To write this article, I started with a search for the term “Asset Management” in Wikipedia (www.wikipedia.com) and I ended up in a redirected page that describes “Investment Management”, and why not? When referred to as an “Asset” it is common to consider the cost, the depreciation, and the book value (residual value) of an asset. However if referred to as an “Investment” it is inspires me to think the true value of an asset. If you have read a previous article by Gamutsoft’s EVP – Kato-san, you would understand immediately it is important to always consider the TVO (Total Value of Ownership), and maximize the value of IT in its business operations.
An investment is the choice, after thorough analysis, to place or lend money in a vehicle (e.g. property, stock securities, bonds) that has sufficiently low risk and provides the possibility of generating returns over a period of time.
Now with that in mind, isn’t it true we must better manage our assets (investments)? Please allow me to share with you my journey and sights and sounds in the field of IT Asset Management.
Asset Management as a by-product of Desktop Management
In my role as a Systems Engineer, in 1996 I demonstrated a desktop management solution based on the Microsoft Systems Management Server (SMS) version 1.2. It was specifically focused on managing client computers in a Windows NT Domain, with a client-side agent (software) to allow the system administrator to collect hardware and software details of Windows PCs, deploy software packages, and to perform remote control. It was also a sneak preview of what is to come in IT Asset Management because of the ability to perform asset inventory from a central location, although at the time it was limited to a single physical network. Customers responded positively to the solution and particularly the Software Deployment and Remote Control feature, considering at the time the most common desktop operating system was Microsoft Windows 95.
Note: The widely used Remote Desktop Connection application was introduced in 2001 as part of Windows XP, four generations later from Windows 95.
As of 1996, although tools existed with the ability to collect hardware and software details, the information collected is used mainly for software deployment projects. Few off-the-shelf tools were available solely for the purpose of hardware and software asset management. Nevertheless it was a beginning to perform automated hardware and software asset discovery and paves a path to the generations of asset management tools to come.
Significance: Early adaptation of automation tools to perform hardware and software asset inventory.
Asset Management as a solution to an impending problem
From 1998, the world began counting down to the potential disaster when the clock roll-over mid-night (00:00) from December 31st, 1999 to January 1st, 2000, known as “the millennium bug”, “Year 2000 problem”, or “Y2K”. Simply put, any system that had a built in clock could potentially fail at 00:00 01-01-2000. I won’t go into the details here but a quick search for “Y2K” in Google or Wikipedia will provide much information.
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