Understanding ComputerResourceMergeSettings and ComputerResourceKeyFilter in ITMS

Products

• IT Management Suite

Issue/Introduction

Administrators may encounter scenarios where the Symantec Management Platform (SMP) unexpectedly merges two distinct computers into a single resource record. This often occurs when devices share non-unique identifiers such as "To Be Filled By OEM" serial numbers, duplicate UUIDs, or shared hostnames in specific network configurations. Conversely, some import processes (like AD Import) may inadvertently remove resource keys when filtering is active.

The Symantec Management Platform (SMP Server) uses a set of "Resource Keys" (Unique ID, MAC Address, Name.Domain, FQDN, etc.) to identify if a computer checking in already exists in the database.

This article provides guidance on using the ComputerResourceMergeSettings and ComputerResourceKeyFilter Core Settings to manage how ITMS merges computer resources. 

Environment

These settings are available in ITMS 8.7.1 and later releases.

Cause

In IT Management Suite (ITMS), resource keys are critical for identifying and merging resources. The following keys are used by the SMP Server to manage duplicates and ensure unique resource identification:

Computer Resource Keys

• name.domain: Combines the computer name and the domain name.
• distinguishedname: Used as an identification key for computer resources.
• fqdn: The fully qualified DNS name of the computer.
• uniqueid: A hardware identification string generated from a combination of the Computer UUID, Motherboard (Base Board) Serial Number, and Network Card MAC Address.
• macaddress: Typically generated by the Symantec Management Agent or specific plug-ins.
• cloudid: Introduced in ITMS 8.7.2, this key uniquely identifies resources across Azure AD tenants using the Azure AD tenant ID and device/user ID.
• tpmid: Introduced in ITMS 8.7.1, this uses machine TPM 2.0 encryption keys (TPM Endorsement Key) to generate a unique ID.
• directoryid: Used for merging resources from Active Directory or Azure AD imports

Note: you can find more Resource Keys available under the following database tables:

select distinct keyname from ResourceKey
select distinct keyname from ResourceTypeMergeKey 

Resolution

Table of Contents

• Core Settings Overview
• Bitmask Flags for ComputerResourceMergeSettings
• Understand Resource Lookup and Merge Behavior
• Common Configuration Scenarios
• Apply the Same Approach to Other Keys (If Required)

 

Core Settings Overview

The following settings can be used to customize or disable specific computer merging behaviors:

• ComputerResourceMergeSettings: This setting uses bitmask flags to control merge operations.
• ComputerResourceKeyFilter: A semicolon-separated list of resource keys to be ignored during a merge when the appropriate flag is set in ComputerResourceMergeSettings.

Note:
The ComputerResourceKeyFilter Core Setting affects how resources are identified during data processing (for example, NSE ingestion or API operations).
When a key is filtered, it is excluded from resource lookup and matching logic.

Bitmask Flags for ComputerResourceMergeSettings

The ComputerResourceMergeSettings value is a set of flags that can be combined (e.g., a value of 6 combines flags 0x02 and 0x04):
 
 

Flag (Hex)	Value (Decimal)	Description
0x00	0	Default: Original behavior is unchanged.
0x01	1	Disabled: Completely disables merges for computers. Warning: This is generally not recommended as it can lead to significant data duplication.
0x02	2	Filter Keys: Specified keys in ComputerResourceKeyFilter will be ignored during the merge operation.
0x04	4	No Delete: Duplicate resource keys will not be deleted from the database during a computer save operation.
0x08	8	No Priority: Unique ID keys are not prioritized or placed on top when searching for duplicates during a merge.

 

Understand Resource Lookup and Merge Behavior

When processing incoming data (such as NSEs or API calls), behavior depends on whether a resource is found and whether a GUID is provided:

• If no GUID is provided and no matching keys are found → A new resource is created
• If no GUID is provided but another key matches → The existing resource is updated
• If a GUID is provided and matches an existing resource → The resource is updated
• If a GUID is provided but a different resource is found by another key → Resources are merged (if merging is allowed)

 

Common Configuration Scenarios

1. Disabling Merge on TPMID

To prevent computers from merging based on the Trusted Platform Module ID (TPMID), you can take 2 approaches:

Option 1

Disabling the resource key by using the "Resource Type Keys" page (under SMP Console > Settings > All Settings > Notification Server > Resource and Data Class Settings > Resource Types > Customization) by changing from "Yes" to "No" under "Merge resources:" dropdown list.





Note:
The Resource Type Keys page controls which keys are allowed to trigger resource merging.
Disabling merging for a key does not prevent the key from being used during resource lookup.

Filtering tpmid ensures that this key is not used during the lookup phase, reducing the likelihood of incorrect matches.

About other options Under "Promote resource:" drop-down

Promote resource "NO" - this key is removed from ResourceTypePromoteKey table and not treated as "promote key" for this resource type.

Promote resource "(do not change)" - don't change current status of current key in ResourceTypePromoteKey table.

Option 2

By creating ComputerResourceMergeSettings and ComputerResourceKeyFilter core settings with the proper values:

How to create these core settings using the SMP Console

1. 1. To add or change the Core Settings (Updating Core Settings in ITMS 8.5 and later), open the Console and go to:
      SMP Console>Settings>Notification Server>Core Settings
   2. Create "ComputerResourceMergeSettings" core setting and set its value to "2". This enables key filtering.
   3. Create "ComputerResourceKeyFilter" core setting and set its value to "tmpid". This means that specifically merge by tpmid should not happen. 
   4. This will add the following entries in the coresettings.config file (under C:\ProgramData\Symantec\SMP\Settings):

 
<customSetting key="ComputerResourceMergeSettings" type="local" value="2" />
<customSetting key="ComputerResourceKeyFilter" type="local" value="tpmid" />

2. Disabling Merge on Hostname and FQDN

Note: use the same steps for add or change the Core Settings as described under Disabling Merge on TPMID example.

To prevent merges based on the computer name or Fully Qualified Domain Name:
 
<customSetting key="ComputerResourceMergeSettings" type="local" value="6" />
<customSetting key="ComputerResourceKeyFilter" type="local" value="name.domain;fqdn" />

Note: Using value 6 (0x02 + 0x04) ensures that duplicate keys are not deleted, preventing potential issues with Active Directory imports.

3. Disabling Merge on UUID

To ignore the UUID during merge operations and handle specific invalid IDs:

1. Add the following settings:

<customSetting key="ComputerResourceMergeSettings" type="local" value="2" />
<customSetting key="ComputerResourceKeyFilter" type="local" value="uuidtrans" />

Apply the Same Approach to Other Keys (If Required)

The same configuration can be applied to any resource key:

• Use the Resource Type Keys UI to control merge behavior per key
• Use ComputerResourceKeyFilter to exclude keys from lookup operations

Additional Information

About the Merging Process, Altiris Agent Resource Keys and Resource Creation in SMP

Client Machines are sending same UniqueID during Basic Inventory