Since I am not a software developer I banked on the idea that someone had to have thought of this problem and developed a tool to solve it

Mat Banke,
Serena Software


Mat Banke

Mat Banke is a Senior Systems Administrator for Serena Software based in San-Mateo, California. Before Mat was introduced to ASPRunner Pro, he was looking for a tool that would allow him to create a web-based database-driven application, without having to become an expert in asp. "The application had to be simple in use yet easy to understand. After coming across this software and seeing the power it has to offer - I knew that I had found the right tool," Matt told us.

"Before ASPRunner Pro, our hardware asset inventory had been held in a public Microsoft Access database, stored on a public share. It worked but was archaic in use. Only one person could have the file open at a time, searching for specific items was limited, and from its source location you could only use it if you had a direct connection to the office with the appropriate drive mappings in place," he says.

Mat wanted to move the data to a web-based application and he knew he needed to get the data into a more robust database solution. The platforms they are using today are Microsoft IIS 6 for the front-end, and Microsoft SQL Server 2000 on the backend. The single most important requirement was that the solution needed to be accessible via a web browser. This requirement was driven by the fact that he has peers in other offices, around the world, that needed access to this data, which previously was not available.

Serena Software screenshot

"Using the Internet to research what products might be available - I stumbled across ASPRunner Pro and the Xlinesoft website," commented Mat when we asked him about his software selection process. "I did not try any other tool to compare, but what I do love about this product is its ease of use. I have repeated this a few times already, but it is important to understand that I did not have time to figure out a new product, and that I needed to get our new way of managing hardware assets up and running as soon as possible."

After the initial download, at which point Mat had already imported all of his Access data into SQL Server, he had the first workings of the new front-end up and running within thirty minutes. He was able to demonstrate this to his boss and get immediate approval for purchase. Within one week the entire site was up and he was done.

"ASPRunner Pro saved us both time and money. This was outstanding and well worth the purchase. Having no prior asp experience, I was able to deploy a solution which could have taken weeks or months to figure out, and still would not have delivered all of the requirements needed. This product did everything I needed it to do and all within one week. With first project being close to completion I am currently looking at using ASPRunner Pro to expand on our asset inventory by building a new system to track all of our software assets and licenses," Mat states.

"I am also using it with a new database to store master system passwords. This has been locked down pretty tight using not only the SQL integrated security with Active Directory but also with the ASPRunner Pro login pages. So my company has a common master password location that my peers and I use and review when needed."

Serena Software screenshot

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