OTOBO & i-doit: Helpdesk meets CMDB
OTOBO & i-doit: Helpdesk meets CMDB
Section titled “OTOBO & i-doit: Helpdesk meets CMDB”Introduction
Section titled “Introduction”OTOBO is a free, web-based ticket system (a fork of the OTRS Community Edition) for support and service organizations. It offers:
- Modular ticketing with preconfigured 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
Section titled “OTOBO’s Integrated CMDB”Since version 11, OTOBO has included a lean CMDB that is embedded directly into the ticket system:
- CI Classes & Forms
Predefined object types (server, switch, contract, room …) plus a YAML editor for custom fields and masks. - Links & Graphs
CIs can be linked to each other and to tickets, changes, or knowledge base articles; dependency graphs visualize relationships. - Import/Export
REST/SOAP web services enable automated data syncs from third-party systems. - Integration in the Ticket Workflow
Agents select the affected CI directly when creating a ticket – new hardware is recorded automatically. - Performance & Scalability
Even with several thousand CIs, the search remains fast and performant.
Strengths:
- Quickly ready for operation, integrated directly 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 functions are being added gradually
Integration of OTOBO & i-doit
Section titled “Integration of OTOBO & i-doit”Technical Basis
Section titled “Technical Basis”- OTOBO Generic Interface (REST/SOAP endpoints freely configurable)
- i-doit JSON-RPC API (add-on for read/write access to all CMDB objects)
Add-ons & Connectors
Section titled “Add-ons & Connectors”- maxence i-doit Connector for OTOBO
- View of i-doit assets directly in the ticket
- Mouseover info & linking 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
Section titled “Typical Workflows”- Ticket “Printer XY defective” is created in OTOBO
- Agent selects the i-doit object “Printer XY”, all details appear inline
- If necessary, new hardware procurement triggers an automatic CMDB entry in OTOBO
- Changes in i-doit (e.g., relocation) are reflected in the OTOBO CMDB via web service
CMDB Comparison
Section titled “CMDB Comparison”| Feature | OTOBO CMDB | i-doit CMDB |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Purpose | Service context in ticketing | Central IT documentation |
| Initial Effort | Very low | Higher (data modeling required) |
| Functional Scope | Standard assets, tickets | License mgmt, IPAM, building plans … |
| APIs & Automation | REST/SOAP (Generic Interface) | JSON-RPC web services, many connectors |
| Reporting & Audits | Basic reports | Extensive reports & dashboards |
| Deployment Scenario | Small to medium helpdesk | Large, regulated environments |
Conclusion:
- Small to medium 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
Section titled “Typical Use Cases”- Incident Management
Quickly finding all info on a defective CI directly in the ticket. - Change Management
Impact analyses in i-doit, implementation and documentation in OTOBO. - Asset Strategy
Automated import of new devices into i-doit; maintenance tickets in OTOBO. - Self-Service & FAQ
End users use the OTOBO portal and access CMDB data. - Compliance & Audits
Audit-proof logs in both systems, audit reports at the push of a button.
Further Links
Section titled “Further Links”- OTOBO Ticket System: https://otobo.de/
- OTOBO Documentation: https://doc.otobo.de/
- i-doit Community: https://www.i-doit.org/
- i-doit API & Add-ons: https://kb.i-doit.org/
With OTOBO and i-doit, helpdesk and asset processes can be optimally interlinked – either alone or combined, depending on the requirements.