Why You Should Get Rid of Your IT Inventory Excel Spreadsheet

When tasked with keeping track of the network devices in an organisation, many IT professionals instinctively open a fresh Excel sheet, punch in their assets, and build from there. Others will search for “IT inventory Excel template” or “Managing hardware in Excel” to give them a head start. Spreadsheets are familiar, easy to whip up and scalable… right? But Hold on.

System Administrators who had swapped their spreadsheets for a dedicated IT Asset Management solution rarely look back. Here are four reasons to look at.

Let Humans Do What Humans Do Best

Ask yourself this:

• Do you ever find yourself copying or typing those software license keys manually?
• Tired of tracking warranty statuses by digging up the serial number from an old receipt or boxes?
• Do you sometimes spend hours on editing an inventory task? And are you sure it’s 100% accurate?
• Is the official version of your network inventory doc named Asset_List v2_(copy)(copy)(3).xlsx?

If all this sounds familiar, you have been doing machine work all this time. An automated network discovery solution can gather a wealth of knowledge in minutes, while you focus on actual work. Inventory won’t take hours, and there’s no chance of typo’s when entering that OID or serial number.

More importantly, it keeps your data up-to-date, so you don’t have to edit your records after every maintenance. With a database full of information that you hadn’t even thought of tracking, you can bring up a report that suits your needs on the spot. No need to plan ahead for every possible challenge, and no lost time on entries you never even use.

People make mistakes, and their time is valuable. Your server can collect detailed information for you, without human errors. Focus on managing your IT, rather than your spreadsheets filled with inaccurate network info.

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Up-to-date Asset Data at your Fingertips 

Some information changes too rapidly to manage in spreadsheets. Our ITAM (IT Asset Management) Solution allows you to stay up to date with what’s going on at all times. Besides, it informs you when anything, in particular, requires your attention.

It allows you to manage the entire life cycle and history of an asset, along with a complete audit trail. Keep track of who borrowed which laptop, when they were online, and when the warranty expires. Spreadsheets equal limitations, and at best, help you to list your devices. With an automated solution, you own your network.

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Centralized ITAM System of Record 

It’s very hard to keep spreadsheets standardised. Everyone has their own ideas, tastes and methods for them. Even with shared workbooks, you can’t be sure that the info stored in these documents is accessible to other staff and is maintained properly.

Our ITAM Solution lets different users access the information they need, in one central system. The database is always consistent, and users with different skill levels and permissions can access that data in a way that suits them.
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One Spreadsheet to Rule Them All?

If your only tool is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. If your only tool is a spreadsheet, everything looks like a table. Why should the way you interact with your network be dictated by the format of a spreadsheet?

An ITAM solution is built for the job and will serve you a custom view, depending on whether you need to find local admins, view the percentage of remaining disk space on a hard drive, or get an overview on a specific asset or user.

Are you tired of using Excel spreadsheets and CSVs to track and manage your entire IT network? Start your free Lansweeper trial today and make time for what you do best. If you don’t know how to start, feel free to contact us at Robust HPC, our consultants are happy to show you how.