IBM rolled out new Tivoli Asset Management features that include broader support for software license management and discovery and identification of services for the z/OS platform.

The Tivoli software is designed helps companies find and manage software inventory, as well as determine how and when the software is used. The data is then linked to inventory, contract and procurement information. The new features, introduced Friday, identify under- or over-licensed software, thereby reducing costs due to over-purchasing, maintaining audit readiness and reducing compliance risk due to under-purchasing, IBM said.

Other enhancements include discovery and identification services for the z/OS platform, including monitoring and reporting on software usage and trends. The improvements also provide the same services for distributed platforms and give license usage for virtual environments, including VMWare.

Finally, the latest update includes a license metric tool to help IBM customers determine their full and sub-capacity processor value unit licensing requirements. The utility is designed to help maintain an up-to-date inventory and maintain compliance with IBM's PVU-based software licensing.

"The new capabilities of IBM's IT Asset Management software portfolio provides companies with the data they need to help make intelligent business decisions for maximizing their IT costs," Al Zollar, general manager of Tivoli software for IBM, said in a statement.

IBM a year ago introduced a redesigned "intelligent dashboard" for Tivoli systems management software, which helps IT staff deploy, monitor, analyze, optimize and update server consolidation and virtualization environments.

Systems Director supports IBM System z, Power Systems, BladeCenter, and System x servers, as well as IBM System Storage Platform. The browser-based interface also supports some non-IBM hardware and storage systems.

IBM's Tivoli competes with CA's Unicenter and Hewlett-Packard's OpenView, all of which offer a broad range of applications and capabilities. Tivoli offers asset management, security, storage software, and more. Smaller companies, such as PacketTrap and SolarWinds, offer less extensive products for systems management.

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