Software Collection Types

Software Collection Types define how to identify Collections that are used for Application Deployments in SCCM based on their name. A Software Collection Type can be either targeting Device or User Collection. netECM can have as many Software Collection Types as are needed and they can be freely configured.

Software Collection Types allow netECM to provide a list of Software Applications it is able to Install/Uninstall, abstracting away the concept of SCCM Collections. A Software Application consist of an Install Collection (if the application can only be installed), an Uninstall Collection (if the app can only be uninstalled) or usually both (if the app can either be installed or uninstalled).

Configuration

Regular Expression for Install and Uninstall Collections

NOTE A Regular Expression (RegEx in short) is a pattern that the regular expression engine attempts to match in input text. A pattern consists of one or more character literals, operators, or constructs.

The Regular Expressions define how the Install and Uninstall Collections that belong to this Software Collection Type are named. It also defines of which parts/keys (or groups as they are called in RegEx) the Collection Names consist.

If the Regular Expressions would look like this:

  • Install Collections: (?<Prefix>^DSW[RA])\s(?<Manufacturer>[a-zA-Z0-9-.]+)\s(?<Product>[a-zA-Z0-9-.]+)$
  • Uninstall Collections: (?<Prefix>^DSWR)\s(?<Manufacturer>[a-zA-Z0-9-.]+)\s(?<Product>[a-zA-Z0-9-.]+)\s(?<Suffix>Uninstall)$

This would mean that Software Collections would have to have names like:

  • DSWR Microsoft VisualStudioCode
    • Prefix: DSWR
    • Manufacturer: Microsoft
    • Product: VisualStudioCode
  • DSWR Microsoft PowerToys Uninstall
    • Prefix: DSWR
    • Manufacturer: Microsoft
    • Product: VisualStudioCode
    • Suffix: Uninstall
  • DSWR Microsoft PowerToys
    • Prefix: DSWR
    • Manufacturer: Microsoft
    • Product: PowerToys
  • DSWR Microsoft PowerToys Uninstall
    • Prefix: DSWR
    • Manufacturer: Microsoft
    • Product: PowerToys
    • Suffix: Uninstall

Correlation Keys

The purpose of Correlation Keys is to tell netECM how to match together Install and Uninstall Collections.

This contains a dynamic list of all Keys both Regular Expressions from above contain. All the Keys that are needed to match Install and Uninstall Collections together need to be selected.

To stay with the example Collections from above, the following Keys would be available:

  • Prefix
  • Manufacturer
  • Product
  • Suffix

Now to match the Install and the Uninstall Collections togehter, the keys Prefix, Manufacturer and Product need to be selected, because only those parts of the Collection Name match for the Install and Uninstall Collections in the example.

  • Microsoft VisualStudioCode
    • Install Collection: DSWR Microsoft VisualStudioCode
    • Uninstall Collection: DSWR Microsoft VisualStudioCode Uninstall
  • Microsoft PowerToys
    • Install Collection: DSWR Microsoft PowerToys
    • Uninstall Collection: DSWR Microsoft PowerToys Uninstall

Default Software Collection Types

When netECM is initially installed it creates three default Software Collection Types for Device Collections and three for User Collections. Those can be used, changed or removed as it is needed.