An agent manager manages and configures a plurality of agents suitable for execution on different types of applications and server platforms. The agent manager may receive a collection of rules for determining how to deploy, manage and maintain different agents. The agent manager may collect data about the agents and a local machine, communicate with and configure the agents, and communicate with remote machines such as a controller. The agent manager may configure the agents based on one or more rules the agent receives, such as for example a set of rules provided by a controller. The agent manager may parse the received rules, identify any agents that need to be installed or uninstalled, installed agents that need to be turned on, off, or restarted, or agents that should be otherwise modified, for example with an update, a plug-in, a feature enabled or disabled, or some other update.