The usage statuses of IP addresses are managed by associating them with groups. By separating the IP addresses into IP address ranges and managing them in group-specific IP groups, the group associated with the IP address of any particular device can be set automatically, even if JP1/Software Distribution does not collect the group information as user inventory information. This allows you to manage the usage statuses of IP addresses by group.

The usage statuses of IP addresses are managed in the IP Group window.

The figure below shows the IP Group window.

Figure 2-6 IP Group window

The following figure illustrates the workflow for managing the usage statuses of IP addresses by group, by registering the group associated with the IP addresses that are assigned to devices owned by the group. This example assumes that JP1/Software Distribution does not collect group information as user inventory information.

Figure 2-7 Workflow for associating a group with IP addresses, and managing the IP group

To associate and manage IP addresses by group:

1. Set up automatic registration for the group to be associated with the IP addresses.
   To configure the system so that, when the IP address of a device changes, the group that includes the changed IP address is set automatically, specify Set for Settings for a group that uses a group-specific IP group in the Server Setup dialog box. For details about how to set values in the Server Setup dialog box, see 5.3.4 Setting Basic Information in the Planning and Setup Guide.
   

   Reference note

   You can also have the group corresponding to the IP address be recorded automatically during a task scheduler data maintenance task. Even when group information is being collected from the JP1/Software Distribution user inventory, by executing this task, you can update the group to match the values set with the IP Group job menu.

2. Add an IP group.
   Add the IP group you want to manage using the Group-Specific IP Group tab in the IP Group window. For details about how to add an IP group, see 4.4.1 Adding an IP group in the Administrator's Guide.
   
3. Register inventory information to the asset management database.
   You can register the desired device information using the inventory information collected by JP1/Software Distribution. For details about how to register inventory information, see 5.1.1 Workflow necessary for linking to JP1/Software Distribution in the Planning and Setup Guide.
   You can also use node information collected by HP NNM Version 7.5 or earlier to register device information. For details about how to register node information, see 6.1 Settings for linking to HP NNM Version 7.5 or earlier in the Planning and Setup Guide.
   
4. View the IP address usage status.
   In the IP Address Management dialog box, you can view information about devices to which IP addresses are assigned and check for unused IP addresses. You can also display the Device Details dialog box by clicking the Asset No. link. For details about how to view IP address usage status, see 4.4.2 Viewing IP address usage in the Administrator's Guide.
   When a new device is installed, you can check the IP group of the distribution destination group, and instruct the person responsible to assign an available IP address to the device. If more than one device is assigned to a single IP address, you can release the IP address of the invalidly assigned device, and assign a different IP address to that device. For details about how to release an IP address assigned to a device, see 4.4.4 Releasing the IP addresses assigned to devices in the Administrator's Guide. For details about how to assign an IP address to a device, see 4.4.3 Assigning IP addresses to devices in the Administrator's Guide.