Automated bundling

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Automated bundling assigns instances of discovered components to products based on a number of bundling rules. Results of this assignment are shown on the Software Classification panel.

Automated bundling process

After a component is discovered, it undergoes the process of automated bundling. During the process, bundling rules are applied to discover possible component-to-product relations. Each relation is evaluated and assigned an internal score. The component is assigned to the product with the highest score.

If the discovered component belongs to the product and license metric that are assigned during automated bundling, you can confirm the assignment. Otherwise, assign the component to a different product or license metric so that the relation reflects your entitlement, and confirm it. If the assignment is not confirmed, it might be automatically changed. It might happen when a new software catalog is uploaded or when a different product is suggested as the best bundling option based on the new results of automated bundling.

Important: Instances that are a part of an excluded product cannot be reassigned automatically. Instances can be assigned to excluded products only if they are associated with the excluded products based on the software catalog or the stand-alone product discovery. Any new instance that is assigned to the excluded product is also excluded.

Bundling rules that are applied only to newly discovered components

The following bundling rules are applied only when a component is newly discovered. They are not re-evaluated later on.

Table 1. Bundling rules that are applied only to newly discovered components
Rule	Description	Order of evaluation
Component reinstallation	This rule is applied when a component was uninstalled and then installed again in the same location. After such a component is discovered again, it is assigned to the same product to which it was assigned originally. The rule also preserves the assignment to a Cloud Pak if applicable.	This rule is evaluated as the first one. If it is applied, no other rules are evaluated.
Preserving bundling after the upgrade	This rule preserves the assignment of a component to a product after the component is upgraded. The rule is applicable only when a single instance of a component is installed on a particular computer. The rule also preserves the assignment to a Cloud Pak if applicable.	This rule is evaluated as the second one. If it is applied, no other rules are evaluated.
Bundling tags	This rule assigns a component to the product and license metric that are represented by the part number that is listed in the bundling tag. The tag is placed on the computer where the component is installed which allows for assigning the specific instance of the component to the right product and license metric.	This rule is evaluated as the third one. If it is applied, no other rules are evaluated.

Bundling rules that are applied multiple times

The following bundling rules are applied when:

A component is newly discovered.
New part numbers are imported or new entitlements are declared.
The existing component-to-product relation is not confirmed.
The existing component-to-product relation is not a result of applying the following rules: component reinstallation, preserving bundling during the upgrade, bundling tags.

Table 2. Bundling rules that are applied multiple times
Rule	Description	Order of evaluation
Part numbers	This rule uses part numbers that you upload to License Metric Tool to narrow down the list of products and license metrics to which a component can be assigned to the ones that you own. Note: Part numbers and software entitlements are correlated. When you upload part numbers, corresponding products are automatically marked as software entitlements. Importing part numbers or manually declaring software entitlements greatly improves the initial software classification of the discovered components. When handling products with established thresholds, apply the same treatment as if the entitled flag were set on them (imported part number). This is particularly significant for rules pertaining to 'Part Number' and 'Part Number for Cloud Pak'.	The rules are evaluated and applied at the same time, each with a different weigh.
Software entitlements	This rule uses your declaration of which products you own to narrow down the list of products and license metrics to which a component can be assigned.
Partition collocation	This rule discovers components that are installed on the same partition, and are related to the same product in the software catalog.
Infrastructure collocation	This rule discovers components that are installed in the same infrastructure, and are related to the same product in the software catalog. The search does not include the computer on which the component is installed.
Stand-alone product discovery	This rule identifies all products to which a component can be assigned and chooses the product for which the fewest components are listed in the software catalog.