What is asset management?

Asset management is the act of managing the inventory, health, and status of the assets in an IT environment. To understand asset management, it’s important to first define what an asset is. An asset is essentially any item owned by a company. In IT, these can further be categorized as either “hard” or “soft” assets. “Hard” assets, called hardware, can include any physical item, such as servers, workstations, laptops, monitors, routers, A/V equipment, and a variety of related devices. “Soft” assets, called software, typically include any programs and applications installed on hardware.

How does asset management in IT work?

IT asset management leverages a set of processes used to track the deployment, use, and maintenance of hardware and software assets. IT technicians involved in asset management must always keep a finger on the pulse of every asset within their organization, which often means they’re charged with tracking the whereabouts of dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of assets at any given time. How IT teams track assets can depend on many factors, such as budget, business size, and amount of assets to track. Keeping track of all these assets—as well as who’s using them, their health, and when warranties, leases, and licenses for these assets will expire—is no easy task. While some may choose to manually track assets using spreadsheets, this solution can lead to inventory information quickly becoming outdated and unreliable. Many organizations prefer to streamline their asset management strategy using asset discovery tools to import third-party asset inventory information and automatically catalog all the assets into one centralized repository. With the ability to quickly search inventory records, identify when an asset was last checked out (and when it’s due back), as well as when it’s time to renew your warranty, lease, or license for an asset, asset management tools and their built-in alerting systems can help automate many of the manual tasks often overlooked or disregarded when using spreadsheets to track assets. Asset management software can include the ability to email notifications when inventories fall below pre-determined thresholds, when an asset due date has arrived, and when it’s time to renew your asset contracts. Through detailed engineering and in-depth dashboards, asset management IT solutions can help streamline and alleviate many manual asset management efforts.

Why is asset management important?

Asset management is important because it consolidates all the hardware and software assets across your organization, enabling you to easily and consistently manage the health and status of your company’s IT assets—from laptops and servers, to monitors and software licenses. Through asset management, you can visualize the full asset lifecycle and even link your assets to service tickets. For example, by attaching an asset to a service request , the ticket can include an extensible and searchable history of the asset that can be reviewed at any time. This level of in-depth insight into an asset’s history will equip support teams with the information needed to make smarter business decisions, like whether to replace a single hard drive or an entire server, saving you from manually sifting through incident reports. Asset management is also important because, with the right asset management tools, you’ll never fall behind on warranty, lease, or licensing agreements.

What does asset management software do?

Asset management software helps manage dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of hardware and software assets through one, centralized digital hub. Gone are the days of having to rely on a spreadsheet to track your assets. With an asset management system in hand, you’ll have the information you need at your fingertips—the exact amount of software licenses you hold, how many functioning laptops you have on hand, the health and status of those assets, and more. No more wondering who was the last one to borrow a monitor or when it will be returned. You’ll also be equipped with the information you need to keep licenses and warranties up to date, so you can provide upper management with robust, accurate budget proposals and never fall behind on the renewal of a critical asset. The right automated asset management tools can save your team time and resources.

How does asset management work in Web Help Desk?

Web Help Desk asset management software leverages a built-in scanning engine to discover your network systems based on subnet or IP range. Using scheduled WMI discovery, Web Help Desk can periodically poll endpoints to update hardware and software inventory information, including host name, model, serial number, operating system, hard drive, memory, and software installed. The platform also allows you to import asset inventory information from third-party asset discovery tools, spreadsheet records, and network management systems. Web Help Desk integrates with third-party asset discovery tools, such as Casper and Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM). And if you’re running SolarWinds Network Performance Monitor , Server & Application Monitor , or Network Configuration Manager , you can even synchronize your Web Help Desk node and asset discovery in your corporate network. All of this helps ensure all of your asset information lives in one, easy-to-access location.

IT Asset Management Software

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Asset discovery

Connect IT asset management

Connect asset inventory and help desk ticketing to give technicians useful context for every service request.

SolarWinds^® Web Help Desk^® helps IT teams manage hardware and software assets alongside help desk tickets and service requests. Maintain asset details, review support history, and give technicians relevant endpoint information without relying on disconnected inventory spreadsheets or separate tracking systems. Keep the information needed to support, maintain, and plan for IT assets in one place.

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Automatically discover and track IT assets

Manual spreadsheets fall behind as endpoints change, software is installed, and hardware moves between users or locations. Web Help Desk helps automate asset discovery and IT asset inventory tracking, giving technicians visibility into endpoint status and key device details. Schedule asset reports to support inventory reviews, refresh planning, and procurement decisions.

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Connect assets with help desk tickets

Give technicians useful context when they work a service request. Link hardware and software assets to help desk tickets to document problem history, identify recurring device issues, and review relevant asset information without switching systems. Web Help Desk also supports remote-control workflows for computers included in the asset inventory.

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Manage purchase orders and lifecycle details

Track an asset from the initial request and approval through purchase and entry into inventory. Add purchase order information in Web Help Desk, then track warranty and lease end dates for hardware as well as software license expiration dates. That information can help IT teams plan replacements, renewals, and budget requests with fewer gaps in the record.

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Track parts, labor, and billable work

Manage parts inventory and configure automated email alerts when quantities reach a specified minimum. Web Help Desk can also capture service parts, fees, labor, and inventory as line items for invoices or quotes. Technicians can record time through the Technician Note Editor to help create clearer billable ticket details.

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Get More on Asset Management Software

Learn how SolarWinds Web Help Desk supports IT asset inventory, help desk ticketing, purchase orders, and parts management.

IT asset management FAQ

What is IT asset management software?
Can Web Help Desk track hardware and software assets?
Can I connect assets to help desk tickets?
Does Web Help Desk support asset discovery?
Can I manage purchase orders and warranties?
Can Web Help Desk track parts and billing?
Does Web Help Desk include asset management?

IT asset management software helps IT teams maintain a reliable record of the hardware and software used across the organization. Rather than relying on disconnected spreadsheets or manually updated records, teams can document details such as device make and model, serial number, operating system, memory, hard drive capacity, installed software, warranty dates, license expiration dates, and asset status.

For support teams, asset management is most useful when it connects to the work technicians do every day. SolarWinds^® Web Help Desk^® brings asset information into its help desk workflow, helping teams track service history, manage inventory, and use more complete information when they receive a service request. Learn more about Web Help Desk.

IT asset management FAQ

IT asset management software helps IT teams maintain a reliable record of the hardware and software used across the organization. Rather than relying on disconnected spreadsheets or manually updated records, teams can document details such as device make and model, serial number, operating system, memory, hard drive capacity, installed software, warranty dates, license expiration dates, and asset status.

For support teams, asset management is most useful when it connects to the work technicians do every day. SolarWinds^® Web Help Desk^® brings asset information into its help desk workflow, helping teams track service history, manage inventory, and use more complete information when they receive a service request. Learn more about Web Help Desk.