Product overview
BMC Helix Discovery is a data center discovery solution that automatically discovers data center inventory, configuration and relationship data, and maps applications to the IT infrastructure. Using the information that BMC Helix Discovery finds about your IT environment, you can make accurate, informed, data-driven decisions that help you to:
- Reduce the number of incidents caused by a change
- Reduce the time taken to isolate the root cause for incidents
- Reduce the time taken to prepare for audits and preventing audit penalties
- Prioritize incidents based on business impact
- Optimize data center hardware and software
BMC Helix Discovery establishes the foundation for improving IT processes and productivity by providing timely and actionable insight to make informed decisions in IT service management, asset management, and infrastructure or operations management.
BMC Helix Discovery uses the following strategy to explore and manage your IT environment:
Product features
BMC Helix Discovery uses a web-based, thin-client interface. No software is installed on a user's workstation.
BMC Helix Discovery is divided into two major parts, the cloud-native service provided by BMC, and the BMC Discovery Outpost. The BMC Discovery Outpost is application software that runs on a dedicated Windows server in your data center or on a public cloud.
BMC Helix Discovery is a true SaaS offering with:
- A single version
- BMC controlled product releases, updates to the supporting system and infrastructure, and monthly Technology Knowledge Updates (TKUs)
BMC Helix Discovery provides the following key features and components.
| Key Feature | Description |
|---|---|
BMC Helix Discovery service | The BMC Helix Discovery service is the cloud-native element of BMC Helix Discovery in which infrastructure, upgrades, resilience, and availability are all managed by BMC. For more information, see BMC Helix Discovery service. |
BMC Discovery Outpost | BMC Discovery Outpost is application software that runs on a dedicated Windows server in your data center or on a public cloud. The BMC Helix Discovery service sends a request to an Outpost to scan the IP address required, and the Outpost accesses the target by using the credentials that are held in a secure, encrypted vault. For more information, see BMC Discovery Outpost. |
BMC Helix Discovery updates | BMC Helix Discovery users have two instances by default, a Development instance, and a Production instance. We push updates to Development instances each week, on a Wednesday, and the same update to Production instances the following week. For more information, see BMC Helix Discovery updates. |
| Security of communication and data | The Outpost must register with the BMC Helix Discovery service, and the BMC Helix Discovery service with the Outpost. This registration process ensures that communication between the Outpost and the service is always encrypted and sent over HTTPS. Credentials are held in the secure credential vault in the Outpost and your credentials never leave your premises. For more information, see Security of communication and data. |
| CMDB synchronization | CMDB synchronization ensures that data in BMC Helix CMDB is continuously synchronized with information discovered by BMC Helix Discovery. For more information, see CMDB synchronization. |
| Start Anywhere Application Modeling | Start Anywhere Application Modeling (SAAM) enables you to choose any entry point, or points into an application, and begin modeling from there. The models are not static. They update automatically to reflect the current data. For more information, see Start anywhere application modeling. |
| Discover cloud services | BMC Helix Discovery provides cloud scanning capabilities and discovers multi-cloud environments, such as Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services (AWS). BMC Helix Discovery performs this discovery leveraging APIs and agentless protocols. For more information, see Discovering cloud services. |
| Data provenance | BMC Helix Discovery’s Provenance feature shows the actual command that was executed, the output of the command, and the timestamp when it happened. There’s no searching through log files – all this information is available in the UI, ensuring data accuracy that you can verify and trust. For more information, see Data provenance. |
| Exhaustive pattern library | The BMC Helix Discovery library includes over 650 text-based patterns for industry-leading software, such as Oracle and SAP. New patterns are added monthly to discover custom software, uncommon SNMP devices, and more. For more information, see Pattern library. |
Learn more
The BMC Helix Discovery documentation helps new and experienced users use this product effectively. Based on your purpose, the following sections of the documentation are recommended.
| Goal | Related Information |
|---|---|
Learn the key features, core functionality, and architecture of the BMC Helix Discovery product. | |
Understand the UI components and dashboards, and learn how to perform basic tasks, such as using the home page or setting preferences in BMC Helix Discovery. | Performing basic tasks |
Create and edit system users and groups. Learn about group permissions for tasks such as viewing the UI or managing clusters in BMC Helix Discovery. | |
Be familiar with the various terms used in BMC Helix Discovery, such as RemQuery, patterns, and so on. | Glossary |
Start using BMC Helix Discovery by performing an end-to-end procedure that takes you from your Welcome email right up to discovering targets in your IT environment. | BMC Helix Discovery scan use case |
Describe applications, products, and other real-world entities that have been modeled in BMC Helix Discovery using The Pattern Language (TPL). | The Pattern Language TPL |
Access detailed reference information about the products, network devices, and cloud providers that BMC Helix Discovery can scan. Be up-to-date with the monthly Technology Knowledge Update (TKU) release. | BMC Helix Discovery content reference |
| Learn a quick and easy approach to modeling, which enables you to choose any entry points into an application or Business Service and begin modeling from there. | Service and application modeling |
Find answers to the typical questions you may have about BMC Helix Discovery and the BMC Discovery Outpost features or configuration. | FAQs |
Refer to the detailed troubleshooting tips and steps provided by the Support team to resolve issues related to BMC Helix Discovery or the BMC Discovery Outpost. | Troubleshooting |
- All users should view and set up a watch on the Release notes and notices page for the latest product information and documentation updates.
- Refer to the
BMC Community
page for BMC Helix Discovery. Experts from BMC can help you out with your queries. - Refer to the top-viewed BMC Helix Discovery
Knowledge Articles
posted on BMC Community to get insights into issue resolution.
- View the product videos available on
YouTube
and see the PDFs and videos page.
- See the training and certification offerings available for BMC Helix Discovery on our
BMC Education
portal.
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