The IT Assets Database was replaced by the IT Admins CMDB and is EOL / End of Life, no further development will be done on this project.
The IT Assets database is an open source Microsoft Access database front end application and a Microsoft SQL server database in the back end.
For most IT purposes, you might already find most features in the project, in case you miss some you can change and adjust the SQL database as well as the whole front end so it fits your specific needs.
The features page actually provides a pretty detailed overview of what the system is capable off, therefor I will not repeat this here. But I wanted to take the time and explain a few thought principles to help you understand where this project came from and how it actually works.
From a developer point of view – please keep in mind that this actually emerged from an Access front-end and Access back-end database. Some of the code might reveal this. More details can be found here.
In general the following is important to know
- the SQL server is writing history entries any time a change is made to a data record
- deletions directly in the tables are not tracked
- new entries only exist in the main table, only if the record is changed an previous version will be logged in the history table (this could be change by adjusting the triggers in SQL)
- the application / Access front-end does not allow a regular user to delete any records, you only can add records
- deletions directly in the tables are possible – it is not blocked, just regular users can not delete records from the front-end
- automated and background tasks are executed by a floating principle
- you always need to have at least one instance of the application open to execute tasks like the Active Directory monitoring or sending out reminder e-mails
- employees are imported automatically from Active Directory
- application users need to be created manually and have rights assigned in order to open the application
- colors of the various fields within the application
white text and drop-down fields- those are not bound to a specific list – you can chose from the shown list or just enter your own data – the list will show your new entry the next time you drop it down
- this is accomplished by the “Limit To List” property setting in the code
green text and drop-down fields- those fields are read-only – you can not change them
- this is accomplished by the “Locked” property setting in the code
yellow drop-down lists- those lists are fixed – you will need to chose an entry from the list
- removing the selection of a drop-down field – list bound or not
- simply mark the entry and hit DEL or backspace – the field should be empty and you can save the record (assuming it allows empty selections, what is normally the case)
- access the history of a record
- the current record you see is always the current version and not yet in the history
- if a record was changed, a history entry will exist
- each record has a RECORD tab where you can see the ID, creator, created date, editor, edited date and a history button
- clicking on this button will copy the form you are on and attach it with a filter to the history table automatically
- the form is copied automatically, all changes you make to the form in the code will automatically publish through
- the form will automatically bind to the _history table of the record type and show all available previous versions including who and when it was changed
- note: in some cases the form where you clicked the history button might close – you simply can open it again
- ticket # from your helpdesk system
- throughout the database you will find over and over a field called Ticket # – this is to enter a ticket number from your helpdesk system
- you can configure a helpdesk URL in the Sys Config where the ticket number will be added in the end
- this allows you to use the Open button next to those fields to quickly open the associated helpdesk ticket
On the further pages of this online manual / documentation I will try to provide an as good as possible overview of what you can do and how it works in detail for each of those sections.