How to troubleshoot the CMDB task "Inventory to Asset Synchronization"

Products

• CMDB Solution

Issue/Introduction

When the Inventory to Asset Synchronization task is run, it fails to copy the Inventory Solution data classes of Manufacturer, Model, Serial Number or System Number to CMDB's counterpart data classes.

Cause

Various.

Resolution

Review the following information to determine what the issue and solution are. Note: It is assumed that the user is using the out of box default task. If there is a cloned task or a custom task that is being used that has the same functionality that isn't working, first verify that the default task does or does not work. If it does, then the sole issue is with the clone/custom task, which would need to be troubleshot separately.

Issue: The task isn't running.
Solution: The task is not set to run automatically by default. Ensure that the task is scheduled to run or run manually.

Issue: The task, when ran, results in errors, such as ones seen in the Console or in the Altiris Log Viewer on the server.
Solution: Review the error and the Symantec Knowledge Base to provide specific troubleshooting based on why the error is occurring.

Issue: The task runs, but doesn't appear to do anything. In the logs, there are no errors and there are entries for the task starting and finishing, presumably successfully.
Solution: Either the filter used does not have the expected computers, Inventory Solution data for Manufacturer, Model, Serial Number or System Number are not populated in the database or CMDB's counterpart data classes are not empty. Note: The CMDB Manufacturer, Model, Serial Number and System Number data classes will only be updated by the Inventory to Asset Synchronization task if the following two statements are true: (1) A record for the computer resource does not exist in the target CMDB data class or the data class in the target CMDB record is an empty string or NULL, and (2) The data class in the source Inventory Solution record has a non-empty, non-NULL value.
 

• Ensure that the Include filter includes the expected computers. If not, resolve the issue with the filter.
  
  1. In the Symantec Management Platform Console, click on Manage > Filters, and then locate and click on the filter being used.
  2. Click on the Update Membership button.
  3. Do the expected computers appear here? If not, ensure that the computer has a Status of Active and then refresh the filter's membership to help add it to the filter or change the filter's membership criteria. Even if the computer does appear here, however, this could still be a filter issue:
  
  a. Create a new temporary filter, and specific just one computer that isn't working. For example, a SQL query filter can be used for this:
  
  SELECT *
  FROM vComputer
  WHERE Name = '<Name of the computer>'
  
  b. Click on the Update Membership button. The computer from the SQL script should then be the only member.
  c. In the task, select just the new temporary filter to use.
  d. Save the task.
  e. Run the task Now. If this then works, there is some issue with the original filter being used that would need to be troubleshot separately.
  f. Alternatively, if there is an Exclude filter, ensure that it is not removing expected computers from the Include filter.
   
• Ensure that Inventory Solution data for Manufacturer, Model, Serial Number or System Number is populated in the database. If not, resolve the issue with Inventory Solution's Hardware policy.
  
  1. In the Symantec Management Platform Console, click on Manage > Assets > Manage Configuration Items > Computers and Peripherals > Computer.
  2. Locate and click on a computer to spot check.
  3. Right click on it and then click on Resource Manager.
  4. In Resource Manager, click on View > Inventory.
  5. Click to expand the folders Data Classes > Inventory > Hardware.
  6. Click on Logical Device.
  7. Multiple Inventory Solution Manufacturers and Models are usually listed, which are from the table and data classes of Inv_HW_Logical_Device.Manufacturer and .Model, respectively. As many are listed, it's not therefore a straightforward process to derive which record is specifically used. The more important thing to see here is if this data is present at all or not. If so, then the Inventory Solution data classes of Manufacturer and Model should be populated. If nothing is listed here, they are not. These can also be seen in the Hardware section of the Resource Manager's home page as "Computer manufacturer" and Model, which does list the correct data and not the entire list.
  8. Click on Computer System.
  9. The Identifying Number is the Inventory Solution Serial Number, which is from the table and data class of Inv_HW_Computer_System.[Identifying Number]. This can also be seen in the Identification section of the Resource Manager's home page as the "Internal serial number". Note: This should not be confused with other "serial number" values in the database, such as from Core's basic inventory Inv_AeX_AC_Identification.[Hardware Serial Number].
  10. Click to expand the folders Data Classes > Inventory > Software.
  11. Click on BIOS Element.
  12. The Identification Code is the Inventory Solution System Number, which is from the table and data class of Inv_SW_BIOS_Element.[Identification Code]. This is also known as the "asset tag" of the machine. Notes: (1) This should not be confused with other "system number" values in the database, such as from Inventory Solution's Inv_HW_Chassis.[Asset Tag]. (2) However, the Inv_HW_Chassis.[Asset Tag] system number could be used by Inventory Solution. This may then result in the Inventory to Asset Synchronization to not populate the CMDB system number. If this is occurring, refer to the "The CMDB System Number isn't populating but other data classes are." issue in this article for information on how to correct this. (3) To help better understand what Inventory Solution data classes are being populated by the Inventory Solution system number, refer to the custom report is attached to this article. This can be imported into the Symantec Management Platform and when ran, will show both data classes ([Identification Code] and [Asset Tag]). If the latter is populated, then the solution from article TECH186918 will need to be applied.
   
• Ensure CMDB data for Manufacturer (Inv_Manufacturer.Manufacturer), Model (Inv_Manufacturer.Model), Serial Number (Inv_Serial_Number) and System Number (Inv_Identity.[System Number]) are all empty. If any are not, these specific data classes will be skipped during the sync and not overwritten.
  
  1. In the Symantec Management Platform Console, click on Manage > Assets > Manage Configuration Items > Computers and Peripherals > Computer.
  2. Locate and click on a computer to spot check.
  3. Right click and choose Edit.
  4. Locate the Manufacturer, Model, Serial Number and System Number fields. If any of these are not blank, they will not receive their Inventory Solution counterpart data from the Inventory to Asset Sync. Clear these out as necessary and then re-run the sync. Note: The following article describes why these may already have values and provides a way to bulk empty them:
  
  Computer's Manufacturer, Model, Serial Number or System Number are incorrect or missing
  TECH209095 
   

Note: For the last two bullets, a SQL script can be run in the SQL Server Management Studio to also verify the Inventory Solution and CMDB Solution Manufacturer, Model, Serial Number and System Number data. This can be useful for verifying either or both sets of data classes. Run the attached SQL script, "Find Inventory and CMDB Sync data.txt" to display this data.

Issue: Inventory Solution isn't populating Manufacturer, Model, Serial Number or System Number.
Solution: Ensure that the Inventory Solution plug-in is installed on the affected computers and that an Inventory Solution Hardware policy has been applied and working successfully. If either of these is not working, please contact the Inventory Solution Technical Support team for additional assistance, as it is outside of this CMDB article's scope to provide in-depth troubleshooting for Inventory Solution issues.

Issue: The CMDB System Number isn't populating but other data classes are.
Solution: This is a known issue for the sync. By default, the Inventory to Asset Synchronization only checks the Inventory Solution table and data class of Inv_SW_BIOS_Element.[Identification Code]. Depending on the manufacturer, however, Inventory Solution may populate alternate table and data classes with the System Number. If so, the stored procedure that the task uses must be manually modified to account for this. The following article describes how to do this:

CMDB task "Inventory to Asset Synchronization" does not sync the System Number
TECH186918

Legacy Information

While Notification Server 6, CMDB Solution 6.x and Inventory Solution 6.x are no longer supported, the following table and data class information is provided as a courtesy to help troubleshoot the Inventory to Asset Synchronization if it is failing on these older products. 

Inventory Solution 6.x Tables and Data Classes
Manufacturer: Inv_AeX_HW_Serial_Number.[System Manufacturer]
Model: Inv_AeX_HW_Serial_Number.[Computer Model]
Serial Number: Inv_AeX_HW_Serial_Number.[Serial Number]
System Number: Inv_AeX_HW_Serial_Number.[Asset Tag]

CMDB Solution 6.x Tables and Data Classes (same as for 7.x)
Manufacturer: Inv_Manufacturer.Manufacturer
Model: Inv_Manufacturer.Model
Serial Number: Inv_Serial_Number.[Serial Number]
System Number: Inv_Identity.[System Number]

Related Article

How does the CMDB task "Inventory to Asset Synchronization" work?
HOWTO94989