Inventory Software: Effectively Manage IT Assets

On this page you will find information on the following topics:

• Simple Management of IT Equipment – Is That Possible?
• Devices and Software Are Part of the IT Infrastructure
• IT Inventory Management: How It Works in Practice
• Is There Good Inventory Software (IT Inventory) For Free?
• IT Inventory – Open Source as an Alternative?
• Inventory Software IT Ensures Effectiveness and Professionalism

Simple Management of IT Equipment – Is That Possible?

In this blog post we would like to show you how you can best manage IT assets of all kinds with inventory software IT. Whether in the office, in the warehouse or in the field, you actually encounter it everywhere.

IT inventory ranges from classic devices such as computers and laptops, including the installed software, to input terminals and barcode scanners to smartphones. The complete recording of the IT inventory brings many advantages. You maintain a constant overview of existing resources, their locations and current status. This facilitates planning and calculation.

Digital recording also promotes the sustainable use of valuable IT assets. For example, in an inventory software IT such as Timly, personally responsible employees can be stored. At the same time, you have the option of carrying out evaluations on the durability and susceptibility to repair of individual product groups. These are factors that are becoming increasingly important in times of scarce and expensive raw materials.

Devices and Software Are Part of the IT Infrastructure

IT workstations consist of hardware and software. At first glance, managing them seems more trivial than it actually is. In addition to the components, such as tower, monitor, keyboard and mouse, a wide variety of software assets are also involved. The latter often cause a large part of the costs incurred.

Operating systems, for example Windows, Linux or MacOS, are often accompanied by expensive special software – on premise or in the software-as-a-service model. Virtual machines and other software, such as the access licences for Windows server operating systems required for an Active Directory, also have different terms and are subject to independent conditions.

This way, a file folder quickly fills up with necessary information. An inventory software IT is able to centrally store and link all necessary data for IT assets. The recorded data can then be output in any required context.

Thus, it is possible to display all licences belonging to a workstation. In the same way, you can generate overview lists of categories for your entire IT. Licence expiry dates or service dates such as the e-check for hardware are displayed in overviews. IT asset management is possible in its entirety with the help of an IT inventory. This is because both expired licences and defective hardware unnecessarily disrupt work processes.

IT Inventory Management: How It Works in Practice

IT inventory is of course not an end in itself. Rather, it represents a way of professionalising processes. The underlying principle is that any equipment in the IT infrastructures remains recorded in the inventory software IT throughout its entire useful life.

Upon commissioning, each asset is given a QR code, which is attached to the device or, in the case of software inventory, to associated documents by means of a space-saving sticker. All necessary data is entered in the IT inventory software.

The extent depends on the concrete requirements and can be handled flexibly. Possible categories include manufacturer information, technical data, operating instructions and maintenance notes. The data is stored centrally in a cloud hosted by the provider. The necessary security is ensured by GDPR-compliant data protection precautions and fine-grained rights management.

Every employee is only granted the absolutely necessary rights in the IT inventory software. A simple profile, for example, only allows information necessary for operating a system to be called up. Possible extended rights are the assignment of responsible persons and locations or the entry of service appointments.

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A great advantage of cloud-based storage is accessibility from almost any conceivable location. Employees can use mobile devices to access the data set of an IT asset in the field or on business trips. This makes it possible to report defects or other problems immediately.

The condition of a work tool that has been handed over can be logged in the inventory software IT in this way and documented with a photo. A correspondingly optimised app is available for mobile devices. In this case, the camera of a smartphone or tablet acts as a scanner for the QR code, which can be used to call up the data record of a device.

This is a simplification that your employees will appreciate, for example, when working in a confusing server room. It has been shown that the management of work equipment must be designed as simply as possible so that it is not omitted due to convenience or lack of time. An intuitive operation of the inventory software IT, on the other hand, promotes the automatic recording of all relevant facts.

Is There Good Inventory Software (IT Inventory) For Free?

Why pay for something that is also available free of charge? This question is certainly justified, as long as the functional scope of the compared products is identical. Administrative tasks, such as recording inventory or checking inventory, are usually not popular among your own staff. Dull tasks are often postponed and are prone to errors due to lack of concentration and motivation.

Once the data in an inventory list is outdated or incorrect, however, a great deal of effort is required to clean it up again. Therefore, it is important not to run several software solutions in parallel in order to be able to cover all necessary functions. If possible, an acquisition should only be necessary once. After that, any updates must be as simple and intuitive as possible.

Nowadays, almost every employee carries a smartphone and can access the profile of an inventory item by simply scanning the QR code. IT-savvy employees in particular may find it an exciting feature to have all the necessary information from the IT inventory software at their fingertips in this way. Acceptance of this feature also encourages regular use of the product.

IT Inventory – Open Source as an Alternative?

Open source software offers exciting programmes that promise maximum transparency through the disclosure of the source code. They are often created as research projects in university environments or are the product of resourceful programmers.

However, if the work rests on the shoulders of only a few developers, there is always the danger that further development will be discontinued due to lack of time or a different orientation of one’s own plans.

Also, the provision of bug fixes and security patches cannot take place with the same frequency as with a professional team of developers. Support for open source software is often limited to forums in which other users provide more or less valuable tips.

The use of an inventory software IT covers such a core area of a company that a careful selection should be made. Professional support and the permanent revision of the software are among the basics that you should not do without.