Evergreen Print Fleet Inventory: The Foundation of Security & Management
Accurate, evergreen inventory is essential for managing any IT asset, but printers present unique challenges. Unlike servers, printers aren’t locked down in a data center under constant IT oversight. Unlike laptops or desktops, they aren’t assigned to individual users. Instead, they’re shared across departments, often serviced by multiple vendors, and frequently moved, replaced, or swapped out without visibility.
For security configuration management, maintaining an accurate, real-time inventory of your print fleet is critical. Unlike inventory used for print service management (toner, maintenance, billing), security inventory must track every device’s operational status, location, and configuration state to ensure proper hardening.
Print Fleet Inventory Is More Than Just a List
Printers don’t stay in one place. They move throughout their lifecycle, from installation to decommissioning, undergoing changes that impact security posture.
Fleet inventories change. An effective solution must account for every Install, Move, Add, Change, and Disposal (IMAC-D) event, including new printer installations, warehoused devices awaiting deployment, device replacements due to breakage or theft, temporary spares introduced into the fleet, offline devices that aren’t scheduled for removal, Internal movements between departments or locations. It must address untracked printer procurement such as departmental purchasing.
Without ongoing lifecycle tracking, security decision-making becomes flawed. For instance, if your CMDB (Configuration Management Database) lacks accurate print fleet inventory, you’re making on incomplete or outdated data—potentially leaving 20% of your endpoints unprotected.
Most Organizations Lack Visibility into Their Print Fleet
The reality is that most businesses don’t have accurate enterprise-wide visibility of their printers. Managed print service tools track devices for billing but don’t monitor them through their entire lifecycle. Many service providers also lack a structured, reportable IMAC-D process, leading to blind spots in security management.
Symphion Print Fleet Inventory Management
Symphion’s evergreen print fleet inventory is the foundation of secure, lifecycle-managed print fleets. We track every printer from cradle to grave, even after repairs like motherboard replacements. Our system maintains detailed records on contracts, security attributes, and usage metrics, ensuring fleet visibility at all times.
