The aim of configuration management is to define and control the components of the service and infrastructure and to manage precise configuration information.

All key assets and configurations should be assigned to the responsibility of a manager who ensures appropriate security and control. This is intended to guarantee, amongst other things, that approval is obtained before changes to the CI are implemented. The following recommendations for meeting the specifications for the configuration management process have become established practice:

1. Planning and implementation
2. Configuration identification
3. Configuration control
4. Proof of status
5. Verification and audit

For comparison see the Service Asset & Configuration Management Process according ITIL V3.