Managing asset groups

You can manage asset groups from the Asset Groups page, which you can access by selecting Services > Asset Groups in the Catalog console. From the Asset Groups page, you can add, edit, and delete asset groups.  

If you have more than one environment with BMC Helix Digital Workplace Catalog, you can share asset groups between them by exporting asset groups to local files, and importing asset groups from files saved on your hard drive.

You can use the following out-of-the-box asset groups:

• Accounts, Security and IDs
• Computers and mobile devices
• Computer software
• Cloud services
• Virtual system
• Device peripherals and accessories
• Electronics
• Human Resources
• Mobile applications
• Networking
• Office equipment
• Printers and scanners
• Servers and related hardware

To create an asset group

1. On the Asset Groups page, click New Group.
2. In the Asset Group Name field, enter a name of the group.

3. Set up the Group Options panel as follows.

   Important

   Starting with version 22.1.06, you can add one asset class to multiple asset groups. However, service categories and individual services that have already been assigned to an asset group, cannot be assigned again to a different asset group. 

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  • In the Connections section, perform one or more of the following actions:
    • To associate the asset group with all classes retrieved from any connection, select the All check box next to the connection.

    • To associate the asset group with specific asset classes retrieved from any connection, click Add next to a connection, and select one or more asset classes.

      Important

      Only those connections that are enabled in the Application Settings pane are available in the Connections list.

      If the connection to some of the available connections is not configured, the connections are displayed with yellow warning icons.

      

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  • In the Service Requests section, create one or more of the following mappings:
    • To associate the asset group with one or more service categories, click Add next to Categories, and select one or more service categories.
    • To associate the asset group with one or more services, click Add next to Services, and select one or more individual services.

To filter asset groups

(Available in version 22.1.06 and later) You can better organize assets in an asset group displayed to end users. You can create a query that will search for assets that match the query condition:

1. On the Asset Groups panel, open an asset group or create a new one for which you want to add a query.
2. On the Asset Connections panel, click Add next to the selected asset class, and create a condition for the selected asset class.

      a. In the Condition name field, enter a descriptive condition name.

      b. In the Expression field, select a field, and build a condition as follows:

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    • On the left side of the expression, select an expression variable.
    • Select an operator (for example, IS, IS NOT, CONTAINS, DOES NOT CONTAIN, STARTS WITH, ENDS WITH are operators for strings)
    • For strings, type a free text value.
    • For integers, type a number value.
    • For selections, select a variable from the list.

The following image shows elements of the query builder:

c. Click Save.

The added query is displayed below the asset class on the Asset Connections panel:

The following table gives examples for each type of filter option in the expression section:

The following image shows a query with the string data type that enables you to display only printers located in America:

The following image shows a query with the number data type that enables you to display only printers used by 10 or more people:

The following image shows a query with the selection data type that enables you to display only printers that are currently used:

You can create a complex query with several conditions for a single class; for example, you can create a query that will search for printers that match the following condition:

To export and import asset groups

To export an asset group to a local zip file, select an asset group on the Asset Groups page, and click Actions > Export.

To import a saved asset group, select Actions > Import, and upload an asset group zip file. 

To add assets from BMC Helix ITSM to BMC Helix Digital Workplace Catalog asset groups

1. Log in to BMC Helix ITSM as an administrator.
2. Go to Applications > Asset Management > Asset Management Console.
3. Open a CI (an asset) that you want to add to a BMC Helix Digital Workplace Catalog asset group.
4. In the asset profile, open the People tab, and click Add.
5. Select a company, and enter a name and a surname of a user to whom you want to make this asset available.
6. Click Search and select the user from the search results list.
7. From the Role list, select any entitled role available in BMC Helix Digital Workplace Catalog and click Add.
8. Close the opened window.
   The added user appears in the People list of the asset profile.
9. Note the category of the opened asset. 
10. Log in to the Catalog console, and navigate to Services > Asset Groups.
11. Open an existing asset group.
12. In the Asset Connections section, click Add next to the Helix ITSM connector.
13. In the search field, enter the noted name of the asset category.
14. Expand the hierarchy and select the required asset category. 
15. Click Save and Close.