Getting a Grasp on Computer Assets To Deliver Maximum Cost Efficiency View all upcoming webinars: Content provided by: Gerald Herbert/AP

Webinar Moderator: Craig Stone Online Production Manager, edweek.org

Our Guests: Kirk Langer Director of technology, Lincoln Public Schools, Lincoln, Neb. Peter Frankl Vice president of asset management sales, Absolute Software.

Kirk Langer Director of Technology Lincoln Public Schools Asset Management: The Knowing-Doing Loop

Lincoln Public Schools Overview Lincoln Public Schools is the second largest public school district in Nebraska, located in the heart of the Plains, renowned for its long-standing legacy of educational excellence and tradition of rigorous academic achievement. The school district is growing and thriving, serving: People  35,000 students  3,000 teachers  4,000 support staff Facilities  6 High Schools  1 Alternative High School  4 Focus Programs  3 Special Services  10 Middle Schools  37 Elementary Schools  4 District Support Buildings

Lincoln Public Schools Technology Infrastructure Network Connectivity  Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) Fiber ring with 8 “core” sites Fiber connections from each core site to additional locations  Local Area Networks Switched 100Mb over copper Wireless a/b/g Computers – 17,543  Macintosh OS X 9,292 desktops 4,796 laptops  Windows XP and 7 2,377 desktops 1,078 laptops

Lincoln Public Schools – Computing Services Computing Services Department (established 09/2003)  Information Systems Development Server Infrastructure Enterprise Software District and School Office computers (primarily Windows OS)  Instructional Technology Instructional Computers (primarily Macintosh OS) Instructional Software and Curriculum Internet Services  Asset Management OS specific Primarily location specific

Computing Services – Enterprise Asset Management Perspective  Technicians Managing the hardware/software Focus is “doing”  Leadership Manage budget and strategic plan Focus is “knowing” Guiding Principal  We must close the knowing-doing loop  What we measure, we manage - What we don’t measure, manages us

Functional Requirements for “Doing” Manage the assets not the asset management system  True Cross-Platform Feature equivalence not a simple accommodation  Centralized Server Infrastructure Reduce cost by capitalizing on robust network infrastructure Operating system and deployment options  Simple implementation and on-going deployment Increase support agility – reduce imaging and on-site support  Patch Management  Software Updates  Install/”push” new software Role-based access to asset information School-based access (technicians) and enterprise access (managers)

Functional Requirements for “Knowing” Detailed profile of hardware inventory  Lifecycle Management  Inform the budget process  Annual state reporting (E-Rate)  Readiness and capacity planning  Reconciling hardware deployment with application requirements Detailed profile of software deployment  License Compliance  Standards and Security Assurance Patch Management Prohibit the use of software not necessary to meet objectives  Lifecycle Management Utilization Compatibility

Functional Requirements – Flexibility/Extensibility One size doesn’t fit all but we need to provision for all sizes

Feeding the System – Update Business Processes Procurement  Require computer profile form  ECM Workflow Deployment  Populate custom fields Maintenance  Automated data re-population following imaging

LPS’ Many Sizes – “Could you just tell me…”

Capacity Planning and Life-Cycle Management

Software Compliance – Hammer or Gavel?

What We’ve Done and What We Know Proof-of-Concept  Deployed server software in a virtualized environment  Deployed agent to all computers  Completed deployment in approximately 3 weeks Concept-to-Practice  Server Infrastructure Inventory Server, Software Distribution Server, License Monitoring Server (Windows Blades) Software Data Warehouse (Mac Pro)  Installed on 1,700 laptops over the last two years  Provided departments/buildings with fleet profiles  Prepared for new state test (NeSA)  Tracking utilization of new computers  Tracking compliance with guidelines for staff mobile computers

Due Respect to Thomas Friedman…the World Isn’t Flat Now that we know the world is round…  We have reconciled software licensing with deployment  We understand the capacity of our fleet in the context of changing functional requirements and changes in OS landscape  We have removed the burden of asset management from our instructional technology leaders, recovering 250+ hours of instructional time annually  We are saving over 200 hours of annual Computing Services staff time associated with compiling asset reports  Auditable reports to LPS departments, executive management, Board of Education and the Nebraska Department of Education  We spend our time analyzing data rather than gathering it or wishing that we could

Thank you Kirk Langer Director of Technology Lincoln Public Schools

Peter Frankl Vice President, Asset Management Sales Absolute Software Getting a Grasp on Computer Assets to Deliver Maximum Cost Efficiency Using Absolute Manage

Absolute Software: Products BIOS-embedded computer tracking, data protection and managed theft recovery Cross-platform computer lifecycle management Managed computer theft recovery and data protection for home computers

Absolute Manage: The Power of Enterprise Intelligent. Track installed applications and licenses, and redeploy under-used licenses to maximize inventory and avoid non- compliance fines. Find, terminate, and remove unlicensed and unauthorized software. Automated. Efficiently manage all of your assets by automating time- consuming IT processes such as software distribution, patch management, and imaging. Cross Platform. Enjoy ease of use and full cross-platform capabilities using a single console to manage all PC and Mac devices in your deployment.

Absolute Manage: Feature Categories

Absolute Manage: Features Applications & Licenses Track and intelligently manage applications and licenses. Remove unlicensed and unauthorized software. Repackage software installations and deploy software in native installer formats. Change & Configuration Remotely monitor and control devices. Filter and group systems and configurations based on OS and business function. Security Content Automation Protocol report. Automated Patch Centrally manage and install patches. Track and report on patch status for all managed systems. Execute a single OS install. Computer Imaging Single automated process to install a complete OS plus all standard apps onto Mac devices. Deploy a disk image to a computer while it’s in use. Easily edit the disk images created. Power Management Customized power management policies based on user behavior and work schedules. Leverage existing rebates and tax savings. Run detailed reports and analyze data generated by the policy. Asset Inventory Gather hundreds of hardware and software data points for analysis. Display data with custom views, searches and reports. Integrate data into third-party applications.

Absolute Manage: Installed Software

Absolute Manage: Automated Patch

Absolute Manage: Power Management

Absolute Manage: Power Usage Reports

Internet Headquarters Building 2 Home office / Traveling employee Building1 Building 3 Absolute Manage in the Distributed Enterprise

Third Party Integrations 29 Export Mac inventory data into Microsoft SMS / SCCM Enhance trouble tickets with: Asset information One-click remote control

Thanks! For more information on how to track, manage & protect your digital world, contact Absolute Software Toll-Free: (US & Canada) Website: Evaluate Absolute Manage: To tweet about today’s webinar, please go to

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