Client management

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The term client management (also desktop management , desktop managed services etc.) describes a methodical approach to the central administration and control of the decentralized IT infrastructure at the workplace.

This includes

  • the workstation computers or clients such as personal computers (PC), notebooks, and thin clients
  • Personal Digital Assistant (PDA),
  • printer
  • Peripheral devices such as scanners, USB sticks, etc.
  • the installed software
  • the user's authorizations within the IT infrastructure

The client management approach is based initially on the needs assessment of the users. The answers to the question to what extent and with which functions the IT infrastructure must support the user result (weighted) in the product portfolio to be supported and operated within the client management. It is important that not only hardware and software items are described in the product portfolio, but also the services to be provided by the central service. The services described - for example installing software or moving hardware - are defined by corresponding work instructions or process definitions.

The service descriptions are also the basis for the service level agreements with the user and, if necessary, are used to offset services.

This creates the formal framework within which operative client management can be carried out. In summary, these include:

  • the determination of the functional requirements of the users
  • the summary and categorization of the requirements within a central product and service catalog
  • the definition of the process for changes to the central product and service catalog
  • the processes for setting up, changing and dismantling the IT infrastructure at individual workstations (move, add, change, disposal)
  • the processes for operational support / user support
  • the service agreement / service level agreement with the user

For companies with a large number of clients, managing the clients is often difficult and extremely costly. The larger the company, the more heterogeneous its client infrastructure is. For example, different types of hardware (notebooks, desktops, workstations) or hardware from different manufacturers are used, plus a wide variety of operating systems (Windows XP, VISTA, Linux or MAC OS) and an unbelievable variety of additional software. Due to the combination of these different groups and the fact that the users may still install their own software (if allowed), each client is virtually unique. Uniform management without the appropriate tools is almost impossible. The defined and agreed services and the procedures to be used for them must now be supported by appropriate technical processes.

One of the central techniques is the automated installation and deinstallation of the operating systems and application software via the network on the client directly at the workstation ( software distribution ). The technical solutions are to be implemented in such a way that the handling of a process, for example the booking of a software license on a client system, automatically triggers the necessary technical installation and, after successful installation, the corresponding installation order is automatically acknowledged in order management and inventory management.

Client management and ITIL

The configuration management database described within ITIL (the central database in which all configuration items are described) can thus be updated automatically. In the event of malfunctions, the service desk can use the CMDB to obtain a direct and immediate overview

  • the hardware
  • the installed software
  • the assigned service level agreements
  • commercial data such as invoice, delivery note, guarantee data, etc.
  • the authorizations of the user
  • the history (fault reports and MACD applications)

to get.

Client management is therefore an organizational, technical approach to efficient and quality-assured administration and support of the decentralized IT infrastructure on the basis of a defined and agreed catalog of products and services. The methodological approaches of ITIL are taken into account.

Client management software

Some important functions that a client management system offers:

Good client management software should also offer interfaces for IT service management software (ITSM), for example . These interfaces ensure that the client management software can be integrated almost seamlessly into other management systems.

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