10 Best Computer Inventory Management Software for 2021

Maintaining transparency over the devices in your network is the first step to securing them. Yet tracking hardware manually is easier said than done

Modern enterprises are leveraging more computer systems than ever before; it’s impossible to keep track unless you have an automated computer inventory management tool.

In this article, we will look at the best computer inventory management software on the market. The list includes a range of tools for Windows, macOS, and Linux. We’ve selected tools with autodiscovery features and configuration management functions that help you to build a virtual monitoring environment.

Here is our list of the ten best computer inventory management software:

1. SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor FREE TRIAL Server and application monitoring solution with automatic IT asset discovery, monitoring dashboard, software inventory reports, and more.
2. SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager FREE TRIAL Network configuration management tool with device autodiscovery, configuration management, alerts, and more.
3. ManageEngine AssetExplorer Asset inventory management software with automatic asset discovery, a configuration management database, software asset management, and more.
4. JIRA Service Management Asset management software with automated asset discovery, configuration management, dependency mapping, and more.
5. Spiceworks Inventory Free inventory management software with automatic IP range scanning, scheduled scans, reports, and more.
6. Total Network Inventory Computer inventory management software with remote scanning, scheduled scans, configuration monitoring, and more.
7. Open-AudIT Computer inventory management software that can monitor Windows and Linux PCs with automated scans, reports, and more.
8. Lansweeper Network inventory software with IP range scanning, reports, alerts, automated warranty checks, and more.
9. 10-Strike Network Inventory Explorer Network inventory monitoring software with automatic device scanning, hardware and inventory change tracking, health monitoring, and more.
10. EMCO Network Inventory Network inventory management software with remote device discovery, customizable reports, an SQL query builder, and more.

Best computer inventory management software 

1. SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor (FREE RIAL)

SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor is a server and application monitoring solution that provides automated inventory management. With SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor, you can automatically discover IT assets and monitor over 1200 vendors, applications, servers, and databases from a web-based GUI.

Key Features:

• Automatic IT asset discovery
• Dashboard
• Reports
• Application infrastructure dependency mapping

Through the dashboard, you can monitor recent configuration changes and see newly added or removed hardware. This enables you to monitor changes in your environment. There are also software inventory reports that detail current infrastructure updates, admins who installed the updates, resources used, unused hardware, and more.

The platform also comes with application infrastructure dependency mapping that enables you to see a visual display of application dependencies and issues throughout your environment.

SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor is a great choice for enterprises looking for an automated inventory management tool with a wide range of monitoring capabilities. It is available on Windows. Pricing starts at $2,955 (£2,093). You can download a free 30-day trial.

SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor Download 30-day FREE Trial

2. SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager 

SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager is a configuration management tool that can automatically discover and import network devices for your monitoring environment. You can view serial numbers, IP addresses, manufacturer, model, end-of-life dates, end-of-support dates, and more from one location.

Key Features: 

• Automatically discovers network devices
• Network topology map
• Configuration management
• Backup scheduling

Users can schedule regular scans to detect devices to ensure they always have the most up-to-date device information. A network topology map allows the user to view a topological perspective of devices throughout the network, providing complete visibility over crucial systems.

You can also manage the configurations of connected devices and schedule backups, and execute scripts. The software alerts you whenever formats change on a device, or there is a problem. This helps you to keep an eye on changes to configurations so you can keep your environment secure.

SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager is ideal for enterprises that want a complete solution for managing their network inventory and network configurations. Available on Windows, macOS, and Linux. Prices start at $1,687 (£1,195). You can start a free 30-day trial.

SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager Download 30-day FREE Trial

3. ManageEngine AssetExplorer

ManageEngine AssetExplorer is an asset inventory management tool with network autodiscovery that can automatically scan your network and discover devices. ManageEngine AssetExplorer breaks down discovered assets and categorizes them as IT assets, non-IT assets, asset components, software, and groups. You can also use grouping so that newly discovered resources are automatically placed into a particular group.

Key Features:

• Automatically scan and discover assets
• Group assets
• Configuration management database
• Reports

The software includes a configuration management database that lets you track assets, software installations, and documents in one place. You can also view a relationship map of configuration items and view dependencies.

One helpful feature of ManageEngine AssetExplorer is software asset management, which allows you to identify unused and under-utilized licenses, determine who owns installed software and illegal/unlicensed software. There is also a report feature you can use to create and schedule reports on the status of your environment.

ManageEngine AssetExplorer is a solid computer inventory management solution for enterprises looking to manage device configurations. It is available on Linux. Free version available that supports up to 25 nodes. To find out pricing for this product, you need to contact the company directly to request a quote. You can start the 30-day free trial from this link here.

4. JIRA Service Management

JIRA Service Management is an asset management solution that can discover devices throughout your network and add them to a central repository. Discovered systems automatically have their status updated. You can view them through the dashboard, highlighting information such as the Serial Number, Owner, Status, Model, Location, and Warranty expiration date of assets.

Key Features:

• Automated asset discovery
• Configuration mapping
• Dependency mapping
• Reports
• Analytics

The platform also includes a range of configuration management features. For instance, it can automatically add items to a configuration management database and detect configuration changes. It can also display dependencies between configuration items or assets and services.

JIRA Service Management provides users with alerts that notify them about the device regarding incident response capabilities. Users can configure escalation policies to ensure that urgent alerts are handled in a timely fashion. Reporting and analytics features allow you to monitor incident response activities and ensure there are no gaps.

JIRA Service Management is ideal for enterprises that want to create asset inventories within a solution that includes incident management capabilities. Free plan available with up to 3 agents and 2GB of storage. The Data Center version starts at $17,200 (£12,185) per year for 50 agents. You can begin the 7-day free trial from this link here.

5. Spiceworks Inventory

Spiceworks Inventory is a free inventory management tool that can automatically discover devices connected to your network. With Spiceworks Inventory, you can add an IP range to scan and start finding all assets within that range. You can also schedule scans by group and scan devices every five minutes.

Key Features:

• Automatically discover network devices
• Schedule scans by groups
• Reports

After discovering devices, you can automatically update the installed software, view info on the device manufacturer, MAC address, installed software, open ports, and more. This provides you with a basic overview of your environment to take inventory of your environment and identify vulnerabilities.

Reports provide you with critical information on connected devices. For instance, you can create a report that shows devices that don’t have an antivirus installed. These reports can be scheduled to be regularly sent to your email, giving you periodic updates about the status of connected systems.

Spiceworks Inventory is an excellent choice for enterprises that need a low-cost solution for creating an IT asset inventory. It is available on Windows. The software is entirely free and supports unlimited devices, agents, and users. You can download the tool from this link here.

6. Total Network Inventory

Total Network Inventory is a computer inventory management tool that allows you to monitor devices in real-time. With Network Inventory Advisor, you can remote scan Windows, Unix, VMware, and SNMP-based systems to build your monitoring environment. Once devices are connected, you can collect information from them, such as the type of software they have installed.

Key Features:

• Monitor devices in real-time
• Schedule scans
• Reports
• Notifications

You can monitor the hardware and software changes of all connected devices. The software does this by creating configuration snapshots of devices with each scan, comparing the results against past scans, and listing everything that was added, changed, or removed.

Scheduling scans enable you to determine how regularly the system will discover new devices. You can also create a topology map of your network by drag-and-drop. Simply add assets to a canvas view and create a map that highlights your entire network. There is also a notification system that notifies you about asset and software issues.

Total Network Inventory is a reliable solution for SMEs looking for a low-cost and straightforward inventory management platform. It is available on Windows. Prices start at $90 (£63.77) for 25 nodes. You can start the 60-day free trial from this link here.

7. Open-AudIT (Community edition)

Open-AudIT is an inventory management software that enables users to query Windows and Linux PCs from a web-based user interface. Information you can view includes hardware, software, OS settings, security settings, users, groups, IP address, MAC address, open ports, and more. This information is available in PDF, CSV, web page format, or via export by Dia and Inkscape.

Key Features:

• Automatic network scanning
• Export with Dia and Inkscape
• Reports

The platform enables you to schedule daily automatic scans to keep your environment updated and ensure that the software identifies newly added devices. Choose from over 50 out-of-the-box reports to generate summaries on operating system type, device type, manufacturers, MS office, installs, disk usage, and more.

While the community edition offers plenty of features, paid versions Open-AudIT, such as the Professional, Enterprise, and Cloud versions, provide additional features like network analysis dashboards, geographical maps, and enhanced visual reporting that the community version lacks.

Open-AudIT is a useful tool for smaller enterprises that want a tool to gather information on Windows and Linux systems. It is available for Windows and Linux. Please note this platform isn’t compatible with Windows 10. Professional edition starts at $1,449 (£1,026) for 500 nodes. You can download the Community edition for free from this link here.

8. Lansweeper

Lansweeper is a network inventory software that can IP range scan your network to discover connected devices and sort them into categories based on device type. Users can search through discovered devices by IP and filtered searches so they can quicklydetailedCritical gather information on the infrastructure they’re looking for.

Key Features:

• IP range scanning
• Automated warranty checks
• Over 400 out-of-the-box reports

The platform comes with over 400 out-of-the-box reports that you can use to collect specific information from your environment. For example, you can create reports that detail all devices that are out of warranty or highlight unauthorized administrators. You can also create custom reports if you’re looking for other information.

Automated warranty checks are another helpful feature that comes with Lansweeper. These checks automatically scan devices and retrieve warranty details from the vendor’s websites and then issue you email alerts to notify you when a warranty is about to expire.

Lansweeper is an excellent solution for enterprises that require a free computer inventory management tool. It is available for Windows. Free and paid versions available. The free version supports up to 100 assets. The Enterprise version costs $1,815 (£1,286) per year. You can download the free trial from this link here.

9. 10-Strike Network Inventory Explorer

10-Strike Network Inventory Explorer is a network inventory monitor that automatically scans for devices throughout your network so you can monitor them. 10-Strike Network Inventory Explorer allows you to collect installed hardware, hardware changes, software changes, and more.

Key Features:

• Automatic device scanning
• Hardware and inventory change tracking
• Health monitoring
• Reports

The tool comes with a range of health monitoring capabilities that allow you to remotely read S.M.A.R.T parameters of connected computers, monitor disk health and temperature. You can use these parameters to find performance issues and then create reports to gather further information about the problem.

10-Strike Network Inventory Explorer is a good starting point for enterprises looking to monitor a smaller network environment. It is available on Windows. Pricing for the standard version starts at $79.95 (£56.65) and supports up to 25 computers. You can start the 30-day free trial from this link here.

10. EMCO Network Inventory

EMCO Network Inventory is a network inventory management tool that can remotely detect devices throughout your environment and provide you with an inventory summary. This summary includes OS name, OS type, service pack, build number, product ID, digital product ID, and install date of devices.

Key Features:

• Remotely detect network devices
• SQL query builder
• Reports
• Export views

An SQL query builder gives you the ability to run custom queries to find particular device data. Key systems data can be exported in Excel, PDF, XML, and other formats so that you can share information easily with the rest of your team/

Generate custom reports to highlight particular data points on devices. For instance, you can create a license report that allows you to compare the number of licenses you own against unused licenses. You can also create a report that lists the applications installed on a particular device.

EMCO Network Inventory is suitable for enterprises that require an affordable and effective computer inventory management solution. It is available on Windows. Prices start at $149 (£105.57) for the professional Edition, which supports up to 25 nodes. You can start the 30-day free trial via this link here.

Best Computer Inventory Management Software 

Tools like SolarWinds Server & Application Monitor, and ManageEngine AssetExplorer provide a hassle-free inventory management experience you can use to monitor configurations easily.

However, suppose you want a lower-cost tool with more limited features. In that case, an alternative like Spiceworks Network Inventory with network autodiscovery is a good choice because it’s reliable and free. That being said, we recommend trying out multiple tools before you decide to buy to make sure that you discover the solution that’s right for your environment.

L’article 10 Best Computer Inventory Management Software for 2021 est apparu en premier sur Comparitech.