Configuration Management

7 Best Free and Open Source Configuration Management Databases

A configuration management database (CMDB) is a repository of information related to the various components of an information system detailing an organisation’s IT services and the relationships between those components. The purpose of a CMDB is to catalog and track all of the information that an IT department needs to keep.

The term CMDB stems from the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) best practices which include specifications for configuration management. These specifications detail four main tasks of configuration management. These consist of the identification of configuration items to be included in the CMDB, control of data, status maintenance, and verification (from audits and reviews of the data). The processes of configuration management seek to specify, control, and track configuration items and any changes made to them in a comprehensive and systematic fashion.

The purpose of this article is to identify proficient configuration management databases. Each software featured in this article is released under an open source license.

Ratings chart

Let’s explore the 7 configuration management databases at hand. For each title we have compiled its own portal page, a full description with an in-depth analysis of its features, a screenshot of the software in action, together with links to relevant resources.

Configuration Management Databases
iTopComplete ITIL web based service management tool
RalphSimple yet full featured Asset Management, DCIM and CMDB system
CMDBuildManage a custom database of assets and design related workflow processes
i-doitWeb based IT documentation and Configuration Management Database
DATAGERRYEnterprise-grade open source CMDB
ObStackFully dynamically configure data object types
OneCMDBIncludes Nagios configuration and NMAP discovery tools

This article has been revamped in line with our recent announcement.

Best Free and Open Source SoftwareRead our complete collection of recommended free and open source software. Our curated compilation covers all categories of software.

The software collection forms part of our series of informative articles for Linux enthusiasts. There are hundreds of in-depth reviews, open source alternatives to proprietary software from large corporations like Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk.

There are also fun things to try, hardware, free programming books and tutorials, and much more.
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Please read our FAQ before making a comment.

0 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments