Thresholds Explorer Option

The Thresholds explorer option enables you to manage your licenses and inventory items proactively by setting up thresholds that will create a call, request, or notification if met.

The call or request created as a result of a threshold always uses the latest saved information specified on the Software Product or Inventory record. If you have made changes to the Software Product or Inventory record and have not saved them, then the call or request may appear to be using outdated values. Thresholds may be set in the following areas of ASM Core:

  • Software Products or Inventories

  • Contract Expiry Notifications

Setting a threshold for a Software Product or Inventory

Display the Thresholds window for a software product.

  • Display the software product window, if it is not already on screen, by searching for the CMDB item and specifying the CMDB Type as Configuration Item\Software Product.

  • Select the Edit icon if necessary to activate the toolbar buttons.

  • In the Explorer pane, expand Licenses, then select Thresholds.

or

Display the Thresholds window for an inventory product.

  • Display the inventory item window, if it is not already on screen, by searching for the CMDB item and specifying the CMDB Type as Configuration Item\Software Product.

  • Select the Edit icon if necessary to activate the toolbar buttons.

  • In the Explorer pane, expand Bulk Inventory, then select Thresholds.

The Thresholds window appears, with a browse table listing all currently held thresholds, To add a threshold, select Add. Complete the details.

Cost CenterSelect to set the threshold for the cost center specified on the transaction details

Organization

Select to set the threshold for the organization specified on the transaction details

Location

Select to set the threshold for the location specified on the transaction details

Select <entity>

Search for and select the cost center, organization or location, depending on your selection in the previous field.

This means that the quantity of items used as the threshold will correspond to the quantity of available items for the specified cost center, organization or location (that is, the value in the On Hand – Available row on the Item Summary)

Quantity

Specify the number of items you want to use as the value for the threshold.

If you select an organization and type a value of 5, the threshold is met if the number of items available for the organization (that is, the quantity shown on the Item Summary for the On Hand – Available row) drops below 5.

Notify

Select to send a notification if the threshold is met

Select Recipients

Use this field to identify the recipients of the notification

Create a Call or Request

Select the checkbox to create a call or request if the threshold is met.

You can, for example, trigger an “Order More Licenses” request as soon as the number of licenses available for a particular cost center drops below 2. Thresholds can therefore help you automate the management of your stocks.

Generally a rule can only be run once and will not generate a new call or request while an existing call or request generated by the same rule in the past is open.

Using template

Search for and select the Call Template, or Workflow Template to use to create the call.

If call or workflow templates are partitioned, you can only select from the templates belonging to the partition of the Inventory or Software Product (or, if CIs are not partitioned, the templates belonging to your working partition).

  1. If you want the details on the new call or request to use the values specified on the template, you can leave the mapping table browse table blank. Otherwise, to set the values for the fields to be updated on the new call or request, select Add below the browse table.

  2. In the Add Fields window, select the related call or request fields you wish to update and select OK.

  3. In the mapping browse table, specify the values for each field you added. Each field is a dynamic field selector, that is, the way you can specify the value for the field depends on the type of field. Select . A popup with three tiers opens:

  • Select (Value) to select or specify a value for the field. The behavior of the field adjusts to the selected field type. To enable the field to work like a search field, enter the percentage symbol, then select OK.

  • For a profile field (such as the Call Priority field), the list of values that may be assigned to the field pops up in the next tier. If you add the Call Priority field, for example, this is the list of call priorities defined in IPK administration. Simply choose the value you wish to set the field to this value when the entity is created.

  • For a text field, type the value you wish to appear in the field when the call or request is created.

  • For a checkbox, select True to select the checkbox or False to clear the checkbox when the call or request is created.

  • For a CMDB Item or Person field, you can run a quick search for an item by typing the name into the field and selecting [Enter]. If a match is found, the item is selected in the field, otherwise, a list of matching items appears from which you can make a selection. To run a full search for an entity to add to this field, select (Search).

  • If you change the type of entity to create (that is, change the Call or Request options), you will lose the fields you have mapped.

4. Using the drop-down in the Update column, select the condition for populating the field when the call or request is created.

  • Select Only When Blank to update the field only if it is blank, that is, no value has been set on the selected call template or workflow template.

  • Select Always to update the field regardless of whether it already has a value from the template.

To remove any fields you mapped, select the field and select Remove.

5. Select OK to save the threshold details or Cancel to close the threshold details without saving your changes.

Updating a threshold

  1. From the thresholds browse table, select the row with the threshold you wish to edit and select Open.

  2. Select the Edit icon to modify the details.

  3. Select OK to save the threshold details, Cancel to close the threshold details without saving your changes.

Deleting a threshold

From the thresholds browse table, select the row with the threshold you wish to delete and select Delete. Confirm the deletion.