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Kadence Agent Setup & Management Guide

This article shows you how to install, sign in to, and use the Kadence Agent on Windows, Mac, or Linux.

Written by Liza
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Kadence Agent allows users to:

  • Check into desk, private office, and onsite bookings automatically when they arrive at the office

  • View current day bookings from their desktop system tray

  • Create automatic bookings for users on the day when they arrive to the office without one

  • Receive update notifications

Note: Kadence Agent is a desktop app installed on individual employees' PCs or Macs — including Linux machines. It's different from a Visitor Management kiosk (an iPad, Android tablet, or Neat device set up at reception). If you're trying to register a kiosk, see How to Register and Pair a Kiosk Device instead.

Prerequisites

  • You must be a Global Admin or Building Admin

  • You'll need public IP address(es) for each building

  • Kadence Agent must be installed and logged in on users' devices

Enable Automatic Check-In with Kadence Agent

1. Find Your Building's Public IP Address

Kadence Agent uses your building's public IP to confirm user presence. You can find this by:

Option A: Web Search

  • Search "What is my IP" in any search engine

  • Copy the public IP address shown

Option B: Router Admin Page

  • Enter the router IP (e.g. 192.168.1.1) in a browser

  • Login with admin credentials

  • Locate the public IP under sections like "Status" or "WAN"

2. Enable Kadence Agent for a Building

  1. Go to Buildings from the left-hand menu

  2. Click the three dots (⋮) next to a building → Edit Building

  3. Click the Kadence Agent tab

  4. You can choose to inherit or override global settings related to Kadence Agent.

  5. Toggle on Automatic Check-in

  6. Enter your public IP address(es) (IPv4, IPv6, or CIDR range)

  7. Click Save

Only desk, private office, and onsite bookings are currently supported for automatic check in.

Manage Kadence Agent Updates

How It Works

  • Windows MSI: Never updates itself, however it's deployed

  • Windows installer (.exe): Updates itself when the company toggle is on

  • macOS .pkg and .dmg: Update themselves when the company toggle is on, including when deployed through an MDM (Jamf, Intune, Iru)

  • Mac App Store and Microsoft Store builds: Never update themselves — the store handles it

To Enable Auto-Update (Admins)

  1. Go to Settings → Company → Kadence Agent

  2. Toggle Automatic App Updates ON

  3. Click Save

If you're managing Agent versions centrally, turn Automatic App Updates off. On Windows, the MSI gives you that guarantee independent of this setting.

Automatic Booking with Kadence Agent

When enabled, Kadence Agent will automatically book and check in users who arrive onsite without a prior booking (if capacity and credits allow).

Enable Globally

  1. Go to Settings → Company → Kadence Agent

  2. Toggle Enable automatic bookings ON

  3. Choose to apply settings:

    • Save default only

    • Save default and apply to all buildings

  4. Click Save

Enable Per Building

  1. Go to Buildings → Edit Building

  2. Go to Settings tab

  3. Set to Override global settings

  4. Toggle ON Enable automatic booking

  5. Click Save

Please note, automatic bookings:

  • Will not override existing bookings

  • Will not book if resource is full or user lacks booking credits

  • May be impacted by shared public IPs and prevent accurate location detection

Manage Manual Check-In Settings

You can control whether users can manually check in per resource type:

  1. Go to Settings → Resources

  2. Click the resource type (e.g., Desk)

  3. Toggle Manual Check-In ON or OFF

  4. Click Save

What Happens if Manual Check-In is Disabled?

  • Auto-release, and early check-in/out are also disabled

  • If API integration is not in place, disabling manual check-in disables all check-in paths

Re-enabling manual check-in requires manually re-enabling related features.

Distribute & Install Kadence Agent

Kadence Agent is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Option 1: Manual Installation

  1. Click your profile picture → Kadence Agent App

  2. Choose the Windows, Mac, or Linux version

  3. Follow install prompts

  4. The Kadence icon will appear in the system tray

Option 2: Microsoft Intune Distribution

Kadence Agent provides two MSI installer variants for enterprise deployment on Windows:

System MSI (x64.msi)

  • Install path: C:\Program Files\KadenceAgent

  • Auto-start scope: All users on the machine

  • Use case: Intune, SCCM, Endpoint Central — recommended for shared/hot-desk devices

Per-user MSI (x64-peruser.msi)

  • Install path: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\KadenceAgent

  • Auto-start scope: Installing user only

  • Use case: Single-user laptops where admin rights are not available

Deploying the System MSI (recommended for Intune)

  1. Download the system MSI from your Kadence account → Alternative versions (look for the [msi, system] variant)

  2. In Microsoft Intune Admin Center, add a new Line-of-business app and upload the MSI

  3. Set Install behavior to System

  4. Set the install command to: msiexec /i kadence-agent-latest-x64.msi /qn

  5. Assign to device or user groups

  6. Monitor deployment

The agent will auto-start at next user login via a registry Run key (HKLM). No reboot is required.

Deploying the Per-user MSI

  1. Download the per-user MSI (look for the [msi, per-user] variant)

  2. Set Install behavior to User

  3. Set the install command to: msiexec /i kadence-agent-latest-x64-peruser.msi /qn

Important: Do not deploy the per-user MSI with System install behavior — the Windows Installer service cannot access user-profile paths when running as SYSTEM, causing the install to fail silently.

Upgrading from a previous version

The MSI handles upgrades automatically — deploying the new version will remove the old one and install the new one in a single transaction. No manual uninstall is needed. If the agent is running during the upgrade, it will be closed automatically and relaunched after the install completes.

If upgrading from agent versions prior to 9.1 that were deployed via the per-user MSI, a one-time clean install may be required. Earlier versions had a mixed install context issue where files installed to C:\Program Files but registration was per-user, causing upgrades to fail. See the troubleshooting section below.

Option 3: Jamf Pro (Mac)

  1. Download app package via your Kadence account → Alternative versions

  2. Upload the Kadence Agent to Jamf

  3. Create a Policy to deploy the Agent

  4. Validate the installation

Recommended: Suppress "Managed Login Items Added" notification

  1. In Jamf Pro, go to Configuration Profiles

  2. Click New

  3. Configure the profile:

    • Level: Computer

    • Payload: Notifications

  4. Add the following settings:

    • Bundle ID: com.apple.btmnotificationagent

    • App Name: (leave blank)

    • Notifications: Disable

    • Critical Alerts: Disable

  5. Scope the profile to a test device

  6. Click Save

Option 4: Iru (Mac)

Note: Iru is the new name for Kandji (rebranded October 2025). These steps apply whether your console still shows Kandji or Iru branding.

  1. Download app package via your Kadence account → Alternative versions

  2. In Iru, go to Library → Add Library Item → Custom App and upload the .pkg

  3. Under Installation Options, select Install once per device

  4. Under Assignment, assign the Custom App to the Blueprint(s) covering your target Macs

  5. Validate the installation — devices should show as Installed, and the Kadence icon will appear in the menu bar

Recommended: Suppress "Managed Login Items Added" notification

  1. In Iru, go to Library → Add Library Item → Custom Profile

  2. Configure the profile:

    • Level: Computer

    • Payload: Notifications

  3. Add the following settings:

    • Bundle ID: com.apple.btmnotificationagent

    • App Name: (leave blank)

    • Notifications: Disable

    • Critical Alerts: Disable

  4. Assign the profile to the same Blueprint(s) as the Kadence Agent Custom App

Optional: Prevent users from disabling the Agent's login item

Iru's Login & Background Items library item stops end users — including local admins — from turning off the Agent's auto-start. Add a rule with Team Identifier: RX5QJCJQDD (Kadence's Apple signing team), then assign it to the same Blueprint(s).

Option 5: Linux

Kadence Agent for Linux provides the same core functionality as the Windows and Mac versions — automatic check-in, system tray presence, and automatic bookings.

  1. Click your profile picture → Kadence Agent App from the Kadence web app, or download the package via your Kadence account → Alternative versions

  2. Choose the Linux package for your distribution

  3. Install and launch the agent — it will appear in your system tray, the same as on Windows and Mac

  4. Sign in with your Kadence account when prompted

For fleet deployment of the Linux agent (e.g. via your organisation's configuration management tooling), contact [email protected] — enterprise deployment guidance is available on request and is being formalised into this guide.

Option 6: Apple Business Manager (Coming Soon)

Currently unavailable until the app is listed in the Apple App Store. We'll update once supported.

Frequently Asked Questions

Automatic Check-In

Can I disable manual check-in for specific resource types?

Yes. You can disable manual check-in by resource type following this guide.

What if API or Kadence Agent is not enabled?

Disabling manual check-in removes all check-in ability for users, so we do not recommend this.

Does Kadence Agent collect IPs related to our user's home network?

Every HTTP(S) request to any web service includes the client's network address as part of the internet and HTTP standard — this is how servers know where to send responses. Kadence makes use of this standard behavior only.

The client's public IP is automatically available in the request metadata. Kadence evaluates that address in memory against the organization's configured allow-listed ranges, makes a check-in decision, and then discards it. The IP is never stored in our databases.

App Installation

Which devices are supported?

Kadence Agent supports Windows, Mac, and Linux desktop and laptop machines (no mobile/tablet). If you're looking to set up a reception kiosk (iPad, Android, or Neat) for Visitor Management instead, see How to Register and Pair a Kiosk Device.

Is the app free?

Yes, included in all plans.

Who can download the app?

Any person with access to the Kadence platform.

Can the Kadence Agent log users in automatically?

Yes — if your company has set up Kadence Agent Auto Login. Auto Login is available on Windows and macOS for companies using Microsoft Entra or Okta as their identity provider. Depending on your platform and identity provider, you may see one sign-in step the first time you use the agent — after that, every future launch signs you in automatically.

If Auto Login isn't set up for your company, you'll sign in manually — see Use the Kadence Agent — and stay signed in unless you log out, the app is uninstalled, or you're inactive for over 28 days.

See Set Up Kadence Agent Auto Login for setup steps, or ask your Kadence administrator whether it's enabled for your company.

What's the difference between the system and per-user MSI?

The system MSI installs to C:\Program Files\KadenceAgent and auto-starts for all users on the machine (HKLM registry). Use it for shared devices and Intune/SCCM deployments.

The per-user MSI installs to the current user's AppData\Local\Programs and auto-starts only for that user (HKCU registry). Use it for single-user laptops.

These MSI variants are Windows-specific — Linux and Mac use their own native install packages.

Can I deploy the MSI silently?

Yes. Use msiexec /i kadence-agent-latest-x64.msi /qn for a fully silent install.

Add /l*v C:\Temp\kadence-install.log for verbose logging if troubleshooting.

Updates

Will I get update notifications?

Only if automatic updates is enabled at the building and/or global level.

Can I opt out of updates?

No, but you can manage your personal notifications.

Automatic Bookings

Will automatic bookings override existing bookings?

No, automatic bookings will never override existing bookings.

Will automatic bookings respect booking credits and capacity?

Yes, automatic bookings will respect booking credits and/or onsite capacity if they are enabled.

Troubleshooting

MSI upgrade removes the old agent but doesn't install the new one

This affects upgrades from agent versions prior to 26.6 that were deployed via the per-user MSI.

Earlier versions had a mixed install context (files in C:\Program Files but registered as per-user), which causes Windows Installer to block the upgrade.

To fix:

  1. Uninstall the current agent

  2. Delete any remaining files from C:\Program Files\KadenceAgent, %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\KadenceAgent, and %AppData%\Kadence Agent

  3. Remove the registry value co.kadence.kadence-agent from HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run if present

  4. Install the new version

This is a one-time issue — subsequent upgrades will work automatically.

SSO login loops repeatedly for standard (non-admin) users

This can occur on machines where an older version was installed with a mixed install context, leaving auth tokens in a path inaccessible to standard users. Follow the clean install steps above to resolve.

New installs with version 26.6+ use consistent install paths and are not affected.

Agent doesn't auto-start after a per-machine MSI install

Verify the registry key exists:

reg query "HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run" /v KadenceAgent

If missing, manually add the Run key.

Per-user MSI fails silently when deployed via Intune as System

The per-user MSI must be deployed with User install behavior, not System. The Windows Installer service running as SYSTEM cannot access user-profile directories. Use the system MSI (x64.msi) for System-context deployments.

Need Help?

For support, reach out to:
​[email protected]

For more helpful articles see:
​Kadence Help Center

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