Evolution of the CMDB
A configuration management database is a repository of information related to all the components of an information system. Configuration management itself focuses on establishing and maintaining consistency of a system or product’s performance and its functional and physical attributes with its requirements, design, and operational information throughout its life cycle. A CMDB contains configuration item (CI) information and is used to understand CI relationships and track their configuration. Configuration management can assist in maintaining asset management data for configuration items.
The term CMDB stems from ITIL v2 (in ITIL v3 it is known as a configuration management system or CMS), where it represents the authorized configuration of the significant components of the IT environment. The CMDB is a fundamental component of the ITIL framework’s configuration management process. CMDB implementations often involve federation, the inclusion of data into the CMDB from other sources. Information in a CMDB is typically used for planning, identification, control, monitoring, and verification.
The Service Manager CMDB is a database containing details of configuration items and details of the important relationships between those configuration items. These relationships capture, record, and provide output about the status, urgency, historical changes, and the impact of data between CIs.
Service Manager orchestrates and unifies knowledge across System Center by using its CMDB and process integration to connect knowledge and information from Orchestrator, Virtual Machine Manager, Operations Manager, Configuration Manager, and Active Directory Domain Services.