Asset Tracking

[#1]

Greetings.

When a computer fails, especially one in our one-to-one project, we often replace it with a different computer of the same type. If we don't have other clear records, does Casper provide a way to find which computers a given person has owned or used? [For example, I suspect that we have replaced a given user's computer more than once, and want to check. Can I do so?]

I know that, for a given computer, you can look at the location history (and, IIRC, when a user logs in to our system, a policy adds them as the owner of the computer). I also know that you can search in the logs (as far back as they go) and it seems that this may have bearing on the question at hand, but I have not seen how to get out the information I want.

Regardless of if Casper can provide me with the information, what tools have you found valuable in keeping track of asset history?

Thank you,
Clinton Blackmore

[tlarkin]

I also work in a massive 1:1 and I live and die by usage logs. Granted this only logs when a user logs in and out of a laptop and most of our users log in a total of a dozen times in a whole school year. However, they have to log in to use it. Under the Admin tab in the JSS if you see the search bar on the bottom left, you can input a user's user name and it will pull up every computer they have ever logged into. Usage logs are logs that I keep too all school year. I only wipe them over the summer.

So if you have a user that is logging into multiple machines they are either logging into lots of spares, or they are logging into other people's machines. Then you can start poking around all those machines history. Like for example if a laptop that a user in question has not checked in for a month I know it is probably out for repair. I can then check my repair documents and sure enough that asset tag is there.

Our in house developers actually just created a really awesome web based inventory system with a full history, work order ticket system, a check in/out log, and all sorts of other goodies where all I have to do is log in, scan the bar code and boom, pulls it up. We are working on possibly toying with the idea of tying the casper database into it as well. So we can pull last IP and last contact time but that is down the road.

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Thomas Larkin
TIS Department
KCKPS USD500
tlarki at kckps.org
blackberry: 913-449-7589
office: 913-627-0351

[kalikkalik]

WebHelpDesk has helped us out in many of these aspects, since it retains a basic history on each asset....and integrates with Casper.