Product Requirements

Certain resources are required to install and use Cherwell Asset Management (CAM) in a production environment.

Additional considerations for enterprise customers are provided. See CAM Enterprise Recommendations.

Component Requirements Notes

CAM Administrator and CAM Administration Service
  • 2.0 GHz
  • Windows 10 or Windows Server 2016 or later
  • Microsoft .NET Framework 4.8 or later

Typically installed on the product administrator's desktop machine.

Always install the CAM Administration Service on the same machines that have CAM Administrator installed. The CAM Administration Service should not be installed on the same machine as the CAM Access Point.

CAM External Connector

Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) Build 1810 or later

SQL Server administrator credentials to provide read access to the SCCM database are also required.

Access to web applications (CAM Reporting, CAM Purchasing, CAM SaaS Analytics, CAM License Analytics, and CAM REST API)

Browser requirements: Current versions of Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge, or Internet Explorer

CAM Reporting, CAM Purchasing, CAM SaaS Analytics, CAM License Analytics, and CAM REST API
IIS server requirements for on-premises installations:
  • 2.0 GHz
  • Windows Server 2016 or later
  • Microsoft .NET Framework 4.8 or later
  • Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) corresponding to the operating system

Web sockets are enabled when you run CAM Setup and install CAM SaaS Analytics.

The CAM REST API requires:
  • .NET Core 3.1.7 run-time
  • .NET Core 3.1.7 hosting provider

If these components are not detected, you are prompted to install them. For your convenience, the files are provided with the CAM REST API installation package.

CAM Access Point

  • 2.0 GHz
  • 32 GB RAM
  • Windows Server 2016 or later
  • Microsoft .NET Framework 4.8 or later
  • Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) corresponding to the operating system

Do not install a CAM Access Point on the same machine as the CAM Administration Service.

Recommended Agent load: Performance may vary depending on network performance/topology and system load.
  • Hosted installations: Deploy a CAM Access Point for every 10,000 agents.
  • On-premises installations: Deploy a CAM Access Point for every 20,000 agents.

CAM Agent

  • Microsoft Windows requirements: Windows 7 SP1/Windows Server 2008 R2 or later, including both 32- and 64-bit. You can install on earlier versions, but this configuration is not supported. .NET 4.5 is required.
  • Citrix Server requirements: Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktop

For centralized deployment via CAM Administrator, domain administrator or local administrator credentials are required, and Windows firewalls on targeted machines must either be configured to allow remote access, or disabled.

CAM database for On-Premises Installations

Production Requirements:
  • 2.0 GHz
  • SQL Server 2016 or later from an account with sysadmin privileges and with the SQL Server Browser Service running.

    SQL Server Express Edition can be used for evaluations only. For your convenience, SQL Server 2019 Express Edition is provided in the 3rd Party folder of the CAM installation package.

  • Microsoft .NET Framework 4.8 or later (required for automated database creation/initialization)

TLS

  • TLS 1.2 with SQL Server 2016 or later
  • Cherwell Service Management Authentication requirements only: CSM 9.1.x or later that uses a version of SQL Server that supports TLS version 1.2

More information is available from Microsoft at https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/3135244/tls-1.2-support-for-microsoft-sql-server.

CAM Administrator and the CAM Administration Service Guidelines

Number of CAM Agents Recommended RAM Recommended Processor(s)
0–25,000 16 GB
25,001–50,000 32 GB Dual-core, 64-bit
50,001+ 64 GB Dual-core, 64-bit

Web Applications Guidelines

Number of CAM Agents Recommended RAM
0–25,000 16 GB
25,001–50,000 32 GB
50,001+ 64 GB

CAM Database Guidelines

The CAM database can reside on any Microsoft SQL Server instance, although the RAM requirements may vary greatly depending on other SQL Server-based applications. The CAM database will consume approximately 1.5 MB of data for every computer for which data is collected; however, we recommend that the database be sized assuming twice that estimate for data analysis.

The following are guidelines based on running the CAM database on a dedicated SQL Server instance:

Number of CAM Agents Recommended RAM Recommended Processor(s)
0–25,000 32 GB Dual-core, 64-bit
25,001–50,000 64 GB Dual-core, 64-bit
50,001+ *

* CAM database performance is highly dependent on the overall load on the SQL Server. For large sites, a dedicated SQL Server is strongly recommended. See CAM Enterprise Recommendations for more information.

Other Requirements

  • Domain administrator or local administrator credentials for centralized CAM Agent deployment.
  • Credentials for accessing virtual environment platforms for virtual machine discovery.
  • Sudo credentials for Linux/Unix/Mac OS discovery. See More on the "sudo" Command.
  • SQL Server database administrator credentials for initial CAM database creation.
  • Depending on your configuration, you may also need credentials for SNMP discovery.