Using BigFix Inventory as inventory source

Usage and Config BFI
1

Hi, Can anyone advise - we are looking at using BigFix inventory as an inventory source for our SAM tool.
We have a connection to the DB2 database tables but are unsure whether we are looking at raw or normalised data - Thanks

2

I’d recommend considering the REST API for such purposes rather than the database:

https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/SSKLLW_9.5.0/com.ibm.bigfix.inventory.doc/Inventory/integration/c_rest_api_software_hardware_inventory.html

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3

Thanks but that isn’t an option - we have an out of the box adapter - just wanted to know if the data we are looking at is raw data or not.

4

There should be both raw and normalized data. Look at the views which closely match the rest api format and that should be a good starting point.

5

@Smitty987 be careful when going direct to the database with your integration. The schema has historically been a semi-moving target as the product evolved (both in features and optimizations), and there are no guarantees an upgrade won’t totally break how your pulling the data. Also, the ETL process BFI leverages assumes it has complete control so ensure nothing in your process(es) could interfere with it (like locking tables/rows) otherwise bad things might happen (ETL failures, corrupt data, etc).

Not to say it can’t be done or it shouldn’t be done, just be extra careful about how it is done.

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