Hey everyone! I'm curious about how different organizations tackle IT asset management. Specifically, how do you keep track of devices on your network, including details like operating systems, software versions, hardware specs, and ownership? I'm also interested in knowing if you rely on a single solution for everything or if you prefer to use multiple tools to manage different aspects, like one for devices and another for network hierarchy. I'd love to hear what works best for you in practice, especially if you're using open-source solutions!
2 Answers
Managing an IT network varies for me based on the type of network. Proper DNS management is critical, and although we have an official IPAM solution, I use some unconventional DNS record types to define our network. This includes using SNMP support on all devices, which lets me extract inventory details. This way, I can script my queries and get necessary data, regardless of what solution we use.
We personally use ManageEngine for our fleet of laptops, workstations, and Android tablets. It's pretty solid for monitoring patches and vulnerabilities, and it also offers MDM support for mobile devices. While it’s not groundbreaking, it gets the job done for asset management. I've heard about Fleet, which is an open-source MDM, but I haven't tried it myself. One big issue we face is that devices can get lost pretty easily since they change hands a lot.
Thanks for sharing! I came across Lansweeper while researching; do you have any insights on that tool?
This better not be a marketing post, lol! Just checking!
So, you’re using DNS records for asset info and SNMP for hardware details? Does that offer you the same insights as dedicated management tools?