uControl Asset Management

Overview

uControl Asset Management combines asset discovery with hardware lifecycle and software licence management. It is best suited to IT and licensing teams that need those records reconciled across on-network, cloud and endpoint devices. Its breadth is compelling, but the free edition is restricted to on-premise deployment and paid plans start at £10,000 per year.

Key features

Discovery and reconciled records

Agentless discovery covers on-network IT, OT and cloud assets, while a Windows and macOS agent captures devices that do not connect to the network. Integrations import ITSM, procurement, ERP and other data into mapped, reconciled asset records. Named integrations include ServiceNow, BMC Helix, Atlassian JSM, Lansweeper, EasyVista and HaloITSM. This mix can give teams a broader inventory than network discovery alone, though endpoint-agent coverage is limited to Windows and macOS.

Hardware lifecycle and licensing

Hardware records cover warranties, end-of-life, refresh, depreciation, assignment and contracts. Software management adds recognition, entitlements, Effective Licence Position, usage-based reclaim and vendor packs. The endpoint agent also inventories monitors, keyboards, mice and headsets over USB and Bluetooth, plus USB removable storage. This breadth is useful when a team wants peripheral and licence data alongside core hardware, rather than maintaining separate records.

Usage reclaim and controls

Usage telemetry flags software installed but not launched within 90 days, grades each flag by confidence and avoids flagging software in active use. That gives licensing teams a basis for reclaim decisions without treating every installation as unused. SAML, OIDC and LDAP support span the editions; RBAC and an audit log add access and accountability controls. Real-time updates, impact analysis and business service views broaden the operational picture beyond inventory.

Pricing

Annual prices exclude VAT. Community is a substantial free option for organisations within its 10k-server cap that can run on-premise, but it gives up cloud and appliance deployment. SMB is the paid entry point for teams that need those deployment choices and standard support. Professional costs four times as much as SMB and suits organisations needing unlimited hardware, software and application portfolio management plus a customer success manager. Enterprise is the tier for buyers seeking premium support, with custom pricing. Community support is also provided for Community.

Platforms

uControl supports API, Linux, macOS, self-hosted, web and Windows environments. Its hybrid discovery and deployment approach combines agentless and agent-based inventory with cloud and on-premise options; Community itself remains on-premise only.

Who it's for

The strongest fit is an organisation whose CIO or IT director, IT asset managers, software licensing teams, IT operations, finance, and security or risk teams need a shared view of assets and licensing. The hardware lifecycle fields and licence reconciliation make it relevant where refresh planning and software compliance sit alongside inventory. It is less suitable for a small team that needs cloud deployment without a £10,000 annual commitment, or for environments that rely on endpoint agents outside Windows and macOS.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Hardware lifecycle, software entitlements and discovery feed one reconciled asset record, reducing the divide between inventory and licensing work.
• Pros: Agentless IT, OT and cloud discovery is complemented by endpoint capture and peripheral inventory, including equipment that may not appear in network scans.
• Pros: Community includes broad discovery and licence optimisation for unlimited users at no cost, with a defined 10k-server ceiling.
• Cons: Community is on-premise only, so cloud or appliance deployment requires a paid edition.
• Cons: The £10,000-per-year SMB starting price is a substantial step up for organisations that outgrow Community.
• Cons: The endpoint agent covers Windows and macOS, limiting agent-based capture for other device platforms.

Alternatives

Choose Lansweeper if you want another freemium asset-discovery option with a free trial and a free allowance of up to 100 assets after the trial. Netdata is a better match for monitoring across mobile and desktop platforms; its Community plan is free but capped at five active connected nodes and one active custom dashboard per room. For Kubernetes platform monitoring with usage-based hourly billing, consider Dynatrace Kubernetes Monitoring. New Relic Kubernetes Monitoring is another freemium Kubernetes-monitoring choice, with a Pro plan at $349 a year for annual commitments and 100 GB of free data ingest. Backstage is a free open-source framework. For application and server monitoring, ManageEngine Applications Manager has a free tier for up to five apps or servers. Azure Application Insights suits usage-based data ingestion, with the first 5 GB per month per billing account free. Cartography is a free open-source infrastructure mapping tool.

Verdict

Choose uControl when IT and licensing teams need hardware lifecycle tracking, software compliance and discovery reconciled in one asset record, especially if Community's on-premise deployment and 10k-server cap fit. Its free tier is unusually broad in scope, but organisations needing cloud deployment must budget at least £10,000 per year; those seeking a lower-cost cloud-first inventory should look elsewhere.

Application Dependency Mapping Software · IT Asset Management Software