Understanding A Configuration Item (CI)

A Configuration Item (CI) can be defined as any component that needs to be managed in order to deliver an IT service. It should be manageable and traceable. It is an asset or a service component that is under the control of configuration management.

Attributes of a CI

•  Category 
•  Relationships
•  Status

For any asset or service component to qualify as a CI ALL of the following conditions have to be met:

1. It MUST be required to deliver an IT service
2. It MUST be identifiable as a unique entity 
3. It MUST be manageable 
4. It MUST have some characteristic that can change

Examples:

Item	Delivers IT Service?	Is Unique?	Is Manageable?	Has Characteristics That Can Change?	Qualifies As A CI?
Server	P	P	P	P	P
Process Doc.	P	P	P	P	P
Telephone	O	P	P	P	O
Building	P	P	P	O	O
AC	P/O	P	P	P	P/O
Projector	P/O	P	P	P	P/O

Example of a Building - A building does not has characteristics that can change. Its area, floors, wings, etc. will remain the same. We do find building or location information captured in CMDB but then it is the information about a CI which tells us where it is physically or virtually located.

Example of AC - An AC in a data center will qualify as a CI since cooling is one of the key parameters which affects performance of a Server by ensuring that CPU temperature is under control. But in all other cases where it is just keeping our offices, conference rooms, etc. cool, it does not qualify as a CI as it is not delivering any IT service.

Example of Projector - For an organization which is into delivering Training services, Projector would qualify to be a CI. For all other cases it would not.

Thus, a key point to note is that whether any item would qualify to be a CI would also depend on the type of service that the organization is into.