Asset Discovery Process

This introduction article will help asset discovery customers to get familiar with the implementation process using the TDNext and TDAdmin interfaces.

This introduction article will help asset discovery customers to get familiar with the implementation process. To complete many of these steps, the user must have admin access to the Assets/CIs application in TDNext or be a global administrator in TDAdmin.

Overview

Once you have purchased asset discovery services, you will be paired with a TeamDynamix implementation consultant who will walk you through the installation and setup process. This article can be used as a companion to the implementation process or as a guide for completing some of the implementation action items between meetings.

Where to Find This

The features in this article are found in the TDAdmin interface.

Navigate to asset discovery configuration following these paths:

• TDNext > application menu > Asset/CI Application > gear icon in the top right corner > Admin > Asset Discovery
• TDAdmin > Applications > Asset/CI application > Asset Discovery

Implementation Plan

The implementation plan will vary based on your specific needs, but you can expect to cover these topics with your implementation consultant:

Preparing for Installation

To prepare for your meeting, read the article Installing the Asset Discovery Service. Make sure to request or create a Windows virtual machine to host the discovery service. You will walk through the installation process with your consultant.

Depending on your network structure, you may need to install the service on more than one virtual machine on different subnets or network sectors.

If you choose to install the asset discovery service before you meet with your implementation consultant, please configure in your sandbox environment first.

Determining Required Data Providers

The data providers you will use will depend on the devices you will be scanning for. Your consultant will help you identify which provider(s) to use based on your needs.

You can read an overview of these data providers in our Asset Discovery Data Providers article.

You will need to work internally to ensure that any required data providers are enabled on your network.

Configuring TDAdmin for Asset Discovery

After the asset discovery service is installed, your next few meetings with your implementation consultant will be dedicated to configuring the service.

First, you will learn about the discovery scanner, which is created in TDAdmin when you install the discovery service. If you have not already done so, your consultant will have you change the log level to Verbose, which will assist in any troubleshooting.

Next, you will learn how to create and configure one or more discovery jobs to target different devices on your network. Once the discovery job is created, you will run the job and then use the discovery manager application to sync the new configuration and run the job.

Finally, you will review the devices that your discovery job found.

Second Asset Discovery Meeting with Consultant

1. If you haven’t already done this, the consultant will walk you through installing the Windows Service.
   • The Installing the Asset Discovery Service article will help with this.
2. Create a Discovery Scanner in TDAdmin.
   • Set log levels to Verbose.
3. Create a Discovery Job in TDAdmin for each protocol that is desired and the agent, if applicable.
   • When editing the Discovery Job, you can add a series of filters to make sure you are targeting what you want.
   • Status should be In Use.
   • Gatherer Type of Asset Scanner.
   • Scanner is the one you created.
   • Data Providers.
     • Ping is the most lightweight, followed by SNMP, and then WMI. Because of this, start with Ping.
       • Start with a retry count of 5.
       • For Mac, concurrent requests of 500 is suggested.
     • Then add another row for the proper protocol, e.g., SNMP.
       • Additional fields will appear.
         • For Target Selection Type, Pingable is recommended.
         • SNTP Version.
         • Community Strings will run on the default, which is public, if left blank. If typically managed, enter the string, and you can list Public as a second line.
4. Go to the Windows Service and click Sync Configuration to pull the configuration from TDAdmin. Then, within TDAdmin, click Run.
   • You can manually run the discovery scan from the Windows Service and see what turns up.
   • Clicking Run from the Sync Job pulls the assets to TDX.
   • Go to Discovered/Synced Assets within TDAdmin to see what you’ve found.
5. Adjust Mappings as Needed
   • You can configure mappings for Manufacturers, Product Types, and Product Models.
   • If there is a direct match, it will map it. For example, Dell won’t match to Dell Inc. unless you configure it to do so in Discovered Manufacturer Mappings.
   • It’s possible to map many results to one Model, Type or Vendor, so if you end up with three entries (e.g., HP, Hewlett Packard, and Hewlett-Packard), you can map them all to the original entry.
   • It’s very important to check the mappings if you’ve already been using the Assets/CIs part of the tool because you want to make sure what is discovered maps to what you already have.
   • Mappings should be reviewed regularly, at least annually, to ensure they’re still mapping correctly.
6. Test the Agent (if applicable).

Additional Information

1. Scanners are at the Environment level. Jobs are at the application level.
   • This is especially important if you have more than one Asset/CI application.
2. Probes vs. Data Gatherers
   • Ping is a probe and returns an IP address.
   • Gatherers pull in other relevant data from the device.
   • The order in which you pull this information matters, which is why we suggest ping first.