Get a Bird’s Eye View with Software Inventory

June 28, 2021 |  Data, Product, Reports
2 min

Get an overview of all the software that’s installed on your campus.

LabStats tracks application usage on campus computers. It’s designed to be lightweight with a tiny footprint, so it only tracks the applications you assign.

Most universities use LabStats to monitor expensive and specialty software licenses to ensure they’re only paying for what students actually use. They also track usage patterns to inform budget, installation and refresh decisions throughout the year.

But beyond usage data, it’s helpful to know what other software is running in your environment. Seeing the complete picture can help you identify unauthorized or vulnerable software. It can also help you verify license compliance, reduce purchasing costs and ensure that the right software is installed in the right places.

This is where the Software Inventory feature comes into play, which gives you insight into all the other applications in your environment.

For example, sometimes there is software in a computer lab that shouldn’t be there. The software could:

  • Have a vulnerability
  • Be unauthorized
  • Be inappropriate for a university computer
  • Be mismatched according to lab location and student use (engineering software in a computer lab for the Liberal Arts college)

By using Software Inventory in LabStats, you can:

  • See a list of all the software in your environment
  • See where each application is installed, down to the individual station
  • Identify unapproved or vulnerable software (so you can then remove it)
  • Verify licensing compliance to remediate issues
  • Identify unused licenses to reduce purchasing costs
  • Ensure appropriate software and correct versions are installed

With support for both Windows and macOS, you’ll have a complete picture of your environment. It’s easy to manage, sort and search through the data so you can get a bird’s eye view or dive deep to investigate specific applications in detail.

Related: How do I view an inventory of all my software?

Once you notice a trend or change to be made, it’s easy to use the data to take action. You can invite a new user to view the reports or export your findings in multiple formats to support budget requests or ease collaboration between departments.  

Application Dashboard

Application Manager

The Application Manager is your bird’s eye view of the software on your campus. You can see all the applications that were discovered in your environment, along with the vendor, number of versions and install count for each application.

Application Detail

Installed Versions and Station Details

You can then dive deeper into each application to see the specific stations where each version is installed. You  can also pull up a station record to see a list of installed applications on just one computer. This is helpful when you want to check to see that a mass update was installed properly, or when you want to check in on often overlooked computers. Podium computers, information kiosks and computers paired with specific tech like 3D printers or lab equipment often have very specific software needs, so checking in regularly can prevent issues in the long run.

How often does software inventory run?

Software inventory runs once every 24 hours, as long as the computer is turned on and reporting to LabStats Client Servers during that time.

Once you’ve attained a clear view of your environment and tracked down any issues, you can focus on usage tracking for the applications that matter most to you. For support running LabStats reports, reach out to our team.



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