No one really like serial numbers, but keeping track of them is one of the “brushing your teeth” activities that everyone needs to take care of. It’s like eating your brussel sprouts. Or listening to your mom. You’re just better of if you do it quickly as it just gets more painful over time.
Not only is it just good hygene, but you may be subject to regulations, like eRate in the United States where you have to be able to report on the location of any device by serial number at any point in time.
Trust me, having to play hide-and-go seek with an SSH session is not something you want to do when government auditors are looking for answers.
I’m sure you’ve already guessed what I’m about to say, but I”ll say it anyway…
There’s an API for that!!!
HPE IMC base platform has a great network assets function that automatically gathers all the details of your various devices, assuming of course they supportRFC 4133, otherwise known as the Entity MIB. On the bright side, most vendors have chosen to support this standards based MIB, so chances are you’re in good shape.
And if they don’t Continue reading