Common Platform Enumeration (CPE) is a standardized method of describing and identifying classes of applications, operating systems, and hardware devices present among an enterprise's computing assets. CPE does not identify unique instantiations of products on systems, such as the installation of XYZ Visualizer Enterprise Suite 4.2.3 with serial number Q472B987P113. Rather, CPE identifies abstract classes of products, such as XYZ Visualizer Enterprise Suite 4.2.3, XYZ Visualizer Enterprise Suite (all versions), or XYZ Visualizer (all variations).

IT management tools can collect information about installed products, identifying these products using their CPE names, and then use this standardized information to help make fully or partially automated decisions regarding the assets. For example, identifying the presence of XYZ Visualizer Enterprise Suite could trigger a vulnerability management tool to check the system for known vulnerabilities in the software, and also trigger a configuration management tool to verify that the software is configured securely in accordance with the organization's policies. This example illustrates how CPE names can be used as a standardized source of information for enforcing and verifying IT management policies across tools.

-- NIST SCAP