A Configuration Management Database (CMDB) allows managing Configuration Items (CIs) including identifying, recording, maintaining, controlling, and reporting. CMDB collects and stores the following items as configuration records:

  • Configuration Items, such as IT Services and their components required for service delivery.
  • CMDB Class Types, determining CI business logic and the set of various attributes.
  • CI Relationships, specifying types of interactions, and dependencies between CIs. Follow the CI Relationship link to learn more. 

CMDB records, therefore, describe your CIs with their relationships, types of dependencies, and various characteristics.

To identify your CI in your SimpleOne solution, use the CMDB features, and follow the steps below:

  1. Within the CMDB Class Types list, define a type of IT Service component that is considered as a CI.
  2. Specify CI composing attributes with accurate and reliable information, filling in the Configuration Item form.
  3. Describe and establishing relationships with other CIs by adding CI Relationship records.

The Service Model visualizes CIs and their relationships with a Dependency Map view, which demonstrates CIs current statuses and interactions.

Role required: cmdb_manager.

CMDB Class Type

In the SimpleOne solution, IT Services are considered as Configuration Items, along with the constituent components required for proper service delivery. The CMDB Class Type specifies a set of the CI attributes, its place, and hierarchical position on the Service Model structure.

To identify your CI either as an IT Service or as a custom CI, at first, determine your CIs diversity with the CMDB Class Type list.

To create a new CI Type, follow the steps below:

  • Navigate to CMDB → CI Types, and push the New button. 
  • Fill in the Name field.
  • Click the Save or Save and Exit to apply changes.

Created CMDB Class Type appears at the start of the list. Since each Class Type defines the hierarchical level of the Service Dependency Map, creating a new one results in adding the next lower level of the model.

Configuration Item

Create, identify, configure, and manage your CIs and their parameters with the records in the list of the Configuration Items (sys_cmdb_ci) table. These records keep all detailed information such as CI Type, set of attributes with their values, and lists with the related records.

To add a new configuration item, please complete the steps below:

  1. Navigate to the CMDB → Configuration Items.
  2. Click New and fill in the fields.
  3. Click Save or Save and Exit to apply changes.


Field

Mandatory

Description

ClassY

Specify the class of the CI. When the class is specified, the Specification tab with class attributes appears.

The class cannot be changed after saving.

To use the CMDB without extension, you need to configure the Class field by making it non-mandatory. To do this, complete the following steps:

  1. Right-click on the Class field and choose the Configure field option in the context menu.
  2. On the field form, navigate to the Column override tab in the Related Lists area.
  3. Open the record with the Mandatory override column equal to 'true'.
  4. In the Table field, change the value to Configuration item.


ModelN

Reference to the CI model. Only active models of the specified class are available. When the model is specified, the Model tab with model attributes appears.

If you do not need to extend your CMDB structure, leave the field empty.


State

N

Define the possibility to use CI. Select one of the two possible values:

  • Active

  • Inactive.

Operational state

N

Determine a CI availability with the following possible statuses:

  • Available − a proper CI is provided.

  • Degraded − quality of CI does not correspond to the engaged requirements.

  • Unavailable − a CI is entirely unavailable.

  • Maintenance − a CI is not available due to maintenance activities.

DescriptionN Type detailed description of the CI.
IconN

The field appears after saving if the model is specified. The icon attaches automatically from the model record.

Owner NDefine the user who owns the CI.
GroupNDefine the group of users that owns the CI.


There are two ways to extend the CMDB structure: