PC Reporting Software

Does your computer look like mine? I have all kids of software installed as well as hardware. If someone came to me and asked me what I have currently installed in my computer I could not tell them. From hardware to software, I have installed and uninstalled too many things. I do not remember which memory banks are used, or even if I have any PCI slots open. I have so much software that keeping track of licensing has become a nightmare. The worst part is that if something were to happen to my computer I would have to rely upon my shady memory as to what applications I would need to re-install, etc. What a pain, but at the same time, hard to find time to document all this out, and even to find out the install codes for all the software.

I have found a few products that I think might be of great help, and I wanted to share my newfound knowledge with others out there looking for a good solution to easily document their computer. Therefore, if you want to document your PC before it takes a dump and the repair people asks you for the software installation codes that came with the pre-loaded software on your computer, and then this article is for you. The first software that I want to suggest is from Belarc called "Belarc Advisor." This software will give you much of the information that you are looking for in a simple and concise report. I went to the web site and downloaded the Advisor and then ran the program. It will automatically create a report that you can print or save off to a file.

The first section will show you your Operating System, Processor, Hard Drives installed (report includes details as how much free space), Optical drives installed, Main board information, BIOS date and version#, How much memory you have installed, and in what memory banks. You will also be provided USER account information, Printers installed, Hardware Controllers, and Display Adapters. The section on monitors will include monitor model #'s, serial numbers, Size, and manufactured date. The report also includes your Anti-virus software info, Network adapter information, and any other device that is plugged into your computer. From a hardware perspective I wish it included what was installed into each PCI slot on the main board and if there are any open slots. Other than that in regards to hardware, it pretty much covers almost all components.

The next section shows missing Microsoft Security Hotfixes with a link to the official Microsoft documentation. After this section is the software section. This area shows all the licenses installed on your computer along with the original key codes. For example, when installing Microsoft software you have an installation KEY code; this code is different from the actual license code. The report will show you both, How handy is this?

Then comes the full software list. With many software packages there are a number of little programs, add-ons, etc. A good example is my Adobe CS2 package. This installed several big applications but about 20 or so smaller utilities. In this section, all of these utilities are revealed; the report shows the full name and version number. Just past this section is the Installed Service and Hotfixes list. This report even breaks that patched/service packs/hotfixes out by application. Therefore, I can what items have been installed for Office or for Windows, etc. As I mentioned this is a rather detailed report that I can run on my computer and find out just about everything. This is especially useful PC Report for any technician that will be working on your computer. As a technician myself I think that the biggest question that I have to my customers is two fold. One, where is "such and such" software, replace with everything from the OS CD to Office or any other program. Second question is, do you know the install/license code? This report will answer one of them for me, that is half the battle. Belarc offers this free, but it is not geared for the Enterprise office solution. For commercial usage, one must purchase a different product. As a free PC Report, there is no reason not to run this report several times a year, keep the printed report handy for when your PC or Laptop crashes.

I tied using Everest software to create a summary report of my system. Although this software is great at giving you every detail of your computer, the summary report was over 1400 pages and kept growing. I do like the fact that Everest shows which PCI slots are open for use. Nevertheless, I am not sure about the length of the report. The Belarc report was only nine pages, which I think is a good amount for a summary. I personally would never print out or even save a 1400+ page report of my computer; especially since I add and remove things often and the items that I would want in a report change too often to justify 1400+ pages. I can easily justify a 9-page report.

The third PC reporting software that I investigated was from Alchemy, called "Alchemy Network Inventory," this software has many nice features as it can look at your entire network. The basic report show most things that you will wan to know, but it will not show the license codes. It will list the Service packs/patches and hotfixes installed but they are not broken down by OS or application. For a network technician that wants a good overview of each computer this will do a good job and produce approximately a 5-page report for each workstation. This product is geared for the network and the pricing is reasonable, and you can try this software free. For a home user I would still recommend the first software. It is free, has the most to offer in the report, combines like items well, and provides a nice snapshot of your computer.