This article examines the differences between these categories: what device management is and why it\u2019s important, as well as a primer on ITAM and the many benefits that it provides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What Is Device Management?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
From a security standpoint, device management<\/a> is a vital component of Zero Trust security<\/a>, which enforces the principle of least privilege and drives the concept that a system should trust nothing, verify everything<\/em> when someone (or something) wants to access it. Devices exist in many places, with different forms and operating systems. Management ensures their secure, efficient operation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The full definition of device management refers to the process of overseeing and controlling a fleet of devices that typically includes computers, laptops, smartphones, tablets, servers, and other hardware. It ensures the efficient and secure operation while minimizing downtime and maintaining compliance with organizational policies and any regulatory mandates. Devices may be owned and operated by the organization, or employee owned and enabled for secure, remote work; either way these devices are known entities to IT and granted specific permissions to access company resources based on their own internal policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The practice of device management can cover many different areas of work. In particular, device management tends to involve:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \n Casting IT Into the Shadows <\/p>\n \n What you can\u2019t see CAN hurt you when it comes to shadow IT. Learn six key shadow IT risks and how to address them proactively. <\/p>\n <\/div>\n Mobile device management<\/a> (MDM) solutions like Apple MDM, Windows MDM, or Android Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) can facilitate these tasks through a centralized platform. It\u2019s also helpful to use agents<\/a> for configuration management, OS commands<\/a>, and gathering telemetry for reporting<\/a>, especially when MDM is unavailable for a specific version of flavor of operating system (like most Linux distros). <\/p>\n\n\n\n Managing devices on an individual basis is cumbersome, can lead to misconfigurations, and endpoints may fall out of compliance with organizational standards. Thus enterprise platforms exist to centralize configuration and policy work and distribute them as needed to registered endpoints. <\/p>\n\n\n\n ITAM is a process to ensure that devices, SaaS applications, and other technology resources are accounted for and that appropriate lifecycle management approaches are applied to those assets. Those assets should be audited regularly to determine who<\/em> has access to which<\/em> resource. It is important for every technology asset that your organization uses to be identified, tracked, well-utilized, secured, and maintained. This means that ITAM should also include the methods by which unofficial \u201cshadow IT\u201d resources are identified and dealt with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Generally speaking, IT would consider assets to be:<\/p>\n\n\n\n In short: you can\u2019t manage and support what you\u2019re not aware of. ITAM overcomes this challenge through discovering, identifying, and tracking what you own and use. This makes it possible to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n ITAM empowers IT departments to eliminate shadow IT to gain full visibility into all apps and cloud infrastructure. Managing your assets makes it possible for you to secure and streamline identity\/device provisioning, handle access request management, and monitor utilization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Asset management and device management are related concepts within the broader field of IT management, but they focus on different aspects of an organization’s resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\nKey Aspects of Device Management<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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\n <\/div>\n How Are Devices Managed?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
What Is IT Asset Management?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What Is Considered an Asset?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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What Challenges Does Asset Management Overcome?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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How Does Asset Management Overcome Shadow IT<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Differences Between Asset and Device Management<\/h2>\n\n\n\n