Managing IT assets

IBM Control Desk contains the elements required for effective IT asset life cycle management and software asset management programs. Using this product, you can:

  • Provide a streamlined process for purchasing and receiving of IT assets
  • Track all IT assets, locations, and changes
  • Better control IT software license cost by reducing the likelihood of overbuying or incurring fines due to underlicensing of software
  • Record and manage all contracts for software licenses, leases, warranty, and maintenance
  • Create and enforce technology standards by defining templates of standard asset requests
  • Establish charge-backs using managed data
  • Reconcile assets actually deployed with authorized assets (those purchased and under contract)

The Control Desk user interface (UI) provides its functions through a set of applications that are grouped into modules and accessible through the Go To menu. All the applications described in the sections that follow share a common approach to displaying interface information and enabling user input and choices on the UI.

  • Special features of the Control Desk user interface
    Control Desk implements conditional user interface (UI) features in some applications.
  • Purchasing assets
    Use the applications in the Purchasing module to create and track purchase requisitions and purchase orders, to receive equipment and material that you ordered, and to manage the items in the Item Master application.
  • Managing IT assets
    You use the Assets application to track physical assets, to define relationships between assets, and to manage assets throughout their life cycles. Some assets that you manage are classified as IT assets. Control Desk provides additional features for managing IT assets.
  • Managing the software catalog and licenses
    Administration tasks related to working with the Control Desk software catalog of application information, as well as managing your software entitlements through the creation and use of license records, are described in the topics that follow.
  • Managing software contracts
    Use the Software Contracts application to maintain information about the terms and conditions for the purchase of software. On the contract, you can specify items or services provided, costs, shipping and handling, expected delivery times, financial terms, and vendor information.
  • Managing deployed assets
    The Deployed Assets module in Control Desk includes the Computers, Network Printers, Network Devices, and Deployed Software applications. Use these applications to manage data that discovery tools collect about hardware and software that is actually deployed in your enterprise.
  • Administering deployed software
    The Deployed Software application enables you to browse deployed software records that were imported from a software discovery tool.
  • Reconciling authorized assets with deployed assets
    Use the Reconciliation module applications to reconcile authorized asset data with deployed asset data that is gathered by asset discovery tools.

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