Currently ~2400 computers and printers, 30%mac, 65%pc, 32% laptops, 70 NAS devices :
   In general, all faculty, staff and “regularly used for lab work” student computers should be in the inventory.  Our pricing structure was designed to charge less per computer for larger inventories. The BS Network Consortium which is Drs. Hart, Devreotes, Desiderio, Reed and Woolf said several years ago that they put all of their computers in and so should the other labs.  That was said in a meeting but never pushed out as a top-down directive.  In general, most labs do include their student laptops into inventory to cover service but not parts.  We also make an exception with software intended for faculty and staff with the MEEC or School of Medicine prepaid agreement (Office).  We install these packages for no charge on student computers which are in our inventory.
    Rotating students are in the inventory of their respective program offices but are not billable until assigned to a lab.  Exceptions to the “generally in inventory” concept include computers attached to lab equipment that may or may not be on the network and may or may not be under contract with the equipment provider.  Most labs that use file sharing on a computer collecting data from a critical lab device will include that machine in their list to keep their data online to the highest extent.  Most pure Linux OS computers are not required to be in inventory.
     Even though inventory is done mid fiscal year we do not charge a prorated amount for computers being removed that year from inventory, they usually balance out with new computers added during the year.  We discourage removing computers from inventory that have already had service that year.  Every year we have a few computers removed from inventory coming back to us for service.  We will not service them unless they are put back in the inventory.    With grant times continuing to be difficult, we have had a few labs trying to cut way back on their inventory to save money. In those cases we will not service computers removed from inventory for the rest of the fiscal year.  The lab is free to add them into inventory in the next year and get service again.