Ideally, all hardware and software assets should be included in the inventory, but the most important assets to include are:
- hardware assets that are depreciable over time; AND
- software assets subject to license requirements.
By tracking hardware that is depreciable over time, a company can ensure it is accurately recapturing the lost value of its assets, and by tracking the software on the hardware assets, a company can ensure that it has acquired sufficient licenses for its requirements and that it has not acquired any licenses that are unused.