Setting up collected data set properties

You can set up the properties of each collected data set to suit your requirements. When you create a new collected data set, you need to set up the WMI class properties as part of the process. You can modify the property settings at any time.

The default display name for each property is the WMI property name. You can change the property display names to make them more descriptive when showing inventory data. Descriptive property display names are also easier to use when you create filters and views.

You can specify the properties in each class that you want to collect from client computers. You can choose to collect particular properties within a class, and ignore the properties that you are not interested in. You may want to do this to make the inventory data collection process quicker and more efficient, and keep the size of the Inventory database to a minimum. By default, all properties of a class are enabled for collection, so are included in the Inventory database.

To set up collected data set properties

1.

In the Symantec Ghost Console, in the left pane, expand the Inventory folder.

2.

Expand the Collected Data folder, then expand the subfolder that contains the collected data set that you want to set up.

3.

In the Collected Data pane, do one of the following:

4.

In the Properties for Collected Data Set window, set up the collected data set properties to suit your requirements.

You can sort the properties by display name, WMI name, or type, by clicking on the appropriate column header to toggle the order.

5.

If you want to change the display name of a property, right-click the property name, then select Rename.

Type the new name, then press Enter or click anywhere in the window.

The name must be unique, and may contain up to 50 alphanumeric characters. You should choose a descriptive name that is easy to recognize when you are setting up filters and views.

6.

To specify whether or not a property is collected from client computers and added to the Inventory database, right-click the property name, then click the appropriate option:

The property status is indicated by the symbol beside the property display name. A green tick means the property is enabled for data collection, an empty space means it is disabled.

You can also click directly on the space or green tick to turn the status on and off.

A key symbol indicates a key property, and a padlock indicates a property that is currently used in a filter or view. These properties are always included in data collections, and you cannot disable them.

7.

If you want to hide disabled properties, check Hide Disabled Properties.

8.

If you want to ignore this collected data set when refreshing the Inventory database, check Do Not Collect Data For This Class.

This lets you temporarily disable all properties in the collected data set. You may want to do this to minimize the time that the refresh inventory task requires, by collecting only the data sets that you want.

9.

When you have finished setting up the collected data set properties, click OK.

The refresh inventory task collects the enabled properties from the target computers. Any disabled properties are removed from the Inventory database.

Note: Collected data sets that are ignored when refreshing the Inventory database are indicated in the Console by a small barred circle on the left side of the collected data set icon.