Can I manage contracts such as Microsoft Enterprise Agreements?
Does Licence Dashboard have a discovery module?
With reference to Software Asset Management, what is the main function of Licence Dashboard?
The Dashboard family is a powerful range of products which put you in control of your software assets. Designed with finance and procurement reporting requirements in mind, they give you the power to manage the entire lifecycle of your organisation’s software assets.
As you know, managing licence agreements effectively and understanding the associated licence entitlement is somewhat of a ‘black-art’: licence management tools are potentially, therefore, one of the most important aspects of an organisation’s Software Asset Management process. In our experience, however, we find that only a small amount of investment is being made into supporting the licence management function.
Without a comprehensive licence management tool, the function of managing licences essentially becomes a manual process, one which is prone to error, complacency and eventually leads to regression. Most organisations end up using a number of spreadsheets to manage and track their entitlement; these documents become difficult to summarise and make it almost impossible to demonstrate effective audit trails which outline the allocation of upgrade paths and maintenance agreements. In addition, having multiple interfaces, each managing different stages of the process, leads to confusion. To achieve best practice, therefore, it is essential that all information is reported through a single interface.
Designed to facilitate the management of software for finance and procurement departments, the Dashboard family is made up of Licence Dashboard Standard Edition, Licence Dashboard Professional Edition and Licence Dashboard Enterprise Edition.
Why do I need a licence management tool?
Without a licence management tool, it is impossible to manage the equation between what you are allowed to install and what you have installed. This continued verification of compliance is the main desired outcome of any compliance rectification project and is the foundation of any Software Asset Management implementation.
What is the Audit Cleanse module and why do I need it if I have deployed a discovery/software metering tool?
Most software inventory tools on today’s market are excellent at scanning the network for hardware and software Information. Manipulating this software information into a format that enables you to identify your licensable products, however, can become a nightmare.
Phoenix Software has developed a module that enhances both Licence Dashboard Professional and Enterprise Edition called Audit Cleanse. This application extracts the raw data from the organisation’s chosen IT asset management, discovery or software metering tool and extends the software recognition process of most software inventory tools, providing further distilling of scanned software and highlighting which installed products need a licence.
Can I manage contracts such as Microsoft Enterprise Agreements?
Yes, Licence Dashboard has a unique solution for managing complex software contracts, such as Microsoft Enterprise Agreements. The Contract Inventory tool with Licence Dashboard ensures that all contract terms and conditions are logged and enables effective control of associated product entitlement.
Does Licence Dashboard have a discovery module?
No, Licence Dashboard plugs directly into over 150 asset management or discovery tools, extracting the required data directly from their repositories. The Audit Cleanse module then recognises the applications and further distils the data into licensable products.