IT asset management according to ITIL often sounds like process diagrams, role descriptions, and governance—but what does it really look like in practice? This presentation begins with a concise overview of the ITIL practice “IT asset management” and classifies it with service configuration and service catalog management. It then presents specific, tried-and-tested use cases: from the structured development of a robust asset database to beneficial integration into service processes.

The second part gets technical: Using the open source solutions KIX (ITSM and asset management platform) and OPSI (endpoint management), it shows how hardware and software information is automatically fed into an asset database and a software catalog. In addition, the presentation demonstrates how software can be rolled out directly in a workflow-controlled manner—controlled from the ITSM context and with simple service templates for IT users. This transforms IT asset management from a documentation project into an active control instrument within the IT organization.