Practical‎,‎ Real‎-World ITIL Configuration Management‎-From Start to Finish The IT Infrastructure Library‎(‎R‎)‎ ‎(‎ITIL‎)‎ places the "best practices" in IT operations at your command‎.‎ ITIL helps you make better technology choices‎,‎ manages IT more effectively‎,‎ and drives greater business value from all your IT investments‎.‎ The core of ITIL is configuration management‎:‎ the discipline of identifying‎,‎ tracking‎,‎ and controlling your IT environment‎'‎s diverse components to gain accurate and timely information for better decision‎-making‎.‎ Now‎,‎ there‎'‎s a practical‎,‎ start‎-to‎-finish guide to ITIL configuration management for every IT leader‎,‎ manager‎,‎ and practitioner‎.‎ ITIL‎-certified architect and solutions provider Larry Klosterboer helps you establish a clear roadmap for success‎,‎ customize standard processes to your unique needs‎,‎ and avoid the pitfalls that stand in your way‎.‎ You‎'‎ll learn how to plan your implementation‎,‎ deploy tools and processes‎,‎ administer ongoing configuration management tasks‎,‎ refine ITIL information‎,‎ and leverage it for competitive advantage‎.‎ Throughout‎,‎ Klosterboer demystifies ITIL‎'‎s jargon‎,‎ illuminates each technique with real‎-world advice and examples‎,‎ and helps you focus on the specific techniques that offer maximum business value in your environment‎.‎ Coverage includes * Assessing your current configuration management maturity and setting goals for improvement * Gathering and managing requirements to align ITIL with organizational needs * Describing the schema of your configuration management database ‎(‎CMDB‎)‎ * Identifying‎,‎ capturing‎,‎ and organizing configuration data * Choosing the best tools for your requirements * Integrating data and processes to create a unified logical CMDB and configuration management service * Implementing pilot projects to demonstrate the value of configuration management and to test your planning* Moving from a pilot to wide‎-scale enterprise deployment * Defining roles for deployment and ongoing staffing * Leveraging configuration management information‎:‎ Reporting and beyond * Measuring and improving CMDB data accuracyCovers ITIL version 3‎.‎ Preface xvii Acknowledgments xxi About the Author xxiii Chapter 1‎:‎ Overview of Configuration Management 1 Part I‎:‎ Planning for Configuration Management 17 Chapter 2‎:‎ Gathering and Analyzing Requirements 19 Chapter 3‎:‎ Determining Scope‎,‎ Span‎,‎ and Granularity 37 Chapter 4‎:‎ Customizing the Configuration Management Process 55 Chapter 5‎:‎ Planning for Data Population 67 Chapter 6‎:‎ Putting Together a Useful Project Plan 85 Part II‎:‎ Implementing Configuration Management 97 Chapter 7‎:‎ Choosing the Right Tools 99 Chapter 8‎:‎ Implementing the Process 117 Chapter 9‎:‎ Populating the Configuration Management Database 127 Chapter 10‎:‎ Choosing and Running a Pilot Program 137 Chapter 11‎:‎ Communication and Enterprise Roll Out 149 Part III‎:‎ Running an Effective Configuration Management System 161 Chapter 12‎:‎ Building a Configuration Management Team 163 Chapter 13‎:‎ The Many Uses for Configuration Information 179 Chapter 14‎:‎ Measuring and Improving CMDB Accuracy 193 Chapter 15‎:‎ Improving the Business Value of Configuration Management 207 Index 217