EOL Asset DB – Release Notes

The IT Assets Database was replaced by the IT Admins CMDB and is EOL / End of Life, no further development will be done on this project.

The IT Assets database grew over time and various new versions have been released. The initial release was 1.0 and later by version 2.0 as of 12/26/2018. In May 2019 version 3.0 was released – starting with this release – the version number of the database was made visible in the main menu.

Go to the download page to get the latest version as well as any updates. Be aware that you need to update step by step to the newest version. Updates are NOT cumulative.

Version 3.5 – 10/2020

What changed:

As always, there have been various minor bug-fixes and improvements. The list below gives you an overview of the major adjustments and improvement.

  • Localization
    • Yes – the system is now adjustable to other languages, this is all controlled over three tables
      • By Default everything is set to English
      • You determine the default language in the SysConfig
      • You can set different languages on the user if needed
    • Available languages by default
      • English
      • German / Deutsch
      • Language3
        • this is not yet filled in, but the columns exist in the according tables and you can simply fill it out in your local language
        • if you translated it and want to make it available to other people, please contact me, I am more then happy to add it
  • Generic improvements and bug fixes
    • issues with forms not opening on smaller resolutions are fixed
    • Exports asks now if the file shall be opened – besides that now only the what you see is what you get rule will work including better column names if set
  • Backup review
    • Adjusted to the current Backup Exec view format
  • Project Tasks
    • you can now related them to various assets
    • an auto-mail creator was implemented that allows you to e.g. per mouse click create tickets respective emails for those tasks
  • Purchases
    • general overhaul of the form with various improvements
    • GL account field was added
  • Employees
    • Manager of the employee is now visible, if set in Active Directory
  • Server and Equipment
    • validated field was added, this checkbox allows you to determine if this is a special validated system
  • Workstations
    • validated field was added, this checkbox allows you to determine if this is a special validated system
  • Printers
    • monthly average was added if the SNMP is engaged
    • SNMP data and graph now only load when clicked on the register cards, to avoid the large overhead if you have a lot of data in the tables (readings from the printers)
      • the columns in the search have been disabled for those values, as this also created speed issues in the printers module
  • Software
    • you have various validation options added, this is mainly for regulated environments where you need to know if a software is validated, or why there is an exception and why you don’t have to validate this specific software
  • Phones
    • this was improved a lot – you have way more entry fields available now, this should also make it possible to e.g. link and trace cell phones
  • Include / Exclude Loaner workstations from the main view for expiring workstations, as loaners might be older devices that don’t count here
  • SysConfig
    • you can adjust the currency symbol if needed – as some fields did not auto-adjust to your local settings, this should take care of this issue

Version 3.0 – 5/2019

If you downloaded the IT Assets Database before 12/26/2018 you will have version 1.0. If so, please update to version 2.0 of the IT Assets Database before you upgrade to version 3.0. Starting with version 3.0 you will see the version information of the database in the main menu. This also means, you either have version 1.0 or 2.0 if you do not see the version number in the main menu. Have a look at the new features of version 2.0 to determine if you have either version 1.0 or 2.0 already.

What changed:

As always, there have been various minor bug-fixes and improvements. The list below gives you an overview of the major adjustments and improvement.

  • Generic improvements
    • pretty much every list box entry can now be double clicked (in details forms) what will lead you to the corresponding form / record
    • search – multiple TEXT/STRING criteria – you can combine search criteria for text values
  • Printers
    • known supplies for the printer are shown right at the first register card – making it easier to determine what supplies are needed for the model
    • SNMP counters
      • you can define SNMP strings and communities per printer, if you do so the database will periodically (SysConfig) try to contact the printers and collect the current print-out counts
      • this information then can be shown in a daily/monthly graph directly in the database on a per printer basis
        • eventually allowing you to known how heavily a printer is used over time and helping you to decide if the current printer is sufficient or overkill etc.
    • a print-report-label function was added, this allows to print a page that you can easily tag to a printer while it sits on a shelf – allowing you to see the most important information of the system
    • a asset tag field was added to the printers as well as a contract service id field (if leased printers often have an asset tag from the vendor in order to identify it with them)
  • Employees
    • the LDAP attribute EMPLOYEENUMBER was added to the sync
      • this differs from the field EMPLOYEENR that actually is stored in the database and stayed independent from this
    • LDAP attribute DEPARTMENTNUMBER was added to the sync
      • purpose is – you can populate the departmentnumber to Active Directory with checklists e.g. and overall this helps to identify users
      • Employees can now be related to Departments internally in the database
    • all synchronized LDAP attributes have been made visible
    • add new user per script button was added – this allows you to fire a script to create a new user in Active Directory from the database – avoiding to create it manually – eventually waiting that the new employee gets automatically created in the database with the LDAP sync
    • member of – LDAP Groups is now visible
    • the LDAP account status is now visible in a human readable form as well and you even can search on this (disabled accounts, expired, etc.)
  • Expenses
    • there was an issue with the calculation / sum under the list of expenses
  • Main Menu
    • loaned out workstations have their own list box now
    • version information of the database is shown next to the application name
  • Workstations
    • a print-report-label function was added, this allows to print a page that you can easily tag to a workstation while it sits on a shelf – allowing you to see the most important information of the system
    • if an employee is set and an department the database compares if employee and department are the same or not and indicates this visibly next to the department drop down field – helping to make sure the workstation and employee are in the same department – this of course depends on that employees are assigned to departments (new feature as well)
    • previous owners of workstations are now visible on a register card
    • previously assigned IP addresses are now visible
  • SysConfig
    • enable/disable the need for SMTP authentication – this was mandatory previously
    • enable/disable auto-drop down for drop down fields
    • the whole SysConfig form was changed, it now has a search mask as well – while you still can go to the old form in order to add / remove entries
  • Monitors
    • additional fields like make, model, serial number have been added
    • a print-report-label function was added, this allows to print a page that you can easily tag to a monitor while it sits on a shelf – allowing you to see the most important information of the system
    • currently in use and previously used by information is now shown as well
  • The Matrix
    • checklists have been added to the owner matrix
    • relate LDAP groups to the owner matrix entries
  • Purchases
    • the received date field auto fills when an item is marked as received and the date field is empty
  • Incidents
    • a button to create a folder in the file system for incidents was added – depending on a root path configured in the SysConfig
  • IP Addresses
    • previous relations on an I to Workstations, Servers, Printers and Phones have been added so you can easily see what the IP was used for previously
  • Servers
    • previously assigned IP addresses are now visible
  • Phones
    • previously assigned IP addresses are now visible
  • Checklists
    • scripts can now relate to any field within the checklist
      • previously a script depended on the field directly related, this was extended and is now way more versatile, eventually avoiding to create a separate script per checklist entry and allowing to create one single master script
      • this helps especially with e.g. processing users in Active Directory – fill out the checklist and execute the script in the end to set all values
      • the script button will as well check if the fields are filled out before executing the script (mini-validation)
    • drop down lists have been added to checklists
      • those can rely on an existing table or view or a SQL query as well as on a variable value list – all with multiple columns
      • the values are available for scripts (including every column of the select entry if there are multiple)
      • the selected value can write back to the source object where the list was created on – avoiding that you select an item on the checklist and then need to parallel adjusting the entry in the database
  • TAGs
    • TAGs are a major additional – eventually they are nothing else then a simple list of TAG and DESCRIPTION
    • you can add TAGs across assets and entries through the database to almost any entry
    • this eventually allows you to group e.g. Servers with Databases and Software as well as Printers and group em as one entity
    • in other words – it allows to relate entries through the asset database and show relations of complex systems – e.g. a database hosted on one server and a front end on another server
  • Departments
    • a description field was added
  • Groups
    • LDAP groups that already have been synchronized from Active Directory are now visible in the database including their LDAP settings
    • Checklists, Notes and TAGs have been added to this module as well
    • a CREATE NEW GROUP per Script button was also introduced, allowing to create the group from the database directly (new groups will then synchronized to the database from Active Directory with the LDAP sync.)
    • Group-Members from Active Directory like Employees or other Groups are now visible
  • WebServer Management
    • you can add webservers and relate them to servers as well as tagging them and adding notes to them
    • webservices are often spread out through the systems and it is easy to forget about them – this will help you to gather more control
    • web servers can be related to DNS entries as well as certificates
  • Certificate Management
    • while certificates should mainly relate and expire through expenses a certificate management was added
    • this allows you to relate certificates to various asset entries – specifically servers – in real life certificates are often used on more then just one system – this should help you to document where you need to replace the certificates when you need to renew it
  • DNS Management
    • DNS entries can be related to IP addresses and servers
    • DNS entries rely on a sub-table that defines DNS zones
    • this is to help you get a grip of your internal and external DNS zones and document the entries
      • it helps to document especially internally used aliases and see the bigger picture of your whole infrastructure
      • further does it allow you to document external DNS entries with your provider – which helps you to recover in case the provider loses them or you moved a domain

Version 2.0 – 12/2018

If you downloaded the IT Assets Database before 12/26/2018 you will have version 1.0. If so, please follow the instructions here to update to version 2.0 of the IT Assets Database.

What changed:

Besides some bug-fixes and improvements to the code the following things changed:

  • Expenses
    • Budgeted checkbox was added – this helps doing expense reviews for budged planning
  • Departments
    • The department number can be alpha-numeric now
  • Workstations
    • a type field was added to indicate e.g. Laptop, Desktop or Tablet – this is controlled in a background table
    • replace on field was added – if it is empty it will auto fill (SysConfig – Workstations – ReplaceOnAddMonths / default 36)
    • Confirmed date – this is a field / button that will let help you with inventory respective when the system was last seen by a technician
  • IP Addresses
    • IP Phones can now be selected / defined as well
    • jump directly to Servers, Workstations, Printers and Phones if they are set
  • Reminders
    • a SCR number / respective helpdesk ticket number can now be saved as well for review purposes
  • Main menu
    • buttons for various new functions and sections of the application
    • at the very bottom a new list for workstations due to be replaced was added (SysConfig – Main – WorkstationsReplaceInDays / default 30)
    • if you click in any listbox in the form the current shown record count will be shown in the bottom bar / status bar of the application respective Microsoft Access
    • some buttons have been re-arranged
    • ongoing checklists are shown in a listbox
  • Users / Application Users
    • additional right for the new program sections
    • LDAP sync – auto-sync value – only the users that have this checkbox set will execute the LDAP synchronization – this allows you to control this besides the roaming principle of the system
  • Printers
    • Confirmed date – this is a field / button that will let help you with inventory respective when the system was last seen by a technician
  • Serves and Equipment
    • Confirmed date – this is a field / button that will let help you with inventory respective when the system was last seen by a technician
    • PING and WEB buttons have been added above the IP-Lists. This allows you to quicker work with the IP addresses assigned to a system in your environment
  • Notes
    • this was added to almost every part of the application – Server, Workstations, Printers, Checklists, etc…..)
    • additional a new general notes search menu was created to search through all notes
    • the notes will allow you to add and edit notes attached to any of the records – this helps to mention special configurations, special information and even being searchable in a central view
  • Purchases
    • linked purchases pulls the same PO number from tables like Servers & Equipment, Printers, Workstations, Software, Monitors and lists it there assuming the number/field is a match, double click to jump to the asset
  • General optic
    • icons and other optical improvements for buttons and various register-cards etc. have been added (standard Microsoft Access icons) to improve the optic of the whole program
  • History reports
    • a daily email report of changes for the assets in Workstations, Printers and Server and Equipment was added
    • this report will send out daily emails depending of the configuration in SysConfig – HistoryReport
    • it will show what changed in those tables and include some history information – if many people work on the assets, this can help to see what changed in the last 24 hours
  • Checklists
    • this module allows you to create checklist for Servers, Workstations and Users. A checklist can include scripts and links as well as text fields. Please refer to the Checklist section of the manual for details.
  • Pre-Filtering
    • if the pre-filter checkbox exists on a form the system will filter out the source-view additionally via the column “DefaultHideFromSearch” (=0), this is defined in the source views in SQL. Those view might retrieve this information from a central table or determine the column dynamically via the underlying data. The whole function is mainly to filter out retired/inactive records per default from the searches in various places. The longer you use the database the more data will be stored in it, this has a negative performance impact and / or might even clutter up the views and searches. The checkbox is set by default until you manually deselect it.
    • When a new record is added, the pre-filter gets unset by default – this is to avoid any wrong filtering due to not set values
  • IT Supplies
    • this is a new module, it allows you to track your IT supplies like projector bulbs or e.g. available spare SSD drives etc. – please refer to the section in the manual for details
  • Microsoft Access full version
    • if you are using a full version of Microsoft Access, you saw the navigation pane and menu ribbons of Microsoft Access by default. This is now hidden by default, instead you will see a button “Show Tables” (depending on the right to see SysConfig in the application users – if you can’t see this button you won’t see the Show Tables button either – making it more secure as well), to show those menus again.
  • Links
    • links now can open applications or paths as well, use one of the following examples to accomplish this
      • explorer.exe “C:\”
      • excel.exe “c:\file.xls”
  • MAC address search
    • since there are many places where MAC addresses can be saved, a new global search view was added, allowing you to search for MAC addresses
    • the underlying view tries to normalize the MAC in various columns / versions for your convenience

Version 1.0

Initial release