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OTOBO & i-doit: Helpdesk Meets CMDB

Introduction

OTOBO is a free, web-based ticketing system (a fork of the OTRS Community Edition) for support and service organizations. It offers:

  • Modular ticketing with pre-configured workflows (Incident, Change, On-/Offboarding…)
  • Modern customer and self-service portal including an FAQ database
  • Extensive reporting and statistics functions
  • Flexible role and permission management
  • Interfaces to third-party systems (REST/SOAP, Generic Interface)

i-doit is an IT documentation solution based on a fully ITIL-compliant CMDB:

  • Central inventory of all IT assets (hardware, software, contracts, locations…)
  • Visualization of dependencies and impact analyses
  • JSON-RPC API for automated imports (discovery tools, network scanners…)
  • Extensive add-ons (monitoring integration, license management, ISMS, IPAM…)
  • Dashboards, reports, and audit functions

OTOBO's Integrated CMDB

Since version 11, OTOBO includes a lightweight CMDB that is directly embedded into the ticketing system:

  1. CI Classes & Forms
    Predefined object types (Server, Switch, Contract, Room…) plus a YAML editor for custom fields and forms.
  2. Links & Graphs
    CIs can be linked to each other and to tickets, changes, or knowledge base articles; dependency graphs visualize relationships.
  3. Import/Export
    REST/SOAP web services enable automated data syncs from third-party systems.
  4. Integration in the Ticket Workflow
    Agents directly select the affected CI when creating a ticket—new hardware is automatically recorded.
  5. Performance & Scalability
    Even with several thousand CIs, the search remains fast and performant.

Strengths:

  • Quick to set up, directly integrated into the helpdesk
  • Flexible customization without programming
  • No external licenses, Open Source

Limitations:

  • Not a complete replacement for specialized CMDB tools (e.g., detailed network topologies, license audits)
  • Still under development; some features are being added successively

Integration of OTOBO & i-doit

Technical Basis

  • OTOBO Generic Interface (freely configurable REST/SOAP endpoints)
  • i-doit JSON-RPC API (add-on for read/write access to all CMDB objects)

Add-ons & Connectors

  • maxence i-doit Connector for OTOBO
    • View of i-doit assets directly in the ticket
    • Mouseover info & link to the i-doit entry
    • Ticket creation from within i-doit
  • i-doit Connector for OTRS/Znuny (base code of OTOBO)
    • Real-time synchronization of CIs and tickets
    • Email templates with placeholders for CMDB data

Typical Workflows

  1. Ticket "Printer XY defective" is created in OTOBO
  2. Agent selects the i-doit object "Printer XY," all details appear inline
  3. If necessary, new hardware procurement triggers an automatic CMDB entry in OTOBO
  4. Changes in i-doit (e.g., relocation) are reflected in the OTOBO CMDB via web service

CMDB Comparison

FeatureOTOBO CMDBi-doit CMDB
Primary PurposeService context in ticketingCentral IT documentation
Initial EffortVery lowHigher (data modeling required)
Scope of FunctionsStandard assets, ticketsLicense Mgmt, IPAM, building plans…
APIs & AutomationREST/SOAP (Generic Interface)JSON-RPC web services, many connectors
Reporting & AuditsBasic reportsExtensive reports & dashboards
Use Case ScenarioSmall to medium-sized helpdeskLarge, regulated environments

Conclusion:

  • Small to medium-sized support team: OTOBO alone is often sufficient
  • Large enterprise environment: i-doit as the "Single Source of Truth" + OTOBO as the helpdesk frontend

Typical Use Cases

  1. Incident Management
    Quickly find all information about a defective CI directly in the ticket.
  2. Change Management
    Impact analyses in i-doit, implementation and documentation in OTOBO.
  3. Asset Strategy
    Automated import of new devices into i-doit; maintenance tickets in OTOBO.
  4. Self-Service & FAQ
    End users use the OTOBO portal and access CMDB data.
  5. Compliance & Audits
    Audit-proof logs in both systems, audit reports at the push of a button.

With OTOBO and i-doit, helpdesk and asset processes can be optimally integrated—either individually or combined, depending on the requirements.