The ITAM Review

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Review: BMC Footprints Inventory Manager and Compliance Manager

This independent review of BMC Footprints Inventory Manager and Compliance Manager from BMC Software is part of our 2012 SAM Tools Review. See all participants and terms of the review here.

Executive Summary

Elevator Pitch A work in progress for SAM. All the foundation pieces for a great SAM solution but not quite there yet.
Strengths Great underlying inventory and compliance management
Weaknesses Only basic License Management capabilities
Primary Market Focus Systems Management Swiss Army Knife for Small and Medium Businesses

Commercial Summary

Vendor BMC Software
Product BMC Footprints Inventory Manager and Compliance Manager
Version reviewed V11.1
Date of version release April 2012
Year founded 1980
Customers 1,000
End points managed 2M
Pricing Indicative pricing per node for Inventory Manager and Compliance Manager respectively: 100 Seats $15, $10, 1,000 Seats $13.5, $9, 10,000 Seats $9.75, $6.5.
License Options License Types: “BMC Software offer flexible licensing options including mixed license models which do not lock clients into one particular model. Licensing models include named licensing, concurrent licensing, perpetual and subscription. Route To Market: Numara FootPrints is available direct or via branded channel partners, or indirect via select partners.”

Independent Review

We reviewed ‘Footprints Inventory Manager and Compliance Manager’ as part of our Discovery and Inventory Tools Group Test back in November last year, see the full report here.

As an inventory solution I was impressed and rated the offering as ‘Best in Class’ and ‘Best All Round Tool’ compared to the other tools we reviewed.

Unfortunately I can’t say the same for using Footprints Inventory Manager and Compliance Manager as a Software Asset Management (SAM) solution.

I would certainly recommend taking a look at the Inventory, but for anything other than very basic license management requirements it falls short.

For instance it only tracks licensing by device (or perpetual licensing) and does not allow for bulk upload of purchase history. So for most organizations they would find it labour intensive and restrictive for managing the software in their estate. There is little scope for managing other license types or anything beyond very basic license management.

Since the Inventory Group Test Numara has been acquired by BMC. The product is now called BMC Footprints Inventory and Compliance Manager.

Lets hope that the BMC product management team have the foresight to invest or acquire more depth into Footprints SAM capabilities. It has a great foundation to build upon, great inventory, tight integration with the rest of the Footprints family and a strong methodology for monitoring compliance.

BMC Footprints Inventory Manager and Compliance Manager Customers

  • Air France
  • Thurrock Council
  • Balfour Beatty
  • Tottenham Hotspur FC
  • West Midlands Ambulance Service

From The BMC Footprints Brochure

“Numara® FootPrints® Inventory Manager and Numara FootPrints Compliance Manager are part of a modular yet fully integrated solution for IT Lifecycle and IT Service Management.

FootPrints Inventory Manager automates complex inventory tracking providing accurate, current and complete asset intelligence to help guide investment decisions reduce manual processes and maintain compliance.

From the desktop, FootPrints Inventory Manager will automate the entire data-gathering process for your fixed and mobile IT assets whether they’re Windows®, MacOS®, Linux®/VMWare® Workstations, servers, laptops or mobile/peripheral devices. After the initial audit, you will have a complete view of your IT assets, including their current hardware and software configurations.

From the console you’ll be able to manage configuration changes across the network or enforce change-control policies. It will also maintain a detailed inventory history and update this through scheduled automated audits or its ‘audit now’ feature when you need your asset data in near real-time.

FootPrints Compliance Manager allows you to define policies based on vendors’ licensing agreements and other regulatory standards to quickly assess your compliance levels. With essential tools, reports and templates for ISO 27001, ISO 27002, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and Microsoft® hardening guides, you’ll be ready for your next audit with the minimum amount of disruption.

FootPrints Compliance Manager integrates tightly with FootPrints Inventory Manager to give non-intrusive, agent-less scans of your network that will detect any potential compliance issues. The dynamic grouping options allow you to quickly identify, group and take action against any devices that do not meet your defined compliance policies.”

Screenshot 

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Further Information

About Martin Thompson

Martin is owner and founder of The ITAM Review, an online resource for worldwide ITAM professionals. The ITAM Review is best known for its weekly newsletter of all the latest industry updates, LISA training platform, Excellence Awards and conferences in UK, USA and Australia.

Martin is also the founder of ITAM Forum, a not-for-profit trade body for the ITAM industry created to raise the profile of the profession and bring an organisational certification to market. On a voluntary basis Martin is a contributor to ISO WG21 which develops the ITAM International Standard ISO/IEC 19770.

He is also the author of the book "Practical ITAM - The essential guide for IT Asset Managers", a book that describes how to get started and make a difference in the field of IT Asset Management. In addition, Martin developed the PITAM training course and certification.

Prior to founding the ITAM Review in 2008 Martin worked for Centennial Software (Ivanti), Silicon Graphics, CA Technologies and Computer 2000 (Tech Data).

When not working, Martin likes to Ski, Hike, Motorbike and spend time with his young family.

Connect with Martin on LinkedIn.

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