Patent ID: 8639798

Claim:
A method of managing a plurality of configuration items, the method comprising: holding a set of data at a repository describing each of a plurality of configuration items, wherein each of the plurality of configuration items includes a computer hardware resource or a computer software program resource, and wherein the set of data for each of the plurality of configuration items includes a plurality of attributes including at least a name of the configuration item, a description of the configuration item, and a relationship of the configuration item with another configuration item for which another set of data is included in the repository; detecting information indicating that at least two configuration items are determined to operate in combination as a functional unit; creating a new set of data for a virtual configuration item from the information detected regarding the at least two configuration items determined to operate in the combination as the functional unit; storing the new set of data for the virtual configuration item in the repository; and managing the new set of data for the virtual configuration item representing the at least two configuration items in the combination as a single configuration item.