Patent ID: 7734640

Claim:
A method for enumerating an asset using at least one processor, the method comprising: receiving an enumeration request for enumerating the asset; translating the enumeration request from an information model format to a data acquisition (DAQ) format to obtain a translated request; obtaining a DAQ definition from the translated request, wherein the DAQ definition complies with the DAQ format; identifying an actual uniform resource identifier (URI) from the DAQ definition, wherein the identifying is based on the enumeration request, wherein the actual URI comprises an identifier of an enumeration mechanism and an identifier of a protocol; triggering, according to the protocol, a protocol handler to enumerate the asset using the enumeration mechanism identified in the actual URI; obtaining information about at least one instance of the asset from the protocol handler after the protocol handler enumerates the asset; managing the at least one instance of the asset using the information, wherein the asset is at least one selected from a group consisting of a hardware component in a computer and software executing on the computer; determining a relative URI of the enumeration mechanism; and setting the relative URI in a native asset interface (NAI) definition before receiving the enumeration request, wherein the DAQ definition is a runtime binding of the NAI definition.