There are two ways to assign inventory information collected by JP1/Software Distribution to asset information. One is to use JP1/Software Distribution's working key, and the other is to use the items that are assigned to the asset number set by the Assign Inventory job menu.

• Using the asset numbers set by the Assign Inventory job menu
  The asset number assignment settings specified using the Assign Inventory job menu take effect. For details about the setting that uses the Assign Inventory job menu to assign inventory information to asset numbers, see 9.6.1 Setting an assigned item for asset numbers.
  
• Using the working key
  If asset numbers are not managed in the user inventory information, the inventory information is assigned to the asset information using JP1/Software Distribution's working key. In this case, the assignment method depends on the JP1/Software Distribution's working key.
  

The host ID is a special value in the JP1/Software Distribution system; it is key information used to identify each device. The host ID is generated when JP1/Software Distribution Client is installed, and the JP1/Software Distribution server is notified of it automatically. Therefore, the host ID, unlike the node identification key, is not affected by changes to the network configuration.

If the JP1/Software Distribution setting is Use host ID, the host ID is used for assignment. If Use host ID is not selected, the node identification key is used for assignment.

The host identification key can use the host name or the IP address. The one that is used for management is selected during setup of JP1/Software Distribution; both cannot be used at the same time.

Assignment follows the following procedure:

1. Asset information with matching MAC address and IP address is assigned.
2. Asset information with matching MAC address is assigned.
3. Asset information with matching IP address is assigned.

When registering or updating, the IP address is set as the asset information assignment key.

Assignment follows the following procedure:

1. Asset information with matching MAC address and host name is assigned.
2. Asset information with matching MAC address is assigned.
3. Asset information with matching host name is assigned.

When registering or updating, the host name is set as the asset information assignment key.

When assignment cannot be made by the host ID, assignment is made according to the specification of Conditions for assigning asset information 1 in the Server Setup dialog box.

When registering or updating, the host ID is set as the asset information assignment key.

Assets for which the host ID and assignment key match are assigned.

Assignment follows the following procedure:

1. Asset information with matching host ID and assignment key is assigned.
2. If there is no corresponding asset information, asset information with the same MAC address is assigned.

Assignment follows the following procedure:

1. Asset information with matching host ID and assignment key is assigned.
2. Asset information with matching MAC address, IP address, and host name is assigned.
3. When the node identification key is Use host name, an asset with matching MAC address and host name is assigned.
4. When the node identification key is Use IP address, an asset with matching MAC address and IP address is assigned.
5. If there is no asset information relevant to either 3 or 4, the asset information with matching MAC address is assigned.

If there is no assignment with the Conditions for assigning asset information 1 specification method (there was no asset information matching the host ID or MAC address), the specification of Conditions for assigning asset information 2 is followed. If an assignment could not be made by the host ID, it might be that the device was different due to a replacement or due to re-installation of the OS.

Assignment follows the following procedure:

1. Asset information with matching IP address and host name is assigned.
2. When the node identification key is Use host name, an asset with matching host name is assigned.
   When the node identification key is Use IP address, an asset with matching IP address is assigned.
   

Asset information with a matching machine serial number is assigned.

When specifying this assignment method, in the system definition job category, you must specify Machine serial number for the item to be assigned to Hardware information.Serial No in the inventory information assignment window.

Assignment follows the following procedure:

1. Asset information with a matching machine serial number, IP address, and host name is assigned.
2. When the node identification key is Use host name, an asset with a matching machine serial number and host name is assigned.
   When the node identification key is Use IP address, an asset with a matching machine serial number and IP address is assigned.
   
3. Asset information with a matching machine serial number is assigned.

When specifying this assignment method, in the system definition job category, you must specify Machine serial number for the item to be assigned to Hardware information.Serial No in the inventory information assignment window.

When assignment cannot be made by a node identification key, assignment is made according to the specification of Conditions for assigning asset information a in the Server Setup dialog box.

Asset information with a matching machine serial number is assigned.

When specifying this assignment method, in the system definition job category, you must specify Machine serial number for the item to be assigned to Hardware information.Serial No in the inventory information assignment window.

If there is no corresponding asset information, whether the asset is to be registered depends on the Perform new registration of unassigned assets setting in the Server Setup dialog box. If New registration is specified, the asset will be newly registered; if Do not perform new registration is specified, the asset will not be registered.

The following table shows how the inventory information that becomes the assigned key is updated and the information that is updated if Use working key is specified for Assign key for asset information in the Server Setup dialog box.

Table 3-1 How inventory information is updated and the updated information

This explains the settings in the Server Setup dialog box using an example of replacing. Furthermore, if the Assign key for asset information setting in the Server Setup dialog box is Use working key, the Working key must be set to Use host ID.

When replacing, the host ID and MAC address are different, so assets cannot be assigned by Conditions for assigning asset information 1. Therefore, assets are assigned according to the Conditions for assigning asset information 2 setting.

After a replacement, specify as shown below depending on whether the device after the replacement is to be treated as a new device or as the same device as before the replacement.

When a replaced device is to be registered as a new asset

• With Conditions for assigning asset information 2, specify Do not assign.
• With Perform new registration of unassigned assets, specify New registration.

When a replaced device is to be assigned the same as the previous device

• With Conditions for assigning asset information 2, specify Use IP address and Host name.
  If the host name or IP address matches that of the device before replacement, the information on the device before replacement can be assigned.
  

Notes

• If there is more than one corresponding asset, the information on the asset with the most recent registration date is updated.
• If a mobile network card, such as a PC card, is shared among multiple devices, use Use host ID with JP1/Software Distribution.
• If Use host ID is used with JP1/Software Distribution, re-installing the OS on the device causes a new host ID to be assigned. If this happens, assignment by the assignment key is no longer possible.
  In such a case, assignment conforms to Conditions for assigning asset information 1 and Conditions for assigning asset information 2.
  
• The values of the MAC address, IP address, and host name of the hardware asset information are used in the assignment.
• If the status of the assigned asset information is Scrap (the device status code is 500-699), the information is not changed.

If multiple management-target devices have the same MAC address assigned to them when MAC addresses are set up as the key for Asset Information Manager to assign asset information to the asset management database, you can register these devices as separate assets. To do so, you must create an assignment-exception MAC list (MacListOfOmitMatching.ini).

The storage destination, the description method, and a description example of the assignment-exception MAC list are as follows:

• Assignment-exception MAC list storage destination
  Asset-Information-Manager-installation-folder\env
  A sample file of the assignment-exception MAC list (MacListOfOmitMatching.ini.org) is provided in the aforementioned storage destination for use as a reference when creating an assignment-exception MAC list. View this sample when creating an assignment-exception MAC list.
  

  Note

  When assigning keys, Asset Information Manager checks the file in the aforementioned storage destination. If no file is found in this storage destination, it is assumed that there are no MAC addresses to be excluded from assignment.

• Assignment-exception MAC list (MacListOfOmitMatching.ini) entry method
  

  ; MAC Address List of Omit Matching. [OMIT_MAC] OMIT_MAC = 00:11:22:33:44:55

  [OMIT_MAC]

  Specifies the MAC address to be registered in the assignment-exception MAC list.

  Specify the MAC address to be excluded from assignment in the OMIT_MAC = MAC-address format.

  When specifying a MAC address to be excluded from assignment, note the following points:
  
  • Do not specify an abbreviation.
  • The delimiter for MAC addresses is the colon (:).
  • Specify 17 characters. Note that MAC addresses are not case-sensitive.
  • Specifying the same value more than once does not cause an error.
  • You can specify a maximum of 1,000 MAC addresses. However, if a large number of comments, unnecessary key names, or values are entered, an error might occur, even if the number of addresses does not exceed 1,000.
• Assignment-exception MAC list definition example
  

  ; ; MAC Address List of Omit Matching. ; [OMIT_MAC] OMIT_MAC = 11:22:33:44:55:66 OMIT_MAC = aa:bb:cc:dd:ee:ff

  In the above example, 11:22:33:44:55:66 and aa:bb:cc:dd:ee:ff are set as MAC addresses to be excluded from assignment. If there are multiple devices with these addresses, they are registered as separate devices (assets) in the asset management database.