inventory computers on a network

In large datacenters, manually-conducted inventories and audits share distinction as the worst projects in IT. They divert technical resources from critical maintenance projects and application provisioning. They introduce tainted or expired information into a world of increasing automation and real-time decision making. They pollute asset lifecycle management programs and lease-return programs with erroneous information. They introduce vulnerabilities into security programs and have the potential to undermine service level agreements.

In the years to come, many organizations will look to implement end-to-end IT Asset Management (ITAM) programs to account for inventory computers on a network, servers, storage devices, backup media, and other sensitive items. The degree to which asset visibility measures are incorporated into an enterprise automation scheme will have a direct correlation to its overall effectiveness.