtools agent will not be able to connect to Laserfiche, and the functionality it provides will not be available. In addition, the first time it is run, webtools agent will download an SSL certificate from https://public-laserfichelocalhost-certificate.s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/lflocalhost.pfx and and store it at %localappdata%\Laserfiche\Webtools Agent\Certificates. It is not stored in the certificate store. The SSL certificate will be automatically updated when webtools is launched within 60 days of the certificate's expiration.

Troubleshooting

Administrators can verify that webtools agent is running, and what port it's using to connect to Laserfiche, by opening the Options menu in the Laserfiche web client and selecting Advanced. This will provide a manual download link for webtools agent, the service's status, and the status of the webtools agent ports.

Troubleshooting information about webtools agent can be locatedby opening the web client in your browser, then opening the network tab of your browser's developer tools. Refresh the page and filter for laserfichelocalhost.com.

In some cases, users may encounter the following issues:

  • Webtools agent is installed and is up to date, but the user is repeatedly prompted to install or update it.
    • Verify that the webtools agent service is running, either by opening Options and selecting Advanced or by checking the status of Laserfiche Webtools Agent.exe in task manager. If it is not running, you can start the service again in task manager. If it is not present in task manager, navigate to C:\Program Files (x86)\Laserfiche\Webtools Agent and start Laserfiche Webtools Agent.exe.
    • Verify that one of ports 18435, 18436, or 18437 is open and available to the service. You can verify which port webtools agent is using (if any) by navigating to Options and selecting Advanced and then Show details. If all three port connections have failed, ensure that webtools agent can communicate on at least one.
  • If the connection to Laserfiche fails and the Network tab of your browser's developer tools console displays a "Requests only allowed from the current user" error, more than the supported users are trying to access the web client from the same computer. Webtools agent supports up to three users at the same time.
  • If webtools agent fails with a "Could not find a valid certificate" error, your certificate may be missing or out of date. Verify that your computer can connect to the Internet and access https://public-laserfichelocalhost-certificate.s3-us-west-1.amazonaws.com/lflocalhost.pfx. You can also manually downlaod the certificate at that link and copy it to %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Laserfiche\Webtools Agent\Certificates.