How to Discover Network Assets Automatically in Freshservice?
Manually maintaining a list of every device connected to a company network is a losing battle. New laptops get issued, printers get added, servers get spun up, and within weeks, any spreadsheet-based inventory is already out of date. Automatic network asset discovery solves this by having software actively scan and catalog devices, rather than relying on someone to remember to log every change.
Quick Summary
Freshservice ITSM Software includes built-in discovery tools that scan networks automatically, identify hardware and software assets, and keep a centralized inventory continuously updated. This article explains how automatic network asset discovery works, the tools available to set it up, and the practical steps involved in getting reliable, real-time visibility into everything connected to the network.
How Does Freshservice Relate to Automatic Network Asset Discovery?
Freshservice, a cloud-based IT service management platform, includes discovery functionality built directly into its asset management module. Rather than requiring a separate network scanning tool, Freshservice provides both a Discovery Agent and a Discovery Probe, each designed to automatically detect devices and populate the configuration management database (CMDB) without manual data entry.
This is directly relevant to the topic of this article, since automatic network asset discovery is not a single feature but a combination of tools working together. Freshservice’s approach, offering both agent-based and probe-based discovery, gives IT teams flexibility depending on the type of devices being tracked and how those devices connect to the network, which is exactly what this guide walks through.
What Tools Does Freshservice Provide for Automatic Discovery?
Before setting up automatic discovery, it helps to understand the two primary tools Freshservice offers and how they differ.
What Is the Freshservice Discovery Agent?
The Discovery Agent is a lightweight application installed directly on Windows, Mac, or Linux computers. Once installed, it continuously tracks the device. It updates the device’s information in Freshservice in real time, even when the device leaves the company network. This makes it particularly useful for laptops and remote employee devices, which are not always connected to a central office network.
What Is the Freshservice Discovery Probe?
The Discovery Probe works differently. The Probe is not installed on every individual device. Instead, it is deployed on a single Windows system within the network. From there, it scans the surrounding network to detect devices, desktops, and servers automatically.
How Do You Decide Between the Agent and the Probe?
Choosing between the two depends largely on how devices are used. The Agent works best for organizations that want continuous, real-time tracking of every computer, including ones that travel outside the office. The Probe is most effective for scanning network assets that remain in fixed locations. It also supports additional features, including Active Directory synchronization and SCCM integration.Many organizations use the Probe alongside other Freshservice discovery tools. If the same device is detected by multiple tools, Freshservice prevents duplicate asset entries automatically.
How Do You Set Up the Discovery Probe for Automatic Network Scanning?
Setting up the Probe involves a few sequential steps, starting with installation and ending with a working automated scan schedule.
How Do You Install the Discovery Probe?
The Probe is downloaded from Admin > Global Settings > Asset Management > Discovery Hub > Configure Agent and Probe, under the Probe tab. It requires a Windows system to run and should be installed on a machine that remains active and connected to the network consistently, since the Probe needs to stay online to perform scheduled scans.
How Do You Configure the Probe After Installation?
When the Probe runs for the first time, a configuration wizard walks through several steps. Administrators start by entering the Freshservice URL and account credentials. Next, they provide SSH credentials for Mac OS X and Linux devices. For devices that use SNMP, they enter an SNMP secure string instead.The setup wizard then asks for a name for the Probe. This name helps administrators identify the Probe in the admin panel. It is especially useful for organizations that use multiple Probes across different network segments.
How Do You Automate Scanning Once the Probe Is Running?
The final configuration step turns on automated device scanning, allowing administrators to choose specific days of the week and times for scans to run automatically. A separate setting enables automated Active Directory scanning on its own schedule, syncing user information alongside device data. Once these schedules are set, the Probe operates without requiring manual scans, continuously refreshing the asset inventory in the background.
How Do You Set Up the Discovery Agent for Continuous Device Tracking?
While the Probe scans a network from a central point, the Agent takes a different approach by living directly on each device it tracks.
How Do You Deploy the Discovery Agent?
The Agent is configured from the same Discovery Hub location as the Probe, under Admin > Global Settings > Asset Management > Discovery Hub > Configure Agent and Probe, but under the Agent tab instead. Administrators select the appropriate operating system and follow deployment instructions suited to installing the Agent on a single machine or rolling it out across multiple devices at once.
How Does the Discovery Agent Stay Updated Automatically?
Once installed, the Discovery Agent updates itself automatically whenever Freshservice releases a new version, so IT teams do not need to manually push updates to every device. The Agent identifies devices using their serial numbers. It monitors those devices for changes while they are online. When a change is detected, the Agent updates the corresponding asset record in Freshservice automatically. In addition, the Agent performs a scheduled synchronization once every day, even if no changes have been detected.
Why Does the Serial Number Matter for Accurate Tracking?
The Agent uses the device’s serial number as the primary identifier when creating or updating assets in the inventory. This approach avoids duplicate records, since the same physical device is always recognized by its unique serial number even if other details, such as the assigned user or device name, change over time.
What Information Does Automatic Discovery Actually Capture?
Understanding what data gets pulled into Freshservice helps set realistic expectations for what automatic discovery can and cannot cover.
What Device Details Get Captured by the Agent and Probe?
Both the Discovery Agent and Discovery Probe capture a consistent set of hardware attributes once a device is scanned.
| Category | Attributes Captured |
| Identification | Device name, asset type, product, manufacturer, serial number |
| System details | Operating system, OS version, memory, disk space, CPU details |
| Network details | MAC address, IP address, hostname |
| Usage details | Last audit date, last login by user |
What Software Details Get Captured Alongside Hardware?
Freshservice also discovers all software applications installed on scanned devices and adds them automatically. This includes the software name, version, and installation date. However, installation dates are only captured for Windows devices. Notably, installed software is not discovered on Linux devices, which is a limitation worth planning around for organizations with a significant Linux footprint.
What Additional Details Does SNMP Scanning Provide?
For network devices scanned through SNMP, such as printers and network equipment, the Probe captures a different set of attributes. These include firmware version, network interfaces, and device-specific metrics like input and output units. This allows automatic discovery to extend beyond traditional computers into shared office equipment and networking hardware.
What Are the Practical Benefits of Automating Network Asset Discovery?
Bringing automated discovery into daily operations delivers concrete advantages over manual inventory tracking.
- Continuously accurate inventory, since scheduled scans keep the CMDB updated without manual intervention
- Faster identification of unmanaged devices, since scans surface hardware that was never formally added to inventory
- Reduced administrative overhead, since IT staff no longer need to manually log every new device
- Better security visibility, since unauthorized or unexpected devices become easier to spot through regular scans
- Improved audit readiness, since asset records reflect current network state rather than outdated snapshots
How Does This Reduce Security Blind Spots?
Unmanaged or unauthorized devices connected to a network represent a real security risk, since they exist outside normal patching, monitoring, and access control processes. Freshservice’s discovery tools run on a consistent schedule. This means previously unknown devices surface during routine scans, rather than being discovered only after they cause a problem. As a result, IT teams get a chance to investigate these devices and formally onboard or remove them.
What Should IT Teams Keep in Mind for Reliable Long-Term Discovery?
Getting discovery running is not the end of the process. A few ongoing practices keep results accurate over time.
Why Should Multiple Probes Be Used for Larger Networks?
Organizations with multiple physical locations or separate network segments typically need more than one Probe, since a single Probe only scans the network it can directly reach. Running separate probes for each network segment ensures that devices on isolated networks are not missed simply because the Probe never had visibility into that part of the infrastructure.
Why Does Consistent Scan Scheduling Matter?
Scans that run infrequently leave gaps where new devices go undetected for extended periods. Scheduling scans on a consistent, frequent basis ensures that the asset inventory reflects near-real-time conditions. This matters most for organizations with high device turnover. Examples include organizations with frequent new hires or equipment rotations.
Why Should Discovery Data Be Reviewed Rather Than Trusted Blindly?
Automatic discovery significantly reduces manual work, but it does not eliminate the need for periodic review. IT teams should still spot-check newly discovered assets against expected inventory, confirm that scan schedules are actually running as configured, and investigate any devices that appear unexpectedly. Treating automated discovery as a starting point for oversight, rather than a fully hands-off process, helps catch configuration issues, such as a Probe that stopped running, before they create larger gaps in visibility.
Conclusion
Automatic network asset discovery removes the guesswork and manual effort involved in keeping an IT inventory accurate. Freshservice supports this through two complementary tools, the Discovery Agent for continuous, real-time tracking of individual devices, and the Discovery Probe for scanning entire network segments from a central point. Together, these tools give IT teams a reliable, automatically updated picture of every hardware and software asset connected to the organization.
Ultimately, organizations that configure both tools thoughtfully, choosing the right approach for each type of device, get the clearest and most current view of their network. Freshservice ties this discovery data directly into its broader IT asset management and CMDB capabilities. As a result, the same platform used for tracking assets also becomes the foundation for security visibility, license compliance, and audit readiness.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not necessarily, though many organizations use both. The Agent works best for devices that need continuous tracking regardless of location, while the Probe works best for scanning fixed network assets and can also sync Active Directory users, so the right combination depends on the mix of devices being managed.
Yes, if a device is tracked by both the Agent and the Probe, Freshservice updates the same asset record rather than creating a duplicate, since both tools rely on consistent identifiers such as the device’s serial number.
