Software Asset Management

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Software asset management (SAM) is the practice of integrating people, processes and technology to allow software licenses and usage to be systematically tracked, evaluated and managed. The goal of SAM is to reduce IT expenditures, human resource overhead and risks inherent in owning and managing software assets.

SAM includes maintaining software license compliance; tracking the inventory and usage of software assets; and maintaining standard policies and procedures surrounding the installation, deployment, configuration, and use of software assets. SAM represents the software component of IT asset management, which also includes hardware asset management.

Contents

[edit] Goals

  • Increase IT efficiency
    • Automate and improve accuracy of software inventory processes
    • Streamline and simplify access to software asset data
  • Reduce software costs
    • Eliminate or reallocate unused software licenses
    • Standardize the desktop environment
    • Negotiate volume license discounts that match software usage patterns
  • Limit business and legal risks
    • Avoid software license compliance violations
    • Comply with government regulations such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act through more accurate reporting of software assets and liabilities.
  • Improve network and data security
    • Identify the presence and use of unauthorized, harmful, or non-productive applications
    • Restrict access to unauthorized programs or applications containing sensitive data
    • Verify all machines meet security standards [1]

[edit] Role in an Organization

Software asset management can help organizations:

  • Streamline migrations by accommodating technology changes and deploying new applications more quickly
  • Improve help desk productivity by supporting a set of standard applications and extending access to data on individual machine configurations
  • Increase end user productivity by limiting or eliminating access to time-wasting software
  • Absorb mergers and acquisitions more readily
  • Comply with software licensing laws and avoid the fines, set back, and business disruption of forced compliance
  • Reduce costs by improving software buying decisions and eliminating overspending on maintenance and licensing fees for unused software
  • Better budget and plan for future IT spending
  • Minimize security risks by detecting and preventing the use of unauthorized software and enforcing desktop standards

[edit] Process

SAM process, at the minimum, should include the following steps:

  • Centralize Purchasing Records
    • Locate purchasing information for all software titles
    • Consolidate into digital format
    • Import or enter purchasing data into SAM tool, to be reconciled with software inventory and usage data
  • Conduct Software Inventory
    • Reconcile installed licenses with purchasing data to determine whether your organization is in compliance with licensing agreements; if not, take immediate corrective action
    • Identify computers that do not meet technology standards
    • This may include: locating machines that have unauthorized applications installed, identifying computers that don’t have required service packs or security patches installed, and determining which machines do not meet minimum requirements for upcoming OS or software migrations
  • Review Software Usage
    • Determine whether your organization has purchased more software than is actually being used, so you can reduce maintenance costs, re-allocate unused or underutilized licenses, and plan better for future software needs
    • Explore the extent to which unauthorized applications are being used that may post a threat to productivity, security, or network performance.
  • Review, document, and communicate policies and procedures
  • Establish ongoing SAM processes

[edit] Tools/Technology

  • PC Inventory tools “discover” every PC in a network, along with installed software and versions
  • Software Usage Tracking tools monitor the utilization of software applications across a network.
  • Application Control tools block the launch of unauthorized or harmful applications.
  • License Management tools reconcile inventory and/or usage data with purchasing information to ensure that organizations are neither underlicensed (and therefore subject to license compliance penalties) or overlicensed (and therefore overspending
  • Software deployment tools automate and regulate the deployment of new software
  • Patch (computing) Management tools automate the deployment of software patches to ensure that PCs are up-to-date and meet applicable standards

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. Rivera, Juan Fernando and Kris Barker (2006). "More and More Companies are Reaping the Rewards of IT and Software Asset Management: What Do They Know That You Don’t?" (PDF). Retrieved on 2007-03-26.
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