Documentation forSolarWinds Service Desk

Software tags and compliance

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Introduction

In SolarWinds Service Desk (SWSD) software tags are an essential part of the application as they provide a general way to identify software, making it easier to track and manage. SWSD tries to auto-tag each software while checking against its robust software dictionary.

It is easy to lose track of correct tags when multiples are in use, so it is important to ensure that they are managed properly. For example, there might be duplicates of the same tag (for example, Microsoft 10 Pro and Microsoft 10 Professional). This little difference can throw off the number of licenses identified and cause other issues. Managing your software tags will make the process of reconciling much simpler.

Navigation

Assets > Software.

All Compliance index page

The All Compliance index page provides you with a list of manufacturers, contract, items, tags, quantity for each item, inventory, and variance.

The index page is customizable. See List view for more information.

Notice the Variance column on the right. Variance is any over- or under-license situation for that software. You can change the views and filters to view compliance standing for a specific contract, or the under-licensed situations. License compliance analysis is based on the number of software licenses entered in the Contracts section and your software inventory. Verify that you entered all the software licenses you own to ensure accurate compliance analysis.

Some software suites (such as Microsoft Office) consist of multiple packages (such as Outlook, Excel, PowerPoint). As a best practice, focus on capturing your licenses for the entire suite and making sure it's fully licensed.

Add or edit tags

  1. Navigate to Assets > Software.

  2. On the Software Summary index page, click Edit View.

  3. In the Edit View pane to the left, select the Filter tab. The first attribute displays as Software = Visible.

  4. Click + Add Attribute.

    1. From dropdown select Vendor.

    2. Click Value dropdown and wait for it to load. Then click the Select Value field and type in the name of the software vendor (for example, Microsoft). When the contents of the dropdown is filtered, scroll to and select the specific value(s) you want to use.

    3. Click Apply. The contents of the view change.

  5. In the Software Summary (Edited) view, locate the Tag column to the right.

  6. Click the tag for the specific software entry you need to add a tag to (or edit), enter the tag, and click Save.

    Software entries are separated based on name and version number.

View tags

In addition to viewing software tags using the process above, you can also view the software tags from the Reconciles page.

Check software license compliance

Navigate to Risk Management > Compliance.

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