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Inventory Explorer, Mapping, Monitoring and Alert&Ticketing

One architecture in one scalable product

Inventory Explorer, Mapping, Monitoring and Alert&Ticketing

A product that documents and enables deep exploration of the MySQL asset dbase using a consistent and compact interface that makes the product easy to use. It primarily uses the dbase created by a network discovery, however the sublimely easy to use ITIL functionality allows a host of extra details to be added including adding extra devices. The product GUI is very compact with no complex menu drill downs. A layered tabbed structure automatically organises Asset views. The product is ready to go directly following Discovery with no extra configuration necessary. The Discovery supports any number of Discoveries plus Historical Versions, that capability is fully supported in Asset.

Asset

The default display grid is shown below, each grid has a default set of columns, but extra columns can be added or columns removed. The grids are fully dynamic and generated at the client side, so support column resizing, drag bigger or smaller, and consistent capabilities such as Export, Print, Search/Filter plus Column Chooser.

Clicking on an Underlined link on the left part of the Asset display grid above launches the Device Drilldown as below. The system automatically manages the huge list of metrics Codima Toolbox supports, to focus the GUI on what the user is looking at, for example; Memory Chips types, Scrap Values, detailed Location. Then the major features such as Filter, Analyse and Update Devices use the selected grid format to customise their GUIs.
For example, selecting Service Dates as the main topic and Service Summary sets up the rest of the system to focus on this selection as in the grid below.
This grid summarises EOL, EOS, End of Sale, and Warranty details. The report filters devices that are outside current support or warranty for example. The Update feature can be used to set each metric such as warranty or end of life in conjunction with the Filters feature. For example, filter all devices of type Cisco Model 4508, and then set EOS, EOL etc in one simple Update operation. In this case below the focus is set to Commercial and Asset Commercial.

Explorer

Detailed Exploration of the Asset Database is a cinch – simply Select the Tabs to focus on the Area Under Investigation, then click on Filter to refine the analysis.
The user is examining Commercial details by selecting Commercial then Asset Value, so the filter options change accordingly as below. There is a wide range of match operations including true wild cards and even REGEX to match complex terms.
An important feature is the ability to select Devices manually or using Filters and then summarising say the Number of devices in a matching room or maybe the Purchase price per Manufacturer or a Supplier. A single click opens the Analyse feature as below: –
As with other features the options presented reflect the Grid Chosen using the Main Tabs in this case Device Basics. Multiple graph types show the results of the Analysis operation.
The grid output format allows further analysis plus the ability to export the results to Excel for example, or other user defined processing.

In Codima Toolbox user created Custom Fields are treated exactly the same as regular fields, and are used in Filters, Analytics and Summary features with no restrictions unlike other solutions. Custom fields are used to add user metrics like Power Rail Connection as in the example.

The user can create Groups which can be used throughout the system
A library of Reports can be created in a couple of clicks probably based on a sophisticated Filter. The fully organised Report Selection Tree, plus truly detailed Filters, means a clumsy, ill-fitting library of hundreds of reports that never quite fit is unnecessary. Only truly discovery specific Reports need to be saved.

ITIL

ITIL is a fantastically powerful IT asset management tool adding details to a Discovery that can be used by Accounts, Engineers, Stock control and Network Support. The problem with many existing solutions is bureaucracy, and often need extensive training, by contrast Codima Toolbox is a snap to use. The Codima Toolbox ITIL system transforms a typically tedious process into almost fun – as it is so sublimely easy to use. Adding ITIL boosts productivity, visibility and addresses security concerns about deployed Software and Hardware.
The Inventory system uses the Discovery Engine to populate the device database. Very many fields are setup automatically by the Discovery Engine, however, fields such as detailed Location, Suppliers, Monetary Values, Warranties, and device state like Scrapped or In Storage cannot be set automatically. They need to be setup by the user. Adding ITIL details to a device can either be per device or update any number of devices in one operation. The user is presented with a list of fields to be updated including user added Custom Fields. Only ticked fields are updated for maximum flexibility.
For example, a new batch of say Switches may have been purchased. In one operation the Supplier, Support Details, Maintenance and Commercial details can be added to all the new devices. A very slick operation.
New devices that were not discovered by the discovery engine can be added very quickly using the popup below accessed directly from the main GUI. This covers the case with equipment that is not discovered by the discovery engine, maybe it is powered down or not actually a network asset such as a motor car.

Web Map

A map of a small network like below draws in a Web Browser in milliseconds – multiple thousands of devices draw in a second or two with an equally fast device(s) drag during editing. Blazingly fast. Topology Maps are created automatically following the completion of a network discovery. The map is drawn very quickly in the native browser graphics language SVG. The devices can be dragged around, and the connecting links follow in real time. The draw speed is milliseconds for medium size maps and a second or two for very large maps. Drag editing is equally fast.

There is an extensive set of standard views available selected by a single click. 

This is a Layer 2 Tree map:

Map Display Control

The map has an array of sophisticated formatting capabilities.
Map image size can be changed in an instant with a per device type advanced autoscaling system to shrink minor items like Phones and scale up major devices. A map background can be added, for instance an office floor plan
The maps can be edited directly IN BROWSER, even with large maps. Drilldowns and user named submaps can be created quickly with an auto back link from the master map to the sub map.

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Custom Views

The User can also create their own views by selecting devices to show in the map from a Tree control, or by using the detailed ITIL Filter engine. Sometimes Maps can be extraordinarily complex when large networks have been discovered by Codima Toolbox. It is possible to select devices in the Web Map using ITIL or other Inventory details to filter the map content as shown.

This picture shows drill down options from the Map to Inventory (including an ability to update ITIL on the drilled device ) and other Licensed features as below with a Monitoring, Alerts and Ticketing plus Software Security License as available drill options, even a Web Full function SNMP browser.

The maps can be edited directly IN BROWSER, even with large maps. Drilldowns and user named submaps can be created quickly with an auto back link from the master map to the sub map.
Below is the Map Device Drill Down Full SNMP MIB Browser option.

Advanced Features

With the correct license, Maps can be viewed on remote probes in a Codima Toolbox Dashboard with live updates and full edit and display control. Traffic is animated with the Codima Toolbox Monitoring License including from remote probes.

Visio Map

Visio Maps use the Microsoft Standard documentation package Visio. It is used by many organisations as a standard presentation format. Visio is a very flexible drawing package and well suited to documenting simple or complex network topologies.
Visio Maps can be viewed from the Codima Toolbox web system by using the Codima Toolbox Visio download facility. The user will have full Visio editing capabilities if a copy of Visio is installed. Otherwise the free Visio Viewer can be installed to draw the Visio style picture, editing is not allowed.

Visio is a Windows rather than a Web Product and is an industry standard documentation tool, below are some Visio Maps produced after a Codima Toolbox Network Discovery.

Monitoring

Monitoring is fully automatic using standard rules, literally Network Discovery directly sets up the Monitoring, with zero user setup, and just gets on with monitoring. The monitoring can also be tuned based on user created sophisticated rules and fine grain device target matchers, or simply set on/off per device. Multiple thresholds and escalating alert levels can be set for any number of metrics. Results are displayed in HighSoft top in class dynamic graphs.

Monitoring can be shown using Device Drill Down as below.
The monitoring engine supports a wide range of metrics including key KPIs from WMI, which are monitored 24/7 long term.
Software Violations Monitoring is included in the Monitoring module. It is important to quickly detect malware or software that should not be active on a sensitive Server like remote access software. Similarly, it may be necessary to detect missing software on a machine such as anti-virus solutions. An engine polls devices every 15 minutes looking for Processes and Services that are in violation of White or Black List rules. Reports are typically viewed in Dashboards, but there is also a Live Analysis view.

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Alerts and Ticketing

Alerts and Ticketing is a from the ground up, Integrated system (not a bolted on package with a different GUI). It pulls together Alerts from Codima Toolbox Monitoring and External Alerts such as Syslog, and then Classifies and Presents them throughout the system including in Codima Toolbox Live Maps (including Probes).
Tickets can be generated Automatically or added Manually and sent to general or specialised Teams. The system automatically Tracks and chases up Tickets by talking to engineer and supervisor pools, using an elegant but world class setup. A diagram illustrates Polling operation:

Alerts are logged and processed by Codima Toolbox. Sources include Codima Toolbox Generated Monitoring Alerts such as CPU Loading too high, Ping Response time too long, Disk access slow. Additionally, External Alerts from network gear like Switches, Routers and firewalls are all processed be they from Syslog or SNMP Traps.

Windows Event Logs are also processed in near real time when enabled by the user.
The Windows alerts can be accessed quickly (unlike directly through windows logs) and sorted and searched in the grid above.

The system can also show Fan or PSU (Power Supply Unit) failures or security issues detected by a firewall – per mapped device. Maps on remote probes are also updated live in a Probe Dashboard Map.

Ticketing runs in real time and checks incoming Alerts to see if a new Ticket needs to be Generated. Existing tickets are tracked for timeout violations causing a Supervisor Message to be generated. This simple GUI below condenses a complex GUI in other products, into a single setup box in Codima Toolbox without loss of functionality. 

A critical benefit from a single totally integrated product, is that a Ticket is issued literally in a second or two from detection of a Ticket generation Alert and emailed to an Engineer. Perfect when immediate action may be needed following a critical failure.
Pools of general or specialised teams can be set up in minutes. The team is selected by the Triage Engine when processing Alerts. Extra teams possibly regionally based can be added using Engineer Groups.
Tickets from all sources can be viewed together or per device eg for Ticket 100101 below.
Tickets are also integrated with Map. Below we see 4 devices with Expedited Tickets outstanding, clicking on the Ticket icon will show ticket details.

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