IT Inventory and Resource Management with OCS Inventory NG 1.02. Eliminate inventorying dilemmas by implementing a free and feasible IT Inventory solu

IT Inventory and Resource Management with OCS Inventory NG 1.02. Eliminate inventorying dilemmas by implementing a free and feasible IT Inventory solu - Opis

OCS Inventory NG is a cross-platform, open-source inventory and asset management solution. It brings more than plentiful features to the table to satisfy the business needs of small-to-large organizations with up to tens of thousands of computers. However, to put this inventory solution to optimum use requires a lot of skill.This book will lead you through the steps of implementing OCS-NG until you master working with it. This book aims at reducing efforts involved in resource management. The solution gives a robust foundation on top of which we can implement other third party applications, plugins, and much more.This book begins with the basics—it explains what IT inventorying needs are to be met in the real-world. Then, it covers a step-by-step approach to everything you need to know to set up and implement OCS-NG as a centralized inventory solution to meet all these requirements. It delves deeper into carrying out inventory tasks with every chapter.You will learn how to choose the best agent type and deployment method. We discuss the process of gathering inventory data and cover techniques for creating and deploying packages. You will also learn how to acquire added benefits with the use of plugins. We discuss best practices on inventorying and troubleshooting agent-related problems. The book presents real-world inventorying scenarios along with their solutions. You will basically learn how to use OCS-NG to get the most out of it.As a conclusion, if you want to learn about a free solution that fulfils inventorying necessities of the real-world, this is the book for (...) więcej you. Spis treści:
IT Inventory and Resource Management with OCS Inventory NG 1.02
Table of Contents
IT Inventory and Resource Management with OCS Inventory NG 1.02
Credits
About the Author
Acknowledgement
About the Reviewer
Preface
What this book covers
What you need for this book
Who this book is for
Conventions
Reader feedback
Errata
Piracy
Questions
1. Introduction to IT Inventory and Resource Management
Inventorying requirements in the real world
A feasible solution to avoid inevitable havoc
Streamlining software auditing and license management
More uses of an integrated IT inventory solution
Gathering relevant inventory information
Overall inventory demands to enhance usability
Centralization: Introducing the client-server model
Example of the client-server modelan Internet forum
The client-server model versus the peer-to-peer paradigm
IT inventorying based on the client-server model
How does OCS Inventory NG meet our needs?
Brief overview on OCS Inventory NGs architecture
Rough performance evaluation of OCS-NG
Meeting our inventory demands
Set of functions and what it brings to the table
Taking a glance at the OCS-NG web interface
An incentive on functionalities
Summary
2. Setting up an OCS Inventory NG Management Server
Getting ready for the OCS-NG installation
Setting up prerequisite software on Linux flavors
Demystifying package management
The everlasting dilemma of solving dependency hell
Getting familiar with your distribution's package manager
Yum on RPM-based Linux distributions
APT and Aptitude/Synaptic on Debian and its derivates
Emerge and Portage, the heart of Gentoo Linux
Installing Apache, MySQL, and PHP/Perl on Linux systems
Installing the AMP stack with yum
Installing AMP stack with apt
Installing AMP stack with emerge on Gentoo
Installing the AMP stack with an XAMPP precompiled package
Setting up the necessary modules on Linux systems
Setting up the OCS-NG management server on Linux operating systems
Installing OCS-NG server via an RPM package
Installing OCS-NG server via installation script
Downloading and extracting the OCS-NG server package
Running the installation script and checking prerequisites
The real work behind the scenes of the script
Setting up the OCS-NG management server on Windows operating systems
XAMPP for Windows, the warm-up stage
Warning: XAMPP 1.6.8-1.7.1a known issue and solution
Launching the OCS-NG integrated installation
A pragmatic look at initial configuration
Summary
3. The Zen of Agent Deployment
Behind the scenes: How agents earn their living
Choosing the best agent type
Demystifying the LocalSystem account of Windows OS
Choosing the best deployment method
Deploying agents on Windows operating systems
Getting familiar with command-line arguments
Manual installation strategies
Using OcsLogon.exe to deploy via GPO or login scripts
Using the packager to create the deployable agent
Getting the agent package on the OCS-NG server
Deployment via Active Directory GPOs
Initiating deployment with OcsLogon.exe via login script
Unattended installation via the PsExec.exe tool
Deploying agents on Linux operating systems
Installing agents on Linux with user interaction
Installing agents on Linux without user interaction
Deploying agents on Mac OS X operating systems
Deploying agents on mobile devices
Summary
4. Finding your Way through OCS-NG Features
Getting familiar with the OCS-NG web interface
Logging in
Looking around and examining the view
Elaborating the overview section of statistics
Getting to know the blue query toolbar
Understanding the first two queries
Demystifying TAG-based repartitioning
Understanding the other three queries
Getting to know the administrative toolbar
Preliminary configuration tips and best practices
Explaining configuration parameters
Maintaining a clean inventory: Solving common pitfalls and eliminating redundancies
Implementing the Registry query function
Uploading inventory data of hosts that are not networked
Working with the inventory
Summary
5. Investigating the Process of Gathering Inventory Data
Going beyond the retrieval mechanism
Using the IP Query function
Summary
6. Package Deployment through OCS-NG
Getting to know the package deployment function
Creating a package: Step-by-step approach
Server requirements for effortless deployment
Package activation and going beyond deployment
Affecting packages: Getting the packages through
Managing the rules of affectations
Securing the process with SSL certificates
Working with self-signed certificates
Working with PKIs that have certificate authority
Getting the certificates deployed on agents
Summary
7. Integrating OCS-NG with GLPI
Introducing GLPI: IT asset management on steroids
Getting familiar with the web interface of GLPI
Setting up GLPI on top of our OCS-NG server
Configuring GLPI to integrate with the OCS-NG mode
Extending GLPI with plugins
Using GLPI to track and manage inventory assets
Carrying out administrative tasks with GLPI
Generating reports and statistics with GLPI
License tracking and software auditing with GLPI
Helpdesk and issue tracking functions of GLPI
Summary
8. Best Practices on Inventorying with OCS-NG
Backing up and restoring the OCS-NG database
Dumping the database with mysqldump
Dumping the database with phpMyAdmin
Restoring SQL dump files via MySQL's CLI
Automating and scheduling dumping backups via scripts
Adding the scheduled job into crontab on Linux OS
Writing the batch script and adding into Windows Scheduler
Tweaking the OCS-NG server for performance
Useful scripts that make our everyday life easier
Implementing PHP notification-sender scripts
Extending OCS-NG inventory via .vbs scripts
Uninstalling the OCS agent via batch script
Best practices on retrieving model-specific data of various computer hardware components
Retrieving model-specific data of HDDs
Retrieving model-specific data of RAM memory modules
Updating OCS-NG agents on clients (when needed)
Updating the Windows agent
Updating the UNIX agent
Updating OCS-NG central server (when needed)
Summary
9. Troubleshoot ConfidentlyFind Solutions and Workarounds
Keeping an eye on the behavior of agents
A closer look at the agent's logfile
Troubleshooting problems related to agents
Forcing an agent to report inventory
Solving administration console-based issues
Solving MySQL limitations the right way
Solving PHP limitations the right way
Identifying and fixing issues on the server backend
Communication server fails to write a logfile on Linux
Diagnosing uncommon pitfallsasking for help
Summary
A. Keeping Pace with Version UpdatesGlancing over the changelog of the Latest Release
Analyzing the changelog
Index mniej