Which CI-Class for Desktop Software if not Business Application?

[Manu15]

Dear Experts,

I am a bit confused which CI class is the right choice for mapping locally installed fat client applications. Some of these applications are referenced in business processes, some are just Tools like Notepad++ or other common used tools.
We use Enterprise Architecture / SAM Pro and have mapped locally installed applications on notebooks as Business Application.
I have read some community articles on the subject, such as What is a Business Application?  by @mcastoe, and since then I have doubted our previous approach. I also had some appointments with local ServiceNow consultants who told me that our approach is the wrong way (which would be logical due to the selectable architecture types) and that we should customize a separate CI class for such locally installed fat client applications, which references the product samp_sw_product and the installations cmdb_sam_sw_install.
Isn't there a more elegant way? We would like to follow the ServiceNow standard as closely as possible and use the functions that SAM Pro and Enterprise Architecture offer us in terms of lifecycle management. I saw the CI class Desktop Software cmdb_ci_desktop_software, but it seems to be a bit legacy and not really SAM integrated.
Which CI class is the best solution for mapping applications installed locally on notebooks that do not use any infrastructure (servers, databases, etc.)? I seem to remember that in earlier releases of APM, fat client applications such as Adobe Reader were also mapped as business applications in the APM demo data. Now I no longer see these applications in the demo data. Has the definition of a business application changed here on the part of ServiceNow?

[Kieran Anson]

cmdb_ci_appl is where installed software would be represented. This is populated by a discovery tool, not manually, and references the computing device as it's installed location. It can then link in with SAM Pro to represent installed applications as software instances to manage.

It is a bit complicated the fact software can live in so many places. ServiceNow haven't really consolidated this and left it very open to wrongful interpretation 

[mcastoe]

Hi,

Typically there is little or no value to mapping desktop software or End User Computing (EUC), as Business Applications though there are some who do; mostly for regulatory/risk purpose.  As noted below, Discovery may, if configured to do so, capture installation of the software in the cmdb_ci_appl table or one of its extensions.  See https://www.servicenow.com/docs/bundle/yokohama-it-operations-management/page/product/discovery/conc... in docs on Softare Discovery.   

Since you have SAM, you will see that your installations are primarlily tracked in Software Installation [cmdb_sam_sw_install] and Software Discovery Model [cmdb_sam_sw_discovery_model] for powering SAM's ability to track license usage.

When it comes to Enterprise Architecture,  the one place we see Desktop or End User Computing (EUC) is in Technology Reference Model where we declare Software Tech Standards. Managing this EUC as Business Applications doe snot make sense unless you have a very specific output(s) required.  

[Manu15]

Thanks @mcastoe for your comments. This helps me in part to understand ServiceNow's perspective on the subject.

Only the End User Computing (EUC) point seems contradictory to me. Recently, the value “End-user computing (EUC)” has been available for selection in the “Application type” field of the business application.

See documentation here:

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/bundle/xanadu-application-portfolio-management/page/product/applicat...

What sense does this fairly new value make if the mapping of business applications for desktop applications does not fulfill any meaningful use case?

If you google the term End User Computing (EUC), you will find different definitions. How does ServiceNow define End User Computing (EUC)?

Thanks again for clarification

Manu

[mcastoe · Accepted solution]

Hi,

As i mentioned previously, some customers find "value" in modeling desktop software as business applications and a few insisted that we add the value to application type.   EUC or desktop software is software installed on laptops, workstations, VDIs etc.   

Some Application Portfolio practices tend to see the Business Application portfolio as "Software".  It is not Software!  Business Applications are systems that are built from software, hardware and services all working together to provide capabilities, to power business service offerings and so forth.      

Sometimes customer have risk/security practices that require all "software" to be review for security/risk etc.   and they want to just look at a single table.   This is ultimately a bad practice because the table becomes a dumping ground for all kinds of "things" and in the end, its a mess.  So, your inclination that it doesn't make much sense is in line with best practice, but there are a few customers where it is simply a necessary evil.

TRM is meant for managing all things "Software" (and Hardware ) and is perhaps a better choice for EUC.