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The inventory model

MiniPAM stores relationships, not just rows of addresses. Those relationships answer questions such as “what owns this IP?”, “which services depend on this server?”, and “what did an agent observe on this network?”

The main relationships​

Site
├── Networks
│   ├── Address pools
│   └── IP addresses
├── Devices and servers
│   ├── Interfaces
│   └── Application listeners
├── Logical services
│   ├── Provider applications
│   └── Gateway routes
├── Service gateways and their devices
└── Discovery agents, observations, jobs, and schedules

An IP address belongs to a network and can link to an interface or another supported resource. An application listener belongs either to a device or directly to an IP address and records a port, transport, application protocol, and bind information. A logical service then links one or more application providers and, optionally, the routes that expose it through a gateway.

Tags add a flexible, cross-cutting way to classify records without changing the hierarchy.

Intended records and observations​

Inventory describes what you intend to operate. Discovery describes what an agent observed. MiniPAM stores observed hosts and ports separately, proposes matches and changes, and lets you preview an import plan before it modifies inventory. Ignored port observations can be reopened later.

Sites as boundaries​

Use sites for meaningful locations or operational boundaries. Networks, devices, agents, services, and gateways then have a clear scope. Global service records are also supported when a service is not tied to one location. A site does not need to be large: one home or one office is a useful site.

Devices, servers, and interfaces​

Devices and servers share the same underlying inventory record and can form parent/child hierarchies—for example, a hypervisor with guests or a chassis with dependent devices. Device types provide reusable classifications. Interfaces record names, MAC addresses and vendors, IPv4/IPv6 configuration methods, and can also form parent/child relationships for VLANs or other logical interfaces.

The separate Devices and Servers directories are views suited to different operational roles; do not create duplicate records for the same asset.

Address intent and evidence​

Networks support IPv4 or IPv6, gateways, VLAN information, descriptive status, and pools. Pools divide a network into meaningful ranges. Address records carry assignment and usage state, while their links say what currently uses them. Last-seen data and network activity history add observed evidence without erasing intended state.

Applications, services, and gateways​

  • An application is a concrete listener, such as TCP port 3000 on a device or an HTTPS endpoint bound to an IP.
  • A service is the operator-facing capability, such as “Grafana” or “Home Assistant.” It can have an authoritative anchor provider and additional reference providers.
  • A gateway represents a reverse proxy or similar access layer. Routes attach an FQDN, path prefix, and priority to a service.

This separation lets MiniPAM describe both where software runs and how people reach it.

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