Authors: afaber and robweber
This is a simple to deploy and use system for keeping track of a Windows based PC inventory for a small business. Businesses with a small IT department often resort to using spreadsheets or other cumbersome methods to keep track of their computer inventory. This project removes some of that hassle by allowing each computer in the building to report information about itself, through the use of a common database and quick running login script. The result is that your computer inventory is always up to date without the hassle of remembering to note entries in a manual system.
For more pictures see the screenshots folder.
I know, other more comprehensive systems to do this already exist. The problem is they are a little too comprehensive. Small IT groups don't have the time or the resources to dedicate to learning another full-fledged inventory, monitoring, ticket tracking, polish your shoes, make your dinner type product. This is meant to be a 1,2,3 done type of project that will yield results quickly.
The inventory system is two different pieces working together. The first is a Powershell program that is configured to be run as part of a user's login process on a Windows based machine. Using Active Directory or some type of Group Policy the script is run in the background when a user logs in. This script will collect information about the client PC and send it back to the common database via a REST API.
The second system is a CakePHP based administrative web page that allows you to view and categorize the information sent back. Each computer in the system is available to be viewed. Identifying attributes such as notes, asset id tags, and locations can also be defined to allow an easy way to tie the PC inventory back into an asset management or departmental type system.
Having a LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP) stack in place is a prerequisite to installing this system. Details for how to do this aren't going to be listed in great detail but a working knowledge of getting the web server, database, and PHP up and running are necessary. Various tutorials on how to do this already exist.
Once you have that working take a look at the INSTALL.md file for more specific information. There are some additional PHP and PEAR libraries that need to be installed as well.
- Easy to setup Powershell script for PC information collection
- Ability to generate emails on new computer additions
- Decommission feature to remove computers but keep information
- Can sync with Active Directory to find missing computers
- Optionally can collect programs listed in Windows programs area
- Optionally can list services and their running state
- Optionally can integrate with Chocolatey to find outdated packages
Framework: CakePHP Web Theme: SB Admin 2