Computer Inventory
Why does a company need computer inventory? What this process helps it with?
First of all, computer inventory is required for the company IT stuff to be sure what equipment and what software products installed they do have in their network. When a problem occures, the network administrators or an other responsible IT guy should have a quick access to the configuration of the computer which caused a problem to generate a possible solution on the fly. (By the way, that first possible solution in most cases solves the problem, so helping him to make a decision faster means save his time and allow him to help other users with their problems and - finally - save the company's budget).
Then, computer inventory is very useful when planning upgrades. That is god to know that Jane has too old and slow computer and won't be able to do her job after she will get the new version of the software she needs, and Paul is happy with his notebook and does not need anything to be changed. But how many other users experience problems with computers in your company? How will you decrease the time they spend to do their job if you'll upgrade their technic?
In other words, you need to see the complete picture at once when planning the upgrade budget. And top have that picture, you need a computer inventory program, such as Asset Tracker for Networks which collects all possible information on computers software and hardware configuration and provides you with the detailed report.
Next article: Hardware Asset Management